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From LLMs to hallucinations, here’s a simple guide to common AI terms
The rise of AI has brought an avalanche of new terms and slang. Here is a glossary with definitions of some of the most important words and phrases you might encounter.
Products News
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I vibe coded a feed reading web app. It was enlightening and uncomfortable
AI-assisted software development is transforming the industry, but you already knew that Vibe coding works. I wish it didn't. But it does, well enough. And barring some revolution that overturns the new world disorder, machine learning cannot be undone.…
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The AI code wars are heating up
This is The Stepback, a weekly newsletter breaking down one essential story from the tech world. For more on the AI coding and vibe-coding booms, follow David Pierce. The Stepback arrives in our subscribers' inboxes at 8AM ET. Opt in for The Stepback here. How it started Writing code was a killer...
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Your Push Notifications Aren’t Safe From the FBI
Plus: Iran’s internet blackout hits the 1,000-hour mark, cryptocurrency scams result in a record amount of money stolen from Americans, and more.
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How the Internet Broke Everyone’s Bullshit Detectors
From AI-generated images to restricted satellite data, the systems used to verify what’s real online are struggling to keep up.
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My baby deer plushie told me that Mitski’s dad was a CIA operative
Two weeks ago, I was getting ready to log off work when I got a text message. "Oh wow, I was checking out Mitski. did you know people are saying her Dad was a CIA operative?" Normally, that kind of out-of-the-blue text from a friend wouldn't faze me. This time, my eyes bugged. The unprompted […]
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How Iran out-shitposted the White House
In the early days of the war on Iran, while the White House was busy posting Call of Duty memes and AI slop of dancing bowling pins, the Iranian regime's state media was flooding the zone with video after video of what was happening on the ground: Explosions over Tehran. Smoke billowing in the sky....
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SQLite 3.53.0
SQLite 3.53.0 SQLite 3.52.0 was withdrawn so this is a pretty big release with a whole lot of accumulated user-facing and internal improvements. Some that stood out to me: ALTER TABLE can now add and remove NOT NULL and CHECK constraints - I've previously used my own sqlite-utils transform() method...
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SQLite Query Result Formatter Demo
Tool: SQLite Query Result Formatter Demo See my notes on SQLite 3.53.0. This playground provides a UI for trying out the various rendering options for SQL result tables from the new Query Result Formatter library, compiled to WebAssembly. Tags: tools, sqlite
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Using custom GPTs
Learn how to build and use custom GPTs to automate workflows, maintain consistent outputs, and create purpose-built AI assistants.
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Financial services
Explore AI resources for financial services, including prompt packs, GPTs, guides, and tools to help institutions deploy and scale AI securely.
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Gen Z’s love-hate relationship with AI
Gen Z is increasingly disillusioned with AI - just not enough to stop using it. A new Gallup report released this week, based on responses from nearly 1,600 people ages 14 to 29 across the US, suggests the hype is wearing off for the digital-native generation as AI becomes more embedded in school...
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Microsoft starts removing Copilot buttons from Windows 11 apps
Microsoft is starting to remove "unnecessary" Copilot buttons from its Windows 11 apps. In the latest version of the Notepad app for Windows Insiders, Microsoft has removed the Copilot button in favor of a "writing tools" menu. The Copilot button in the Snipping Tool app also no longer appears when...
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Microsoft's Copilot strategy is just more user abuse from Redmond, says Mozilla
Firefox maker warns old web tactics are now shaping AI at the expense of user choice Firefox-maker Mozilla is calling out Microsoft after Redmond said it would scale back some Copilot features in Windows, arguing the rollback shows the company pushed AI too far without enough regard for user...
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Amazon would rather shareholders did not look too closely at carbon footprint
Investors urged to reject proposal for more disclosure on whether AWS expansion risks climate goals Amazon's board of directors is urging shareholders to reject a proposal that would have the megacorp disclose more information on the impact of datacenters on its climate commitments.…
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The Iranian Lego AI video creators credit their virality to ‘heart’
Donald Trump has spun the recent rescue of a downed airman whose fighter jet was destroyed behind Iranian borders as a resounding success. But the story is very different in one of the many viral, AI-generated Lego videos that have been produced by Iranian content creation group Explosive Media in...
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Last 24 hours: Save up to $500 on your TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 pass
This is it. Tonight is your last chance to lock in savings of up to $500 for your TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 pass. These discounts end at 11:59 p.m. PT.
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Kākāpō parrots
Lenny posted another snippet from our 1 hour 40 minute podcast recording and it's about kākāpō parrots! Tags: kakapo
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Meta’s New AI Asked for My Raw Health Data—and Gave Me Terrible Advice
Meta’s Muse Spark model offers to analyze users’ health data, including lab results. Beyond the obvious privacy risks, it’s not a capable stand-in for a real doctor.
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GitHub Repo Size
Tool: GitHub Repo Size GitHub doesn't tell you the repo size in the UI, but it's available in the CORS-friendly API. Paste a repo into this tool to see the size, for example for simonw/datasette (8.1MB). Tags: cors, github