What Caught My EyeCulture · Brands · Design · BuildingWeekly Links by Mike LitmanIssue #005Ten Links. No Filler.Trust, Virality & the AI ReshuffleCurated, Not AggregatedWhat Caught My EyeCulture · Brands · Design · BuildingWeekly Links by Mike LitmanIssue #005Ten Links. No Filler.Trust, Virality & the AI ReshuffleCurated, Not Aggregated
Weekly Links
What Caught My Eye
Curated links on culture, brands, design and building.
Week of 10 April 2026 · Issue #005
↓ ten links. no filler. your weekend reading, sorted.
AI & BuildingCulture & BrandsDesign & ProductStrategy & BusinessWild Card
The New Yorker goes deep on Sam Altman, drawing on new interviews and documents described as closely guarded. The question on the cover is the question the whole industry is quietly asking: can he be trusted?
The New Yorker doesn't run cover stories about people who don't matter. When they go this deep, with documents and sources that took real effort to get, you read it. The persistent doubts about Altman are not just about one person's character – they are about who gets to build the infrastructure the rest of us will live inside. That framing is worth your time this weekend.
^ the question nobody wants to answer out loud
Send to:anyone who uses ChatGPT without ever thinking about who's running OpenAI
Anthropic has unveiled Mythos, described as its most powerful model yet, with implications that reportedly reach into cybersecurity. Eclipse has also raised a new $1.3 billion fund in the same week.
Every major model release is now being assessed not just for capability but for sector-specific disruption potential. If Mythos genuinely shifts something in cybersecurity, that is a category with enormous enterprise spend and a serious talent shortage – the kind of wedge that matters. Anthropic is building towards something much bigger than a ChatGPT competitor.
cybersecurity is the wedge
Send to:any CISO still treating AI as an IT department question rather than a board-level one
Dan Hopwood's practical guide to Claude Code for founders who find the terminal intimidating. One command pasted, and you're coding with AI. The barrier to building has just dropped again.
The most important thing about this piece is its audience: founders who have ideas but have always been blocked by the technical setup. Claude Code is quietly removing the last excuse for non-technical people not to prototype. If you've been putting off building something because "you can't code," this is your weekend reading.
no more excuses
Send to:the founder who's had the same idea for three years and hasn't started yet
Digital Native's breakdown of how AI is reshaping the CMO suite, featuring the companies building the mechanics behind viral content. Clavicular, Clipping, and the quiet restructuring of how brands manufacture moments.
The idea that something "just went viral" has always been a comfortable myth. This piece names the infrastructure underneath it and makes a strong case that AI is now industrialising what used to be a dark art. The CMO who doesn't understand these tools in 2026 is working with a map from a different decade.
the myth of the organic moment
Send to:every social media manager still hoping something will "just take off"
La Material's examination of how Hollywood built a PR infrastructure out of "friendly conversations," discreet edits, and the unspoken agreement that no one is going for the jugular.
This is the piece that finally says the quiet part out loud. Celebrity podcasts are not journalism and are not even really conversations. They are structured press events in casual clothing. Understanding the format as a machine rather than a medium makes you a better consumer of everything that comes out of them.
PR in a hoodie
Send to:anyone who thinks their favourite celebrity podcast host is "just asking questions"
Ofcom research finds that fewer people are actively posting on social media, with experts pointing to the shift towards short video as a driver. Consumption is up; creation is down.
When platforms optimise hard for short video, they implicitly tell their users to watch rather than participate. The result is a more passive, less social, social media. That is a fascinating design outcome that has enormous consequences for anyone building community, brand, or audience on these platforms right now.
The Economist examines how status shapes motivation, conflict, and career choices across organisations. The hidden currency of office life turns out to be a much stronger driver than most managers account for.
Compensation, perks, and purpose get all the attention in talent strategy conversations. Status gets almost none, despite being the thing that explains a remarkable number of otherwise puzzling human behaviours at work. This is the kind of lens that changes how you read a resignation letter or a performance review.
it's never really about the title
Send to:every people leader who thinks better perks will solve a culture problem rooted in hierarchy
The Prof G Pod tackles two questions in one episode: is AI genuinely dismantling the advertising industry, and what was Scott Galloway's best financial decision? Both answers are more nuanced than the headlines suggest.
Galloway is at his best when he's being contrarian about things everyone assumes are obvious. The advertising question is one the whole industry is dancing around; having someone with his track record take a direct position is worth the listen. The personal finance angle is an unexpected bonus.
contrarian, as usual
Send to:anyone in advertising who's been quietly nervous about what AI means for their business model
Beehiiv has expanded into podcasting, putting it in direct competition with both Substack and Patreon. Its pitch to creators is straightforward: zero revenue share. Keep everything you earn.
The creator economy platform wars have been fought on features and audiences for years. Beehiiv is fighting on economics instead. Zero revenue cut is an aggressive play that forces competitors to justify their take rate. If Beehiiv can build the product quality to match, this is the kind of move that reshapes the whole category.
0% is a powerful number
Send to:any creator currently splitting revenue with a platform that hasn't earned that cut
Deck.Gallery is exactly what the name promises: a curated archive of beautifully designed presentation decks, slides, keynotes, and brand guidelines, all selected for exceptional design quality.
There are two kinds of people who will love this. The first: designers and brand strategists who need reference material that's actually worth referencing. The second: anyone who has ever opened a blank slide and stared at it for 20 minutes. Consider this your unfair advantage before the next big pitch.
instant slide envy
Send to:the colleague whose presentations still use the default Office template in 2026
deck.gallery
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