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Can't Afford a House? Buy a Piece of One Instead - WIRED (No paywall)
In a chaotic housing market that has shut many buyers out, fractional home ownership and investing trends are taking off.
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An AI startup made a hyperrealistic deepfake of me that's so good it's scary
Synthesia's new technology is impressive but raises big questions about a world where we increasingly can’t tell what’s real.
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Here's the defense tech at the center of US aid to Israel, Ukraine, and Taiwan - MIT Technology Review (No paywall)
This is what the priorities in the $95 billion spending package tell us about four military technologies and the way they’re reshaping how war is fought.
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The Art of Asking Smarter Questions - Harvard Business Review (No paywall)
With organizations of all sorts facing increased urgency and unpredictability, being able to ask smart questions has become key. But unlike lawyers, doctors, and psychologists, business professionals are not formally trained on what kinds of questions to ask when approaching a problem. They must learn as they go. In their research and consulting, the authors have seen that certain kinds of questions have gained resonance across the business world. In a three-year project they asked executives to brainstorm about the decisions they’ve faced and the kinds of inquiry they’ve pursued. In this article they share what they’ve learned and offer a practical framework for the five types of questions to ask during strategic decision-making: investigative, speculative, productive, interpretive, and subjective. By attending to each, leaders and teams can become more likely to cover all the areas that need to be explored, and they’ll surface information and options they might otherwise have missed.
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The Missing Link Between Strategy and Innovation - Harvard Business Review (No paywall)
In too many companies, an innovation team is allowed to pursue its own agenda and imagine itself to be a separate island from the rest of the company. The results are always disappointing: a lot of creative ideas, but a failure to deliver meaningful growth. The root problem is the disconnect between strategy and innovation. To succeed, corporate innovation needs to be bounded by a clear set of strategic priorities that matter to the business. And it needs to play to the strengths of the firm — whether data, customer relationships, or supply chains — that will enable it to outcompete others attempting the same idea. The author offers five steps to help embed strategy into the innovation process.
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Russia's economy is so driven by the war in Ukraine that it cannot afford to either win or lose, economist says - Business Insider (No paywall)
"A protracted stalemate might be the only solution for Russia to avoid total economic collapse," one economist says.
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AI tools from Microsoft and Google are just streamlining middle management, leading AI expert says: WSJ - Business Insider (No paywall)
Microsoft Copilot and Google Gemini are advertised as productivity tools. A leading AI expert has a more cynical view of the products
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Egg labels, egg-splained: from cage-free to free-range, how to eat ethically and economically
Egg cartons are labeled with all sorts of descriptors in the US, making grocery shopping a confusing experience. Experts tell us what these labels mean and how to shop
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Thank You, Goodnight review: Bon Jovi's surprisingly devastating ode to lost youth
There's plenty of great stuff in this documentary to keep super fans happy - but you only need to know 80s banger Livin' on a Prayer to get emotional as the ageing band break down before your very eyes
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"I felt immense shame": one man's experience of a female stalker
Tom, whose experience echoes that portrayed in Baby Reindeer, talks about the impact on him and the police response
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Saturday 27th April 2024
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