issue 250
Hello! Well, this is it. The final issue. I just want to say thank you. This has been a wild five-year run. You’ve played witness to some of the most pivotal moments of my life – from getting married, to quitting my dream job, starting my own company, moving countries, preparing to have a kid, living through a pandemic, going broke, turning it around, travelling the world…
A series of high-low… like my taste.
Inputs. All these personal events shape who I am, and inform the way I view our world, its people and their art. Of time and place; both local and global. A committed memory, not forgot.
Our history, is always to be relived. It rhymes cyclical.
We are all but a reflection of our environment. We are its living relics.
Sensory civilization.
Culmination, a chronology. My memory is overwritten, but these words might last. They are captured physically and digitally. A restoration of my values and style. Sans story. To back-scroll is to find a ledger; of information, of experience.
A sign, of the times, its scrawled context, my own. No algorithmic, artificial malintent.
My timeline of 250 open artifacts.
Imagination. We imprint ourselves on our world, envision ourselves in its characters. We compare and contrast. We succumb to its branching narratives; its alternate histories and potential futures. Choices. The leaves, but traces of story.
We adore, explore, these narratives – and perceive their boundless opportunity. Modal-medium.
Deconstruction. A story’s primitives are a tapestry woven together. An operatic symphony. The settings, places to inhabit. The characters, identities to wear. The items, assets to wield. All are designed to be remixed and remade… bend genre and culture, in more media-forms. A new wave, a sum of its parts. A film is the ultimate creative composition, our shared collaboration.
Aestheticism obsession… eroticism.
Recreation. The human effort is the creative process; a joy, a strain. Our personal inference, not by computer interference. Our notes turn chords, form words to songs. La vie est musique.
Inspiration. The motivation, a cathartic chase; emotional therapy, closure, desire. An investigation into our psyche and philosophy. The nature of our relations, of our mind, of society. It all matters, we care. Your worldview has meaning. Morale.
Zero metaphors, lateral thoughts, pattern abstractions. It was a daydream.
Consumption. The fractal impact on the lone individual. The singular audience, an artist. Of your own making. The creator, is you, thinks of you. Voyeurism. In the subway. In the theater. In the living room. Everywhere, nowhere. Now, here. Together.
Intimacy. Stories allow everyone to be creative, to have soul. They welcome a peek into the others’ lives, a glance behind the curtain. We are all editors, curators, stitching together the fabric of our own experience. The profound and the personal. Spirits lost.
Outputs. We are our world’s products, walking conversations, of the time. It accelerates. Generational demure. In sporadic moment.
My diary aflame. The inner monologue must draw to a close, to be born again.
The children of tomorrow allow us to see the world, its history and its stories, through fresh eyes.
I can’t wait to be a dad. To enjoy our memories.
Here today, gone tomorrow. Nothing lasts forever.
That’s all for now. Thanks for reading. Replay the hits. See ya next time.
Tech
Runway, creative AI tools, raised $50m Runway
Deepgram launched Dramatron, write scripts with AI DM
Shibuya, short anime animations with audience input, raised $6.9m Shib
Commonground, scan faces to be used as 3D avatars, raised $25m TC
MagicStory, use AI to bring your child into bed time stories as avatars MS
Twelve Labs, contextual “understanding” of videos, raised $12m TC
Arena Club, Jeter’s trading card platform, raised $10m Dot
Discord launches creator monetization feature TF
Earn Alliance, infra for game NFTs raised $4.5m Med
The brilliance of ChatGPT NYT
Adobe to sell AI stock images Axios
Snap hopes to monetize AR Verge
GigFinesse, connects live venues with artists, raised $3.6 Cis
Pearpop, creator social collabs, raised $18m from Sound 776 TC
GameOn, manages chat bots for pro sports teams, raised $35m SpT
