#taara — Public Fediverse posts

Weekly output: Pope Leo XIV on AI, American Airlines + Starlink, Taara photonics, New Glenn explosion, way less Waymo

I did not see Project Hail Mary as soon as possible, but I did see it tonight and am very glad that I did, If you haven’t watched that movie, please do so while it’s still available on a big screen at a theater near you.

Patreon readers got an extra post Saturday inspired by a different sort of larger-than-life multimedia experience, seeing Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band at Nats Park Wednesday: a recap of the few years when I had “concert reviewer” as a low-paying, in-house side hustle at the Washington Post.

5/25/2026: Pope Leo XIV: Unchecked AI Development Risks Building a New Tower of Babel, PCMag

I spent much of Monday morning reading the pope’s encyclical about AI, then spent much of the afternoon writing a post unpacking that lengthy document for PCMag readers. Yes, Monday was a holiday, but as somebody brought up Catholic who then went to a Jesuit university, I felt like I had to do this work.

5/26/2026: American Airlines Will Switch to Starlink for Now, But Only on Airbus Narrowbodies, PCMag

American’s press release about this coming upgrade to the WiFi on part of its fleet left multiple questions unanswered, so I was glad that a publicist for AA fielded my questions as quickly as she did.

5/29/2026: Taara CEO: Our free-space optics links go where fiber won’t, Light Reading

I sat down with Mahesh Krishnaswamy, founder and CEO of this Alphabet moonshot offshoot, at the start of a busy day at Web Summit Vancouver two weeks ago. A small part of that conversation surfaced in a piece I did for PCMag about photonics that itself began with a trip to San Jose for NTT Research’s Upgrade conference there in mid April (with NTT covering my travel costs), but the rest had to wait for this piece. That, in turn,  required me to have some downtime in which to write it, and as you may have noticed May was another ridiculous month for travel.

5/29/2026: Blue Origin’s New Glenn Rocket Explodes Spectacularly During Ground Test, PCMag

This is an outright disaster, and not just for Blue–if you want to see SpaceX get some competition for satellite-to-phone data, fast inflight WiFi and a return of American astronauts to the Moon’s surface, New Glenn would have been at least helpful if not outright essential. Blue not only has to figure out what went wrong with its heavy-lift rocket and fix that, it also has to either rebuild the launch complex mostly destroyed by this explosion or speed up construction of the second pad it has planned.

5/29/2026: Waymo Halts Freeway Operations, Stops Service in Some Cities Without Clearly Communicating What’s Up, PCMag

I had missed covering Waymo ending freeway service because that happened when I was flying home from Google I/O, but after seeing how badly that company had informed customers about that cutback in service and its suspensions of all service in some cities, I realized I had a broader piece to write.

Weekly output: Pope Leo XIV on AI, American Airlines + Starlink, Taara photonics, New Glenn explosion, way less Waymo

I did not see Project Hail Mary as soon as possible, but I did see it tonight and am very glad that I did, If you haven’t watched that movie, please do so while it’s still available on a big screen at a theater near you.

Patreon readers got an extra post Saturday inspired by a different sort of larger-than-life multimedia experience, seeing Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band at Nats Park Wednesday: a recap of the few years when I had “concert reviewer” as a low-paying, in-house side hustle at the Washington Post.

5/25/2026: Pope Leo XIV: Unchecked AI Development Risks Building a New Tower of Babel, PCMag

I spent much of Monday morning reading the pope’s encyclical about AI, then spent much of the afternoon writing a post unpacking that lengthy document for PCMag readers. Yes, Monday was a holiday, but as somebody brought up Catholic who then went to a Jesuit university, I felt like I had to do this work.

5/26/2026: American Airlines Will Switch to Starlink for Now, But Only on Airbus Narrowbodies, PCMag

American’s press release about this coming upgrade to the WiFi on part of its fleet left multiple questions unanswered, so I was glad that a publicist for AA fielded my questions as quickly as she did.

5/29/2026: Taara CEO: Our free-space optics links go where fiber won’t, Light Reading

I sat down with Mahesh Krishnaswamy, founder and CEO of this Alphabet moonshot offshoot, at the start of a busy day at Web Summit Vancouver two weeks ago. A small part of that conversation surfaced in a piece I did for PCMag about photonics that itself began with a trip to San Jose for NTT Research’s Upgrade conference there in mid April (with NTT covering my travel costs), but the rest had to wait for this piece. That, in turn,  required me to have some downtime in which to write it, and as you may have noticed May was another ridiculous month for travel.

5/29/2026: Blue Origin’s New Glenn Rocket Explodes Spectacularly During Ground Test, PCMag

This is an outright disaster, and not just for Blue–if you want to see SpaceX get some competition for satellite-to-phone data, fast inflight WiFi and a return of American astronauts to the Moon’s surface, New Glenn would have been at least helpful if not outright essential. Blue not only has to figure out what went wrong with its heavy-lift rocket and fix that, it also has to either rebuild the launch complex mostly destroyed by this explosion or speed up construction of the second pad it has planned.

5/29/2026: Waymo Halts Freeway Operations, Stops Service in Some Cities Without Clearly Communicating What’s Up, PCMag

I had missed covering Waymo ending freeway service because that happened when I was flying home from Google I/O, but after seeing how badly that company had informed customers about that cutback in service and its suspensions of all service in some cities, I realized I had a broader piece to write.

Weekly output: Pope Leo XIV on AI, American Airlines + Starlink, Taara photonics, New Glenn explosion, way less Waymo

I did not see Project Hail Mary as soon as possible, but I did see it tonight and am very glad that I did, If you haven’t watched that movie, please do so while it’s still available on a big screen at a theater near you.

