John Merchant retweeted
How is this any different to China and critical minerals inputs.
According to the Financial Times, the US ambassador to the EU has threatened severe economic consequences if Europe gives preference to its own satellite communications companies.
At the same time, the US administration is restricting Starlink and Starshield services in Ukraine, even though European countries are paying for some of these services.
It's a remarkably consistent policy: make your allies dependent on American technology, then threaten them economically when they try to reduce that dependence.
The EU is already in a very difficult position. Its economy is struggling, and the Russian military threat is becoming increasingly real, with Russian drone attacks now reaching EU territorial waters.
And instead of helping its European allies become stronger, Washington is threatening them for trying to become less dependent on it.
John Merchant retweeted
Replying to @LiquidHbox
Two things can be true at once, and I think the argument is because of people confusing the two.
1. AI has no creative taste and makes slop when asked
2. AI can do incredibly tedious work to make awesome things possible
For a really simple example: having AI write a novel would be terrible. AI translating a novel to a different language with human oversight is much less terrible.
Wish people would stop confusing the two
John Merchant retweeted
anthropic made claude code 3x faster using gzip.
a compression tool from 1992.
John Merchant retweeted
Alright who invented the time machine?
AI predictions for next 6-9 months
-> Anthropic/ OAI fail to ban OSS in the US
-> Anthropic/ OAI continue to innovate product but stall on fundamental tech breakthroughs
-> SOTA Gemini 4 launches at 10x lower cost
-> Elon open sources Grok
-> Anthropic/ OAI ARR growth stalls as enterprises move from tokenmaxxing to rational token consumption/ OSS
-> slow realization in public markets that AI may not replace human labor in next 1-3 years/ has not had a fundamental tech breakthrough in over a year/ lacks ROI/ AI hyper and lab spend not durable
-> moonboy VCs/ hedge funds/ softbank continue to fund Anthropic/ OAI equity raises in private markets as public markets for them are now fully closed
-> CXMT, YMTC announce capacity expansions significantly above market expectations
-> hypers deliver good q326 results on first look but fail to show meaningful AI ROI, guide to "significant capex expansion in fy27"
-> broad realization in public markets the AI dream we got sold on is not anywhere close to realization
-> 10yr hits >5%
-> hyper bonds reprice >10%, CDS hit 3x current levels, and AI credit market dries up as market realizes GPU ABF was not a good idea
-> hyper equities reprice 30-50% lower
-> ORCL falls below $30 as rumors of bailout make the round
-> market realizes memory is cyclical and LTAs won't hold
-> 50% of korean traders get wiped within a week
-> hypers cut fy27 capex
-> semis reprice >80% lower
-> fed cuts >150bps to avoid recession
John Merchant retweeted
We don’t use Starlink for our responses inside Russia. We use Starlink to intercept jet-powered “shaheds” that attack our civilians and kill families.
Starlink wasn’t turned off – its speed was reduced. And when the speed was reduced, we were unable to intercept a certain number of jet-powered “shaheds.” We couldn’t use a tool that helps protect people. That’s very painful and frustrating.
We also use Starlink for mid-range strikes against enemy military targets in our temporarily occupied territories. We couldn’t do that when the restrictions were in place. And third, what matters most is people. Our warriors, who spend weeks and months on the front line, receive food and water delivered by drones using Starlink.
Has the speed been fully restored to what it was before? No. Is it being restored now? Yes.
From a conversation with media representatives in Brussels. (2/3)
We can use a lot more software.
We can also use better software.
Demand for software right now is virtually infinite.
Replying to @svpino
Jevons held for coal because demand for heat kept stretching. Does demand for software stretch the same way, or does it run into how much code people can actually review and own?
Thanks Albo and Blackout for ruining my holiday
BREAKING: Bali has run out of fuel, with hours-long queues outside gas stations since Sunday and attendants posting signs reading "Sorry, no fuel available." Shortages are now hitting at least 11 Indonesian provinces.
Waiting times reached 2 to 3 hours in West Sumatra, and diesel queues ran about a kilometre on the Merak-Tangerang highway in Banten. Diesel or Pertalite sold out in Aceh, Riau, West Kalimantan, South Sulawesi, North Sulawesi and Yogyakarta.
Fuel tenders now attract few participants, per Indonesia's oil and gas director general, forcing the government to seek supplies directly from countries with surplus stocks at higher prices. Indonesia lost 25% of its fuel import sources after the Iran war began.
Bali is now preparing to restrict subsidised fuel sales to the top income decile.
John Merchant retweeted
Yes, the flying car is real, and obviously that package is just for stunts. But the underlying car is a valid product.
The downforce fan is the main thing for road use. You can get the rear rockets as an upgrade to achieve insane 0-60, presumably with some restrictions on where you can use them for safety reasons, and the full flight package is a limited run for stunt drivers.
John Merchant retweeted
Screens are literally a scam, the most sophisticated scam ever. They created a machine that mimics the look of images. Then told everyone they were really images— an impossibility, but the illusion was convincing. Based on that deception, they fleeced investors of trillions.
John Merchant retweeted
That demo involved a non trivial chance of embarrassing failure! 🫡
I’m only going for the baseline model. At this point in my life, rocket bunny hops are out of my comfort zone.
John Merchant retweeted
In terms of the balance of performance and convenience it's one of the best (if not the best).
When in doubt, just use C# and ASP.NET Core.
It's blazing fast.
.NET 11 RC2 is even faster.
For me, it's the best overall major web framework - auth, config, logging, perf, modular middleware, DI, cross-plat, etc.
But I didn't expect this:







































