Meta launches new smart glasses with built-in display (Reuters). Meta Platforms introduced the Meta Ray-Ban Display at its annual Connect conference, marking its first consumer-ready smart glasses with an integrated lens-embedded screen. Priced from $799 and shipping September 30, the glasses feature hands-free controls, AI-powered assistance, and a high-resolution micro-display capable of real-time notifications and live captions. Accompanied by a neural wristband that reads muscle signals for gesture input, the Device underscores Meta’s vision of augmenting human perception through AI interfaces. Despite minor demo glitches during the unveiling, analysts view the launch as a strategic step toward more advanced AR wearables, with Meta forecasting a growing market for smart glasses ahead of its next-generation “Orion” AR headset in 2027. (reuters.com)
“Glasses are the ideal form factor for personal superintelligence, because they let you stay present in the moment while accessing all of these AI capabilities that make you smarter, help you communicate better, improve your memory, improve your senses, and more.” (reuters.com)
How social and physical technologies collaborate to create (Aeon Essays). This essay surveys the intertwined evolution of human culture and technology, arguing that physical tools and social institutions function as co-evolving spheres shaping one another. Drawing on examples from early biological adaptations to modern digital platforms, it outlines how social innovations—laws, moral values, organisational methods—are as much technologies as engines or computers. The author invokes Pierre Teilhard de Chardin’s concept of the “noosphere,” stressing that as physical and social technologies accelerate, their feedback loops intensify, altering human identity and societal structures. The essay concludes by proposing that thoughtful governance and digital rights are necessary to rebalance the rapid pace of technological change with resilient social frameworks. (aeon.co)
“Physical and social technologies co-evolve all the time, pushing and pulling on each other. The influence is in both directions.” (aeon.co)
Platforms' Election 'Fixes' Are Rooted in Flawed Philosophy (WIRED). This in-depth critique examines how major social platforms applied a “move-fast-and-correct-quickly” software ethos to democratic processes, resulting in superficial “election fixes” that overlook the fragility of social systems. By treating societal discourse as programmable code, the platforms introduced interventions—content labels, algorithmic adjustments, autoblocking measures—that often backfired, eroding trust and amplifying polarization. The author traces the roots of this approach to Richard Gabriel’s “Worse Is Better” philosophy and argues that applying modular, rapid-release tactics to civic institutions produces unintended harms. The piece calls for a recalibration toward slower, more principled governance models that respect the complexities of human behaviour. (wired.com)
“The fatal flaw at Facebook and the prominent companies that followed this move-fast-and-correct-quickly philosophy … is applying a programming philosophy to a system that is not nearly as resilient as computer code.” (wired.com)
Apple's Jony Ive designs a Leica camera you will never own (The Guardian). Renowned designer Jony Ive collaborated with Leica’s engineers to craft a one-off Leica M camera in anodised aluminium, reflecting his signature minimalist aesthetic. Stripped of nonessential features—no hotshoe, no external viewfinder port—it marries Apple’s obsession with simplicity to Leica’s photographic heritage. Conceived as a conceptual artefact rather than a commercial product, the camera required 561 bespoke models and nearly 1,000 prototype parts over an 85-day development, with a team of 55 engineers dedicating 2,149 hours to perfecting every detail. The result is a study in pure form and function, illuminating how high-end industrial design can transcend utility to become art. (theguardian.com)
“A total of 561 models and nearly 1000 prototype parts were made during the 85 days it took to create it, and 55 engineers spent 2,149 hours working on it.” (theguardian.com)
MOTH Launches Quantum Brush: A New Tool for Quantum-Driven Digital Art (The Quantum Insider). MOTH’s open-source Quantum Brush redefines digital painting by harnessing quantum superposition, entanglement, and measurement to generate visual effects impossible on classical hardware. With four brush types—Aquarela, Heisenbrush, Smudge, and Collage—artists can apply quantum algorithms tested on IQM’s Sirius device to introduce non-reproducible, richly complex textures and patterns. Designed for both accessibility and extensibility, the tool invites creative exploration at the intersection of science and art, charting a new course for generative design practices and inspiring a reevaluation of how computation shapes aesthetics. (cgspam.org)
“Quantum Brush invites artists and developers to experiment with quantum-native creativity, marking a new frontier for art, media, and generative design.” (cgspam.org)