Harry McCracken
@harrymccracken.com
Fast Company global technology editor. Boy journalist. Bon vivant. Lefthander. Westcoastian. 🇺🇦 Sign up for my free Plugged In newsletter: https://www.fastcompany.com/section/plugged-in
Pinned
Harry McCracken
@harrymccracken.com
· Jul 16
Here’s a feed of stuff from Fast Company and people who write for it, which I created using Flipboard’s Surf app.
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This week’s Plugged In newsletter: I asked Claude Opus 4.6 to critique that viral blog post about AI, and was startled by how perceptive it was. www.fastcompany.com/91491419/mat...
AI is still both more and less amazing than we think, and that’s a problem - Fast Company
Somehow, people have trouble acknowledging that a technology can be simultaneously incredible and flawed.
www.fastcompany.com
February 13, 2026 at 5:16 PM
This week’s Plugged In newsletter: I asked Claude Opus 4.6 to critique that viral blog post about AI, and was startled by how perceptive it was. www.fastcompany.com/91491419/mat...
I’ve never actually lived in a Radio Shack, but when I was in high school, I used to spend the afternoon at one (and at other computer stores), using all their stuff with abandon. They were remarkably patient, especially given that I didn’t have any money to buy anything.
February 12, 2026 at 9:54 PM
I’ve never actually lived in a Radio Shack, but when I was in high school, I used to spend the afternoon at one (and at other computer stores), using all their stuff with abandon. They were remarkably patient, especially given that I didn’t have any money to buy anything.
Tinney’s BYTE covers were the best computer magazine covers of all time, and nothing else springs to mind as a clear second place. In 2014, I wrote about my favorite one for TIME. RIP. time.com/60505/this-1...
February 12, 2026 at 12:49 AM
Tinney’s BYTE covers were the best computer magazine covers of all time, and nothing else springs to mind as a clear second place. In 2014, I wrote about my favorite one for TIME. RIP. time.com/60505/this-1...
I once worked for someone who just stopped coming to work one day, which is how I learned about something called job abandonment. Kinda seems like Will Lewis did that this week?
February 8, 2026 at 4:22 AM
I once worked for someone who just stopped coming to work one day, which is how I learned about something called job abandonment. Kinda seems like Will Lewis did that this week?
On the bright side, it’s a lot harder to enjoy the Super Bowl if you’ve got going into work on Monday on your mind.
February 8, 2026 at 12:10 AM
On the bright side, it’s a lot harder to enjoy the Super Bowl if you’ve got going into work on Monday on your mind.
Psssst: It might have been a good idea to try this staffing reduction first. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/07/t...
Washington Post C.E.O. Will Lewis Steps Down After Stormy Tenure
www.nytimes.com
February 8, 2026 at 12:06 AM
Psssst: It might have been a good idea to try this staffing reduction first. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/07/t...
I apologize for not bringing my Atari—which I bought shortly after graduating from high school—to work on Bring Your Atari to Work Day. But I have a big writing deadline and typing on it would have been a drag.
February 6, 2026 at 11:45 PM
I apologize for not bringing my Atari—which I bought shortly after graduating from high school—to work on Bring Your Atari to Work Day. But I have a big writing deadline and typing on it would have been a drag.
Never blame anything on a staffer or an intern. Particularly if you did it.
February 6, 2026 at 10:49 PM
Never blame anything on a staffer or an intern. Particularly if you did it.
Among the Super Bowl’s many impressive qualities is that it’s managed to make driving impossible in San Francisco this whole week, despite the fact that it’s not happening for another couple of days and won’t be played here.
February 6, 2026 at 9:18 PM
Among the Super Bowl’s many impressive qualities is that it’s managed to make driving impossible in San Francisco this whole week, despite the fact that it’s not happening for another couple of days and won’t be played here.
I forgot I wrote this story, in a very different time. (Offering its CMS as a service didn’t end up bolstering the Post’s fortunes.) www.fastcompany.com/40495770/the...
The Washington Post Is A Software Company Now - Fast Company
The newspaper created a platform to tackle its own challenges. Then, with Amazon-like spirit, it realized there was a business in helping other publishers do the same.
www.fastcompany.com
February 6, 2026 at 5:09 PM
I forgot I wrote this story, in a very different time. (Offering its CMS as a service didn’t end up bolstering the Post’s fortunes.) www.fastcompany.com/40495770/the...
I wrote about AI taking over software development in general, my experience with Claude Code in particular, and this guy named Edsger Dijkstra who thought normal people shouldn’t even try to program computers. www.fastcompany.com/91485494/vib...
Vibe coding is coding, period - Fast Company
As AI tools such as Claude Code take off, most of the world’s software may end up being written by software.
www.fastcompany.com
February 6, 2026 at 5:06 PM
I wrote about AI taking over software development in general, my experience with Claude Code in particular, and this guy named Edsger Dijkstra who thought normal people shouldn’t even try to program computers. www.fastcompany.com/91485494/vib...
“Democracy Dies in Darkness” now seems like a tagline that can’t be shed—no matter what—because of what people would day if it went away.