Patreon readers got an extra post Saturday inspired by a different sort of larger-than-life multimedia experience, seeing Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band at Nats Park Wednesday: a recap of the few years when I had “concert reviewer” as a low-paying, in-house side hustle at the Washington Post.

5/25/2026: Pope Leo XIV: Unchecked AI Development Risks Building a New Tower of Babel, PCMag

I spent much of Monday morning reading the pope’s encyclical about AI, then spent much of the afternoon writing a post unpacking that lengthy document for PCMag readers. Yes, Monday was a holiday, but as somebody brought up Catholic who then went to a Jesuit university, I felt like I had to do this work.

5/26/2026: American Airlines Will Switch to Starlink for Now, But Only on Airbus Narrowbodies, PCMag

American’s press release about this coming upgrade to the WiFi on part of its fleet left multiple questions unanswered, so I was glad that a publicist for AA fielded my questions as quickly as she did.

5/29/2026: Taara CEO: Our free-space optics links go where fiber won’t, Light Reading

I sat down with Mahesh Krishnaswamy, founder and CEO of this Alphabet moonshot offshoot, at the start of a busy day at Web Summit Vancouver two weeks ago. A small part of that conversation surfaced in a piece I did for PCMag about photonics that itself began with a trip to San Jose for NTT Research’s Upgrade conference there in mid April (with NTT covering my travel costs), but the rest had to wait for this piece. That, in turn,  required me to have some downtime in which to write it, and as you may have noticed May was another ridiculous month for travel.

5/29/2026: Blue Origin’s New Glenn Rocket Explodes Spectacularly During Ground Test, PCMag

This is an outright disaster, and not just for Blue–if you want to see SpaceX get some competition for satellite-to-phone data, fast inflight WiFi and a return of American astronauts to the Moon’s surface, New Glenn would have been at least helpful if not outright essential. Blue not only has to figure out what went wrong with its heavy-lift rocket and fix that, it also has to either rebuild the launch complex mostly destroyed by this explosion or speed up construction of the second pad it has planned.

5/29/2026: Waymo Halts Freeway Operations, Stops Service in Some Cities Without Clearly Communicating What’s Up, PCMag

I had missed covering Waymo ending freeway service because that happened when I was flying home from Google I/O, but after seeing how badly that company had informed customers about that cutback in service and its suspensions of all service in some cities, I realized I had a broader piece to write.

Weekly output: Pope Leo XIV on AI, American Airlines + Starlink, Taara photonics, New Glenn explosion, way less Waymo

I did not see Project Hail Mary as soon as possible, but I did see it tonight and am very glad that I did, If you haven’t watched that movie, please do so while it’s still available on a big screen at a theater near you.

Patreon readers got an extra post Saturday inspired by a different sort of larger-than-life multimedia experience, seeing Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band at Nats Park Wednesday: a recap of the few years when I had “concert reviewer” as a low-paying, in-house side hustle at the Washington Post.

5/25/2026: Pope Leo XIV: Unchecked AI Development Risks Building a New Tower of Babel, PCMag

I spent much of Monday morning reading the pope’s encyclical about AI, then spent much of the afternoon writing a post unpacking that lengthy document for PCMag readers. Yes, Monday was a holiday, but as somebody brought up Catholic who then went to a Jesuit university, I felt like I had to do this work.

5/26/2026: American Airlines Will Switch to Starlink for Now, But Only on Airbus Narrowbodies, PCMag

American’s press release about this coming upgrade to the WiFi on part of its fleet left multiple questions unanswered, so I was glad that a publicist for AA fielded my questions as quickly as she did.

5/29/2026: Taara CEO: Our free-space optics links go where fiber won’t, Light Reading

I sat down with Mahesh Krishnaswamy, founder and CEO of this Alphabet moonshot offshoot, at the start of a busy day at Web Summit Vancouver two weeks ago. A small part of that conversation surfaced in a piece I did for PCMag about photonics that itself began with a trip to San Jose for NTT Research’s Upgrade conference there in mid April (with NTT covering my travel costs), but the rest had to wait for this piece. That, in turn,  required me to have some downtime in which to write it, and as you may have noticed May was another ridiculous month for travel.

5/29/2026: Blue Origin’s New Glenn Rocket Explodes Spectacularly During Ground Test, PCMag

This is an outright disaster, and not just for Blue–if you want to see SpaceX get some competition for satellite-to-phone data, fast inflight WiFi and a return of American astronauts to the Moon’s surface, New Glenn would have been at least helpful if not outright essential. Blue not only has to figure out what went wrong with its heavy-lift rocket and fix that, it also has to either rebuild the launch complex mostly destroyed by this explosion or speed up construction of the second pad it has planned.

5/29/2026: Waymo Halts Freeway Operations, Stops Service in Some Cities Without Clearly Communicating What’s Up, PCMag

I had missed covering Waymo ending freeway service because that happened when I was flying home from Google I/O, but after seeing how badly that company had informed customers about that cutback in service and its suspensions of all service in some cities, I realized I had a broader piece to write.

Weekly output: Pope Leo XIV on AI, American Airlines + Starlink, Taara photonics, New Glenn explosion, way less Waymo

I did not see Project Hail Mary as soon as possible, but I did see it tonight and am very glad that I did, If you haven’t watched that movie, please do so while it’s still available on a big screen at a theater near you.

Patreon readers got an extra post Saturday inspired by a different sort of larger-than-life multimedia experience, seeing Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band at Nats Park Wednesday: a recap of the few years when I had “concert reviewer” as a low-paying, in-house side hustle at the Washington Post.

