OpenAI has introduced an interface for interacting with ChatGPT called 'canvas'. The feature allows users to generate text and then highlight sections of the text to have the model edit. It is now available in beta to ChatGPT Plus users - Enterprise and Edu users will receive it next week. OpenAI plans to offer the feature to free users once it is out of beta.
Cloudflare blocks largest recorded DDoS attack peaking at 3.8Tbps (3 minute read)
The month-long assault targeted organizations in the financial services, internet, and telecommunications sectors.
Facebook launches a Gen Z-focused redesign (6 minute read)
Meta has announced a series of changes to Facebook that will put a greater emphasis on local community information, videos, and Facebook Groups. The changes are aimed at making Facebook more approachable for those wanting to connect with their local community or be entertained. Meta also announced updates to Meta AI, Facebook Dating, and Messenger. This article goes through the long list of upcoming changes in detail.
Google's Grip on Search Slips as TikTok and AI Startup Mount Challenge (4 minute read)
TikTok has recently started allowing brands to target ads based on users' search queries and Perplexity, an AI search startup, plans to introduce ads later this month under its AI-generated answers. Google's share of the US search ad market is expected to drop below 50% next year for the first time in over a decade. Generative AI, which serves fully formed answers to user queries, is transforming search products. Companies are experimenting with ways to monetize ads with chatbots, but some analysts are uncertain whether ads in chatbots will be as valuable as traditional search because people might be less likely to click on them.
The US has passed peak obesity, a new survey suggests. Is it the Ozempic effect? (2 minute read)
The obesity rate in adults in the US fell by 2% between 2020 and 2023. There is no established direct link between new weight-loss drugs like Ozempic and the decline in obesity, but there is a strong possibility of a link considering the medications hit the market around 2021. Approximately one in eight US adults have tried the new weight-loss drugs, with more than 15 million using a prescription. At least 25,000 people in the US are starting the drug every week.
One is a React framework for web and native that simplifies things with universal, typed routing seamlessly across static, server, and client pages. The project aims to make full stack development as simple as possible. It allows developers to target React Native and web with a single code base with shared file-system routing. One includes a production server out of the box.
content-visibility: the new CSS property that boosts your rendering performance (12 minute read)
The content-visibility property launching in Chromium 85 may be one of the most impactful new CSS properties for improving page load performance. It enables the user agent to skip an element's rendering work until it is needed. It also allows for faster interactions with on-screen content. Reducing rendering work can in some situations reduce a page's Interaction to Next Paint, a metric that evaluates a page's ability to be reliably responsive to user input.
Meta's new “Movie Gen” AI system can deepfake video from a single photo (5 minute read)
Meta does not yet have plans for when or how it will release the new capabilities to the public.
The 30-year-old internet backdoor law that came back to bite (5 minute read)
China-backed hackers have compromised the wiretap systems of several US telecom and internet providers. These wiretap systems typically grant a select few employees nearly unlimited access to information about customers, including internet traffic and browsing histories. Technologists have warned for years about the security risks of legally required backdoors. The wiretap systems are mandated under a 30-year-old US federal law, which requires communication providers to provide the government with all necessary assistance to access customers' information when presented with a lawful order.
How Long Til We're All on Ozempic? (24 minute read)
The supply of GLP-1 medications like Ozempic has been plagued with shortages. While companies are doing what they can to increase supply, it is extremely unlikely that demand will be met in the near term. This article looks at growth for GLP-1 drugs over the next six years and how many people will stand to benefit from them over this time. More than two in five people in the US are overweight, so increasing access to the drug will have a large benefit on the population.
This site contains video and audio player themes for every web player and every web app framework. The themes are searchable and can be copied easily into any site. They can be customized using just HTML and CSS.
Automattic is doing open source dirty (3 minute read)
Automattic demanding 8% of WP Engine's revenues for not 'giving back enough' to WordPress is a violation of general open source ideals and the specifics of the GPL license. The potential damage to the open source world extends far beyond WordPress. Open source has been successful over the last several decades because of the clarity and certainty of its licensing regime, which allows people to build a business on open source without fear of frivolous claims or surprise shakedowns. The integrity of these licenses is under direct assault by Automattic's claim for WP Engine's revenues. Automattic is able to change its license away from the GPL if it wishes.
You can't imagine how effective China's weather modification program is (5 minute read)
China is using cloud seeding technology to increase rainfall to reduce desertification, fight wildfires, and refill depleted reservoirs, lakes, and wetlands.