February 4, 2026 at 11:02 PM
“Democracy Dies in Darkness” now seems like a tagline that can’t be shed—no matter what—because of what people would day if it went away.
I’m hoping that “it” is my sanity back.
(All of a sudden, I’m getting daily Trumpy texts like this. I’m not sure if they’re scammy or just spammy.)
(All of a sudden, I’m getting daily Trumpy texts like this. I’m not sure if they’re scammy or just spammy.)
February 4, 2026 at 10:50 PM
I’m hoping that “it” is my sanity back.
(All of a sudden, I’m getting daily Trumpy texts like this. I’m not sure if they’re scammy or just spammy.)
(All of a sudden, I’m getting daily Trumpy texts like this. I’m not sure if they’re scammy or just spammy.)
What are the chances that the people currently running the company will lead it out this this? www.nytimes.com/2026/02/04/b...
Washington Post Begins Laying Off More Than 300 Journalists
www.nytimes.com
February 4, 2026 at 8:44 PM
What are the chances that the people currently running the company will lead it out this this? www.nytimes.com/2026/02/04/b...
Huang: “When a group in my company says they want to use AI, my answer is yes. And then I ask why.” But “A thousand flowers blooming makes for a messy garden … I haven’t started curating yet.”
February 4, 2026 at 3:44 AM
Huang: “When a group in my company says they want to use AI, my answer is yes. And then I ask why.” But “A thousand flowers blooming makes for a messy garden … I haven’t started curating yet.”
Jensen Huang at Cisco AI Summit: “Up until now, chatbots [have been] interesting and curious, but not useful.”
February 4, 2026 at 3:38 AM
Jensen Huang at Cisco AI Summit: “Up until now, chatbots [have been] interesting and curious, but not useful.”
Box’s Aaron Levie: Instead of AI agents adjusting to our ways, “We’re going to have to adjust to how agents work. It’s not a settled problem.”
February 3, 2026 at 7:32 PM
Box’s Aaron Levie: Instead of AI agents adjusting to our ways, “We’re going to have to adjust to how agents work. It’s not a settled problem.”
Figma’s Dylan Field on AI coding: “You can move a lot faster but ship worse staff. Everyone knows that.”
February 3, 2026 at 7:25 PM
Figma’s Dylan Field on AI coding: “You can move a lot faster but ship worse staff. Everyone knows that.”
Fei-Fei Li says too much discussion of AI is at the utopian and dystopian extremes. “That’s just not a responsible way to talk about the technology.”
February 3, 2026 at 6:19 PM
Fei-Fei Li says too much discussion of AI is at the utopian and dystopian extremes. “That’s just not a responsible way to talk about the technology.”
Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan on taking the job: “A lot of friends told me, “Don’t do it”…I finally convinced my wife.”
February 3, 2026 at 5:48 PM
Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan on taking the job: “A lot of friends told me, “Don’t do it”…I finally convinced my wife.”
I’m at Cisco’s AI Summit in SF, which sure has an all-star lineup of speakers. Here’s Sam Altman with Cisco President Jeetu Patel. Altman is praising OpenClaw and says he set up a second laptop to use it safely.
February 3, 2026 at 5:24 PM
I’m at Cisco’s AI Summit in SF, which sure has an all-star lineup of speakers. Here’s Sam Altman with Cisco President Jeetu Patel. Altman is praising OpenClaw and says he set up a second laptop to use it safely.
Reposted by Harry McCracken
not a *whole* lot of steps to "imagine if we had to go through the process of trials by jury"
Mike Johnson speaks out against the use of judicial warrants in immigration cases:
"Imagine if we had to go through the process of getting a judicial warrant"
"Imagine if we had to go through the process of getting a judicial warrant"
February 3, 2026 at 4:27 PM
not a *whole* lot of steps to "imagine if we had to go through the process of trials by jury"
Claude Coats painted backgrounds for Disney cartoons and went on to help design Disneyland. I think of him whenever I think of Claude Code.
February 3, 2026 at 4:30 PM
Claude Coats painted backgrounds for Disney cartoons and went on to help design Disneyland. I think of him whenever I think of Claude Code.
I’m having a lot of fun with Claude Code (and wrote something I plan to share soon), but I’m not sure why it’s suddenly decided someone is using prompt injection to interfere with my project.
February 3, 2026 at 4:25 PM
I’m having a lot of fun with Claude Code (and wrote something I plan to share soon), but I’m not sure why it’s suddenly decided someone is using prompt injection to interfere with my project.
Describing Trump as someone who speaks his mind seems like a total misreading to me. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/02/w...
Colombia’s President, an Outspoken Trump Critic, Heads to the White House - The New York Times
President Gustavo Petro of Colombia and President Trump have had a tense relationship that escalated into threats by Mr. Trump, before easing. Anything could happen at their Feb. 3 meeting.
www.nytimes.com
February 2, 2026 at 8:03 PM
Describing Trump as someone who speaks his mind seems like a total misreading to me. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/02/w...