New Phaistos

War needs communication Human need has consistently been the fire behind invention. The need for defense (and offense!) has also been a major driver of technological progress. And there is no bigger weapon than instant-speed information! For millennia, armies have engaged in a communications arms race. Smoke signals and beacons placed at strategic locations could provide advance warnings about enemy movements. Later, the so-called pony express — a system of posts with fresh horses and riders stationed at regular intervals — ensured that messages could travel at a horse’s speed without delay. A common pattern among early military communication systems is the importance of geography and standards. Communication ultimately relies on terrain awareness, elevated ground to ensure visibility and consistent standards to encode and decode information . Those requirements naturally suggest a strong centralized authority that can recruit the necessary specialists and enforce consistent standards....

The iron horse, pride of Europe (39) The means of transportation available determine how society develops. Accessibility to opportunities and social connections shapes economic mobility and progress. Few symbols illustrate this better than the horse in old Europe. A horse was (and to an extent still is) a symbol of nobility, wealth, and chivalry. Owning one signified that the owner was an esteemed member of society. As technology progressed, the horse was replaced by the automobile. This transition was nothing short of monumental, partly democratizing travel. Cars could reach farther, carry more, leave streets cleaner, and require significantly less maintenance. Society collectively embraced this shift, and in doing so, we transferred the horse’s symbolic status to the car. We even measure engine strength in horsepower, a nod to this transformation. The rise of the automobile reshaped the world. Roads were built to accommodate them, gas stations sprang up to ensure no place was out of ...

Digital information: a powerful tool I am so glad that right now you are reading these lines. And I am not only referring to your attention, but also to the very existence of the internet. Think about how many things that we take for granted have to go right for you to be able to read my blog now. And even better, content creation, distribution, and consumption can all happen at different times. The Internet's gift has been to offer all of us free access to information—provided we have the means to connect, of course. But is that really true? Do we actually have free access to any and all information we might desire? As always, the devil lies in the details, and no easy answers can be given to this question. What is, however, clear is that information is not neutral. Information is a powerful currency, shaping both economic and geopolitical conflicts, so there is a clear agenda behind how it is distributed. Every time we consume information, we generate more—data about our preferen...

Deepseek and the Shifting AI Landscape In the world of high technology, progress often comes with a hefty price tag. In the case of Artificial Intelligence, the most powerful models require cutting-edge hardware, vast amounts of electricity, and significant financial investment . Until recently, this created a playing field dominated by a handful of well-funded American tech giants. This was not meant to last. The AI Goliaths of USA recently were taken by surprise by China's David: Deepseek. With little funding and access only to outdated NVIDIA hardware, the team behind Deepseek managed to design an AI assistant that performs better and faster and is more transparent on its reasoning. Even more impressive due to its efficient architecture and use of open sources, Deepseek is significantly cheaper and less energy-intensive than its competition. This shift is more than a technical curiosity—it’s a sign of things to come. The Geopolitical Implications AI is at the top of the list for...