Explore game development philosophy and AI's evolving impact through Factorio creator Michal Kovařík's insights on AlphaGo's transformation of Go, current programming limitations, and the future of human-AI collaboration.
Bio: Michal Kovařík is a Czech game developer best known as the co-founder and creative head of Wube Software, the studio behind the global indie hit Factorio. Under his online alias “kovarex,” Kovařík began the Factorio project in 2012 with a vision to blend his favorite game elements – trains, base-building, logistics, and automation – into a new kind of construction & management simulation. Initially funded via a modest Indiegogo campaign, Factorio blossomed from a garage project into one of Steam’s top-rated games, praised for its deep automation gameplay and technical excellence. Kovařík guided Factorio through an 8-year development in open alpha/early access, cultivating a passionate player community through regular “Friday Facts” blog updates. By 2024, Factorio had sold over 4 million copies worldwide, all without ever going on sale.Michal now leads a team of ~30 in Prague, renowned for their principled business approach (no discounts, no DRM) and fan-centric development style, and he’s just launched Factorio’s Space Age expansion.
FOLLOW ON X:
@8teAPi (Ate)
@steveruizok (Michal)
@TurpentineMedia
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LINKS:
Factorio
https://www.factorio.com/
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TIMESTAMPS:
(00:00) Introduction and Factorio Discussion
(07:36) AlphaGo's Impact on Go and AI Perception
(18:56) Factorio's Origin Story and Team Development
(30:13) AI's Current Programming Limitations
(44:50) Future Predictions for AI Programming
(48:31) Societal Concerns: Resource Curse and Human Value
(55:21) Privacy, Surveillance, and Training Data
(1:01:22) AI Alignment and Asimov's Robot Laws
(1:10:00) Social Media as Proto-AI and Dopamine Manipulation
(1:20:00) Programming Human Preferences and Goal Modification
(1:26:00) Historical Perspective and Conclusion
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1:29:22
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1:29:22
Vision To Product
Uncover the power of TLDraw's make-real feature, transforming sketches into functional prototypes using AI. Explore the cutting-edge browser-based technologies and the future of visual communication with founder and CEO, Steve Ruiz.
🔥 Apply to join over 400 founders and Execs in the Turpentine Network: https://hmplogxqz0y.typeform.com/to/JCkphVqj
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RECOMMENDED PODCAST:
Check out Modern Relationships, where Erik Torenberg interviews tech power couples and leading thinkers to explore how ambitious people actually make partnerships work. Founders Fund's Delian Asparouhov and researcher Nadia Asparouhova kick off the series with an unfiltered conversation about their relationship evolution.
Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id1786227593
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5hJzs0gDg6lRT6r10mdpVg
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ModernRelationshipsPod
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FOLLOW ON X:
@8teAPi (Ate)
@steveruizok (Steve)
@TurpentineMedia
--
LINKS:
Steve Ruiz
https://www.steveruiz.me/
TLDraw
https://www.tldraw.com/
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TIMESTAMPS:
(00:00) Intro
02:30) What is TLDraw?
(03:53) TLDraw's Genesis
(07:40) TLDraw's Growth and Open Sourcing
(11:50) Make Real: AI-Powered Prototyping:
(13:20) The Genesis of Make Real
(19:20) The Viral Success of Make Real
(22:30) Programming Through Drawing
(24:50) The Future of Programming and Computer Science.
(27:20) AI-Assisted Design and the Future of Collaboration
(31:00) TLDraw's Location and Team
(32:30) Collaboration with Google DeepMind
(35:10) Feature Selection and the "Model Fight"
(38:30) TLDraw's Success and Design Challenges
(41:00) TLDraw's Community and Innovation:
(45:10) Key Insights and Focus Areas
(49:00) Wrap
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49:58
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49:58
World Builder
In this episode of Emergent Behavior, @8teapi talks with Hedra co-founder Michael Lingelbach. Listen as he shares his vision for a future of AI-powered storytelling, where creators can seamlessly blend real and generated content to bring their unique visions to life. Hedra believes that AI can empower storytellers of all levels, enabling them to create professional-quality video content without needing extensive technical expertise.
Explore the democratization of video production with accessible AI tools and discover Hedra's vision for an AI-powered future where anyone can create compelling video content.
🔥 Apply to join over 400 founders and Execs in the Turpentine Network: https://hmplogxqz0y.typeform.com/to/JCkphVqj
–
RECOMMENDED PODCAST:
Check out Modern Relationships, where Erik Torenberg interviews tech power couples and leading thinkers to explore how ambitious people actually make partnerships work. Founders Fund's Delian Asparouhov and researcher Nadia Asparouhova kick off the series with an unfiltered conversation about their relationship evolution.
Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id1786227593
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5hJzs0gDg6lRT6r10mdpVg
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ModernRelationshipsPod
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FOLLOW ON X:
@8teAPi (Ate)
@mjlbach (Michael)
@TurpentineMedia
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LINKS:
Michael Lingelbach:
https://mlingelbach.com/
Hedra:
https://www.hedra.com/
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TIMESTAMPS:
(00:00) Introduction
(02:29) Hedra: A Multimodal Foundation Model
(03:45) Diffusion Models and Controllability
(05:49) Audio as a Control Signal
(07:58) Talking Head Features and Performance
(11:41) Democratizing Storytelling
(14:13) Background and Inspiration
(17:17) Character One: First Release
(19:07) Technology and Development
(27:54) Challenges and Future Directions
(38:00) Model Scaling and User Feedback
(41:01) Technical Details and Uncanny Valley
(49:00) Social Media and Collaboration
(54:00) Multi-view Input and the Future
(57:21) Conclusion
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58:29
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58:29
Code Switching
In this episode of Emergent Behavior, @8teapi talks with Justin Junyang Lin, Chief Evangelist Officer of Alibaba Qwen Project. Joined by guest host Eugene Cheah, CEO of Recursal.AI, they talk about how Alibaba's Qwen 2 tackles multilingual challenges, including code-switching and the unique complexities of Chinese data.
🔥 Apply to join over 400 founders and Execs in the Turpentine Network: https://hmplogxqz0y.typeform.com/to/JCkphVqj
Explore the impact of open-source LLMs like Alibaba's Qwen 2, and how it's driving innovation in AI development.
–
RECOMMENDED PODCAST:
🎙️ Unpack Pricing - Dive into the dark arts of SaaS pricing with Metronome CEO Scott Woody and tech leaders. Learn how strategic pricing drives explosive revenue growth in today's biggest companies like Snowflake, Cockroach Labs, Dropbox and more.
Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id1765716600
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/38DK3W1Fq1xxQalhDSueFg
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FOLLOW ON X:
@8teAPi (Ate)
@JustinLin610 (Junyang)
@picocreator (Eugene)
@TurpentineMedia
--
LINKS:
Alibaba Qwen Project:
https://www.alibabacloud.com/en/solutions/generative-ai/qwen?_p_lc=1
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TIMESTAMPS:
(00:00) Introduction
(04:36) Qwen's Development Journey
(08:00) Data Curation & Coding Capabilities
(11:00) The Role of Evaluation
(14:00) Evolution of Pre-training and Evaluation
(17:00) Open Source vs. Commercial Groups
(22:00) Data Contamination
(24:00) Model Sizing and Computational Constraints
(28:00) Multi-lingual Capabilities
(31:00) Tokenizers and Language-Specific Considerations
(34:00) Code Switching and Data Filtering
(38:00) Code Switching, Dialects, and Model Size
(42:00) User Feedback and Model Development
(46:00) Challenges with Chinese Datasets
(52:00) Language Variation and Team Development
(58:00) Hiring and Team Dynamics
(1:03:00) Diversity and Production Considerations
(1:07:00) Production Impact and Collaboration
(1:13:00) Wrap
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1:22:20
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1:22:20
The Pathfinder
Jim Yu, a leading voice in SEO, spearheads BrightEdge's mission to equip marketers with the tools and strategies needed to thrive in the AI-driven search landscape.
🔥 Apply to join over 400 founders and Execs in the Turpentine Network: https://hmplogxqz0y.typeform.com/to/JCkphVqj
Explore how AI-powered search engines are threatening Google's dominance, the potential impact on the ad-driven revenue model, and how businesses can leverage AI optimization to establish their authority and influence in the era of AI search.
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RECOMMENDED PODCASTS:
🎙️ This Won't Last - Eavesdrop on Keith Rabois, Kevin Ryan, Logan Bartlett, and Zach Weinberg's monthly backchannel. They unpack their hottest takes on the future of tech, business, venture, investing, and politics.
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id1765665937
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2HwSNeVLL1MXy0RjFPyOSz
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ThisWontLastpodcast
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FOLLOW ON X:
@8teAPi (Ate)
@jimyu (Jim)
@TurpentineMedia
--
LINKS:
Brightedge: https://www.brightedge.com/
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TIMESTAMPS:
(00:00) Intro
(00:52) Seismic Shifts in the Search Landscape
(02:21) BrightEdge's Role and Vision in AI Optimization
(01:21) The Innovator's Dilemma for Google
(06:14) New Entrants Challenging the Status Quo
(27:19) Multimodal Search and Mobile Traffic
(40:01) Impact of AI-Generated Content on Search Quality
(56:14) Conclusion and Final Thoughts
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Emergent Behavior is a show about artificial intelligence, where we talk to the builders, creators, entrepreneurs, and engineers in AI and ask the questions that we don't actually know the answers to. Hosted by @8teAPi on X, produced by the Turpentine network. Learn more: turpentine.co
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