Daily Tech Brief · October 24th

OpenAI says it will deny internet access to the frontier models it is training, a move that underscores the inadequacy of safety measures undertaken to date. "Based on the current state of alignment research, monitoring systems, and the security of internet infrastructure, we believe the responsible approach is to conduct frontier model training with no internet access," the company said in a blog post.

Elon Musk is stirring the pot again, becoming a target in political discussions. Some pundits, like Kara Swisher, are suggesting he could face jail time if Kamala Harris were to become president. This comes right after Musk made headlines by promising to give every child in America a share of SpaceX and unveiling a flying car prototype with the new Tesla Roadster. It's a wild juxtaposition of innovation and controversy.

The episode also dives into the upcoming California Wealth Tax vote, raising questions about its implications. Plus, there's a discussion around Ilhan Omar and allegations of immigration fraud, which adds another layer to the political climate.

But it’s not all heavy topics. The hosts wrap up with a more optimistic note, talking about the potential of flying cars and a tech-driven future. They also share tips on managing stress while scrolling through social media, which feels especially relevant these days. It's a blend of serious and lighthearted conversation that keeps you engaged.

It has been a little more than a month since WSL 3.0.1 came out, and it's already changing the way I run my Linux containers. One of the most distinctive features that interested me is the fact that it adds the wslc command that can pull images, run containers, map ports, and even build images from a Containerfile straight from PowerShell or CMD.

I’ve been swamped with a couple of tight book deadlines and a string of personal stuff, so the usual flow of posts has stalled. I’m apologetic for the radio silence, especially for those who count on the regular updates.

Looking ahead, I’m carving out a more realistic schedule: a short piece every two weeks, with deeper dives when the calendar eases up. The goal is to keep the quality you expect without burning out.

I’m also tweaking the newsletter format—simpler layouts, clearer sections—so you can skim the parts you love and skip the fluff.

Thanks for hanging in there; your support means a lot, and I’m eager to get back to sharing more consistently.

The Call of Duty series needed a win this year. Last year’s Black Ops 7 was a clown car of bad decisions, featuring an always-online campaign mode with ridiculous zombie bosses and open-world Warzone. Worse still, the multiplayer mode (the only reason that many people buy the game) was entirely forgettable. Developer Treyarch was tasked with putting out Call of Duty games two years in a row — that crunch was a recipe for disaster. On the other hand, that means Modern Warfare developer Infinity Ward had plenty of time to cook up the fourth and final entry in its own series.

On the markets — Kalshi traders have been actively repricing this story in the last day.

Apple has decided to close several of its stores in France, particularly in Paris and a few other cities, as a precautionary measure amid ongoing protests. The stores affected include the Champs-Élysées, Opéra, and Marché Saint-Germain locations, along with Bordeaux, Lille, Strasbourg, and Aix-en-Provence. This decision seems to stem from recent unrest, where some Apple stores were looted during protests on October 17, which were primarily focused on rising living costs and poor school conditions.

Interestingly, while these street-level stores are closing, those located inside shopping malls will remain open. The closures are aimed at ensuring the safety of employees and minimizing potential damage. Reports have surfaced about stolen iPhones from the looted stores, which are now displaying messages indicating they’ve been disabled and are being tracked, urging people to return them.

For the stores that are still operating, they have adjusted their hours, with some opening on Sundays from noon to 6 p.m., while Lille and Strasbourg will stay closed for the day. It’s a tough situation for both the businesses and the community, as protests continue to unfold across the country.

The two sides previously agreed to a June 20, 2025 cutoff for Apple's records. With the evidence-gathering phase now scheduled to end in late May 2027, lawyers want Apple to supply documents created up to 30 days before that deadline. They say newer records could help establish whether the alleged anticompetitive practices are continuing. Apple argues that expanding the search would delay the case by several months. The company says it has already reviewed more than 11 million documents and handed over more than two million, covering an 18-year period.

Calibre 9.17 has been released with faster ebook conversion speeds and JPEG XL image support. The open-source ebook editor improves output compression speeds for MOBI, AZW3 and PDB files, which makes conversions to those formats quicker. Converting EPUB to MOBI is what I use Calibre for to read on my ancient Kindle. Calibre 9.17 can read JPEG XL images in eBooks and other supported documents during conversions. The format offers high image quality at smaller file sizes and supports features like HDR. JPEG XL is not new, but its popularity (and browser support) is on the up.

Cool girl–approved Scandi rug maker Layered launched a collab that reminds us of richly patterned bedspreads. Art Deco is alive and well in 2026. See: Sunfish’s new straw marquetry masterpieces. Amber Lewis nails the non-boring neutral rug brief every time—and she’s added 30+ new ones to choose from. Élan Byrd’s Lulu and Georgia capsule marks not the first, not the second, but the third capiz light we’ve spied of late. Too soon to call it a trend? This blocky sofa looks like it time-traveled from the future. Plot twist: it’s a 1978 reissue.

Ever wondered what your Ubuntu desktop would look like if you were watching it on a chewed up VHS tape or an old monochrome CRT monitor? You probably haven’t, but a new GNOME Shell extension lets you find out anyway. The Shader Effects extension applies different GPU-accelerated filters (things like fuzzy scan lines, NTSC RGB bloom and flickery green CRT glow) to the entire desktop, or just a specific window if you’d rather. Settings allow you to fine-tune how intense the effect is, and dial in (or disable) animation speed and frame rate.