I always get this question and a curious look when I explain that I'm building a project for email newsletters. "Those annoying emails?" is what I think most people are thinking. Newsletters do have a bad reputation due to being classed with shitty marketing so the| Abstractionist by Keenen Charles
2024 has been a year of pretty much no growth for my main project, InboxReads. I did start the year with lofty ambitions but those have failed to materialise. Yet I'm still optimistic about the project. Learning my market I started the year thinking I knew what the| Abstractionist by Keenen Charles
It seems that major tech companies are placing two major bets on the "next platform:" Artificial Intelligence and Augmented/Virtual Reality. Meta has dabbled in AI, but it's poured a ton of money into AR and VR in the past decade. They've been tackling| Abstractionist by Keenen Charles
The following tweet might easily be one of the most unintentionally dystopian posts I've seen. At first, it seems fine. Changes to APIs on iOS can harm the app ecosystem and what's possible for developers. But this part sticks out. Have you seen it yet? a| Abstractionist by Keenen Charles
For a long stretch of human history, meritocracy would have been a foreign concept. People were born into positions and no one expected to be in a different position at the end of their lives. The promise of meritocracy must have been intoxicating for the masses when it became a| Abstractionist by Keenen Charles
There I've said it. The decision by major tech companies to add native dark mode support to their operating systems is the biggest mistake in the last decade. Does it look like you're doing some cool hacks with Angelina Jolie? I guess. But does it look| Abstractionist by Keenen Charles
Pieter Levels recently kicked off a big discussion online about the state of web infrastructure. He says that developers are being pushed towards using frameworks and services for their products with the promise that they take away a lot of complexity in exchange for high subscription fees but doing things| Abstractionist by Keenen Charles
It's been a hell of a year. At one point I dubbed it the year of rejection. Getting laid off certainly felt so. Everything I had been building towards in the last few years was about to be snatched away from me. The foundation I built was just| Abstractionist by Keenen Charles
Things tend to come in pairs. The Illusionist and The Prestige were two films about magicians released within months of each other inviting inevitable comparison. This year we have the AIs-in-a-box with the Rabbit R1 and Humane AI Pin both dropping just weeks apart. The search for the next platform| Abstractionist by Keenen Charles
Apple's Vision Pro is undoubtedly the best VR headset ever made. They've created an experience that surpasses what others have been doing for years and it looks cool too. But is it enough? Many will say just give it time and this is how every other| Abstractionist by Keenen Charles
I remember reading this Sam Altman post almost a decade ago about important lessons he learnt before turning 30. At the time 30 seemed like such a significant number. The end of youth. A moment where you're accumulated wisdom and your experiences would be so vast you could| Abstractionist by Keenen Charles
There's been an uproar online since Netflix's plans to block "password sharing" leaked. And it feels pretty justified. In an attempt to make shareholders happy with their plateauing growth, Netflix has decided to squeeze more out of the users it already has. First came the ad tier that's slightly cheaper| Abstractionist by Keenen Charles
Essays about tech, media, art and how they impact us.| Abstractionist by Keenen Charles
In the past, I've been negative about the prospects of the world moving to decentralised social media platforms. The average person doesn't care if their data is being misused or locked in. Not enough to leave at least, they just want to have a good time. But I've always believed| Abstractionist by Keenen Charles
The Kendrick Lamar halftime show reminded me of the importance of authenticity. Going into it, I expected a lot of compromises. I expected him to lean into his biggest hits and more melodic songs. Instead, he did the most authentic performance I've ever seen. It was political. It was hip-hop.| Abstractionist by Keenen Charles
It feels like the right time to move on from Twitter. For a long time, Twitter was my favourite social network. It felt like the beating heart of the internet. Whenever something happens, you can go to Twitter to find expert opinions alongside memes. It wasn't a social network about| Abstractionist by Keenen Charles