5/25/2026: Pope Leo XIV: Unchecked AI Development Risks Building a New Tower of Babel, PCMag

I spent much of Monday morning reading the pope’s encyclical about AI, then spent much of the afternoon writing a post unpacking that lengthy document for PCMag readers. Yes, Monday was a holiday, but as somebody brought up Catholic who then went to a Jesuit university, I felt like I had to do this work.

5/26/2026: American Airlines Will Switch to Starlink for Now, But Only on Airbus Narrowbodies, PCMag

American’s press release about this coming upgrade to the WiFi on part of its fleet left multiple questions unanswered, so I was glad that a publicist for AA fielded my questions as quickly as she did.

5/29/2026: Taara CEO: Our free-space optics links go where fiber won’t, Light Reading

I sat down with Mahesh Krishnaswamy, founder and CEO of this Alphabet moonshot offshoot, at the start of a busy day at Web Summit Vancouver two weeks ago. A small part of that conversation surfaced in a piece I did for PCMag about photonics that itself began with a trip to San Jose for NTT Research’s Upgrade conference there in mid April (with NTT covering my travel costs), but the rest had to wait for this piece. That, in turn,  required me to have some downtime in which to write it, and as you may have noticed May was another ridiculous month for travel.

5/29/2026: Blue Origin’s New Glenn Rocket Explodes Spectacularly During Ground Test, PCMag

This is an outright disaster, and not just for Blue–if you want to see SpaceX get some competition for satellite-to-phone data, fast inflight WiFi and a return of American astronauts to the Moon’s surface, New Glenn would have been at least helpful if not outright essential. Blue not only has to figure out what went wrong with its heavy-lift rocket and fix that, it also has to either rebuild the launch complex mostly destroyed by this explosion or speed up construction of the second pad it has planned.

5/29/2026: Waymo Halts Freeway Operations, Stops Service in Some Cities Without Clearly Communicating What’s Up, PCMag

I had missed covering Waymo ending freeway service because that happened when I was flying home from Google I/O, but after seeing how badly that company had informed customers about that cutback in service and its suspensions of all service in some cities, I realized I had a broader piece to write.

Weekly output: WiFi hotspots, Android 17 + Gemini Intelligence, earning trust in AI, staying IRL in an AI world, AI image generation, photonics + data centers, Bill Gross on AI

SAN JOSE, Calif.–I’m back on the West Coast only three days after returning from Web Summit Vancouver, and my excuse for yet another transcon flight involves two different events: TechEx North America at the convention center here, where I’m moderating two panels Monday, and then Google I/O a little up the peninsula in Mountain View Tuesday and Wednesday. This is my second year at the first event but will be my 12th in-person I/O.

5/11/2026: The Best Wi-Fi Hotspot, Wirecutter

This update to this guide was originally going to review the Franklin A70 hotspot that AT&T introduced last year, but as I was about to file my edits I learned that AT&T was discontinuing that model. So I took out all of the copy assessing the A70 and restored the discussion of older models, which still left plenty of new text covering, among other things, how most high-end smartphone plans now include more data than you get with hotspot-only plans.

5/12/2026: In Android 17, ‘Gemini Intelligence’ Can Automate Tasks Across Apps, PCMag

Google dumped an enormous amount of news one week before I/O, to the point that I needed almost 1,200 words to cover it without even getting into Googlebook laptops, since PCMag’s Michael Kan wrote up that part of Google’s news. I trust that Google left something else to announce onstage at I/O Tuesday.

5/12/2026: Data done right: Earning consumer trust in an AI-first world. Web Summit

This was the second year in a row I had a Web Summit Vancouver panel featuring Pamela Snively, chief data and trust officer with Telus Communications. Knowing my fellow speaker’s conversational style made this panel easy; the topic was also a good one to explore.

5/12/2026: The Analog Renaissance, Why Human Connection and IRL Is the Most Radical Innovation, Frontier Collective

I showed up 5 minutes late to this offsite panel hosted by a local tech group because my floatplane joyride ended almost 30 minutes later than scheduled, a timing failure that in retrospect seems like something I was asking for. I then had a fun discussion with my fellow speakers–Raven White, TED’s director of audience development and community; Heather Odendaal, WNORTH CEO and founder; and Johnny Rodgers, a founding principal engineer at Slack–but I feel bad about inflicting “where is Rob?” uncertainty on the organizers and forcing emcee Theodora Jean to field my position for the first few minutes.

5/13/2026: What it actually takes to train frontier models, Web Summit

This was a late addition to my schedule, leaving no time for a prep call beforehand with Black Forest Labs co-founder Tim Dockhorn. That, in turn, meant I only discovered on stage that he can answer questions exceedingly briefly–which required me to improv a bunch of new questions. This sort of thing has happened on panels before; this time, I didn’t feel like I was flailing around onstage quite so much.

5/14/2026: Can Photonics Make the AI Data Center Boom More Palatable?, PCMag

Since my research for this started at NTT Research’s Upgrade conference in mid April, I was happy I finally got this written–including quotes from my interview of the photonics firm Taara’s CEO at Web Summit Vancouver that helped this post be about more than just the expenses-comped NTT event. I was not so happy to discover that I left two errors into the copy, one about the distances that Taara’s silicon-photonics chipset can send data through the air and another about this firm’s spot in the extended Google corporate universe.