Lensa climbs to the top of the app store so you can get hot prof pics with AI TC
Daylight, aggregates web3 perks, raised $3m (I use it’s great) Block
Insta’s unpredictable monetization changes BI
Loft Dynamics, VR flight training, raised $20m TC
Amazon launches endless feed for social shopping WSJ
Create by Amazon Alexa story creation Engadget
Amazon launches SimSpace Weaver on AWS Verge
The Mirror, indie game dev platform, raised $2.3m VB
Stripe announces fiat-to-crypto widget TC
Reveel, on chain media collaboration for music raised Med
Roboto, in-game web3 elements to upcoming mmo, raised $15m CD
Hour One, AI avatars, pitch deck teardown to close on $20m TC
Brilliant acq Hellosaurus, interactive kids learning platform Cis
Burn Ghost, play to earn collectibles, raised $3m Dec
Sony launches Mocopi, motion tracking bands for vtubers and more Engadget
A16Z closes up its media arm Future (but continues to invest in media startups!) BI
Deepgram, enterprise voice recog raised $47m TC
Neureality, ai instancing chips, raised $35m TC
Instafest virality, play upon audiences expectation of Wrapped (v smart) SFGate
OpenAI’s Whisper to add English subtitles to videos ST
AI pfp apps topping the charts (we are all so vain) TC
Polycade reimagines Atari games with NFTs Artnet
Girls Who Code site on making personalized game characters Muse
Tech dude generates children’s book on Twitter, gets skewered Twtr
Variant Fund bought a bunch of Nouns Disc
AI that narrates videos HF
Spreadsheet of Alameda investments ($5b..) Sheets
AllianceDAO demo day startups TC
Media
Disney using AI tools to de-age actors Verge
NBA to accept investment from pension/sovereign funds Sportico
FIFA new tech, tracks players bodies with AI Verge
Disney acq remaining 15% stake of BAMtech for $900m from MLB Var
Battle for NFL streaming rights NYT
Spotify wrapped tops Var
HBO Max back to Amzn Prime Vid channels Var
Social media algos could make them be construed as publishers Fastco
Ronaldo might sign a $210m/yr deal with a Saudi team (my lord) NYP
Xbox and Calm bring game soundscapes for sleep Verge
Msft offer Sony 10yr deal for CoD if Activision deal goes through CNBC
DirectTV and Fox reach carriage deal dead
Major League Pickleball expansion plans Axios
Fanatics, sports merch, raised $700m at $31b (ridic) WSJ
Mr Beast partners w Fortnite, offers own skins and $1m challenge Verge
GE buys out all ads in NYT print paper for historic first (when the marketing dept has a use it or lose it policy) Axios
Warner Bros tv negotiating with Amzn for DC branded content IGN
Thiel VCs place a $3b bid to buy the NBA’s Suns WSJ
Apollo prices $1.8b worth of bonds backed by Concord music copyrights Bberg
Soul Publishing acq maj stake in Underscore Talent, focused on digital THR
Bari Weiss building a newsletter empire NYT
Netflix a/b tests its subs (old news?) IW
SBF been paying top media outlets (..) Puck
NZ to make Google, FB pay for news WSJ
Economics of Ticketmaster Hustle
Media cos are cutting jobs WSJ
Entertainment
Sundance film lineup Var
Golden Globe noms IW
2022 Blacklist scripts Dropbox Var
Amazon picks up Red Shirt, spy thriller with Channing, David Leitch and Kinberg THR
MediaWan takes stake in Plan B, allegedly 9 figs for 60% post money val $300m+ (Lucas Shaw broke like two months ago) Var
Gyllenhaal to star/EP in limited Presumed Innocent for Apple from DEK and JJ Dead
Bruce Lee biopic set at Sony with Ang Lee Var
Damon and Casey Affleck to star in Instigators from Liman for Apple Dead
Scarlett to EP/star in Just Cause for Amazon limited Dead
Taron reteams with Plepler for Firebug series for Apple Dead
Amzn acq Moxie w Keke and Bert Dead
FX orders The Border based on Winslow’s Cartel book series Var
Fremantle acqui-hires Richard Brown’s co Passenger Dead
Nflx pre-empts doc Deepest Breath Var
T Swift to direct a feature with Searchlight Var
Kolstad to adapt SIFU for Story Kitchen Dead
Array has its own in-flight channel on JetBlue THR
Nflx orders western limited American Primeval from Berg, Taylor Kitsch Var
Dark Tower TV series in the works (hasn’t this IP been plagued forever) Var
FX orders The Trenches monster hunter comedy from Goddard THR
De Niro to star/EP in Zero Day for Nflx from Newman and Oppenheim Var
