Apple & Tech — Numeric Citizen Blog

If Only I Had Gen AI Back in the Day

I acquired the skill of programming in Objective-C and developed iPhone applications between 2009 and 2013. Since I had learned programming concepts during my Computer Science degree, I didn’t have to begin from scratch. However, with the advent of generative AI, I can’t help but wonder how my learning experience would have unfolded differently. I think that it would have been significantly expedited while exploring creating different apps beyond the one I was developing.

Is Apple about to get another “Apple Silicon moment” with the C1 modem in the iPhone 16e? I think so. A 24% power consumption reduction for the same performance level is significant in my book.

Beyond ChatGPT And OpenAI

I’m a frequent user of generative AI, primarily for my work, but also to assist with my activities as a blogger and content creator. I subscribe to OpenAI’s ChatGPT and mainly limit my generative AI use to this service. I realize that OpenAI is becoming my new Apple, as I prefer to concentrate on one service to maximize the benefits of my subscription. I appreciate what they offer, including their services and apps.

However, OpenAI is not the only option, and I should explore other services as well. I don’t want to use Meta’s or Google’s offerings. What else is available? Perplexity? I started using it this morning and I like their offerings, but I’m still on a free plan. Do you have any suggestions besides Perplexity? What about Claude? I’m curious about their respective market shares.

Testing OpenAI Deep Research

I’m currently testing OpenAI Deep Research on two very specific subjects. So far, I’m quite impressed, not only about the end-results but also with the progress status report during the researching phase. It’s a great way to start looking into specific domains, and it gives many hints as to what to look for. Coupled with OpenAI Canvas, this is a powerful tool for a writer like me.

What a great time to be alive to test those things and see how I can take advantage of all this to be a better human.

Using the new Reeder.app∗ to read content from some Bluesky users I follow is a rather surprisingly good experience. Quote posts, replies are all beautifully rendered, like you could expect from Reeder’s developer.

Thought of the moment: eliminating the cease in the foldable iPhone is certainly a differentiating factor, but reducing the thickness of any upcoming foldable iPhone is another one, and the solution might reside in the upcoming iPhone 17 Air. All addressed challenge to make the iPhone 17 Air as thin as possible, it’s a step forward to a thinner foldable iPhone.

Best call from Apple. They had no choice but to leave, otherwise their credibility would have been questioned.

Will Apple release iOS 18.4 beta 1 the same day as the just announced iPhone16e? 🧐

I find it amusing that Apple releases a new iPhone member with Tim Cook and keep pitching Apple Intelligence as a breakthrough. Are VPs at Apple aware that Apple Intelligence is far behind everybody else and that it still in early beta? Do the engineering teams ever get poked by VPs as to where they are in their journey to bring real generative AI to Apple users? 🤭

What? HP is buying Humane remains? HP? The leader in generative AI looking for a modern, lightweight and nifty dedicated AI device to hum along their AI backend services? Silicon Valley is hard to decipher at times.