Monday, January 15, 2024

After NFT sales dropped 63% YoY to $8.7B in 2023, OpenSea CEO Devin Finzer talks OpenSea 2.0, set to offer improved differentiation between NFT categories (Hannah Miller/Bloomberg)

Hannah Miller / Bloomberg:
After NFT sales dropped 63% YoY to $8.7B in 2023, OpenSea CEO Devin Finzer talks OpenSea 2.0, set to offer improved differentiation between NFT categories  —  - NFTs have lagged behind Bitcoin in crypto resurgence  — OpenSea CEO Devin Finzer said more use cases for NFTs are here



Apple's September 2023 change to how its Podcasts app automatically downloaded episodes has dramatically curtailed download numbers for some podcasts (Max Tani/Semafor)

Max Tani / Semafor:
Apple's September 2023 change to how its Podcasts app automatically downloaded episodes has dramatically curtailed download numbers for some podcasts  —  Apple has quietly tightened its reporting of how many people listen to podcasts, sending shock waves through an embattled audio industry still reeling …



Switzerland-based SoftwareOne, which advises companies on cloud strategies, rejects Bain's $3.5B takeover, ending months of back-and-forth; SWON.SW drops 10%+ (Bloomberg)

Bloomberg:
Switzerland-based SoftwareOne, which advises companies on cloud strategies, rejects Bain's $3.5B takeover, ending months of back-and-forth; SWON.SW drops 10%+  —  - Bain had offered the equivalent of 18.8 Swiss francs per share  — Company has been in negotiations with Bain for several months



How some artists are incorporating Dall-E, Midjourney, and other AI tools into their work, while others remain anxious about AI's impact on their livelihoods (Emma Park/Financial Times)

Emma Park / Financial Times:
How some artists are incorporating Dall-E, Midjourney, and other AI tools into their work, while others remain anxious about AI's impact on their livelihoods  —  Forward-thinking designers are willing to embrace the technology — without relinquishing human creativity's central role



Sunday, January 14, 2024

How dye-sensitized solar cells, which are lightweight, bendable, and manufactured cheaply, can capture light indoors to charge small gadgets like headphones (Christopher Mims/Wall Street Journal)

Christopher Mims / Wall Street Journal:
How dye-sensitized solar cells, which are lightweight, bendable, and manufactured cheaply, can capture light indoors to charge small gadgets like headphones  —  Indoor solar power technology is finally becoming available; Some devices no longer need batteries at all



Documents show Turkey told ISPs to block access to 16 VPN services, fueling concerns of the government stifling news and information before elections in March (Adam Samson/Financial Times)

Adam Samson / Financial Times:
Documents show Turkey told ISPs to block access to 16 VPN services, fueling concerns of the government stifling news and information before elections in March  —  New controls on VPNs underline Erdoğan's moves to curb freedom of information  —  Turkey is tightening its censorship …



Sources detail the Vision Pro's in-store sales process, which includes extensive fitting and calibration and an employee-guided demo lasting up to 25 minutes (Mark Gurman/Bloomberg)

Mark Gurman / Bloomberg:
Sources detail the Vision Pro's in-store sales process, which includes extensive fitting and calibration and an employee-guided demo lasting up to 25 minutes  —  The company is preparing an extensive sales pitch for the $3,499 device, including a demo lasting as long as 25 minutes.



OpenAI's GPT Store debut is reminiscent of Facebook Platform's 2007 launch, which allowed Facebook to use third-party developers' products to boost stickiness (David Karpf/The Atlantic)

David Karpf / The Atlantic:
OpenAI's GPT Store debut is reminiscent of Facebook Platform's 2007 launch, which allowed Facebook to use third-party developers' products to boost stickiness  —  The immediate future of generative AI looks a bit like Facebook's past.  —  ChatGPT has certainly captured the world's imagination since its release at the end of 2022.



Saturday, January 13, 2024

Interoperability across ecosystems was one of CES 2024's main themes, with widespread support for Qi2 wireless charging perhaps being the most significant shift (Emma Roth/The Verge)

Emma Roth / The Verge:
Interoperability across ecosystems was one of CES 2024's main themes, with widespread support for Qi2 wireless charging perhaps being the most significant shift  —  Last year, you couldn't mention CES without bringing up Matter.  It was a pivotal year for the smart home standard …



Google pulls Binance, Kraken, and other global crypto apps from the Play Store in India, after the country flagged them for operating illegally in December 2023 (Manish Singh/TechCrunch)

Manish Singh / TechCrunch:
Google pulls Binance, Kraken, and other global crypto apps from the Play Store in India, after the country flagged them for operating illegally in December 2023  —  Google has pulled many crypto exchanges, including Binance and Kraken, from its Play Store in India, the latest blow …



Chainalysis analysis of 400 crypto wallets of CSAM sellers: revenue is down since 2021, but sellers are using mixers and privacy coins to evade law enforcement (Andy Greenberg/Wired)

Andy Greenberg / Wired:
Chainalysis analysis of 400 crypto wallets of CSAM sellers: revenue is down since 2021, but sellers are using mixers and privacy coins to evade law enforcement  —  Crypto tracing firm Chainalysis found that sellers of child sexual abuse materials are successfully using “mixers” and …



US chipmaker Wolfspeed was the only stock in the Philadelphia Stock Exchange Semiconductor index to decline in 2023, amid struggles at its new plant in NY (Ian King/Bloomberg)

Ian King / Bloomberg:
US chipmaker Wolfspeed was the only stock in the Philadelphia Stock Exchange Semiconductor index to decline in 2023, amid struggles at its new plant in NY  —  - Wolfspeed investors have soured amid struggles with new plant  — The semiconductor stock is off to a rough start this year



Electricians are flocking to regions around the US to build data centers, as AI shapes up to be an economy-bending force that creates boom towns (New York Times)

New York Times : Electricians are flocking to regions around the US to build data centers, as AI shapes up to be an economy-bending force...