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Technology#Blogging📝 BlogAnalyzed: Jan 3, 2026 08:09

The Most Popular Blogs on Hacker News in 2025

Published:Jan 2, 2026 19:10
1 min read
Simon Willison

Analysis

This article discusses the popularity of personal blogs on Hacker News, as tracked by Michael Lynch's "HN Popularity Contest." The author, Simon Willison, highlights his own blog's success, ranking first in 2023, 2024, and 2025, while acknowledging his all-time ranking behind Paul Graham and Brian Krebs. The article also mentions the open accessibility of the data via open CORS headers, allowing for exploration using tools like Datasette Lite. It concludes with a reference to a complex query generated by Claude Opus 4.5.

Key Takeaways

Reference

I came top of the rankings in 2023, 2024 and 2025 but I'm listed in third place for all time behind Paul Graham and Brian Krebs.

Technology#AI Newsletters📝 BlogAnalyzed: Jan 3, 2026 08:09

December 2025 Sponsors-Only Newsletter

Published:Jan 2, 2026 04:33
1 min read
Simon Willison

Analysis

This article announces the release of Simon Willison's December 2025 sponsors-only newsletter. The newsletter provides exclusive content to paying sponsors, including an in-depth review of LLMs in 2025, updates on coding agent projects, new models, information on skills as an open standard, Claude's "Soul Document," and a list of current tools. The article also provides a link to a previous newsletter (November) as a preview and encourages new sponsorships for early access to content. The focus is on providing value to sponsors through exclusive insights and early access to information.
Reference

Pay $10/month to stay a month ahead of the free copy!

Technology#AI📝 BlogAnalyzed: Jan 3, 2026 08:09

Codex Cloud Rebranded to Codex Web

Published:Dec 31, 2025 16:35
1 min read
Simon Willison

Analysis

This article reports on the quiet rebranding of OpenAI's Codex cloud to Codex web. The author, Simon Willison, notes the change and provides visual evidence through screenshots from the Internet Archive. He also compares the naming convention to Anthropic's "Claude Code on the web," expressing surprise at OpenAI's move. The article highlights the evolving landscape of AI coding tools and the subtle shifts in branding strategies within the industry. The author's personal preference for the name "Claude Code Cloud" adds a touch of opinion to the factual reporting of the name change.
Reference

Codex cloud is now called Codex web

Analysis

This paper explores the intersection of classical integrability and asymptotic symmetries, using Chern-Simons theory as a primary example. It connects concepts like Liouville integrability, Lax pairs, and canonical charges with the behavior of gauge theories under specific boundary conditions. The paper's significance lies in its potential to provide a framework for understanding the relationship between integrable systems and the dynamics of gauge theories, particularly in contexts like gravity and condensed matter physics. The use of Chern-Simons theory, with its applications in diverse areas, makes the analysis broadly relevant.
Reference

The paper focuses on Chern-Simons theory in 3D, motivated by its applications in condensed matter physics, gravity, and black hole physics, and explores its connection to asymptotic symmetries and integrable systems.

Analysis

This paper explores the connections between holomorphic conformal field theory (CFT) and dualities in 3D topological quantum field theories (TQFTs), extending the concept of level-rank duality. It proposes that holomorphic CFTs with Kac-Moody subalgebras can define topological interfaces between Chern-Simons gauge theories. Condensing specific anyons on these interfaces leads to dualities between TQFTs. The work focuses on the c=24 holomorphic theories classified by Schellekens, uncovering new dualities, some involving non-abelian anyons and non-invertible symmetries. The findings generalize beyond c=24, including a duality between Spin(n^2)_2 and a twisted dihedral group gauge theory. The paper also identifies a sequence of holomorphic CFTs at c=2(k-1) with Spin(k)_2 fusion category symmetry.
Reference

The paper discovers novel sporadic dualities, some of which involve condensation of anyons with non-abelian statistics, i.e. gauging non-invertible one-form global symmetries.

