Omar Yacoubi
@omaryak.net
What I’m reading about the news, urbanism, tech & the zeitgeist. UX designer / strategist @omyk.co and 2x Big 5, Cisco alum thinking globally 🌐 posting locally in the
📍SF Bay Area, CA
┃ Opinions mine (not shared at work)
🔗 linktr.ee/omaryak
📍SF Bay Area, CA
┃ Opinions mine (not shared at work)
🔗 linktr.ee/omaryak
You have to get human intelligence straight before you can unleash the potential of AI—recently, #business had a lack of planning, not too much of it. Fast Company called it #processdebt
Defined paths let us support customers better along their journey in #ux
www.fastcompany.com/91396595/the...
Defined paths let us support customers better along their journey in #ux
www.fastcompany.com/91396595/the...
The silent killer of AI success
Why eliminating 'process debt' is critical as we move into an agentic AI world
www.fastcompany.com
November 12, 2025 at 6:24 AM
You have to get human intelligence straight before you can unleash the potential of AI—recently, #business had a lack of planning, not too much of it. Fast Company called it #processdebt
Defined paths let us support customers better along their journey in #ux
www.fastcompany.com/91396595/the...
Defined paths let us support customers better along their journey in #ux
www.fastcompany.com/91396595/the...
I was wondering how Wolfram Alpha’s computational knowledge engine especially could leverage AI, and maybe this is the first crack at that. “Computational irreducibility” sounds like where AI is not yet AGI, and I am not sure LLMs’ adaptive learning can replace us just yet:
hbr.org/2024/12/the-...
hbr.org/2024/12/the-...
November 12, 2025 at 6:22 AM
I was wondering how Wolfram Alpha’s computational knowledge engine especially could leverage AI, and maybe this is the first crack at that. “Computational irreducibility” sounds like where AI is not yet AGI, and I am not sure LLMs’ adaptive learning can replace us just yet:
hbr.org/2024/12/the-...
hbr.org/2024/12/the-...
These days, I would recommend that if leaders are unable to provide constructive criticism when someone has done a round of iterations, they provide their own schematics in visual software now freely available (Balsamiq, e.g.)
“A picture is worth a thousand words”
“A picture is worth a thousand words”
November 11, 2025 at 11:44 PM
These days, I would recommend that if leaders are unable to provide constructive criticism when someone has done a round of iterations, they provide their own schematics in visual software now freely available (Balsamiq, e.g.)
“A picture is worth a thousand words”
“A picture is worth a thousand words”
Jobs was known for being fussy about visual representations matching real-world details (skeuomorphism), but that’s detail-oriented, hands on, not micromanagement per se
In other areas, he knew when to let go and let others take the lead
#leadership
bsky.app/profile/omar...
In other areas, he knew when to let go and let others take the lead
#leadership
bsky.app/profile/omar...
Steve Jobs often gets misremembered because the times he was an asshole live longest in people’s memories. I overlooked that and was inspired by him differently: he believed in empowering his teams
#culture #strategy
www.inc.com/nick-hobson/...
finance.yahoo.com/news/steve-j...
#culture #strategy
www.inc.com/nick-hobson/...
finance.yahoo.com/news/steve-j...
Steve Jobs Said These Are the 3 Elements to Building a Dream Team
He wasn't innovative just in how he thought about technology.
www.inc.com
November 11, 2025 at 11:43 PM
Jobs was known for being fussy about visual representations matching real-world details (skeuomorphism), but that’s detail-oriented, hands on, not micromanagement per se
In other areas, he knew when to let go and let others take the lead
#leadership
bsky.app/profile/omar...
In other areas, he knew when to let go and let others take the lead
#leadership
bsky.app/profile/omar...
Reposting for visibility :) … I don’t know if Americans realize how much our record industry has been captured by the profit motive over the decades, radio too: DJs used to have more freedom to spin their own styles, and there was less #media consolidation
These days I mostly listen to fipradio.fr
These days I mostly listen to fipradio.fr
Had to dig on Deepseek to find an article about the commodification of #music from a while ago. Two articles published more recently (from BBC & Bloomberg) are no longer available on the internet (e.g. “How to make a song in 2020”). Strange
#enshittification
www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...
#enshittification
www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...
The Dark Science of Pop Music
Record companies are tracking download and search data to predict which new songs will be hits. This has been good for business—but is it bad for music?
www.theatlantic.com
November 11, 2025 at 7:42 PM
Reposting for visibility :) … I don’t know if Americans realize how much our record industry has been captured by the profit motive over the decades, radio too: DJs used to have more freedom to spin their own styles, and there was less #media consolidation
These days I mostly listen to fipradio.fr
These days I mostly listen to fipradio.fr
Reposted by Omar Yacoubi
Creativity isn’t always brand-new; ingenuity doesn’t need to mean being a genius. Optimizing #music & songs for joy—or the feeling they create—instead of addictiveness, can restore “the soul of a nation”
#humanity
winstonchurchill.org/publications...
winstonchurchill.hillsdale.edu/the-arts-wha...