Screen Scotland acq IP rights to Edinburgh Film Fest (hmm) Dead
Keough to headline/EP Under the Bridge for Hulu Dead
New Line picks up fantasy pitch Crescentia from Beau Flynn THR
Mandalay options Plated Prisoner series for potential TV (viral on BookTok) Dead
Sam Mendes Audible series on Oliver Twist Dead
MGM+ acq domestic to A Spy Among Friends film THR
Paramount picks up WW rights to My Animal, set to premiere Sundance THR
Nflx boards My Hero Academia live action from Legendary THR
Black Adam in the red allegedly, peek at p&l (guarantee it is much more complicated at a blockbuster of this level deals becomes number theory) Dead
BBC Studios acq min stake in Turbine Studios THR
Stomp closing in the East Village Dead
Bezos making a Blue Origins kids space show (into it honestly) TC
Field of Vision to spin out from First Look IW
Fifth Season’s slate post-CJ deal Dead
Gotham awards Var
NY Film Critic winners Var
British independent film awards THR
Euro film awards THR
Indie Spirit TV noms THR
Streamy awards (my fave) THR
Film/tv artifacts in the Smithsonian museum Dead
Collaborative
Entertainment’s profits (there are none silly) NYT
TikTok, the best-seller machine NYT
Sight and Sound’s best films of all times list BFI
And individual filmmaker ballots to the poll WOR
Derek Thompson the breakthroughs of the year Atlantic
Yancey Strickler on the record about crypto Zora
Exploring design patterns for telling mixed reality stories NYTr&d
College essay is dead Atlantic and so is the high school essay Atlantic
A look at Puck NewYorker
Antitrust in tech and games NYT
Google’s year in search Goog
TikToks transforming the music biz (Already did) NewYorker
Jason Kilar on the streaming wars WSJ
Infinity Pool trailer YT
Goodreads top books 2022 GR
Luca G and Trent Reznor on Bones and All OST IW
Ronan Farrow on a hacked newsroom NewYorker
Paper on human aware 3D scene generation PDF
Consumer trends report with Coefficient Cap TNC
Park rangers using stealthy e-bikes to catch poachers (rad) Wired
Babylon trailer 2 (Hollywood loves movies about itself) YT
How Roblox plans to grow up with its users TFP
Philosophy and LLMs MMblog
How Shannon Abloh seeks to continue Virgil’s legacy NYT
Time best movies of 2022 Time
Mario on ChatGPT and endless media (in defense of curators) Generalist
Ben Thompson on consoles and competition, IP ownership and control Stratech
Wesley Morris, where are all the movie stars NYT
Indiana Jones trailer YT
Reed Hastings profile, wishes he bough Wordle Vox
Chia on the internet as a social act Chia
Nipsey doc teaser MCtwtr
McKinsey’s state of fashion report McK
And 1kx on digital fashion Med
$100b invested in Paris for public transport Vice
Paritful on exclusive digital events Atlantic
Jordan Newman on virtual fundraisers using Hovercast Med
Semil Shah OpenAI breakout tech co of the yr SSblog
Julia Alexander on the sports streaming mess Puck
Casey Neistat on blogging for 800 days in a row YT
Profile on Robert Beatty, album design (thx Trace) PF
Pocket’s most read articles of 2022 Pock
Steven Chien on the rise of the storyteller economy SCtwtr
Adweeks agency of the year awards Adweek
Q&A with Aron Levits from Wattpad Ankler
The history of Hollywood (thx Trace) NewYorker
Black Dave on music NFTs and collaboration Mirror
LM Sacasas on AI art Convival
Creating community in hybrid festivals MIT
Stepn on web3 and gaming Med
Writers reflect on their years using Substack
Alice Darling trailer YT
Rex Woodbury on skeuomorphic design, analog to digital RWss
Gary Marcus AI’s ethics and the Jurassic Park moment GMss
Top gaming and ad activations Adage
Jeff short film, Amazon drone delivery sotw YT
Shawn Foust on the power of narratives and web3 Med
Sustainable media center panels SMC
Dalio and Jim Cameron making submarines for the ultra-rich FT
The importance to research the bottom of the ocean YT
Pale Blue Eye trailer YT
VW creating coding schools to be feeder system Bberg
AI to visualize Dalí works for GS&P (thx Champ) Muse
David Anderson on future of streaming ads w/ utility Muse
Dustin Yellin 10 years of Pioneer Works video
Listen: Playlist of late 90s hits I’m putting together Spot
Read: Venkatesh Rao on the dawn of mediocre computing VRss
Watch: Montell2099 set live from NZ (gorg, much like Cercle) YT