Simon Willison's 'actions-latest' Project for Up-to-Date GitHub Actions

Published:Dec 28, 2025 22:45
1 min read
Simon Willison

Analysis

Simon Willison's 'actions-latest' project addresses the issue of outdated GitHub Actions versions used by AI coding assistants like Claude Code. The project scrapes Git to provide a single source for the latest action versions, accessible at https://simonw.github.io/actions-latest/versions.txt. This is a niche but practical solution, preventing the use of stale actions (e.g., actions/setup-python@v4 instead of v6). Willison built this using Claude Code, showcasing the tool's utility for rapid prototyping. The project highlights the evolving landscape of AI-assisted development and the need for up-to-date information in this context. It also demonstrates Willison's iterative approach to development, potentially integrating the functionality into a Skill.
Reference

Tell your coding agent of choice to fetch that any time it wants to write a new GitHub Actions workflows.

Analysis

This paper introduces novel generalizations of entanglement entropy using Unit-Invariant Singular Value Decomposition (UISVD). These new measures are designed to be invariant under scale transformations, making them suitable for scenarios where standard entanglement entropy might be problematic, such as in non-Hermitian systems or when input and output spaces have different dimensions. The authors demonstrate the utility of UISVD-based entropies in various physical contexts, including Biorthogonal Quantum Mechanics, random matrices, and Chern-Simons theory, highlighting their stability and physical relevance.
Reference

The UISVD yields stable, physically meaningful entropic spectra that are invariant under rescalings and normalisations.

Future GW Detectors to Test Modified Gravity

Published:Dec 28, 2025 03:39
1 min read
ArXiv

Analysis

This paper investigates the potential of future gravitational wave detectors to constrain Dynamical Chern-Simons gravity, a modification of general relativity. It addresses the limitations of current observations and assesses the capabilities of upcoming detectors using stellar mass black hole binaries. The study considers detector variations, source parameters, and astrophysical mass distributions to provide a comprehensive analysis.
Reference

The paper quantifies how the constraining capacities vary across different detectors and source parameters, and identifies the regions of parameter space that satisfy the small-coupling condition.

Research#llm👥 CommunityAnalyzed: Dec 26, 2025 19:35

Rob Pike Spammed with AI-Generated "Act of Kindness"

Published:Dec 26, 2025 18:42
1 min read
Hacker News

Analysis

This news item reports on Rob Pike, a prominent figure in computer science, being targeted by AI-generated content framed as an "act of kindness." The article likely discusses the implications of AI being used to create unsolicited and potentially unwanted content, even with seemingly benevolent intentions. It raises questions about the ethics of AI-generated content, the potential for spam and the impact on individuals. The Hacker News discussion suggests that this is a topic of interest within the tech community, sparking debate about the appropriate use of AI and the potential downsides of its widespread adoption. The points and comments indicate a significant level of engagement with the issue.
Reference

Article URL: https://simonwillison.net/2025/Dec/26/slop-acts-of-kindness/

Analysis

This article likely discusses a novel method for automatically identifying efficient spectral indices. The use of "Normalized Difference Polynomials" suggests a mathematical approach to analyzing spectral data, potentially for applications in remote sensing or image analysis. The term "parsimonious" implies a focus on simplicity and efficiency in the derived indices.

Key Takeaways

    Reference

    Research#llm📝 BlogAnalyzed: Dec 25, 2025 13:02

    uv-init-demos: Exploring uv's Project Initialization Options

    Published:Dec 24, 2025 22:05
    1 min read
    Simon Willison

    Analysis

    This article introduces a GitHub repository, uv-init-demos, created by Simon Willison to explore the different project initialization options offered by the `uv init` command. The repository demonstrates the usage of flags like `--app`, `--package`, and `--lib`, clarifying their distinctions. A script automates the generation of these demo projects, ensuring they stay up-to-date with future `uv` releases through GitHub Actions. This provides a valuable resource for developers seeking to understand and effectively utilize `uv` for setting up new Python projects. The project leverages git-scraping to track changes.
    Reference

    "uv has a useful `uv init` command for setting up new Python projects, but it comes with a bunch of different options like `--app` and `--package` and `--lib` and I wasn't sure how they differed."

