2026-08-07 09:16:39
Spent a little time this evening adding another database backup location. My primary database server has been so reliable, but eventually I know my luck will run out.
2026-08-07 04:50:46
Mark Gurman reports on OpenAI’s upcoming device:
The product — essentially a smart speaker without a display — will be shaped like a doughnut that’s roughly the size of a hockey puck […] The battery-powered item will be designed to work in different positions — in a user’s hand, say, or placed on a nightstand or kitchen counter.
Can’t wait to see this. 🍩
2026-08-07 04:36:29
I’ve switched Micro.blog’s Standard.site content format to the Markpub.at lexicon. It includes just Markdown, not HTML, but should be compatible with other AT Proto apps now.
2026-08-07 03:56:29
Alan Jacobs blogged about the Demis Hassabis quote I wrote about:
The Big Tech companies have been so indifferent, or even hostile, to human well-being for so many years now that their promises are worth absolutely zero.
I feel the same way about much of big tech — especially Meta, TikTok, and to an extent Google, Amazon — but I sort of compartmentalize Demis (and some others) as having their own principles. I do think that a lot of the distrust in AI is because big tech burned all the goodwill, though. See also: Meta glasses, privacy, etc.
2026-08-07 00:40:41
This blog post from both Sundar Pichai and Demis Hassabis has the unfortunate title “The next chapter of our AI momentum”, but it does contain some interesting perspectives. Demis will be spending more time with Isomorphic:
As you’ve heard me say many times, I’ve always believed the No.1 application of AI should be to improve human health. It’s time for AI to prove its unequivocal value to the world, and what better way to demonstrate that than to help finally cure diseases like cancer.
There are, of course, already positive and negative effects from the AI industry. Based on our beliefs about the technology, we’ll either amplify or downplay aspects of it. It’s pretty easy to find both the good and bad.
Earlier this year I wrote about AI for health. That was a fairly cautious, practical essay. I’m confident it will be proven correct because frankly, it wasn’t even very ambitious.
I’ve heard Demis use the phrase “cure all disease” a few times before. It sounds at the same time outlandish and exactly the right goal. Maybe we don’t get there in our lifetimes. Maybe we never get there. But I certainly don’t fault anyone for having a dream to make everyone’s life better.
Sam Altman posted on X the other day:
i would rather be an optimist and work hard than a pessimist posting about why things won’t work.
Many people are cynical about Sam Altman. I get it. But I agree with him here and while his post wasn’t about Demis, it fits.
2026-08-07 00:02:10
Matt Mullenweg blogs about the division in WordPress between bloggers and site builders:
Many of the OG developers of WordPress, including myself, tend more towards the blogging side. Writers, photographers, podcasters, journalists, the people for whom a reverse chronological stream on the homepage is the most obvious thing in the world.
This is a disconnect I noticed years ago. So much effort was spent on competing with Squarespace and Wix, WordPress felt bloated for regular bloggers. I’m glad Matt is aware of it.