After nearly 10 years, I am stepping down as the CEO of Mastodon and transferring my ownership of the trademark and other assets to the Mastodon non-profit. Over the course of my time at Mastodon, I have centered myself less and less in our outward communications, and to some degree, this is the culmination of that trend. Mastodon is bigger than me, and though the technology we develop on is itself decentralized—with heaps of alternative fediverse projects demonstrating that participation in this ecosystem is possible without our involvement—it benefits our community to ensure that the project itself which so many people have come to love and depend on remains true to its values. There are too many examples of founder egos sabotaging thriving communities, and while I’d like to think myself an exception, I understand why people would prefer better guardrails. But it would be uncouth for me to pretend that there isn’t some self-interest involved. Being in charge of a social media project is, turns out, quite the stressful endeavour, and I don’t have the right personality for it. I think I need not elaborate that the passion so many feel for social media does not always manifest in healthy ways. You are to be compared with tech billionaires, with their immense wealth and layered support systems, but with none of the money or resources. It manifests in what people expect of you, and how people talk about you. I remember somebody jokingly suggesting that I challenge Elon Musk to a fight (this was during his and Mark Zuckerberg’s martial arts feud), and quietly thinking to myself, I am literally not paid enough for that. I remember also, some Spanish newspaper article that for some reason, concluded that I don’t dress as fashionably as Jeff Bezos, based on the extremely sparse number of pictures of myself I have shared on the web. Over an entire decade, these tiny things chip away at you slowly. Some things chip faster. I steer clear of showing vulnerability online, but there was a particularly bad interaction with a user last summer that made me realise that I need to take a step back and find a healthier relationship with the project, ultimately serving as the impetus to begin this restructuring process. As for what the legacy of my run will be, I find hard to answer. For one, I think it is not up for me to judge. On the other hand, it is as much about what didn’t happen as it is about what did. I’ve always thought that one of the most important responsibilities I had was to say “no”. It is not a popular thing to do, nor is it a fun thing to do, but being pulled into too many different directions at once can spell disaster for any project. I’d like to think I avoided some trouble by being careful. But I’m also aware that my aversion to public appearances cost Mastodon some opportunities in publicity. Ultimately, while I cannot take sole credit for it, I am nevertheless most proud of how far we’ve made it over these last 10 years. From the most barebones project written out of my childhood bedroom, to one of the last remaining and thriving pieces of the original, community-centred internet. I have so much passion for Mastodon and the fediverse. The fediverse is an island within an increasingly dystopian capitalist hellscape. And from my perspective, Mastodon is our best shot at bringing this vision of a better future to the masses. This is why I’m sticking around, albeit in a more advisory, and less public, role.

The US State Department announced it would classify four European left-wing groups as terrorist organizations. In addition to Antifa Ost in Germany, one group is based in Italy and the other two are in Greece.

The Trump administration has halted all immigration applications filed by people from 19 countries, according to internal government guidance, its latest move to restrict legal immigration pathways.

The International Center of Photography presents Eugène Atget: The Making of a Reputation, curated by ICP’s creative director David Campany. This exhibition takes a new approach to the story of Atget’s career, drawing particular attention to the role that Berenice Abbott played in shaping Atget’s posthumous rise in influence. About Eugène Atget Eugène Atget (1857-1927) was a French photographer best known for his photographs of Paris and its environs. He supplied studies for painters, architects, and stage designers, while also making formally complex pictures. Atget’s subjects included everything from grand buildings to typical street scenes, storefronts and workers. His photographs, often taken in the early hours, are notable for their diffuse light and wide views that give a sense of enigma and mystery. They also document Paris and its rapid changes; many of the areas Atget photographed were soon to be razed as part of widespread modernization projects.Atget drew the admiration of a variety of artists, most notably Man Ray who even used one of Atget’s photographs on the cover of the magazine La Révolution surréaliste. The photographer Berenice Abbott preserved many of Atget’s prints and negatives. She exhibited his work, wrote about it, and for decades championed Atget as a forerunner of modern photography.

SoftBank's Masayoshi Son explains selling Nvidia shares to fund AI investments like OpenAI. Learn how this shift shapes AI markets.

something just clicked loudly in my head, watching the ponzi scheme section: the real estate sector is a large, essential part of the right wing scam economy (which also includes LLMs, crypto, etc). trump himself is well known as a massive real estate scammer. and it feeds into that dull, unhealthy, paranoia-inducing, isolated suburban/rural lifestyle, which feeds back into right wing politics. a flywheel, a vicious cycle