Remember the early days of Uber? Not only was Uber better than a taxi, it was cheaper too. But every time we Ubered, or DoorDashed, or used another lifestyle app, we failed to realize that the prices were so low because those companies lost money every time we did so. They subsidized their services to hook us - which they did - and promptly raised prices. I’m not just randomly reminiscing about $10 Ubers. Two months of access to the most advanced models of ChatGPT - usually $40 - is now free...

In this era of widespread employee dissatisfaction, many employers are looking for ways to boost engagement. To that end, Tiffany & Co. rolled out an internal app (“Tiffany Joy”), where employees were meant to share meaningful moments from their work and personal lives. The goal of Tiffany Joy was to turn Tiffany into a more enjoyable place to work. Unfortunately, under pressure from managers to increase their app usage, employees quickly nicknamed it “Forced Joy”. Forced joy would be funny...

Sarah Wynn-William's book on her time at Meta, Careless People, had been making the usual tech-memoir rounds until the day after its publication when an arbitrator ruled that she can no longer promote the book. Meta filed suit alleging that Wynn-Williams violated the non-disparagement agreement she signed when she left the company, and received an injunction until an arbitrator makes their ruling. I read the book, and it's compelling. It’s also a fascinating look behind the curtain at a...