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M.K. / FIELD NOTESHsinchu / Vancouver / 2026
Technology, cities and human agency

Keeping our own questions in view as technology changes.

Essays on AI, education, future cities and science fiction. They begin with personal observation and identify sources and uncertainty where relevant.

Long-form essay series

The Long View on AI

A long-range inquiry into how industry evolution, technology history, capital, business models and institutions may shape the next five to ten years of AI.

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Long-form essay series

Physical AI Foundations

A systems view of AI entering the physical world, from perception and edge inference to AI cameras, device lifecycle and robotics safety.

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01Technology, Business & SocietyWhy Robotics Is Hard: The Real World Has No API ContractRobotics is difficult not simply because models need to improve, but because perception errors, contact physics, latency, mechanical wear and human behaviour accumulate into uncertainty that the system must manage safely.Sep 6, 202612 min read02Technology, Business & SocietyWhen Token Costs Approach Zero, What Remains Expensive?Falling model prices do not make the full cost of AI disappear. The scarce and expensive parts are moving into energy, usable data, integration, verification, trust and organizational change.Sep 4, 202612 min read03Technology, Business & SocietyWhen Devices Become AI-Powered, Product Management Becomes Lifecycle ManagementAI-powered devices force product teams to manage hardware and model dependencies, capability limits, power budgets, OTA failure paths, data flows, cybersecurity and end-of-life support.Sep 3, 202614 min read04Technology, Business & SocietyAI Cameras Need to Understand Events, Not Just Detect ObjectsThe next AI camera advantage is not simply detecting more objects. It is turning continuous video into a small number of trustworthy events through tracking, rules, edge filtering, VLM review and interoperable metadata.Aug 28, 202614 min read05Next Generation & EducationWhat Should We Teach Before We Teach Young People to Use AI?As AI enters schools and homes, young people need more than operational speed. They need to judge sources, recognize uncertainty, disclose AI's role, own outcomes, protect privacy and choose not to use it.Aug 24, 202612 min read06Technology, Business & SocietyWhy Edge AI Matters Again: The Real Shift Is Where Inference RunsEdge AI is not replacing cloud AI. As AI moves into devices, cameras, robots and long-running agents, latency, connectivity, privacy, power and cost turn inference placement into a product architecture decision.Aug 22, 202613 min read07Technology, Business & SocietyWhen Computer Vision Starts Understanding Events, Not Just ObjectsComputer vision is moving beyond object detection toward streaming video, event understanding and distributed edge inference. The harder question is who defines what counts as an event and what the system is allowed to do next.Aug 19, 202612 min read08Technology, Business & SocietyWhat Is Physical AI? Why the Next Wave of AI Will Leave the ScreenGenerative AI transformed how we create and process information. Physical AI goes further: machines begin to perceive, reason and act in the real world, where latency, safety, hardware and failure suddenly matter much more.Aug 15, 202610 min read09Technology, Business & SocietyWill AI Become Public Infrastructure Like Electricity and the Internet?As AI becomes a capability every sector depends on, the important questions shift from model performance to access, rules, cost and responsibility. Electricity, the internet and public compute point to three plausible futures.Aug 3, 202611 min read10Future Cities & CivilizationFrom Garden Cities to AI Civilization: Why Future Cities Continue to Interest MeFrom Garden Cities and eyes on the street to climate resilience and AI governance, this essay traces the urban ideas that inform Neo Babylon.Jul 21, 202610 min read11AI & Human AgencyWhy Some Young People May Be More Wary of AI Than AdultsStarting from family conversations and anxiety around creative work, this essay asks why some young people keep their distance from AI and what education should protect beyond tool use.Jul 21, 20266 min read
Topics

Browse published essays by subject. Empty categories remain visible as future directions.

01AI & Human AgencyHow choice, responsibility, relationships and dignity change as AI becomes more capable.102Next Generation & EducationLearning, growth and AI literacy from the perspective of younger people.103Future Cities & CivilizationHow technology, climate and demographic change may reshape cities, institutions and life together.104Technology, Business & SocietyObserving technological change through products, markets and everyday work.8
TagsNext Generation 2AI Education 2Human Agency 4Future Cities 3Urban Governance 1AI & Civilization 3Speculative Design 1AI Infrastructure 6Compute Economics 3Technology History 1AI Business Models 1Physical AI 6Future of Work & Organizations 1