This is The Stepback, a weekly newsletter breaking down one essential story from the tech world. For more on the slow-motion disaster of live-service games, follow Andrew Webster. The Stepback arrives in our subscribers’ inboxes at 8AM ET. Opt in for The Stepback here. How […]
Year: 2026
The $100,000 fee for H-1Bs is causing all sorts of problems
Last fall, President Donald Trump’s executive order raising the fee for H-1B visas to $100,000 – like many of his immigration policies – led to near-immediate chaos. Thousands of workers who had flown overseas to renew their visas ended up stranded abroad. Details about who […]
AI Czar David Sacks wants Trump to ‘get out’ of Iran
David Sacks, the White House’s AI and crypto czar, has warned that a continued war in Iran could be catastrophic. On the All In podcast, Sacks said that “we should try to find the off-ramp.” He expressed concern that Iran could demolish oil and gas […]
Aether OS is computer in a browser built for the AT Protocol
Aether OS puts a full-fledged desktop in your browser that ties directly into the AT Protocol. That means it connects to your Bluesky account and other public records. It offers a pretty full suite of apps, 42 in total, covering text editing, task management, and […]
Sotomayor’s Wabi Sabi is the funnest record of 2026
Shout out to subscriber N_Gorski for today’s pick. They popped into the comments on last week’s recommendation to ask what I thought of the new Sotomayor record. Well, I hadn’t actually heard it yet, but now I’m obsessed. The group consists of siblings Raul and […]
March 15, 2026: US-Iran Conflict Escalates with Kharg Island Strikes
The escalating conflict between the United States and Iran poses a grave threat to regional stability and has significant implications for global security and economic health. As tensions rise, the potential to reshape power dynamics in the Middle East becomes increasingly apparent, affecting econom
Trump administration is allegedly collecting $10 billion on the TikTok deal
In September, Donald Trump claimed that “the United States is getting a tremendous fee” for brokering the TikTok deal. Now sources tell the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times that fee is expected to be in the range of $10 billion. The money […]
March 15, 2026: US-Iran Conflict Escalates with Kharg Island Strikes
The escalating conflict between the United States and Iran poses a grave threat to regional stability and has significant implications for global security and economic health. As tensions rise, the potential to reshape power dynamics in the Middle East becomes increasingly apparent, affecting econom
Prediction markets want the Oscars to be your gateway drug to betting on everything
Though it was weird to see the Golden Globes partner with Polymarket for its most recent awards show, the collaboration wasn’t shocking given the way that people have begun using prediction markets to gamble on basically anything. Prediction markets are being used to bet on […]
Meta is reportedly laying off up to 20 percent of its staff
According to Reuters, Meta is looking to offset spending on AI and data centers with a massive round of layoffs. Sources familiar with the matter say the company could lay off as much as 20 percent of its staff, eliminating roughly 15,800 positions. That would […]