iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

And for the very long trips every few years to Mozambique etc, where an EV is a problem, I hire a Toyota Fortuner. Still overall a fraction of the cost of having the Fortuner on hand all the time for the rare event.

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Yup. Occasionally I do a 1200km round trip to Johannesburg. I charge twice each way for about 20 minutes each time at 300kW chargers. Those are stops I used to make anyway for a leg stretch, toilet break, and a snack.

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Exactly. Most people rarely if ever travel far from home, yet suddenly they have range anxiety. It does require more thought, but it’s an imaginary issue for the vast majority of people.

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Just one of the many ways American's "vote" against their own best interests. Unfathomable. 🤷‍♂️🤦‍♂️

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The only people against EVs are those who have never owned one. 😉

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Richard Howes @richardhowes.tech · 23/09/2026

My thoughts (if that’s what they are) exactly. When an approximation of something is so good that it’s indistinguishable from the thing, the definition is irrelevant.

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Still, not again. 🤷‍♂️

Richard Howes @richardhowes.tech · 21/09/2026

I seriously regret not doing it myself. And I had advice from smart people that I should absolutely do it. But I was investing in lifestyle, and having fun, and enjoying my relatively high income, and I didn't want to haver to have the sacrifice. And I could not imagine being 50 when I was 25. 🤷‍♂️🤦‍♂️

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Richard Howes @richardhowes.tech · 21/09/2026

Robert's post is accurate. But I'm trying to get my 20-year-old children to put away 20% of their income in long term investments for life. By 50 they would have financial freedom (ignoring the various existential risks we face). But when you're 20-something it's impossible to grasp being 50.

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Richard Howes @richardhowes.tech · 21/09/2026

You make good points. I suspect it's the same problem as climate change. Short term thinking without considering the longer term. There are many experiments that show that we are terrible at long term thinking & discount the benefits significantly. It's why most of us end up financially insecure.

Ethan Mollick @emollick.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Reposted by Richard Howes

Even if AI development stopped today, we'd have years of catching up to do. The gap between what current models can do and what almost anyone is using them for is vast. Here’s my post on The Overhang, and the four advantages that let people close it. open.substack.com/pub/oneusefu...

open.substack.com

The Overhang

Using your deep knowledge, wide knowledge, taste, and agency

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Richard Howes @richardhowes.tech · 17/09/2026

I was just thinking this morning that there is so many emperor's new clothes about Chump and his administration. But possibly the best example is the idea that he is a genius. The idiot does not have even basic economic literacy for starters.

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Richard Howes @richardhowes.tech · 16/09/2026

Are they dangerous times? I used to think not, and I’m not buying into the imminent Skynet idea, but there is definitely significant risk. And even if the models get no smarter than they are today (they will), the disruption has not yet begun to take effect, but it will soon.

Richard Howes @richardhowes.tech · 16/09/2026

I’m not sure what the solution is, or if there even is one, but it’s become somewhat irrelevant. The SOTA models are unbelievably capable with the right harness & guidance. And the open weights models are exceeding SOTA models of just a few months ago. We live in exciting & interesting times!

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Richard Howes @richardhowes.tech · 16/09/2026

It’s been clear to us in software development for a while but that the benchmarks no longer reflect real world use or comparative strengths. Also, each model has strengths & weaknesses. Even just across a supposedly single metric like agentic coding, it depends on the specific task.

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The solution is not to elect a moron into the Whitehouse. The cause is the high global oil price, courtesy of an unnecessary and unwinable war. There is no way for a single senator to change that.

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The failure of the US to leverage the fusion reactor in the sky for cheap energy is the ultimate own goal, just to protect the interests of the oil & gas industry (with all it's detrimental sideffects). China is winning this race hands down. The consequences for the US are likely to be dire.

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Sure. Those enabling this either: A] Fear the wrath of God for any perception of not supporting "the chosen people" absolutely (immoral & stupid). B] Know it will get the support of the 50% of Americans too stupid to make rational & moral decisions (just immoral - they're right about the support).

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Or put more simply. Because corporations make the rules, not the people. Democracy is a facade. The Oligarchy holds all the levers of power.