5/15/2026: Bill Gross thinks AI companies are running out of ways to avoid paying creators, Fast Company

This is the first time in a long time–maybe ever, actually–where I wrote a story from an interview as an edited transcript instead of writing a more-structured piece with selected quotes plugged in where I saw fit. I enjoyed the challenge of finding the most enlightening exchanges about the longtime Silicon Valley founder and investor’s new venture ProRata and the state of AI in general out of 6,000-plus words of AI-generated transcript from my phone’s Google Recorder app (which I then checked by playing back the original recording).

Weekly output: WiFi hotspots, Android 17 + Gemini Intelligence, earning trust in AI, staying IRL in an AI world, AI image generation, photonics + data centers, Bill Gross on AI

SAN JOSE, Calif.–I’m back on the West Coast only three days after returning from Web Summit Vancouver, and my excuse for yet another transcon flight involves two different events: TechEx North America at the convention center here, where I’m moderating two panels Monday, and then Google I/O a little up the peninsula in Mountain View Tuesday and Wednesday. This is my second year at the first event but will be my 12th in-person I/O.

5/11/2026: The Best Wi-Fi Hotspot, Wirecutter

This update to this guide was originally going to review the Franklin A70 hotspot that AT&T introduced last year, but as I was about to file my edits I learned that AT&T was discontinuing that model. So I took out all of the copy assessing the A70 and restored the discussion of older models, which still left plenty of new text covering, among other things, how most high-end smartphone plans now include more data than you get with hotspot-only plans.

5/12/2026: In Android 17, ‘Gemini Intelligence’ Can Automate Tasks Across Apps, PCMag

Google dumped an enormous amount of news one week before I/O, to the point that I needed almost 1,200 words to cover it without even getting into Googlebook laptops, since PCMag’s Michael Kan wrote up that part of Google’s news. I trust that Google left something else to announce onstage at I/O Tuesday.

5/12/2026: Data done right: Earning consumer trust in an AI-first world. Web Summit

This was the second year in a row I had a Web Summit Vancouver panel featuring Pamela Snively, chief data and trust officer with Telus Communications. Knowing my fellow speaker’s conversational style made this panel easy; the topic was also a good one to explore.

5/12/2026: The Analog Renaissance, Why Human Connection and IRL Is the Most Radical Innovation, Frontier Collective

I showed up 5 minutes late to this offsite panel hosted by a local tech group because my floatplane joyride ended almost 30 minutes later than scheduled, a timing failure that in retrospect seems like something I was asking for. I then had a fun discussion with my fellow speakers–Raven White, TED’s director of audience development and community; Heather Odendaal, WNORTH CEO and founder; and Johnny Rodgers, a founding principal engineer at Slack–but I feel bad about inflicting “where is Rob?” uncertainty on the organizers and forcing emcee Theodora Jean to field my position for the first few minutes.

5/13/2026: What it actually takes to train frontier models, Web Summit

This was a late addition to my schedule, leaving no time for a prep call beforehand with Black Forest Labs co-founder Tim Dockhorn. That, in turn, meant I only discovered on stage that he can answer questions exceedingly briefly–which required me to improv a bunch of new questions. This sort of thing has happened on panels before; this time, I didn’t feel like I was flailing around onstage quite so much.

5/14/2026: Can Photonics Make the AI Data Center Boom More Palatable?, PCMag

Since my research for this started at NTT Research’s Upgrade conference in mid April, I was happy I finally got this written–including quotes from my interview of the photonics firm Taara’s CEO at Web Summit Vancouver that helped this post be about more than just the expenses-comped NTT event. I was not so happy to discover that I left two errors into the copy, one about the distances that Taara’s silicon-photonics chipset can send data through the air and another about this firm’s spot in the extended Google corporate universe.

5/15/2026: Bill Gross thinks AI companies are running out of ways to avoid paying creators, Fast Company

This is the first time in a long time–maybe ever, actually–where I wrote a story from an interview as an edited transcript instead of writing a more-structured piece with selected quotes plugged in where I saw fit. I enjoyed the challenge of finding the most enlightening exchanges about the longtime Silicon Valley founder and investor’s new venture ProRata and the state of AI in general out of 6,000-plus words of AI-generated transcript from my phone’s Google Recorder app (which I then checked by playing back the original recording).

Weekly output: WiFi hotspots, Android 17 + Gemini Intelligence, earning trust in AI, staying IRL in an AI world, AI image generation, photonics + data centers, Bill Gross on AI

SAN JOSE, Calif.–I’m back on the West Coast only three days after returning from Web Summit Vancouver, and my excuse for yet another transcon flight involves two different events: TechEx North America at the convention center here, where I’m moderating two panels Monday, and then Google I/O a little up the peninsula in Mountain View Tuesday and Wednesday. This is my second year at the first event but will be my 12th in-person I/O.

5/11/2026: The Best Wi-Fi Hotspot, Wirecutter

This update to this guide was originally going to review the Franklin A70 hotspot that AT&T introduced last year, but as I was about to file my edits I learned that AT&T was discontinuing that model. So I took out all of the copy assessing the A70 and restored the discussion of older models, which still left plenty of new text covering, among other things, how most high-end smartphone plans now include more data than you get with hotspot-only plans.

5/12/2026: In Android 17, ‘Gemini Intelligence’ Can Automate Tasks Across Apps, PCMag

Google dumped an enormous amount of news one week before I/O, to the point that I needed almost 1,200 words to cover it without even getting into Googlebook laptops, since PCMag’s Michael Kan wrote up that part of Google’s news. I trust that Google left something else to announce onstage at I/O Tuesday.

