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I’m a senior principal engineer. I use AI at work, but some tasks you should do from scratch — here’s how I decide.
This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Brandon Pedersen, a 41-year-old senior principal engineer at GoTo, based in the Salt Lake City area. The following has been edited for length and clarity. As a senior principal engineer at GoTo, where I started working in 2013, I’m the technical…
I own a baklava bakery in San Francisco. Life as a small business owner in a city flush with AI money has been hard.
This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Tolgay Karabulut, the 43-year-old founder of BaklavaStory, a baklava bakery in San Francisco. It has been edited for length and clarity. I’ve been running a baklava bakery, the thing I’m most passionate about, for the last five years. But the…
The Taiwan Test
Caught between two superpowers, Taiwan stands to be the world’s most dangerous flash point. The island democracy of 23.2 million people knows its precarious position. For the last four decades, the global semiconductor hub has conducted annual military drills focused on staving off a cross-strait…
Europe is rethinking where it keeps its gold
Geopolitical turmoil is pushing central banks to think harder about where they keep their gold reserves. On Wednesday, the Netherlands central bank said it had reallocated about 86 metric tons of gold from New York and Ottawa to London between March and August, “in view of increasing geopolitical…
Paul Graham says launching a startup is the ‘least efficient’ way to look cool
There are easier ways to impress people than spending years trying to keep a company alive, says Paul Graham. “If you want to seem cool, like starting a startup is just about the least efficient way to do it,” Graham, the cofounder of Y Combinator, said in an interview with the accelerator that was…
What smart people in business and tech are saying about AI bans for schools
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani introduced a one-year ban on AI in schools, which he said could affect 600,000 public school students. And the tech world has a lot to say. On Wednesday, Mamdani proposed a moratorium that would ban the use of AI in schools for children from 2-K — school for…
Tesla launches steering-wheel-free Cybercab robotaxi in Austin
Tesla added its two-door, steering-wheel-free Cybercab to its robotaxi network on Thursday, offering its first rides to the public in Austin as the company races to expand its autonomous ride-hailing service. At an invite-only event in downtown Austin, Ashok Elluswamy, Tesla’s VP of AI, announced…
17 ‘Harry Potter’ stars, ranked from least to most successful
Daniel Radcliffe, Harry Potter himself, has become quite the actor since leaving Hogwarts. He’s shied away from big-budget films, instead focusing on bonkers films such as “Guns Akimbo,” “Swiss Army Man,” and the interactive finale of “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt.” He also appeared in the magical…
How Are Annuities Taxed? Withdrawals, Payouts and Penalties
Annuities can look tax-friendly because your money grows without an annual tax bill, but the real surprise often comes when you start taking money out. Depending on how the annuity was funded, withdrawals can trigger ordinary income taxes, early-withdrawal penalties and surrender charges. Combined…
Bye-bye ‘Chicken Shop Date’ — one of YouTube’s most iconic shows is ending after over a decade
No more chicken for Amelia Dimoldenberg. After 12 years of hosting “Chicken Shop Date” on YouTube and interviewing musicians, celebrities, and other creators, Dimoldenberg announced that the internet talk show is coming to an end. “I never thought I’d stop Chicken Shop Date,” Dimoldenberg wrote in…