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Midweek greetings to all, as we unveil the 285th chapter of Weekly Olio—a delightful concoction of laughter, insight, and a sprinkle of mystery. Within these pages, you'll discover a handpicked selection of fascinating finds from the vast realms of the internet.
Keep your eyes peeled for this week’s Publisher’s Parmesan, arriving this Sunday!
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The Quote 💭
“The one quality that can be developed by studious reflection and practice is the leadership of men.”
The Tweet 🐦
Indian semiconductor company C2i was acquired by Infineon within 6 months of its Series A. What was so remarkable about them? Read the full thread to find out.
The Infographic 💹
Moonshot AI’s new model called Kimi K3 took the world by storm. On most parameters it seemed to be doing better than frontier models at a much lower cost. Is China finally catching up with the US in the AI race? Interesting graph from Bloomberg.
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The Short Read 📝
How to Understand Things - by Nabeel S. Quresh
This article argues that deep understanding—and much of what we call intelligence—comes less from innate processing speed than from trainable intellectual virtues. The crucial habit is refusing to accept an answer that does not genuinely make sense. This requires the “will to think,” honesty about one’s confusion, willingness to ask apparently foolish questions, and the courage to examine an idea from multiple perspectives.
Qureshi emphasises concrete intuition: experiments, visualizations, writing, and direct observation transform abstract words or equations into usable mental models. He criticises schooling for rewarding speed and mechanical problem-solving, using calculus as an example, and recommends slowing down, forming questions before reading, and reasoning from detailed, firsthand evidence rather than borrowed narratives. Understanding has layers, not a binary state; closer observation reveals more depth. His practical advice is simple: notice confusion, ask what and why, test your beliefs, and—when in doubt—look closer. Read more…
The Long Read 📜
The Future, Made in China - by The New Yorker
Evan Osnos argues that China is rapidly emerging as a technological and industrial rival to the United States, driven by coordinated state investment, manufacturing scale, and an aggressive push into artificial intelligence, electric vehicles, biotech, robotics, and renewable energy. China’s progress is contrasted with America’s retreat from scientific funding, weakening alliances, and growing political isolation—developments Beijing sees as evidence of Western decline.
Yet the article stresses that China’s model carries serious costs: pervasive surveillance, political repression, precarious algorithm-managed labor, youth pessimism, demographic collapse, property-market failure, and limits on genuine scientific creativity. China excels at scaling and deploying technology, but still struggles with foundational breakthroughs and the risks of excessive central control. Osnos concludes that the future may not belong decisively to either superpower. Instead, the world could enter an unstable period of “un-order,” unless democratic accountability, social protections, and public participation temper the race for technological dominance. Read more…
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That’s all for this week. If you enjoyed this edition, we’d really appreciate if you shared it with a friend, family member or colleague.
We’ll be back in your inbox 2 PM IST next Wednesday. Till then, have a productive week!
Disclaimer: The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in the text belong solely to the author, and not necessarily to the author's employer, organization, committee or other group or individual.