Something had to give. Some of you may remember, I’d raised this topic a few weeks ago, contextualizing Intel’s $10 billion cost savings plan for 2025, a planned headcount reduction of 15,000 in its global workforce and why it has fallen behind in the AI chip race which has seen Nvidia, Qualcomm, Apple, AMD and Google race ahead. Just as I wrote this on Tuesday morning, news streamed in that Intel had given its now former CEO Pat Gelsinger two choices—resign, or be removed. Gelsinger had rejoined Intel in early 2021, taking over from the outgoing Bob Swan, and Intel wasn’t having a good time of it with competition at that moment in time too. Intel may have made the early moves in recent months to carve its place in the ‘AI PC’ boom, but then again, Qualcomm and Apple took a big lead before AMD too joined the party with a strong showing. Overlaying all this, of course, is Nvidia’s rise that defines many a link in this AI chain for AI companies, consumers and businesses. Contrast this with the rather lukewarm response Intel’s latest generation chips, including the Core Ultra 9, have received. New Arc GPUs arrive later this week. Too soon, to expect a sudden change in momentum?
Speaking of AI PCs…
SECURITY
I must ask this. Are you using a VPN? Any VPN? This is undeniably an era, that lays emphasis on locking down digital data. Using a VPN, or virtual private network to route web browsing, adds that crucial layer of security and privacy. There is data to suggest more users are realizing the importance of a VPN between them and the World Wide Web. Surely, VPN companies make a strong case too, with faster servers (that conventional wisdom of VPNs meaning slower internet speeds, no longer really holds true), privacy with no activity logs, secure encryption of your web traffic and versatility with apps that aren’t available for just a smartphone or tablet or PC, but also smart TVs.
This week, I instead want to have a conversation about something else that’s brewing in the VPN space. Diversification. VPN companies are, in my opinion, timing this really well. They have the momentum, and this is as good as a time as any to give users the best value for their money. Statista estimates that the global VPN market will be worth $350 billion by the year 2032, up from $45 billion in 2022. That’s a significant wave to ride, and by evolving into something that’s essentially VPN+, subscribers will realise one subscription can do a lot more. Slightly different approaches, but that’s the way the market forces work.
Proton is VPN plus privacy focused email, cloud storage and of course, a password manager. NordVPN talks about VPN plus a full-fledged security suite to go with it. Similar structure at ExpressVPN too. And these, in my mind, are three of the most reliable (and therefore recommendable) VPN solutions. Not some token measures, because these security solutions are diverse—advanced browsing protection, anti-malware, password protection with data leak detection and of course, adverts as well as tracking prevention. Basically, everything a typical anti-virus led security suite would do (and you’d pay extra for that subscription). The landscape is changing fast, and traditional antivirus developers, are surely a worried lot.
EVOLVE
Some of you may be big fans of the Arc web browser. I’ll admit—I’ve tried, but it hasn’t really been enticing enough to shift. My preferential pecking order remains Apple Safari (also a factor of device choices), Microsoft Edge, and Vivaldi. I may not be the only one who hasn’t found Arc quite enough to make a wholesale shift. There had been talk that The Browser Company would be thinking of a generational change, and now we have some clearer details. The next generation web browser will be called Dia, will be released at some point in early 2025 and will further sharpen focus on integrating AI tools (if something like that is possible, then this will be it). Arc 2, or something more? You might like to read my take on how the web browsers have been shifting focus in recent years. I’ll be keeping an eye on Dia, as it shapes up.
ALTERNATIVE?
A question I often ask, but have never received any sort of satisfactory response. Where is that X alternative humanity is still searching for, ever since Elon Musk took over X and proceeded to shape it in his own “(largely, unlikeable, safe to say) vision of a town square? It is something I pointed out again recently in my weekly Tech Tonic column for Hindustan Times, with Mastodon’s flexing about a sudden spike in its new user signups, and Musk being prominently involved at the very top of the US political landscape.
But why haven’t we seen a platform square up to X, or at least get close to challenging its dominance? Meta’s Threads, BlueSky and Mastodon were expected to be as popular as Twitter (subsequently, X) almost a year ago. They still aren’t anywhere close to it. Threads perhaps had the best chance, and it is closest in terms of numbers, but the platform has a different view of social media. It takes me back to my conversation with Emily Dalton Smith, VP of Product Engineering at Meta late this summer. She was clear that Meta’s intention is to build the next “billion-person public conversation app”, something Meta knows all too well with Facebook being what it is. She knows that vision puts them in the same airspace as X as well, but the vision is broader.
Here’s what she said. “Everyone should be able to come to a place that is open where they can feel good about conversations, to be a low-risk edge of emerging culture where they can contribute to any conversation that drives culture and can have deep as well as meaningful social connections around shared interests.” It is quite clear that Threads has no intention of getting into the immediacy and newsy domains that X thrives on (irrespective of algorithmic preferences). Mind you, every time I open Threads, the timeline is a lot more cheerful, a happier place, compared to the X timeline which is usually filled with some sort of anger, rage or opinions. On Threads, it is pleasantly surprising to see the algorithms prioritising an account that posts beautiful landscape photos, or someone who posts doodles.
A follow-up to the question I asked earlier, would perhaps be whether we need another X-esque social media platform? Think about it, we really don’t. Whether your thoughts align with Elon Musk’s algorithms or not, there is no guarantee the next big X alternative (if ever there was one) wouldn’t annoy you the slightest. I guess we have been expecting too much from social media, something it’s not capable of delivering with absolute lack of bias—because humans are the weakest link in this chain, and humans inherently have biases.