🪅 Heap Heap Hurray Ed. #373

It's Thursday! Time to wrap up the week strong!

#OpenAIs-New-App - Half creepy half weird. OpenAI launched a new app - to take on TikTok, but with a twist. The app, called Sora, powered by OpenAI’s Sora 2 video model, allows you to share AI generated video. The weird stuff - it has a feature called “Cameo”. It enables users to generate AI videos of their friends (with their permission). Black Mirror vibes if you ask us. For now, not available in India.

Google Chrome Dominates Desktop Browsers With 71.86% Market Share
Chrome has been consistently increasing its market share over the years. Its latest update brought AI-powered features like Gemini mode, making it a strong contender in the browser market.

Imgur Exits UK Market
If you are familiar with reddit, then know that back in the day, Reddit had no way of sharing images on its platform. Imgur was thus born - with majority of its userbase coming from Reddit. Over the years, it became its own social network and did not need Reddit’s support. Anyway - it has pulled out of the UK market after receiving a warning of potential fines from the UK's data protection watchdog, the ICO, over concerns about its handling of child users' personal info.

Afghanistan Cut Off From The Global Internet
NetBlocks and Cloudflare both observed internet traffic to Afghanistan waning on Monday, before traffic in and out of the country collapsed later that day. Both attribute the outage to government action, a reasonable assumption given that the Taliban who rule Afghanistan recently cut off internet access.

Spotify - Excludes individual tracks from Taste Profile, allowing users to fine-tune their personalized recommendations and experiences.

Google Chat - Carousel widget, Markdown support, Lists and code blocks added for developers to create more engaging Chat apps.

Tarun Jain's (PyCon AU 2025) talk introduces the Model Context Protocol (MCP) to integrate LLMs with external tools, moving beyond static responses. He covers MCP architecture, JSON RPC communication, and crucial security concerns like prompt/tools injection, advocating for structured context (e.g., dbt) for accurate, scalable AI.

An underrated skill in tech - soft skills are often overlooked. Shailvi Wakhu's (CppNorth) talk stresses the critical role of self-advocacy in career progression, particularly for underrepresented groups. She offers strategies to overcome limiting beliefs, authentically highlight achievements, and effectively speak up for oneself and one's community, emphasizing its transformative impact.

CSS Specificity Explained
Specificity in CSS is one of the most misunderstood and important concepts in the web dev space. It refers to the algorithm that browsers run when trying to decide which CSS declarations to apply to HTML elements. In this article, we’ll explore how browsers decide which rules apply, including quirks and nuances of specificity. Also shared - a quick way to identify which rules take priority, helping you avoid frustration when styles don’t appear as expected.

5G Network APIs Unlocked
Developers worldwide can now access 5G features, such as ultra-low latency and edge computing, through standardized APIs from GSMA Open Gateway and CAMARA, enabling portable and scalable applications.

Developer Designer Relationship
Conflict between design and development teams arises from past trauma, power dynamics, and poor processes. To bridge the gap, teams should adopt a coownership mindset, communicate openly, and establish a shared vocabulary.