1. Precision and Recall by Simon Cross. Two key concepts in the product development process. In any system, one of the critical tasks is to pick an operating point — setting the parameters and thresholds that are reasonable for your particular use case.
  2. Psychology of Habit by Wood and Rünger (2016). Excellent review on the science of habits.
  3. 7 Ways the Internet Will Get Weirder by Rex Woodbury. The progress of AI tools accelerates how the digital world is changing our lived experience — more interactions with chatbots, more synthetic media, more personalization (and consequently more fragmentation of culture).
  4. AI, and Everything Else by Ben Evans. Evans’ annual deck on macro and strategic trends in the tech industry. For 2024, “AI, and everything else”.
  5. Forget Bloodwork, This Tool Screens For Diabetes Using Your Voice at Medtech Pulse. Researchers have developed a tool that can help diagnose the condition with just a smartphone voice recording.
  6. Meaningful Metrics: How Data Sharpened the Focus of Product Teams by Erin Gustafson at Duolingo. Duolingo’s growth strategy as of early 2023 involves acquiring approximately 80% of users organically, relying on word-of-mouth and social media presence, with a focus on providing a free, high-quality language learning product, and utilizing a growth framework with movable metrics and A/B testing.
  7. Development of Deep Ensembles to Screen for Autism and Symptom Severity Using Retinal Photographs by Kim et al. (2023). Retinal photographs were used as a screening tool to detect ASD. Caveat: The mean IQ in the study group was 70, showing that the sample was from a specific section of the autistic spectrum. The 100% detection rate would likely drop fast if the selection criteria were to expand. (Also: 100% accuracy does raise some eyebrows)
  8. 1,374 Days — My Life With Long Covid by Giorgia Lupi for The New York Times. The information designer Giorgia Lupi employs data to explore her experiences with Long Covid.
  9. What’s Next For Ozempic? by Dani Blum for The New York Times. Research explores semaglutide and tirzepatide benefits beyond weight loss, like how these drugs could reduce inflammation in the body or quieten the brain’s compulsive thoughts.
  10. How to think about Bets, Success Metrics, and Roadmapping by John Cutler. Collection on product management thinking. “With a Project, the focus is on finishing a predetermined chunk of work. With a problem focus, our focus is on solving a specified problem. With a Bet, our focus is impact, value, and risk.”