London, UK >  A cyber security professional observing technology, business, and culture with a skeptical – but never cynical – eye, and scratching a writing itch from a previous life as a journalist.

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Field Notes 6 // Christmas, reflection, and bowling
 -  I took some time off this Christmas to relax, reflect, and review my notebooks from 2025, and came away with inspiration about where to take the blog in 2026. I also did a lot of ten-pin bowling.
How to opt out of X's engagement-first algorithm
 -  The new X algorithm, which prioritises virality over personal preferences, has been met with a huge backlash. But it's possible to take back control of your feed using Lists, strategic muting, and ruthless curation.
Enshittified football needs its Steve Jobs moment
 -  Elite football clubs are being run down by the same model of enshittification that ruined tech products. Owners, safe in the knowledge they have a captive audience, prioritise profits over sporting success.
State of the Blog 2026: Following a new direction
 -  I've blogged for about 20 years, but until recently I never knew exactly what this site should be. As we enter 2026, I'm reflecting on how I found my voice in 2025, and how to step things up in the new year.
Best of Tech 2025: Gadgets, books, games, and more
 -  I was much better at keeping note of things I read, watched, and played in 2025. It seemed rude not to share, so here's a roundup of the best things I found this year (and some to you might want to avoid).
AI shopping only works if you give up your privacy
 -  As I wrote when OpenAI launched its Atlas browser, AI models simply don’t know your preferences well enough to shop on your behalf. The technology firms envision a future where we type “buy trainers” and they arrive at our door, but they don’t acc...
Self-driving cars are here, but the friction is in the sale
 -  On a recent trip to Austin, Texas, I was tempted to take one of the Waymos or Robotaxis that so casually roam the streets. One day, I was even offered one as an alternative to waiting 11 minutes for an Uber driver. I probably would have taken the ...
Field Notes 5 // ChatGPT Atlas and the Claude café
 -  I'm feeling bullish on technology in a way I haven't since the mid-2010s. I'm still not fully convinced on the AI non(?)-bubble, but it feels like the sector has regained some of its soul recently. At least in my circles, there's been pushback aga...
ChatGPT Atlas positions AI as the internet's gatekeeper
 -  We’re shoehorning AI into everything else, so why not your web browser? That was presumably the thinking when OpenAI launched ChatGPT Atlas, an AI-augmented browser that it says will change the way we use the internet. Launched on macOS on 21st Oc...
EtherHiding: When good blockchains turn bad
 -  With AI stealing the limelight over the last few years, it’s been a while since it was fashionable to talk about the blockchain. But it’s still out there, most famously used to track cryptocurrency transactions and hold smart contracts. Part of wh...

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Coincidentally, in the space of a week I encountered both Zach Seward's article about Quartz and Craig Mod's excellent podcasts with Tim Ferriss. Both evoked fond memories of my time in journalism and the buzz surrounding digital journalism and media in the 2010s

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