You build things
For engineers and technical people who don't write software for a living. Start with how the systems work, end with what they mean for the person operating them.
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The reading order
- 1[1hr Talk] Intro to Large Language ModelsAndrej Karpathy · Original video · 60 min watch · Introductory
The shape of a language model, from someone who built them.
About this work → - 2Deep Dive into LLMs like ChatGPTAndrej Karpathy · Original video · 210 min watch · Intermediate
Open the machine: data, training, tokens, hallucination, reasoning.
About this work → - 3The Bitter LessonRichard Sutton · Original essay · 5 min read · Introductory
The founding argument: general methods riding computation win.
About this work → - 4Guardian Angels: LLM Personalization for Productivity and SecurityGwern Branwen · Original essay · 60 min read · Advanced
What one careful thinker wants AI to be for a single person — and why chatbots aren't it.
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Then follow your interest
What it does to work
- 1Centaurs and Cyborgs on the Jagged FrontierOriginal essay · 10 min read · Introductory
The field experiment on AI and skilled work.
About this work → - 2The Cyborg Era: What AI means for jobsOriginal essay · 18 min read · Intermediate
The substitution question, taken seriously from both sides.
About this work → - 3Plentiful, high-paying jobs in the age of AIOriginal essay · 23 min read · Introductory
Comparative advantage, spelled out.
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Where this is heading
- 1AI as Normal TechnologyOriginal essay · 90 min read · Intermediate
The slow-diffusion counterweight to every acceleration story.
About this work → - 2The AI 2040 Scenario (Plan A — The Deal)Original document · 150 min read · Intermediate
The alarmed camp's positive plan, concrete enough to argue with.
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The deeper questions
- 1Ghost in the CloudOriginal essay · 35 min read · Introductory
The theology hiding inside the Singularity.
About this work → - 2Antiqua et Nova: Note on the Relationship Between Artificial Intelligence and Human IntelligenceOriginal document · 105 min read · Intermediate
A two-millennia tradition's definition of intelligence, applied to machines.
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