5/12/2026: Data done right: Earning consumer trust in an AI-first world. Web Summit

This was the second year in a row I had a Web Summit Vancouver panel featuring Pamela Snively, chief data and trust officer with Telus Communications. Knowing my fellow speaker’s conversational style made this panel easy; the topic was also a good one to explore.

5/12/2026: The Analog Renaissance, Why Human Connection and IRL Is the Most Radical Innovation, Frontier Collective

I showed up 5 minutes late to this offsite panel hosted by a local tech group because my floatplane joyride ended almost 30 minutes later than scheduled, a timing failure that in retrospect seems like something I was asking for. I then had a fun discussion with my fellow speakers–Raven White, TED’s director of audience development and community; Heather Odendaal, WNORTH CEO and founder; and Johnny Rodgers, a founding principal engineer at Slack–but I feel bad about inflicting “where is Rob?” uncertainty on the organizers and forcing emcee Theodora Jean to field my position for the first few minutes.

5/13/2026: What it actually takes to train frontier models, Web Summit

This was a late addition to my schedule, leaving no time for a prep call beforehand with Black Forest Labs co-founder Tim Dockhorn. That, in turn, meant I only discovered on stage that he can answer questions exceedingly briefly–which required me to improv a bunch of new questions. This sort of thing has happened on panels before; this time, I didn’t feel like I was flailing around onstage quite so much.

5/14/2026: Can Photonics Make the AI Data Center Boom More Palatable?, PCMag

Since my research for this started at NTT Research’s Upgrade conference in mid April, I was happy I finally got this written–including quotes from my interview of the photonics firm Taara’s CEO at Web Summit Vancouver that helped this post be about more than just the expenses-comped NTT event. I was not so happy to discover that I left two errors into the copy, one about the distances that Taara’s silicon-photonics chipset can send data through the air and another about this firm’s spot in the extended Google corporate universe.

5/15/2026: Bill Gross thinks AI companies are running out of ways to avoid paying creators, Fast Company

This is the first time in a long time–maybe ever, actually–where I wrote a story from an interview as an edited transcript instead of writing a more-structured piece with selected quotes plugged in where I saw fit. I enjoyed the challenge of finding the most enlightening exchanges about the longtime Silicon Valley founder and investor’s new venture ProRata and the state of AI in general out of 6,000-plus words of AI-generated transcript from my phone’s Google Recorder app (which I then checked by playing back the original recording).

Weekly output: WiFi hotspots, Android 17 + Gemini Intelligence, earning trust in AI, staying IRL in an AI world, AI image generation, photonics + data centers, Bill Gross on AI

SAN JOSE, Calif.–I’m back on the West Coast only three days after returning from Web Summit Vancouver, and my excuse for yet another transcon flight involves two different events: TechEx North America at the convention center here, where I’m moderating two panels Monday, and then Google I/O a little up the peninsula in Mountain View Tuesday and Wednesday. This is my second year at the first event but will be my 12th in-person I/O.

5/11/2026: The Best Wi-Fi Hotspot, Wirecutter

This update to this guide was originally going to review the Franklin A70 hotspot that AT&T introduced last year, but as I was about to file my edits I learned that AT&T was discontinuing that model. So I took out all of the copy assessing the A70 and restored the discussion of older models, which still left plenty of new text covering, among other things, how most high-end smartphone plans now include more data than you get with hotspot-only plans.

5/12/2026: In Android 17, ‘Gemini Intelligence’ Can Automate Tasks Across Apps, PCMag

Google dumped an enormous amount of news one week before I/O, to the point that I needed almost 1,200 words to cover it without even getting into Googlebook laptops, since PCMag’s Michael Kan wrote up that part of Google’s news. I trust that Google left something else to announce onstage at I/O Tuesday.

5/12/2026: Data done right: Earning consumer trust in an AI-first world. Web Summit

This was the second year in a row I had a Web Summit Vancouver panel featuring Pamela Snively, chief data and trust officer with Telus Communications. Knowing my fellow speaker’s conversational style made this panel easy; the topic was also a good one to explore.

5/12/2026: The Analog Renaissance, Why Human Connection and IRL Is the Most Radical Innovation, Frontier Collective

I showed up 5 minutes late to this offsite panel hosted by a local tech group because my floatplane joyride ended almost 30 minutes later than scheduled, a timing failure that in retrospect seems like something I was asking for. I then had a fun discussion with my fellow speakers–Raven White, TED’s director of audience development and community; Heather Odendaal, WNORTH CEO and founder; and Johnny Rodgers, a founding principal engineer at Slack–but I feel bad about inflicting “where is Rob?” uncertainty on the organizers and forcing emcee Theodora Jean to field my position for the first few minutes.

5/13/2026: What it actually takes to train frontier models, Web Summit

This was a late addition to my schedule, leaving no time for a prep call beforehand with Black Forest Labs co-founder Tim Dockhorn. That, in turn, meant I only discovered on stage that he can answer questions exceedingly briefly–which required me to improv a bunch of new questions. This sort of thing has happened on panels before; this time, I didn’t feel like I was flailing around onstage quite so much.

5/14/2026: Can Photonics Make the AI Data Center Boom More Palatable?, PCMag

Since my research for this started at NTT Research’s Upgrade conference in mid April, I was happy I finally got this written–including quotes from my interview of the photonics firm Taara’s CEO at Web Summit Vancouver that helped this post be about more than just the expenses-comped NTT event. I was not so happy to discover that I left two errors into the copy, one about the distances that Taara’s silicon-photonics chipset can send data through the air and another about this firm’s spot in the extended Google corporate universe.

