karthik velappan

Founder, CPO and CTO at 2497 Inc. | ShelfPerks 
Building the store operating system, and retail robotics.
Ex-Roku, Ex-Apple, Ex-Kno(Intel), Ex-Juniper(HPE).

[Fireside Alpha @firesidealpha]

Ben Affleck reveals he writes Python, understands convolutional neural networks, worked extensively with GPUs, and used his celebrity status to get private looks at Google and OpenAI’s video models

“I’ve always been kind of into computers since I was young. Then, when film started to move from analog film to digital, I became more interested in that aspect of it. The visual-effects workflow for many years has included machine learning, so I can write pretty shitty Python scripts and stuff like that.

“With convolutional neural networks, which were the precursors to what the transformer can do, which is much more computation simultaneously, you would do things like look at what’s called a tensor. That’s the numerical translation of a visual image in numbers, like the batch number, the frame number and the red, green and blue values of each pixel in each frame. It’s just that simple. That numeric is called a tensor.

“You’d use a convolutional neural network to identify patterns that reveal what’s called edge detection or feature extraction, which is identifying patterns well enough to know, this is where the window ledge is, so we can more easily take the green-screen image out and replace it with something.

“That was familiar to me early on because, prior to Artists Equity, I had a small visual-effects company. I’ve worked with GPUs a lot too. The visual-effects guys said, ‘Hey, you should see. There are a couple: Google and this other company, OpenAI, are doing really interesting stuff with transformers in video.’

“I’ve learned that I can actually just call up and go, ‘Hey, it’s Ben Affleck. Can I come see what you’re doing?’ Sometimes people say yes, to my astonishment.”

[Nabeel S. Qureshi @nabeelqu]

The only generation that knows how computers work is also the most relaxed about AI:

[TVP @Theveripost]

This 11-year-old boy in China learned he was a bone marrow match for his dying father but was too small to donate. So he ate five meals a day until he gained 33 pounds and saved his dad's life. "Save Dad first, lose weight later."

[karthik velappan @KarthikVelappan]

98% paid upfront with their data.

[a16z @a16z]

98% of US households aren't paying for AI yet

More charts in State of Markets II: https://t.co/MTaxKUxa2w

[Rajesh @rajeshamlw]

Sports minister @AadhavArjuna welcomes the player who won the medals for our nation in Asian games.

They deserved it 🙏🏾👏🏾👏🏾

🇮🇳 India: 70 medals so far.
Tamil Nadu athletes: 15 medals (roughly 21%)

[Boston Dynamics @BostonDynamics]

These new hands are the perfect companion for Atlas. With 13 degrees of freedom, they are directly actuated, built for high fidelity simulation to enable sim-to-real RL, and designed from the ground up for dexterous physical work.

Learn how we built robot hands for modern AI and real work: https://t.co/XxCYEcmHdP

[karthik velappan @KarthikVelappan]

@DataChaz ....More of a Portlandia Fred vibes....

[Thierry from arvy 🇨🇭 @ThierryBorgeat]

Wealthy Swiss people buy one share of this stock because you receive an annual "natural dividend" of 3 kg of chocolate.

It's considered good form to own a Lindt registered share.

[karthik velappan @KarthikVelappan]

Bro has access to some blackwells.

[Paul Merolla @paul_merolla]

Only in Palo Alto 😂

[karthik velappan @KarthikVelappan]

Infosys, TCS have been doing this since ’90s....

That said, they can’t rely on Ivy Leaguers alone, because many will leave to raise capital to do their own startup rather than sticking around.

They need people with grit + know-how to get the work done.

[New York Post @nypost]

Tech companies launching their own programs to train grads because they 'can't rely' on Ivy Leagues https://t.co/K6ztnhxaJZ

[teknosaur @theteknosaur]

update: i called the grandpa from my flight today to tell him 3M people saw him building his vertical farming plan.he was so happy. and now he's here replying to you all 😭

everyone say hi to @VBRPrasad1 sir 🙏

"It's all in our hands to use the AI for betterment of our lives." 77 years old. wiser than every AI thread on this app.

the grandpa from my flight is on X now, show him some love 🙏

[Pedro Domingos @pmddomingos]

No wonder these people think AI is sentient.

[karthik velappan @KarthikVelappan]

OCRBoarding?