#humanity
winstonchurchill.org/publications...
winstonchurchill.hillsdale.edu/the-arts-wha...
“Between Tradition and Innovation”
Winston Churchill’s Speech to the Royal Academy, Burlington House, London, 30 April 1953 - “Between Tradition and Innovation”
winstonchurchill.org
November 11, 2025 at 7:37 PM
Creativity isn’t always brand-new; ingenuity doesn’t need to mean being a genius. Optimizing #music & songs for joy—or the feeling they create—instead of addictiveness, can restore “the soul of a nation”
#humanity
winstonchurchill.org/publications...
winstonchurchill.hillsdale.edu/the-arts-wha...
#humanity
winstonchurchill.org/publications...
winstonchurchill.hillsdale.edu/the-arts-wha...
In the 1970s Americans literally rioted over bad #music. Today we just complain on social #media 😂
#socialcontract #history
allthatsinteresting.com/disco-demoli...
www.bbc.com/culture/arti...
#socialcontract #history
allthatsinteresting.com/disco-demoli...
www.bbc.com/culture/arti...
How “Disco Demolition Night” Turned A Major League Park Into A Riot
Disco Demolition Night could have been the worst baseball promotional event in history, the death of disco music, or both.
allthatsinteresting.com
November 11, 2025 at 7:39 PM
In the 1970s Americans literally rioted over bad #music. Today we just complain on social #media 😂
#socialcontract #history
allthatsinteresting.com/disco-demoli...
www.bbc.com/culture/arti...
#socialcontract #history
allthatsinteresting.com/disco-demoli...
www.bbc.com/culture/arti...
Creativity isn’t always brand-new; ingenuity doesn’t need to mean being a genius. Optimizing #music & songs for joy—or the feeling they create—instead of addictiveness, can restore “the soul of a nation”
#humanity
winstonchurchill.org/publications...
winstonchurchill.hillsdale.edu/the-arts-wha...
#humanity
winstonchurchill.org/publications...
winstonchurchill.hillsdale.edu/the-arts-wha...
“Between Tradition and Innovation”
Winston Churchill’s Speech to the Royal Academy, Burlington House, London, 30 April 1953 - “Between Tradition and Innovation”
winstonchurchill.org
November 11, 2025 at 7:37 PM
Creativity isn’t always brand-new; ingenuity doesn’t need to mean being a genius. Optimizing #music & songs for joy—or the feeling they create—instead of addictiveness, can restore “the soul of a nation”
#humanity
winstonchurchill.org/publications...
winstonchurchill.hillsdale.edu/the-arts-wha...
#humanity
winstonchurchill.org/publications...
winstonchurchill.hillsdale.edu/the-arts-wha...
Most #science articles you find on music now on Google and DuckDuckGo are AI slop that ignore this commercialization aspect. I worry about the future sometimes
#AIslop
www.cnet.com/tech/service...
futurism.com/artificial-i...
#AIslop
www.cnet.com/tech/service...
futurism.com/artificial-i...
What Is AI Slop? Everything to Know About the Terrible Content Taking Over the Internet
Deepfakes deceive on purpose, hallucinations fabricate by accident and AI slop floods the internet out of indifference.
www.cnet.com
November 11, 2025 at 6:26 PM
Most #science articles you find on music now on Google and DuckDuckGo are AI slop that ignore this commercialization aspect. I worry about the future sometimes
#AIslop
www.cnet.com/tech/service...
futurism.com/artificial-i...
#AIslop
www.cnet.com/tech/service...
futurism.com/artificial-i...
Had to dig on Deepseek to find an article about the commodification of #music from a while ago. Two articles published more recently (from BBC & Bloomberg) are no longer available on the internet (e.g. “How to make a song in 2020”). Strange
#enshittification
www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...
#enshittification
www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...
The Dark Science of Pop Music
Record companies are tracking download and search data to predict which new songs will be hits. This has been good for business—but is it bad for music?
www.theatlantic.com
November 11, 2025 at 6:21 PM
Had to dig on Deepseek to find an article about the commodification of #music from a while ago. Two articles published more recently (from BBC & Bloomberg) are no longer available on the internet (e.g. “How to make a song in 2020”). Strange
#enshittification
www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...
#enshittification
www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...
Most of Taylor’s songs sound the same to me. I never really got into her stuff. Formulaic brain rot
Maybe it’s me starting to act like a boomer, but most of my #music library is from the 2010s, and I find just a few gems here and there lately, mostly from outside the U.S.
Maybe it’s me starting to act like a boomer, but most of my #music library is from the 2010s, and I find just a few gems here and there lately, mostly from outside the U.S.
November 11, 2025 at 6:04 PM
Most of Taylor’s songs sound the same to me. I never really got into her stuff. Formulaic brain rot
Maybe it’s me starting to act like a boomer, but most of my #music library is from the 2010s, and I find just a few gems here and there lately, mostly from outside the U.S.
Maybe it’s me starting to act like a boomer, but most of my #music library is from the 2010s, and I find just a few gems here and there lately, mostly from outside the U.S.