5/15/2026: Bill Gross thinks AI companies are running out of ways to avoid paying creators, Fast Company

This is the first time in a long time–maybe ever, actually–where I wrote a story from an interview as an edited transcript instead of writing a more-structured piece with selected quotes plugged in where I saw fit. I enjoyed the challenge of finding the most enlightening exchanges about the longtime Silicon Valley founder and investor’s new venture ProRata and the state of AI in general out of 6,000-plus words of AI-generated transcript from my phone’s Google Recorder app (which I then checked by playing back the original recording).

MWC 2026: Taara unveils photonic platform for wireless communication and new product, Beam

https://techaeris.com/2026/02/23/taara-photonic-platform-wireless/

#technews

#Taara, a graduate of X, Google’s Moonshot Factory, today announced a breakthrough approach to commercial communications and connectivity infrastructure.

MWC 2026: Taara unveils photonic platform for wireless communication and new product, Beam

https://techaeris.com/2026/02/23/taara-photonic-platform-wireless/

#technews

#Taara, a graduate of X, Google’s Moonshot Factory, today announced a breakthrough approach to commercial communications and connectivity infrastructure.

MWC 2026: Taara unveils photonic platform for wireless communication and new product, Beam

https://techaeris.com/2026/02/23/taara-photonic-platform-wireless/

#technews

#Taara, a graduate of X, Google’s Moonshot Factory, today announced a breakthrough approach to commercial communications and connectivity infrastructure.

Taara targets carrier-grade uptime with optical switching https://www.telecomstechnews.com/news/taara-targets-carrier-grade-uptime-with-optical-switching/ #taara #alphabet #telecoms #wirelessbackhaul #connectivity #technology

Taara targets carrier-grade uptime with optical switching https://www.telecomstechnews.com/news/taara-targets-carrier-grade-uptime-with-optical-switching/ #taara #alphabet #telecoms #wirelessbackhaul #connectivity #technology

Taara targets carrier-grade uptime with optical switching https://www.telecomstechnews.com/news/taara-targets-carrier-grade-uptime-with-optical-switching/ #taara #alphabet #telecoms #wirelessbackhaul #connectivity #technology

Taara targets carrier-grade uptime with optical switching https://www.telecomstechnews.com/news/taara-targets-carrier-grade-uptime-with-optical-switching/ #taara #alphabet #telecoms #wirelessbackhaul #connectivity #technology

Taara targets carrier-grade uptime with optical switching https://www.telecomstechnews.com/news/taara-targets-carrier-grade-uptime-with-optical-switching/ #taara #alphabet #telecoms #wirelessbackhaul #connectivity #technology

🌐 Google lanza Taara, su internet que va por el aire 💡
¿La nueva competencia de Starlink?

#Taara #InternetGoogle #Tecnología

https://www.enter.co/chips-bits/que-es-taara-el-internet-de-google-que-compite-con-starlink-y-donde-esta-disponible/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=mastodon

🌐 Google lanza Taara, su internet que va por el aire 💡
¿La nueva competencia de Starlink?

#Taara #InternetGoogle #Tecnología

https://www.enter.co/chips-bits/que-es-taara-el-internet-de-google-que-compite-con-starlink-y-donde-esta-disponible/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=mastodon

Así es Taara de Google
Velocidad de hasta 20 Gbps sin fibra ni satélites. ¿Starlink? Tiene competencia.

#Taara #InternetPorLáser #GoogleTech

https://www.enter.co/chips-bits/que-es-taara-el-internet-de-google-que-compite-con-starlink-y-donde-esta-disponible/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=mastodon

Así es Taara de Google
Velocidad de hasta 20 Gbps sin fibra ni satélites. ¿Starlink? Tiene competencia.

#Taara #InternetPorLáser #GoogleTech

https://www.enter.co/chips-bits/que-es-taara-el-internet-de-google-que-compite-con-starlink-y-donde-esta-disponible/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=mastodon

От воздушных шаров до лазерного интернета: Project Loon и Taara от Google

Как-то раз внутри корпорации Google появилась идея раздавать интернет с помощью воздушных шаров, парящих в стратосфере, — так родился Project Loon . Проект должен был обеспечить доступ к сети в отдаленных и труднодоступных точках, но после нескольких лет испытаний, триумфов и неудач его, к сожалению, закрыли. Правда, не совсем — некоторые наработки были реализованы уже в другом проекте под названием Taara. Об этом сегодня и поговорим.

https://habr.com/ru/companies/ru_mts/articles/895300/

#сетевые_технологии #itинфраструктура #itкомпании #project_loon #taara #google #сеть #loon

От воздушных шаров до лазерного интернета: Project Loon и Taara от Google

Как-то раз внутри корпорации Google появилась идея раздавать интернет с помощью воздушных шаров, парящих в стратосфере, — так родился Project Loon . Проект должен был обеспечить доступ к сети в отдаленных и труднодоступных точках, но после нескольких лет испытаний, триумфов и неудач его, к сожалению, закрыли. Правда, не совсем — некоторые наработки были реализованы уже в другом проекте под названием Taara. Об этом сегодня и поговорим.

https://habr.com/ru/companies/ru_mts/articles/895300/

#сетевые_технологии #itинфраструктура #itкомпании #project_loon #taara #google #сеть #loon

От воздушных шаров до лазерного интернета: Project Loon и Taara от Google

Как-то раз внутри корпорации Google появилась идея раздавать интернет с помощью воздушных шаров, парящих в стратосфере, — так родился Project Loon . Проект должен был обеспечить доступ к сети в отдаленных и труднодоступных точках, но после нескольких лет испытаний, триумфов и неудач его, к сожалению, закрыли. Правда, не совсем — некоторые наработки были реализованы уже в другом проекте под названием Taara. Об этом сегодня и поговорим.