    Analysis

    This article likely presents a mathematical analysis of a nonlinear heat equation. The focus is on the well-posedness of the equation and the application of the Łojasiewicz-Simon inequality in its asymptotic behavior. The constraints of finite codimension suggest a specific geometric or functional setting. The research is likely theoretical and aimed at advancing the understanding of this specific type of equation.

    Key Takeaways

      Reference

      Research#physics🔬 ResearchAnalyzed: Jan 4, 2026 07:28

      Studying nuclear medium modification using the Gerasimov-Drell-Hearn sum rule

      Published:Dec 23, 2025 15:41
      1 min read
      ArXiv

      Analysis

      This article likely discusses a physics research topic, specifically focusing on nuclear physics and the application of the Gerasimov-Drell-Hearn sum rule. The research aims to understand how the properties of particles change within a nuclear environment (nuclear medium).

      Key Takeaways

        Reference

        Research#llm📝 BlogAnalyzed: Dec 25, 2025 13:16

        Using Claude in Chrome to Navigate the Cloudflare Dashboard

        Published:Dec 22, 2025 16:10
        1 min read
        Simon Willison

        Analysis

        This article details a practical application of the Claude in Chrome extension for troubleshooting a Cloudflare configuration. The author successfully used Claude to identify the source of an open CORS policy, which they had previously configured but couldn't locate within the Cloudflare dashboard. The article highlights the potential of browser-integrated AI agents to simplify complex tasks and improve user experience, particularly in navigating intricate interfaces like Cloudflare. The success demonstrates the value of AI in assisting with configuration management and problem-solving in web development and infrastructure management. It also points to the increasing accessibility and usability of AI tools for everyday tasks.
        Reference

        I'm trying to figure out how come all pages under http://static.simonwillison.net/static/cors/ have an open CORS policy, I think I set that up through Cloudflare but I can't figure out where

        Research#Astronomy🔬 ResearchAnalyzed: Jan 10, 2026 08:46

        Simons Observatory: Calibrating Detector Polarization with Sparse Wire Grids

        Published:Dec 22, 2025 07:17
        1 min read
        ArXiv

        Analysis

        This research focuses on a crucial aspect of the Simons Observatory's functionality, specifically the precise calibration of detector polarization angles. Accurate polarization measurements are essential for the observatory's scientific goals, and this paper details a novel calibration technique.
        Reference

        The research uses sparse wire grids for calibration.

        Analysis

        This article reports on research using the Simons Array to study the Crab Nebula and search for axion-like particles. The focus is on constraining oscillations in the polarization angle of the nebula's light. The research likely involves analyzing observational data from the Simons Array and comparing it to theoretical models to set limits on the properties of axion-like particles. The title clearly states the scope and methodology.
        Reference

        The article likely presents observational data and analysis related to the polarization of light from the Crab Nebula.

        Analysis

        This article presents a research paper on a model of conceptual growth using counterfactuals and representational geometry, constrained by the Minimum Description Length (MDL) principle. The focus is on how AI systems can learn and evolve concepts. The use of MDL suggests an emphasis on efficiency and parsimony in the model's learning process. The title indicates a technical and potentially complex approach to understanding conceptual development in AI.
        Reference

        Research#llm📝 BlogAnalyzed: Dec 25, 2025 13:25

        Sam Rose Explains LLMs with Visual Essay

        Published:Dec 19, 2025 18:33
        1 min read
        Simon Willison

        Analysis

        This article highlights Sam Rose's visual essay explaining how Large Language Models (LLMs) work. It emphasizes the essay's clarity and accessibility in introducing complex topics like tokenization, embeddings, and the transformer architecture. The author, Simon Willison, praises Rose's ability to create explorable interactive explanations and notes this particular essay, initially focused on prompt caching, expands into a comprehensive overview of LLM internals. The inclusion of a visual aid further enhances understanding, making it a valuable resource for anyone seeking a clear introduction to the subject.
        Reference

        The result is one of the clearest and most accessible introductions to LLM internals I've seen anywhere.

