TLDR 2023-05-31

Apple headset leaks 🥽, building billion user platforms 👪, hacking a smart toothbrush 👨‍💻

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Big Tech & Startups

Nvidia is now a $1 trillion company thanks to the AI boom (2 minute read)

Nvidia temporarily became a $1 trillion company this week. Its rising valuation is being fueled by tech companies racing to add generative AI to their products. Nvidia’s Computex 2023 keynote was full of AI announcements. The company reported over $2 billion in profits over three months in its last quarterly earnings report.

Apple Reality Pro leak reveals a seriously high-res display - 4K for each eye (2 minute read)

Apple's AR mixed-reality headset will reportedly have a 1.4-inch 4K screen in front of each eye. The micro OLED screens will have more than 5,000 nits of brightness and likely support ProMotion with a 120Hz or higher refresh rate. The reports of a $3,000 price tag are likely accurate. Apple is expected to launch the headset on Monday during its WWDC keynote.
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Science & Futuristic Technology

Half of children given skinny jab no longer clinically obese US study (2 minute read)

Nearly half of children dosed with semaglutide in a study lost enough weight to no longer be classed as clinically obese. Almost three-quarters of the children assigned the drug had an improvement in at least one BMI category by the end of the study, compared with just under a fifth on the placebo. The study demonstrates the high degree of clinical effectiveness the drug has in adolescents with obesity. While the drug may have transformative effects for people living with obesity, doctors warn that it is not a quick fix and that it should be used in conjunction with lifestyle therapies and other anti-obesity measures.

German start-up wins initial funding for revolutionary fusion energy machine (4 minute read)

Proxima Fusion aims to build a revolutionary fusion energy machine called a stellarator. The stellarator is a more complicated design and build than a traditional tokamak, but it produces more stable plasma and can sustain fusion reactions for longer. They are difficult to design but easier to operate than tokamaks. Proxima is the first fusion company to spin out of the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics. The institute currently houses the world's most advanced existing stellarator.
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Programming, Design & Data Science

useHooks (GitHub Repo)

This repository contains a collection of Server Component safe React Hooks. It includes hooks for tracking user battery status, managing and manipulating lists, tracking variables, responding to changes to documents, managing counter values, and more.

fastgron (GitHub Repo)

fastgron is a high-performance JSON to GRON converter. It transforms JSON into discrete assignments to make it easier to grep and see the absolute path to it. fastgron makes exploring APIs with terrible documentation easier.
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Miscellaneous

OpenAI execs warn of risk of extinction from artificial intelligence in new open letter (6 minute read)

The Center for AI Safety has released a statement signed by several leaders in the AI field saying that mitigating the risk of extinction from AI should be a global priority. The open letter doesn't specify exactly what AI is nor does it suggest how these risks might be mitigated. The CAIS says it wants to put guardrails in place and set up institutions so that AI risks don't catch humans off guard. Some critics say that these companies prioritizing hypothetical future threats are ignoring and diverting attention away from AI harms that exist right now.

Big Techs Biggest Bets (50 minute read)

This article looks at big tech's biggest bets and the challenges these companies face in developing the technologies they have bet on. It covers Apple and Meta's plans to develop mixed reality headsets, Amazon's Alexa, Microsoft's AI, Android, iOS, gaming, new platforms, and much more.
Quick Links

Hacking my smart toothbrush (6 minute read)

The Phillips Sonicare toothbrush contains an NFC tag that communicates with the toothbrush handle to remind users when it is time to buy a new one.

QR code designer (GitHub Repo)

QR code designer is a web app that allows users to create QR codes with arbitrary designs in the middle section.

Intels Revival Plan Runs Into Trouble (8 minute read)

Intel has serious issues in terms of leadership, people, and methodology.

macro-ts (GitHub Repo)

macro-ts is an ergonomic TypeScript compiler that enables typesafe syntactic macros.

China launches crewed mission to its space station (2 minute read)

Shenzhou-16 launched on Tuesday to deliver three crew members to China's space station.

Stop Being a Junior (7 minute read)

This blog post talks about how to stop being a junior and start making major positive movements in your career.
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