https://habr.com/ru/companies/ru_mts/articles/895300/

#сетевые_технологии #itинфраструктура #itкомпании #project_loon #taara #google #сеть #loon

#Alphabet spins off #Starlink competitor #Taara
Internet from terrestrial lasers, not satellites.
https://www.theverge.com/news/631049/alphabet-spins-off-starlink-competitor-taara

#Alphabet spins off #Starlink competitor #Taara
Internet from terrestrial lasers, not satellites.
https://www.theverge.com/news/631049/alphabet-spins-off-starlink-competitor-taara

#Alphabet spins off #Starlink competitor #Taara
Internet from terrestrial lasers, not satellites.
https://www.theverge.com/news/631049/alphabet-spins-off-starlink-competitor-taara

#Alphabet spins off #Starlink competitor #Taara
Internet from terrestrial lasers, not satellites.
https://www.theverge.com/news/631049/alphabet-spins-off-starlink-competitor-taara

#Alphabet spins off #Starlink competitor #Taara
Internet from terrestrial lasers, not satellites.
https://www.theverge.com/news/631049/alphabet-spins-off-starlink-competitor-taara

Ars Technica: Alphabet spins off laser-based Internet backbone provider Taara. “Alphabet is spinning out laser-based Internet company Taara from its ‘moonshot’ incubator, hoping to turbocharge the start-up that provides high-bandwidth services to hard-to-reach areas in competition with Elon Musk’s Starlink network of satellites.”

https://rbfirehose.com/2025/03/18/ars-technica-alphabet-spins-off-laser-based-internet-backbone-provider-taara/

« Une connexion 10 à 100 fois plus rapide qu’une antenne #Starlink classique, et pour #beaucoup #moins #cher », #Taara s’éloigne de #Google pour briller seul avec ses #lasers

https://www.frandroid.com/marques/google/2544351_une-connexion-10-a-100-fois-plus-rapide-quune-antenne-starlink-classique-et-pour-beaucoup-moins-cher-taara-seloigne-de-google-pour-briller-seul-avec-ses-lasers

« Une connexion 10 à 100 fois plus rapide qu’une antenne #Starlink classique, et pour #beaucoup #moins #cher », #Taara s’éloigne de #Google pour briller seul avec ses #lasers

https://www.frandroid.com/marques/google/2544351_une-connexion-10-a-100-fois-plus-rapide-quune-antenne-starlink-classique-et-pour-beaucoup-moins-cher-taara-seloigne-de-google-pour-briller-seul-avec-ses-lasers

« Une connexion 10 à 100 fois plus rapide qu’une antenne #Starlink classique, et pour #beaucoup #moins #cher », #Taara s’éloigne de #Google pour briller seul avec ses #lasers

https://www.frandroid.com/marques/google/2544351_une-connexion-10-a-100-fois-plus-rapide-quune-antenne-starlink-classique-et-pour-beaucoup-moins-cher-taara-seloigne-de-google-pour-briller-seul-avec-ses-lasers

« Une connexion 10 à 100 fois plus rapide qu’une antenne #Starlink classique, et pour #beaucoup #moins #cher », #Taara s’éloigne de #Google pour briller seul avec ses #lasers

https://www.frandroid.com/marques/google/2544351_une-connexion-10-a-100-fois-plus-rapide-quune-antenne-starlink-classique-et-pour-beaucoup-moins-cher-taara-seloigne-de-google-pour-briller-seul-avec-ses-lasers

« Une connexion 10 à 100 fois plus rapide qu’une antenne #Starlink classique, et pour #beaucoup #moins #cher », #Taara s’éloigne de #Google pour briller seul avec ses #lasers

https://www.frandroid.com/marques/google/2544351_une-connexion-10-a-100-fois-plus-rapide-quune-antenne-starlink-classique-et-pour-beaucoup-moins-cher-taara-seloigne-de-google-pour-briller-seul-avec-ses-lasers

« Une connexion 10 à 100 fois plus rapide qu’une antenne #Starlink classique, et pour #beaucoup #moins #cher », #Taara s’éloigne de #Google pour briller seul avec ses #lasers www.frandroid.com/marques/goog...

« Une connexion 10 à 100 fois ...

« Une connexion 10 à 100 fois plus rapide qu’une antenne #Starlink classique, et pour #beaucoup #moins #cher », #Taara s’éloigne de #Google pour briller seul avec ses #lasers www.frandroid.com/marques/goog...

« Une connexion 10 à 100 fois ...

Alphabet spins out Taara – Internet over lasers

https://x.company/blog/posts/taara-graduation/

#HackerNews #Alphabet #Taara #Internet #Lasers #Technology #Innovation #Connectivity

Alphabet spins out Taara – Internet over lasers

https://x.company/blog/posts/taara-graduation/

#HackerNews #Alphabet #Taara #Internet #Lasers #Technology #Innovation #Connectivity

Alphabet spins out Taara – Internet over lasers

https://x.company/blog/posts/taara-graduation/

#HackerNews #Alphabet #Taara #Internet #Lasers #Technology #Innovation #Connectivity

Alphabet spins out Taara – Internet over lasers

https://x.company/blog/posts/taara-graduation/

#HackerNews #Alphabet #Taara #Internet #Lasers #Technology #Innovation #Connectivity