        Research#Modeling🔬 ResearchAnalyzed: Jan 10, 2026 11:06

        Deep Dive: Exploring Parsimonious Ultrametric Manly Mixture Models

        Published:Dec 15, 2025 16:09
        1 min read
        ArXiv

        Analysis

        The title suggests a highly specialized area of research, likely involving advanced statistical modeling. Without the paper's abstract or further context, a comprehensive critique is impossible, but the title's complexity indicates a niche audience.
        Reference

        The context provided only includes the title and source, 'ArXiv'.

        Research#llm📝 BlogAnalyzed: Dec 28, 2025 21:57

        The Mathematical Foundations of Intelligence [Professor Yi Ma]

        Published:Dec 13, 2025 22:15
        1 min read
        ML Street Talk Pod

        Analysis

        This article summarizes a podcast interview with Professor Yi Ma, a prominent figure in deep learning. The core argument revolves around questioning the current understanding of AI, particularly large language models (LLMs). Professor Ma suggests that LLMs primarily rely on memorization rather than genuine understanding. He also critiques the illusion of understanding created by 3D reconstruction technologies like Sora and NeRFs, highlighting their limitations in spatial reasoning. The interview promises to delve into a unified mathematical theory of intelligence based on parsimony and self-consistency, offering a potentially novel perspective on AI development.
        Reference

        Language models process text (*already* compressed human knowledge) using the same mechanism we use to learn from raw data.

        Research#llm🏛️ OfficialAnalyzed: Jan 3, 2026 09:39

        OpenAI Expands Leadership with Fidji Simo

        Published:May 7, 2025 21:00
        1 min read
        OpenAI News

        Analysis

        The article announces an expansion of OpenAI's leadership team with the addition of Fidji Simo. The content suggests a message from Sam (likely Sam Altman, the CEO) will provide further details. The news is concise and focuses on a personnel change.

        Key Takeaways

        Reference

        Read the message Sam shared with the company earlier today.

        Research#llm📝 BlogAnalyzed: Dec 29, 2025 07:23

        Supercharging Developer Productivity with ChatGPT and Claude with Simon Willison - #701

        Published:Sep 16, 2024 22:24
        1 min read
        Practical AI

        Analysis

        This article from Practical AI discusses how software developers can leverage large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT and Claude to enhance their productivity. It features an interview with Simon Willison, a researcher and creator of Datasette, who shares his personal workflows and techniques for using these models. The discussion covers prompting and debugging strategies, overcoming model limitations, using Claude's Artifacts feature, and the role of open-source and local LLMs. The article provides practical insights into how developers can integrate LLMs into their daily routines to write and test code more efficiently.
        Reference

        We dig into Simon’s own workflows and how he uses popular models like ChatGPT and Anthropic’s Claude to write and test hundreds of lines of code while out walking his dog.

        Corporate#AI Governance🏛️ OfficialAnalyzed: Jan 3, 2026 15:23

        OpenAI Announces New Board of Directors Members

        Published:Mar 8, 2024 08:00
        1 min read
        OpenAI News

        Analysis

        OpenAI has announced the addition of new members to its board of directors, including Dr. Sue Desmond-Hellmann, Nicole Seligman, and Fidji Simo. This move signifies a potential shift in the company's strategic direction, possibly towards greater emphasis on areas where these individuals have expertise. The return of Sam Altman to the board is also noteworthy, suggesting a consolidation of leadership and a continued focus on the company's core mission. The announcement comes at a time of significant growth and scrutiny for OpenAI, making these appointments particularly important.
        Reference

        No direct quote available in the provided text.

