🪅 Heap Heap Hurray Ed. #232

Wednesday's here - let's move one step closer to the weekend!

#SubscriptionModels - A study of the top 5 percent of apps in most categories revealed that they make more than $5,000/month. Meanwhile, the rest are barely scraping by, with the 25th percentile making a measly $5-20/month. 💸

#MarkRober - A YouTuber posted a video showing the difference between a Tesla Model Y and a vehicle equipped with lidar. The video was a huge hit, amassing 10 million views in just two days. Some have accused the YouTuber of faking the video. 🚘

#Adblock - YouTube is at it again, trying to guilt trip users into disabling ad blockers or switching to YouTube Premium. The nagging banner is back, and it's not just Opera users who are affected. 🛑

Amazon Mulls India Listing
Amazon is looking to spin off its India unit and list it in the country, sources say. The ecommerce giant is currently second in terms of market share in India after Flipkart. It has invited investment bankers from the country to discuss the plan.

Swiggy Instamart Expands To 100 Cities
Swiggy's Instamart is set to expand to 100 Indian cities. The company stated in a regulatory filing that the expansion is being made in order to meet the increasing demand for 10-minute delivery, especially in tier 2 and tier 3 cities. They're also setting up bigger storage facilities, called megapods, to hold more products and offer a wider selection to customers.

Telegram CEO Pavel Durov Temporarily Allowed To Leave France
Telegram is a popular messaging app known for its end-to-end encryption. Its CEO Pavel Durov was under investigation in France for alleged criminal activity on the platform. He was arrested in August 2024 but released on bail. Today, French authorities allowed him to temporarily leave the country while the investigation continues, and he has returned to Dubai.

Google Pixel 9a Unboxing Videos Leaked Online
The Pixel 9a is their upcoming mid-range phone and its unboxing videos just leaked online, showing its design, specs, and features, including a flat dual-camera design, matte plastic back, and Tensor G4 chip, but with an older modem.

Google Acquires Wiz For $32 Billion
Wiz was founded in 2020 and has become one of the largest cybersecurity firms focusing on securing cloud services. The company offers an online cybersecurity platform that connects to different cloud providers. Wiz will become part of Google Cloud Security's portfolio, including Google Security Operations, Security Command Center Enterprise, Chrome Enterprise.

Llama Reaches 1 Billion Downloads
Llama is a large language model developed by Meta AI. Today, its mobile app hit 1 billion downloads, a huge milestone!

WhatsApp - Introduces broadcast message limits to curb spam, with individual users limited to 30 messages per month and businesses to be charged for customized messages.

Zepto - Apple products, including iPhone 16E, AirPods, MagSafe, and charging accessories, now available for delivery in 10 minutes.

YouTube Music - Introduces "Ask for Music" AI-powered feature to create custom radio stations on iOS devices.

India[dot]gov[dot]in - Notice anything about this website, besides it being an Indian Government website? How about the url? Does that look alright to you?… That’s right. It’s in devanagiri script!

EndOfLife - A valuable resource for tech enthusiasts, providing up-to-date information on the end-of-life dates and support timelines for various software, frameworks, and operating systems. It helps users stay informed about security risks, upgrade deadlines, and lifecycle policies, making it an essential tool for developers, sysadmins, and IT professionals.

Syntax UI - A modern component library designed for developers building sleek and responsive web interfaces. It offers a collection of beautifully crafted, accessible UI elements that integrate seamlessly with popular frameworks. Perfect for frontend developers and designers, Syntax UI streamlines the development process, saving time while ensuring a polished, professional look.

6 Essential Tips For Software Professionals To Improve Meetings And Interactions
Don't let frustration define you, take charge of meetings by taking notes, avoid boundary objections, let people be wrong on minor details, time your interactions strategically, and prioritize your meeting agenda to get the most out of your discussions and climb the corporate ladder.

Tech Leadership In Flux
Many people who first entered senior roles in 2010-2020 are finding current roles a lot less fun. The technology transition to Foundational models / LLMs is causing many senior leaders’ hard-earned playbooks to be invalidated. Valuations and funding are relatively less accessible to non-AI companies.