Digital Coffee #16 — atomic habits, climate change debate & great products
Happy Monday!! 🚀 It now seems like Monday morning is the ‘new regular’ for Digital Coffee — what do you think? Do you prefer reading it on Sunday or the work commute is a bit more interesting if it goes out on a Monday?
Once I’ve finished my writing backlog that I mentioned last week, freeing up quite a lot of time, I’m going to attempt to start a podcast on the back of this newsletter — so keep your eyes (and ears) peeled!
You know the drill by now — if you enjoy reading this newsletter and think you know someone else who would too — forward it to them 🙏 failing that if you could tap the little heart icon, it’d also be greatly appreciated.
Now have a great week, and onto the content 🚀
Some thoughts to ponder
“Through perseverance many people win success out of what seemed destined to be certain failure.” – Benjamin Franklin
”The fact is, everyone is in sales. Whatever area you work in, you do have clients and you do need to sell.” – Jay Abraham
”The really happy man is one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour.” – Anonymous
“Problems are only opportunities in work clothes.” – Henry J. Kaiser
”Keep your eyes on the stars, and your feet on the ground.” – Theodore Roosevelt
Tweet of the week
Five interesting links to kickstart your day
📕 Book Summary: Atomic Habits by James Clear
Our habits shape our identity. Atomic Habits by James Clear offers a step-by-step plan for building better habits for a lifetime. The backbone of the manual is composed of a four-step model which includes: cue, craving, response, and reward. The book is full of practical advice, stories from famous leaders and worldly recognized athletes. A must-have for everyone looking for a way to change their life and direct it towards greatness.
💨 Four tech takeaways from the climate town hall
Ten US presidential candidates expounded on the dangers of global warming and details of energy policy on cable television last week. For seven hours! The fact that CNN’s climate town hall happened at all offers one of the most concrete signs yet of just how far and how quickly US public and political sentiment has shifted. Climate change scarcely came up in the presidential campaigns or cable coverage four years ago. But this time around Democratic candidates have scrambled to outbid one another in announcing plans with bigger dollar figures or faster timetables.
🕵️♂️ Deepfake crimes are now a thing
In a sign we're already beginning to live in a far-flung high-tech dystopian future where nobody can tell what's real anymore, a $243,000 heist has been pulled off by thieves using deepfake audio technology. The Wall Street Journal reports that the first-ever crime using a voice generated by AI has already taken place. According to the report, an unknown scammer managed to convince a CEO of an unnamed UK energy company that he was on the phone with the chief executive of their parent company in Germany. The voice asked that the CEO transfer $243,000 into the bank account of a supplier in Hungary immediately in order to avoid "late-payment fines", which the CEO proceeded to do.
🤖 Artificial intelligence is changing every aspect of war
AI is “poised to change the character of the future battlefield”, declared America’s Department of Defence in its first ai strategy document, in February. A Joint Artificial Intelligence Centre (jaic) was launched in the Pentagon in summer 2018, and a National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence met for the first time in March. The Pentagon’s budget for 2020 has lavished almost $1bn on ai and over four times as much on unmanned and autonomous capabilities that rely on it.
🚀 Great products do less, but better
When feature bloat can hurt more than help your business goals. Products start small and focused. They do one thing really well — and that’s the primary reason they become successful. A few years later, the team behind the product comes to the conclusion it has to do more. Features are added, new use cases are covered, and functionality becomes more sophisticated.
Want to become an AI Product Manager?
I launched AIPMCourse.com, a free 10 week course that teaches you all the basics on how to build and launch artificial intelligence products. Check it out, or recommend it to a friend who you think would find it useful
Until next time, thanks for taking the time to check out this issue of Digital Coffee.
“Be a voice, not an echo” — Unknown