        Research#deep learning📝 BlogAnalyzed: Jan 3, 2026 07:12

        Understanding Deep Learning - Prof. SIMON PRINCE

        Published:Dec 26, 2023 20:33
        1 min read
        ML Street Talk Pod

        Analysis

        This article summarizes a podcast episode featuring Professor Simon Prince discussing deep learning. It highlights key topics such as the efficiency of deep learning models, activation functions, architecture design, generalization capabilities, the manifold hypothesis, data geometry, and the collaboration of layers in neural networks. The article focuses on technical aspects and learning dynamics within deep learning.
        Reference

        Professor Prince provides an exposition on the choice of activation functions, architecture design considerations, and overparameterization. We scrutinize the generalization capabilities of neural networks, addressing the seeming paradox of well-performing overparameterized models.

        Technology#Robotics📝 BlogAnalyzed: Dec 29, 2025 17:07

        Simone Giertz: Queen of Sh*tty Robots, Innovative Engineering, and Design

        Published:Apr 16, 2023 19:51
        1 min read
        Lex Fridman Podcast

        Analysis

        This article summarizes a podcast episode featuring Simone Giertz, a well-known inventor and roboticist. The episode, hosted by Lex Fridman, delves into Giertz's creative process, her 'sh*tty robots,' and her approach to engineering and design. The content covers a range of topics, from her early creations to her experiences with a brain tumor and her thoughts on death. The article also includes links to Giertz's social media and online store, as well as information about the podcast itself and its sponsors. The outline provides timestamps for key discussion points within the episode.
        Reference

        Simone Giertz is an inventor, designer, engineer, and roboticist famous for a combination of humor and brilliant creative design in the systems and products she creates.

        Research#AI📝 BlogAnalyzed: Jan 3, 2026 07:17

        #032- Simon Kornblith / GoogleAI - SimCLR and Paper Haul!

        Published:Dec 6, 2020 00:43
        1 min read
        ML Street Talk Pod

        Analysis

        This article summarizes a podcast episode featuring Dr. Simon Kornblith from Google Brain, discussing his work on SimCLR and other related research papers. The conversation covers topics like neural network expressiveness, loss functions, data augmentation, and the relationship between neuroscience and machine learning. The episode provides insights into the development and application of self-supervised learning models.
        Reference

        The podcast episode covers several research papers and discusses the evolution of representations in Neural Networks, the expressability of NNs, and the implications of loss functions for transfer learning.

        Business & Leadership#Leadership📝 BlogAnalyzed: Dec 29, 2025 17:39

        Simon Sinek on Leadership, Optimism, and the Infinite Game

        Published:Mar 21, 2020 18:25
        1 min read
        Lex Fridman Podcast

        Analysis

        This article summarizes a podcast episode featuring Simon Sinek, focusing on his insights on leadership, hard work, and the concept of the "infinite game." Sinek, known for his books like "Start With Why," discusses what it takes to be an effective leader and build successful businesses. The episode covers topics such as the meaning of life, optimism, mortality, and the importance of hard work. The conversation also touches upon leadership styles exemplified by figures like Elon Musk and Steve Jobs. The article provides links to the podcast, Sinek's social media, and related resources.
        Reference

        Simon Sinek is one of the best communicators of what it takes to be a good leader, to inspire, and to build businesses that solve big difficult challenges.

        Research#Reinforcement Learning📝 BlogAnalyzed: Dec 29, 2025 08:18

        Trends in Reinforcement Learning with Simon Osindero - TWiML Talk #217

        Published:Jan 3, 2019 18:26
        1 min read
        Practical AI

        Analysis

        This article summarizes a podcast episode from Practical AI featuring Simon Osindero, a Staff Research Scientist at DeepMind. The episode, part of the AI Rewind series, focuses on trends in Deep Reinforcement Learning (RL) in 2018 and beyond. The discussion covers key developments and important research papers in areas such as Imitation Learning, Unsupervised RL, and Meta-learning. The article serves as a brief introduction to the podcast, directing readers to the show notes for more detailed information. It highlights the expertise of the guest and the scope of the topics covered within the episode.
        Reference

        We discuss trends in Deep Reinforcement Learning in 2018 and beyond.