Weekly Links #23

Here is a weekly selection of important information bits, thoughtful opinion pieces and interesting analyses from the digital and technology world. Published every Thursday.

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• You Can’t Handle the (Algorithmic) Truth
  
  I found this to be a fantastic take on the widespread criticism of algorithms’ influence on our modern world. This quote puts it well: “Computers become scapegoats for undesired features of capitalism, bureaucracy, and politics.”
• Stalking Your Friends with Facebook Messenger
  
  One should have seen this coming. Yet astonishing.
• Web vs. native: let’s concede defeat
  
  I second this plea.
• What if Mobile is Getting its Fair Share of Ad Spending?
  
  Mary Meeker has published her yearly collection of slides analyzing and forecasting what happens in tech. As usual she points to the relatively little spending on mobile ads, which is expected to grow tremendously. Maybe it will. But maybe not, as this intelligent piece suggests.
• Optimism doesn’t sell
  
  Hard to argue with, but also understandable from looking at the human history. In the grand scheme of things, what could go wrong went wrong, so optimists almost always were forced to question their position. However, without optimists and optimism, our existence would be pretty unbearable. It is a catch-22.
• Why Technology Will Never Fix Education
  
  I’d say: Technology alone won’t fix education, but it can improve education and help with knowledge accessibility.
• Why investors don’t fund dating
  
  Very insightful post. I had never thought about how challenging the business of dating apps actually is.
• Evan Spiegel Reveals Plan to Turn Snapchat Into a Real Business
  
  A good, long read. Despite some differences I find Evan Spiegel to have some characteristics of the early Mark Zuckerberg. He is doing exactly how he thinks stuff needs to be done, without being too much influenced by industry best-practices.
• What I Missed When I Gave Up my Apple Watch
  
  This post reminded me a bit of Google Glass reviews from a few years ago.
• Slack is the new favorite tool of newsrooms
  
  Of course it is.
• With Buzzfeed announcing IPO plans and Comcast interested in Vox, let the dystopian future of media begin
• What the Re/code acquisition says about the future of media
  
  The times for VC-backed online publishing houses are getting eventful and a bit turbulent.
• Timeline: Tech companies hiring journalists through the years
  
  Meanwhile, tech companies keep hiring journalists. Both industries are closer to each other than ever before.
• European entrepreneurs are scaling globally in record time: our research into how the world’s most successful companies go global
  
  European VC firm Atomico has some great stats and numbers, proving that small countries indeed have an advantage when it comes to international expansion.
• Elon Musk’s Hyperloop ‘might be free to passengers’
  
  This is the kind of visionary stuff that makes me optimistic about the future, despite all challenges ahead.
• Shouldn’t We Fix Poverty Before Migrating to Mars?
  
  Hard to find the “right” answer to this, but a relevant question to ponder.
• Got a wearable? Almost anybody can track you using simple technology
  
  I guess by now most people simply do not care anymore about being tracked. It is pragmatic, even though a problem.
• Sweden has designed its dream house, and it’s gorgeous
  
  The kind of stuff you can do with huge amounts of data.
• KLM’s 150 social media customer service agents generate $25M in annual revenue
  
  The Dutch airline has turned social media customer support into a profit center.

And recently on meshedsociety.com:

• When it comes to its digital future, Europe could suffer a double defeat
• A love letter to public transport
• Controlling our technology, not being controlled: An upgrade to the human operating system