#Nepotism is also a factor. People are rewarding relationships and basing likability on familiarity instead of #diversity. Monoculture and sameness are the result of #stratification
www.economist.com/leaders/2025...
www.economist.com/podcasts/202...
www.economist.com/leaders/2025...
www.economist.com/podcasts/202...
Inheriting is becoming nearly as important as working
More wealth means more money for baby-boomers to pass on. That is dangerous for capitalism and society
www.economist.com
November 11, 2025 at 6:02 PM
#Nepotism is also a factor. People are rewarding relationships and basing likability on familiarity instead of #diversity. Monoculture and sameness are the result of #stratification
www.economist.com/leaders/2025...
www.economist.com/podcasts/202...
www.economist.com/leaders/2025...
www.economist.com/podcasts/202...
Predictable profit matters more in #latecapitalism than innovation or enjoyment. Margaret Thatcher said “economics are the method; the object is to rewrite the heart and the soul …” —and here we are:
#enshittification #culture
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2025/0...
www.newyorker.com/culture/infi...
#enshittification #culture
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2025/0...
www.newyorker.com/culture/infi...
The West is bored to death
Our nihilistic politics are a product of the crushing ennui and spiritual vacancy of modern life.
www.newstatesman.com
November 11, 2025 at 5:57 PM
Predictable profit matters more in #latecapitalism than innovation or enjoyment. Margaret Thatcher said “economics are the method; the object is to rewrite the heart and the soul …” —and here we are:
#enshittification #culture
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2025/0...
www.newyorker.com/culture/infi...
#enshittification #culture
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2025/0...
www.newyorker.com/culture/infi...
Fight, fight, fight :)
November 11, 2025 at 5:53 PM
Fight, fight, fight :)
Really “drives” the point home … for clients?
Ok, ok I’ll stop 😂 (… but seriously, as it turns out, autonomy rewards us with dopamine just like social media)
youtu.be/7g-9COLA3_k?...
Ok, ok I’ll stop 😂 (… but seriously, as it turns out, autonomy rewards us with dopamine just like social media)
youtu.be/7g-9COLA3_k?...
Client : Drive
YouTube video by Out Of Line Music
youtu.be
November 11, 2025 at 7:34 AM
Really “drives” the point home … for clients?
Ok, ok I’ll stop 😂 (… but seriously, as it turns out, autonomy rewards us with dopamine just like social media)
youtu.be/7g-9COLA3_k?...
Ok, ok I’ll stop 😂 (… but seriously, as it turns out, autonomy rewards us with dopamine just like social media)
youtu.be/7g-9COLA3_k?...
“Disagree and commit” and “cognitive diversity” are making the rounds on social media to correct for a mistaken impression of psychological safety in corporate #culture: we forgot sometimes people should be annoying 😅
www.economist.com/business/202...
www.economist.com/business/202...
November 11, 2025 at 7:12 AM
I saw an article just now call him a “once in a lifetime leader.” But he was a Syrian refugee adopted by white parents. His #diversity is likely what gave him a certain spice to his personality, in my humble opinion
Others like him can be helpfully piquant 🌶️ —“variety is the spice of life”
Others like him can be helpfully piquant 🌶️ —“variety is the spice of life”
There is a logic to limiting cognitive bias on corporate teams, though, to avoid a #productivity -destroying monolith. When #leadership is aware of these, it can make for a healthier exchange (in more than one sense of the word!)
#culture #strategy
hbr.org/2022/04/make...
hbr.org/2022/03/how-...
#culture #strategy
hbr.org/2022/04/make...
hbr.org/2022/03/how-...
Make Better Decisions by Challenging Your Expectations
When we face a difficult decision, we often unconsciously set expectations — for ourselves and for others — about both the decision-making process and the outcome. Embedded in our expectations are our...
hbr.org
November 11, 2025 at 4:14 AM
I saw an article just now call him a “once in a lifetime leader.” But he was a Syrian refugee adopted by white parents. His #diversity is likely what gave him a certain spice to his personality, in my humble opinion
Others like him can be helpfully piquant 🌶️ —“variety is the spice of life”
Others like him can be helpfully piquant 🌶️ —“variety is the spice of life”
Steve was just a bit antisocial, but in the best way possible: refusing to put your team’s druthers above what was best for the product—if you knew a better, rational way
Those kinds of courageous conversations (not verbal abuse) make us all better off #groupthink
www.inc.com/will-yakowic...
Those kinds of courageous conversations (not verbal abuse) make us all better off #groupthink
www.inc.com/will-yakowic...
The 2 Most Important Things Steve Jobs Taught Jony Ive
Apple's renowned design guru revealed what he learned in an onstage interview yesterday.
www.inc.com
November 11, 2025 at 4:08 AM
Steve was just a bit antisocial, but in the best way possible: refusing to put your team’s druthers above what was best for the product—if you knew a better, rational way
Those kinds of courageous conversations (not verbal abuse) make us all better off #groupthink
www.inc.com/will-yakowic...
Those kinds of courageous conversations (not verbal abuse) make us all better off #groupthink
www.inc.com/will-yakowic...