AI is Human
When we talk about AI, we think about machines and algorithms. The LLMs made it especially poignant, we think that somehow our minds got slurped by the machines, our dreams and fears, our thoughts and skills. The robots scoured the internet for all human knowledge and absorbed it. We talk about AI taking our jobs, posing danger.
But AI is simply a set of programs and data that we wrote. And we have to maintain it every day. There's a notion of bit rot — when programmer stops tending to their code, it rots, it stops working. That's because computers themselves are evolving — teams of other humans are upgrading and maintaining them.
So AI is just a collection of tools and knowledge representing the humans who built it. When you look at AI, you see the fruits of labor of many engineers, designers, data scientists, product managers, VCs, writers, philosophers. You interact with fantastic people — the young dreamers from Silicon Valley, from France, from Bangalore, who might be digital nomads coding from Bali, or family men and women commuting in their Sienas along the 101. They wrote this code in between answering emails, getting coffee, paying bills, setting up dates or picking up kids. They read the blogs, learn the tools, and dream. And they have built it, and it works, and now you play with it.
Went to get a new large notebook from Paolo Olbi and found they open at 15:30. Kept going and bought a book on Meduterraneo by Egidio Ivetic, whose book on the Adriatic I got in English translation.
Cody
Guidecca
Traghetto and Vaporetto
La Feniche, Falstaff
Piquadro
Paolo
Muro
The fall in Zurich is wonderful — when there's a sunny day following a rainy one, you walk around the lake and see the leaves in their glorious foliage colors, the restaurants with their outside chairs covered in furs, the shops. There are boats on the lake and businesspeople in suits in cafes. Many black cars, the ratio of Porsches and other high-end cars to others is the highest I've seen anywhere, starting at the airport.
There's excellent bread, anywhere German speakers are present geographically, Zurich confirming the rule. I found a cafe which is also a bakery, and you can buy a loaf and eat it instead of a puny croissant.
Found cafe Odeon again and had a coffee there, where Lenin and Trotsky shitposted about Russia. Nice walk back down Bahnhofstrasse, what with all the watch shops, UBS bank with social realism frieze of workers and peasants, etc.
Staying in Oltre il Giardino. In the heart of Venice. I scheduled a meeting with a tech hub folks and they were waiting for me on the fondamenta next to the entrance. Ilaria picked my bags from the boat and they called out. We met in the giardino. One of them, Matteo, lived next to it! Simona lived in Padua. I need to visit the University of Padua!
After that I went out. The restaurant, Mirofrari had tables out set but nobody there. Neighbors told me they open at 6. I started listening to Jay Holler and Ian Brown’s Twitter Space, with current and former Tweeps lamenting the demise of their company. They were preparing a Twitter for Good Day next Friday even outside of it.
Went back to get the AirPods and fell hard asleep. When I woke up it was past midnight, went out to get a drink. Everything was closed except for Cafe Noir, with a lot of youth outside, talking, hugging, communicating. One of the bartenders looked like a dobrovolets. Beard, long hair, wire rim glasses. He sniffed a small shot glass.
I made some photos from the steps of the streets hitting the canals. Checked what restaurants are still open, one nearby was there by mistake, 12am instead of 12noon opening, Osteria Fanal del Codega.
Staying in Oltre il Giardino. In the heart of Venice. I scheduled a meeting with a tech hub folks and they were waiting for me on the fondamenta next to the entrance. Ilaria picked my bags from the boat and they called out. We met in the giardino. One of them, Matteo, lived next to it! Simona lived in Padua. I need to visit the University of Padua!
After that I went out. The restaurant, Murofrari, had tables out set but nobody there. Neighbors told me they open at 6. I started listening to Jay Holler and Ian Brown’s Twitter Space, with current and former Tweeps lamenting the demise of their company. They were preparing a Twitter for Good Day next Friday even outside of it.
Went back to get the AirPods and fell hard asleep. When I woke up it was past midnight, went out to get a drink. Everything was closed except for Cafe Noir, with a lot of youth outside, talking, hugging, communicating. One of the bartenders looked like a dobrovolets. Beard, long hair, wire rim glasses. He sniffed a small shot glass.
I made some photos from the steps of the streets hitting the canals. Checked what restaurants are still open, one nearby was there by mistake, 12am instead of 12noon opening, Osteria Fanal del Codega.
John Dory is a seafood restaurant on Prinsengracht, next to my houseboat. It serves from 4 to 7 courses, whatever the chef offers. There’s no menu, only the price for each number. The food is a combination of fish, preparation, reductions, etc. dessert includes caramelized duck foie gra.
In Amsterdam. Fall is beautiful on the barge. Staying on the houseboat Trijntje on the Prinsengracht. Breakfast at the Village 🥯 on the corner. ☕️ is espresso again!
Need to be careful with the bikes and vespæ all around. Rain on the canal, need to carry umbrella!
Bar at the hotel Europa near Rembrantplein I saw from Uber and then returned walking back, have to stop by for a drink before closing time.
Red light district as lively as ever with tourists, despite redistributing all over town. City lights everywhere, no lack of electricity here.
Dental 365, a late night dentistry where they do an X-ray and a test for €66.
Trains going back to the Centraal.
The magic of the night canals, wet streets, fall leaves. Fast bikes with the cargo bin.
