Author: Colin Henderson

Progress in era of productivity
Geopolitics

A Drunken Evening, a Rented Yacht: The Real Story of the Nord Stream Pipeline Sabotage

Colin Henderson

A Drunken Evening, a Rented Yacht: The Real Story of the Nord Stream Pipeline Sabotage Private businessmen funded the shoestring operation, which was overseen by a top general; President Zelensky approved the plan, then tried unsuccessfully to call it off Bojan PancevskiAug. 14, 2024 at 9:00 pm ET In May of 2022, a handful of senior Ukrainian military officers and businessmen had gathered to toast their country’s remarkable success in halting the Russian invasion. Buoyed by alcohol and patriotic fervor, somebody suggested a radical next step: destroying Nord Stream. After all, the twin natural-gas pipelines that carried Russian gas to … Continue reading A Drunken Evening, a Rented Yacht: The Real Story of the Nord Stream Pipeline Sabotage

Geopolitics

Behind Ukraine’s Russia Invasion: Secrecy, Speed and Electronic Jamming

Colin Henderson

Ukrainians embarrass Putin by becoming first foreign military force to occupy Russian territory since World War II By Isabel Coles, Michael R. Gordon and Ievgeniia Sivorka | Photographs by Svet Jacqueline for WSJ Aug. 16, 2024 at 11:00 pm ET PYSARIVKA, Ukraine—Six days after Ukrainian forces swept through the Russian border town of Sudzha in a lightning advance, a Ukrainian platoon carrying out a mopping-up operation stumbled upon a dozen Russian soldiers hiding in a butter factory. The speed and scale of this month’s Ukrainian advance—the first time a foreign military force has occupied Russian soil since World War II—left pockets of surprised and disoriented Russian soldiers … Continue reading Behind Ukraine’s Russia Invasion: Secrecy, Speed and Electronic Jamming

AI, Innovation

How breakout innovations feed growth momentum – McKinsey

Colin Henderson

Article (7 pages) People often speak of industry momentum as if it were a force of nature independent of individual companies’ actions—like the mysterious “ether” scientists once believed filled the universe and allowed light to travel. While demographics and macroeconomic factors outside organizations’ control do contribute to momentum, the trajectory and pace of industry growth very much rely on the innovation efforts of a sector’s constituent businesses. By harnessing technology and creating new offerings or business models, companies can forge new markets and propel new consumption. Our past analyses have shown that roughly 80 percent of a typical company’s growth comes from … Continue reading How breakout innovations feed growth momentum – McKinsey

AI

Claude AI

Colin Henderson

Ever since the launch of ChatGPT, many other companies have also joined the race to bring excellent generative AI models into the world that not only help users create realistic content but are also safe to use, and free from bias. While Open AI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Bard, now Gemini, get most of the limelight, Claude AI stands out for its impressive features and being the most reliable and ethical Large Language Model. In this article, we will learn more about what Claude AI is and what are its unique features. We will also discuss how it differs from the most popular generative AI tool ChatGPT. … Continue reading Claude AI

AI, Growth

How Walmart is using AI to improve its business, and save money

Colin Henderson

Relevance to Bankwatch Walmart report on business use of Gen AI to make adjustments to 860 million catalogue items at a speed of 100 times faster than humans. Said another way it would take average employees 100 times longer. This type of scaling is what we hear of in military and intelligence operations. I look forward to hearing more business examples to counter the evolving doubts appearing on the near term productivity from AI. Heads up to The Rundown AI. —-/— ByTomi Kilgore Marketwatch. CEO Doug McMillon said on the post-earnings call with analysts that Walmart was finding “tangible ways” … Continue reading How Walmart is using AI to improve its business, and save money

Geopolitics

Monocle – DEFENCE | UKRAINE 

Colin Henderson

UK tanks confirmed to have been deployed in Ukraine’s Russia offensive This week, it was confirmed that Ukraine had deployed the UK’s Challenger 2 battle tanks during its offensive in Russia. London’s delivery of 14 tanks to Ukraine in 2023 prompted similar military aid from Berlin and Washington. The vehicles are reportedly in use in the Kursk region. The UK’s Ministry of Defence asserts that Ukraine has a “clear right” to use these weapons for its self-defence, including on Russian soil. Heavy metal: Ukrainian soldiers operate a tank near the border with Russia  Despite such statements of support, however, the … Continue reading Monocle – DEFENCE | UKRAINE 

Geopolitics, US

Monocle – Diplomacy | Leila Molana Allen 

Colin Henderson

As the Sudan peace talks falter, the US must find a way to win back the trust of the Global South This week’s US-led Sudan peace talks in Geneva appeared to have lost all momentum before they even began. With so many failed agreements already, mediators had a mountain to climb. Then it became clear that neither side of the conflict was going to show up. The Sudanese Armed Forces had said from the start that they would not attend; their adversaries, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), had sent a delegation but it refused to enter the negotiating room. Nowhere … Continue reading Monocle – Diplomacy | Leila Molana Allen 

AI

And finally, here’s what Justina’s interested in this morning -Bloomberg

Colin Henderson

Justina Lee is a cross-asset reporter based in London. Follow Bloomberg’s Justina Lee on X @Justinaknope  . More than a year ago, I interviewed a few hedge funds about how they’re using ChatGPT. At the time, it already seemed clear the new tech could be very helpful in automating grunt work, but it was unclear what more it could do and data security was a big question mark. Over the last few months I’ve been speaking to hedge funds again and trying to get a sense of how their gen AI applications have evolved. Here are a few observations: The upshot seems pretty positive. One thing … Continue reading And finally, here’s what Justina’s interested in this morning -Bloomberg

Geopolitics, Risk

Israeli Settlers Storm West Bank Village, Drawing Rare Rebukes From Israeli Officials

Colin Henderson

The Palestinian Authority said one person was shot dead; the Israeli military said it was investigating and condemned the attack, as did the Israeli prime minister. By Ephrat Livni Israeli settler attacks on Palestinians have surged in the West Bank, but a riot on Thursday in the village of Jit stood out for drawing rapid and unusual rebukes from Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose coalition government includes West Bank settlers in top positions. “Dozens of Israeli civilians, some of them masked, entered the town of Jit and set fire to vehicles and structures in the area, hurled rocks … Continue reading Israeli Settlers Storm West Bank Village, Drawing Rare Rebukes From Israeli Officials