[R A W S A L E R T S @rawsalerts]

🚨 #BREAKING: American man "kidnaps" Flock camera, subjecting it against its will to 23,040 license plates per second.

[Greg Joswiak @gregjoz]

Say hello to Apple Pay in India! 🇮🇳

We’re so excited to bring Apple Pay to India today, and make it easier than ever for our customers to make safe and secure purchases on Apple devices.

[CMOTamilNadu @CMOTamilnadu]

ஜப்பானில் நடைபெற்றுவரும் ஆசிய விளையாட்டுப் போட்டிகளில், தடகளம் பெண்கள் 4 x 400 மீட்டர் தொடர் ஓட்டப் போட்டியில் தங்கப் பதக்கம் வென்று, தமிழ்நாட்டிற்கும், இந்தியாவிற்கும் பெருமை சேர்த்துள்ள தடகள வீராங்கனை வித்யா ராம்ராஜ் அவர்களுக்கு மனமார்ந்த வாழ்த்துகள் மற்றும் பாராட்டுகள்.

அவரது மகத்தான சாதனையைப் பாராட்டும் வகையில், தமிழ்நாடு அரசு சார்பில் ரூ.75 இலட்சம் உயரிய ஊக்கத்தொகை வழங்கப்படும். நடைபெற்றுவரும் ஆசிய விளையாட்டுப் போட்டிகளில், தடகள வீராங்கனை வித்யா ராம்ராஜ் அவர்கள் பெறும் மூன்றாவது பதக்கம் இது என்பது குறிப்பிடத்தக்கது. தனது திறமை, கடின உழைப்பு மற்றும் அர்ப்பணிப்பால் இந்த வரலாற்றுச் சாதனையைப் படைத்துள்ளார்.

தடகள வீராங்கனை வித்யா ராம்ராஜ் அவர்களின் வெற்றி, தமிழ்நாட்டின் இளம் விளையாட்டு வீரர், வீராங்கனைகளுக்குப் புதிய உத்வேகத்தை அளிக்கும். எதிர்காலத்திலும் அவர் மேலும் பல வெற்றிகளைப் பெற்று தமிழ்நாட்டிற்கும், இந்தியாவிற்கும் பெருமை சேர்க்க எனது மனமார்ந்த வாழ்த்துகளைத் தெரிவித்துக் கொள்கிறேன்.

#CMJosephVijay‌

#AsianGames2026

[Benjamin Netanyahu - בנימין נתניהו @netanyahu]

My salute to the Indian pilot Captain Smit Machchhar for his extraordinary bravery.

Despite being stabbed and seriously injured, he fought back, resisted, opened the cockpit door, and enabled passengers and crew to overpower the attacker — preventing a catastrophic mid-air disaster.

He saved the lives of 174 people, including Israeli citizens and other nationals.

I wish Captain Machchhar a speedy and full recovery.

He is a true hero.

[Indian @all_india_infoo]

Watch this acceleration by Vithya Ramraj to overtake the Chinese athlete in the final leg! - Helped India win its first Athletics Gold Medal at Asian Games 2026! 🥇

GOLD is the real currency

[Dexerto @Dexerto]

Costco is using some of its $184 million in tariff refunds to cut prices on everyday goods

The cuts include produce, meat, beverages, furniture and hardware

[lusso @luusssso]

Old school Bang & Olufsen hi-fi systems were a thing of beauty

[The Food Manufacturing Guy @TipOfTheBanana]

Coffee-mate Original has no cream in it. The bottle is water, corn syrup solids and soybean oil, and the only dairy is micellar casein, a milk protein, in the under 2% group. It's labeled non-dairy anyway. FDA allows that on a product with casein as long as the ingredient list says it's a milk derivative, and this one does.

The soybean oil is homogenized into droplets small enough to scatter light. That's what makes it white, the same way oil clouds a vinaigrette when you whisk it. The corn syrup solids make it sweet. The casein holds the oil in suspension, so it doesn't separate in hot coffee, and the carrageenan keeps it from separating in the bottle.

The front sometimes says triple churned, a word that comes from turning cream into butter, on a bottle with no cream in it. Soybean oil costs a fraction of what cream does, and it keeps the creamer lactose free. The flavored bottles use sugar in place of corn syrup solids, and some, French Vanilla included, add sucralose and acesulfame potassium on top of it.