TLDR 2021-08-13

Nvidia's GTC conference in April featured a keynote presentation by its CEO Jensen Huang. Part of the presentation was virtually generated with the help of AI. Huang's kitchen, the venue for the presentation, was also entirely computer-generated. The company recently published a video explaining how they created the GTC keynote. It is available in the article.

DoorDash was recently in talks to buy Instacart for up to $50 billion. Instacart initiated the talks, which have since fallen apart due to concerns over whether the deal would get antitrust regulators' approval. The company plans to list in the next few months. Instacart had also tried to initiate talks with Uber about a sales partnership, but those talks have also fallen apart. All companies involved have declined to comment on the rumors.

Circle has announced its intention to become a fully regulated bank. Its aim is to become a narrow bank that places all deposits on reserve at the central bank. If this were achieved, USDC would become a cryptocurrency fully backed by the Federal Reserve. Circle would profit off the interest that the Fed pays on bank reserves. Previous attempts by other companies to do narrow banking in the US have failed as the Fed doesn't like the idea. Circle has yet to initiate the process of applying to be a bank.

The Cube is the world's first carbon concrete building. Its concrete is reinforced with carbon fibers rather than steel rods, making it four times stronger and lighter than traditional concrete. As carbon fiber doesn't rust, the concrete is more durable over a longer period. It also allows for the same structural strength while using far less material. Carbon concrete can reduce CO2 emissions from construction by up to 50 percent. A video outlining the construction process of The Cube is available in the article.

Assembler can be used to quickly prototype and build modern websites without the need to install and maintain complex software. It improves the performance of websites by generating only the minimum amount of CSS each webpage needs. Assembler is lightweight, fast, easy to learn, and customizable.

This project implements a backend for sql.js that treats IndexedDB like a disk and stores data in blocks there. It makes the sqlite3 database persistent in a way where it can read and write to the database in small chunks. A demo is available.

Assembler can be used to quickly prototype and build modern websites without the need to install and maintain complex software. It improves the performance of websites by generating only the minimum amount of CSS each webpage needs. Assembler is lightweight, fast, easy to learn, and customizable.

Xsolla laid off roughly one-third of its workforce after an algorithm employed by the company decided that they were unengaged and unproductive employees. The company had increased its revenue by 80 percent last year, but growth has slowed down in the last six months. Xsolla decided to cut its salary budget using the algorithm, which analyzes employee's work activities. The CEO has blamed reduced productivity on remote work and has defended the use of the algorithm. Xsolla promised to help find new jobs for the laid-off workers.

Lionel Messi's financial package at Paris Saint Germain includes $PSG Fan Tokens. The two-year deal, with an option for a third, includes an annual salary of $41 million plus bonuses, and a $30 million signing-on fee. It is expected to bring a windfall of commercial revenues, such as through jersey sales. Messi joined PSG as a free agent after Barcelona acknowledged that they could no longer afford him. The $PSG token was designed to help PSG build a new fan community.