Sequoia Capital: “As the LLM market structure stabilizes, the next frontier is now emerging. The focus is shifting to the development and scaling of the reasoning layer, where “System 2” thinking takes precedence. Inspired by models like AlphaGo, this layer aims to endow AI systems with deliberate reasoning, problem-solving and cognitive operations at inference time that go beyond rapid pattern matching. And new cognitive architectures and user interfaces are shaping how these reasoning capabilities are delivered to and interact with users. What does all of this mean for founders in the AI market? What does this mean for incumbent software companies? And where do we, as investors, see the most promising layer for returns in the Generative AI stack?”
NYTimes: “The first thing customers see when they walk into the Strand Book Store in Manhattan is a table of anonymous books with covers wrapped like Christmas presents and titles replaced by vague descriptions. The store calls it “Blind Date With a Book.” “When in Rome” by Sarah Adams is disguised as “Freshly Baked Slow Burn Rom-com.” “Spoiler Alert” by Olivia Dade becomes a “You’ve Got Mail-esque Romance.” Sometimes a whimsical drawing accompanies the description. Bookstores that have embraced “Blind Date Books” say they are beloved by customers. People are attracted to the element of surprise, and stores have found a new way to sell books that are overlooked because they are not new, best-selling or penned by a famous author.”
WSJ: “A new generation of executives is reimagining how business is getting done. Hyper-connected and digitally native, 20- and 30-somethings rarely make sales calls, avoid email and are loath to pick up the phone. They make connections over LinkedIn and follow up via text. When they do meet in person, it’s more likely to be over coffee than lunch, and if invited to a party, they are ordering mocktails and nonalcoholic beer…The shift in how younger business people choose to entertain and communicate with clients and investors isn’t just about personal preferences. For a host of reasons including increased competition, the Covid-19 pandemic, employee turnover and the proliferation of decision makers, the old ways of doing business no longer work as well.”
Ben Rhodes: “After he lost an election in 2002, Mr. Orban spent years holding “civic circles” around Hungary — grass-roots meetings, often around churches, which built an agenda and sense of belonging that propelled him back into power. In their own way, the next generation of Democratic leaders should fan out across the country. Learn from mayors innovating at the local level. Listen to communities that feel alienated. Find places where multiracial democracy is working better than it is in the rest of the country. Tell those stories when pitching policies. Foster a sense of belonging to something bigger, so democracy doesn’t feel like the pablum of a ruling elite, but rather the remedy for fixing what is broken in Washington and our body politic.”
Bloomberg: “BYD, which stands for “Build Your Dreams,” is the brainchild of Wang Chuanfu, a 58-year-old battery scientist who in the 1990s saw an opportunity to start a rechargeable battery company to challenge Japan’s hold on the industry. It began by focusing on batteries for mobile phones and power tools, but in 2003 it decided to pursue cars. Wang’s battery and manufacturing innovations, cushioned by China’s EV-friendly government policies and the scale of its domestic auto market, have helped BYD do what Tesla Inc., Ford Motor Co. and the rest of the auto industry haven’t: build an affordable electric car for the masses and make money doing it. Since introducing a new battery technology in 2020, BYD has gone from being an also-ran in China’s crowded car market to cracking the top 10 automakers in the world. It’s unseated Volkswagen AG from its decade-plus perch at the top in China and briefly—in late 2023—surpassed Tesla to become the biggest seller of pure electric vehicles globally.”