Alphabet Spins Off Taara, Launching Laser Internet Rival to Elon Musk's Starlink

#Alphabet #Google #Taara #Starlink #InternetAccess #RuralInternet #Connectivity #ElonMusk #Laser

https://winbuzzer.com/2025/03/17/alphabet-spins-off-taara-launching-laser-internet-rival-to-elon-musks-starlink-xcxwbn/

Alphabet Spins Off Taara, Launching Laser Internet Rival to Elon Musk's Starlink

#Alphabet #Google #Taara #Starlink #InternetAccess #RuralInternet #Connectivity #ElonMusk #Laser

https://winbuzzer.com/2025/03/17/alphabet-spins-off-taara-launching-laser-internet-rival-to-elon-musks-starlink-xcxwbn/

Alphabet Spins Off Taara, Launching Laser Internet Rival to Elon Musk's Starlink

#Alphabet #Google #Taara #Starlink #InternetAccess #RuralInternet #Connectivity #ElonMusk #Laser

https://winbuzzer.com/2025/03/17/alphabet-spins-off-taara-launching-laser-internet-rival-to-elon-musks-starlink-xcxwbn/

Alphabet Spins Off Taara, Launching Laser Internet Rival to Elon Musk's Starlink

#Alphabet #Google #Taara #Starlink #InternetAccess #RuralInternet #Connectivity #ElonMusk #Laser

https://winbuzzer.com/2025/03/17/alphabet-spins-off-taara-launching-laser-internet-rival-to-elon-musks-starlink-xcxwbn/

Alphabet Spins Off Taara, Launching Laser Internet Rival to Elon Musk's Starlink

#Alphabet #Google #Taara #Starlink #InternetAccess #RuralInternet #Connectivity #ElonMusk #Laser

https://winbuzzer.com/2025/03/17/alphabet-spins-off-taara-launching-laser-internet-rival-to-elon-musks-starlink-xcxwbn/

Taara : Google veut faire passer internet dans des lasers http://dlvr.it/TJKTQd #Taara #Google

Taara : Google veut faire passer internet dans des lasers http://dlvr.it/TJKTQd #Taara #Google

Taara : Google veut faire passer internet dans des lasers http://dlvr.it/TJKTQd #Taara #Google

Taara : Google veut faire passer internet dans des lasers http://dlvr.it/TJKTQd #Taara #Google

Taara : Google veut faire passer internet dans des lasers http://dlvr.it/TJKTQd #Taara #Google

Lichtbrücken statt Glasfaserkabel: Googles Taara-Projekt macht Fortschritte. Die Technologie überträgt Daten per Laser und könnte bald eine günstige Alternative zu herkömmlichen Methoden bieten. #Taara https://winfuture.de/news,149263.html?utm_source=Mastodon&utm_medium=ManualStatus&utm_campaign=SocialMedia

Lichtbrücken statt Glasfaserkabel: Googles Taara-Projekt macht Fortschritte. Die Technologie überträgt Daten per Laser und könnte bald eine günstige Alternative zu herkömmlichen Methoden bieten. #Taara https://winfuture.de/news,149263.html?utm_source=Mastodon&utm_medium=ManualStatus&utm_campaign=SocialMedia

Lichtbrücken statt Glasfaserkabel: Googles Taara-Projekt macht Fortschritte. Die Technologie überträgt Daten per Laser und könnte bald eine günstige Alternative zu herkömmlichen Methoden bieten. #Taara https://winfuture.de/news,149263.html?utm_source=Mastodon&utm_medium=ManualStatus&utm_campaign=SocialMedia

Lichtbrücken statt Glasfaserkabel: Googles Taara-Projekt macht Fortschritte. Die Technologie überträgt Daten per Laser und könnte bald eine günstige Alternative zu herkömmlichen Methoden bieten. #Taara https://winfuture.de/news,149263.html?utm_source=Mastodon&utm_medium=ManualStatus&utm_campaign=SocialMedia

Lichtbrücken statt Glasfaserkabel: Googles Taara-Projekt macht Fortschritte. Die Technologie überträgt Daten per Laser und könnte bald eine günstige Alternative zu herkömmlichen Methoden bieten. #Taara https://winfuture.de/news,149263.html?utm_source=Mastodon&utm_medium=ManualStatus&utm_campaign=SocialMedia

🚀 Google punta a rivoluzionare la connettività globale! Con il progetto #Taara, Internet arriverà anche nei luoghi più remoti attraverso i laser! 🌐 #GoogleTech

🔗 https://www.tomshw.it/smartphone/google-sparera-internet-via-laser-con-il-progetto-taara-2025-03-02

🚀 Google punta a rivoluzionare la connettività globale! Con il progetto #Taara, Internet arriverà anche nei luoghi più remoti attraverso i laser! 🌐 #GoogleTech

🔗 https://www.tomshw.it/smartphone/google-sparera-internet-via-laser-con-il-progetto-taara-2025-03-02

🚀 Google punta a rivoluzionare la connettività globale! Con il progetto #Taara, Internet arriverà anche nei luoghi più remoti attraverso i laser! 🌐 #GoogleTech

🔗 https://www.tomshw.it/smartphone/google-sparera-internet-via-laser-con-il-progetto-taara-2025-03-02

Alphabet’s Taara Project Has Developed a Photonic Chip That Transmits Data Faster Than Fiber

#Taara #Alphabet #Google #PhotonicChip #WirelessInternet #FiberAlternative #HighSpeedInternet #Connectivity #FiberOptic #InternetAccess #DataConnectivity #Chips

https://winbuzzer.com/2025/03/01/googles-new-phototonic-taara-chip-could-replace-fiber-with-10gbps-wireless-beams-xcxwbn/