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Richard Howes @richardhowes.tech · 14/09/2026

Asked and answered. Because Capitalism, the invisible hand, etc, etc, blah, blah get's an exemption. It's the 'Murican way. It's immoral of course. And stupid. And ultimately will end in catastrophe. But you have to understand incredible shareholder value was created for a while. 🤷‍♂️🤦‍♂️

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The final was pretty boring. Zverev just needed to be solid and let Shelton make errors on a regular basis. Sinner and Alcaraz are on another level. Yes, I know Shelton beat Alcaraz but after 4 months out of the game and it came down to a few points.

Richard Howes @richardhowes.tech · 14/09/2026

Me too. And no longer just developers or non-developers writing software. A food scientist and an accountant I work with are AI-pilled and are finding more and more services they used to pay for can be done by AI at a fraction of the cost.

Richard Howes @richardhowes.tech · 11/09/2026

Not sure you come to that conclusion. Two years ago these models couldn't count the r's in strawberry. Now they are solving millennium prize maths problems in 88 hours that the worlds top mathematicians failed to solve in 100 years. At this exponential rate of improvement, it's a matter of time.

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Richard Howes @richardhowes.tech · 10/09/2026

My real world testing, which is daily and extensive, has increasingly shown me that benchmarks are becoming useless if they’re not already. Gemini 3.8 Flash is really good, but it’s not better than Astra or Fable.

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Richard Howes @richardhowes.tech · 10/09/2026

True story. Friend of mine tried to go on a sex strike, i.e. not initiating sex, as a protest for something that I can't recall. About six weeks in he realised she either never realised he was on strike, or was happy with being left alone. Either way he abandoned his "strike" as a complete failure.

MadGreek 🧿 @madgreek2024.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Reposted by Richard Howes

The world has gone mad! Folks getting arrested under the UK Terrorism Act for holding a sign that said "I oppose genocide" 🇬🇧 That is fucked up! The majority of those arrested have been pension aged women, often with disabilities. Do these folks look like terrorists? Shame on you England. #Free 🇵🇸

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Richard Howes @richardhowes.tech · 10/09/2026

Maybe, but not going to happen. Capitalism is a race for survival and these companies can’t afford to freeze because they can’t be certain their competitors will freeze.

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You can't ban abortion. You can only ban safe abortion.

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I'm reminded of a line from the original Jurassic Park, "Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn't stop to think if they should."

I love the utility. I use AI extensively. But I also recognise the threat. I am particularly concerned that current gen of politicians have no grasp of technology in general or what this tech might do.

We had time to adjust to the steam engine, electrification, personal computing, and even the internet. But this technology has improved extremely rapidly. And that will accelerate as they become self-improving (already started). We are not going to have time to adapt this time.

I've been at the cutting edge of technology since the early 80s. I've been there for all the significant innovations since the personal computer. There has never been a technology capable disruption like this one. And the pace of improvement is the real potential problem.

Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani @mayor.nyc.gov · 09/09/2026

Reposted by Richard Howes

Today, I was proud to join New Yorkers for the 9/11 Day of Service at the Intrepid Museum. September 11th is a day we remember the terror and loss our city endured. It is also a day we remember the extraordinary courage, kindness and generosity New Yorkers showed one another.

Mayor Mamdani volunteers at the Intrepid day of service. He is wearing a suit and a blue hair net.

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There are lots of reasons to be concerned about where AI is going. But claiming it's not useful or capable is now completely indefensible.

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I wish that was true. Anyone who has used these models extensively for any length of time know that it's not. There are legitimate reasons to be concerned and want regulation. That they are not capable is no longer defendable.

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My favourite saying about Columbus is that he didn't discover America, he invaded it. More preciesly though he stumbled on it, didn't know where he was, and brought disease and devastation with him. And yet there are statues. 🤷‍♂️🤦‍♂️

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Elon is a white male South African, like me. Non-whites were treated worse here than most places and for longer, by our demographic. We are a very small minority. And even here, white males are not being slaughtered and are doing just fine. Elon is full of s***.

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