Posts

Is AI Slowing Down? Nathan Labenz Says We're Asking the Wrong Question

Is AI Slowing Down? Nathan Labenz Says We're Asking the Wrong Question

Nathan Labenz argues that AI progress is not slowing down but is instead manifesting in less obvious but more powerful ways, such as advanced reasoning and multimodal capabilities. He deconstructs the debate around GPT-5's perceived impact, highlights the revolutionary potential of AI agents in science and engineering, and discusses the tangible effects on job automation. The conversation also explores the rise of robotics, the challenges of emergent AI behaviors like reward hacking, and concludes with a call for a collective, positive vision to steer this transformative technology.

Build Hour: Responses API

Build Hour: Responses API

A deep dive into the OpenAI Responses API, covering its architecture, advantages over Chat Completions, and practical applications for building persistent, multimodal agents with GPT-5, including live demos on migration and multi-tool workflows.

Tech Leadership Challenges: Communication & AI at Financial Times • Alice Bartlett & Charles Humble

Tech Leadership Challenges: Communication & AI at Financial Times • Alice Bartlett & Charles Humble

Alice Bartlett, Tech Director at the Financial Times, offers a deep dive into her leadership role, managing a 70-person team responsible for FT.com and the mobile apps. She discusses the transition from principal engineer to director, the art of managing stakeholder relationships, strategies for tackling technical debt, and her nuanced perspective on the impact of AI on software development and team dynamics.

Orchestrating Complex AI Workflows with AI Agents & LLMs

Orchestrating Complex AI Workflows with AI Agents & LLMs

Eric Pritchett, President and COO of Terzo, explains the transformative impact of AI agents and LLMs on workflow orchestration. He contrasts the goal-oriented, flexible nature of AI agents with the limitations of traditional RPA, illustrating how a multi-agent system can automate complex processes like quote generation, marking a paradigm shift in automation capabilities.

931: Boost Your Profits with Mathematical Optimization, feat. Jerry Yurchisin

931: Boost Your Profits with Mathematical Optimization, feat. Jerry Yurchisin

Gurobi's Jerry Yurchisin explains the power of mathematical optimization, a prescriptive approach that complements AI's predictive capabilities. This summary covers how to get started with free resources, the use of GPUs and LLMs to enhance optimization, real-world applications at companies like Toyota, and its relationship with quantum computing.

Why AI Will Create Abundance and Transform Customer Experience: Cresta CEO Ping Wu

Why AI Will Create Abundance and Transform Customer Experience: Cresta CEO Ping Wu

Ping Wu, CEO of Cresta, and Sequoia’s Doug Leone discuss the transformation of contact centers with AI. They explore a dual approach, blending AI-powered human agent assistance with full automation, to meet enterprises where they are. Wu details the immense technical challenges of deploying AI at scale, from orchestrating over 20 models in real-time with sub-800ms latency to solving for legacy on-premise systems. Leone provides a framework for building AI companies at speed, arguing that value will accrue in the application layer and that we are at the beginning of an "Industrial Revolution 2.0".