• Charbel X
  • Posts
  • Successful Pig-Kidney Transplant In Human, Skeptoptimism and more

Successful Pig-Kidney Transplant In Human, Skeptoptimism and more

OpenAI is a an AI Santa. Sending presents to the professional world.

Author

Charbel Zeaiter
December 19, 2024

Here I was waiting for pigs to fly, instead, we get a successful pig kidney transplant. In other news, a thoughtful article about design and brand begs us to ponder, “If your design feels like just another crab-like imitation, it’s a sign you don’t genuinely understand your product or your audience.”

As always, nature, museums, people watching and travel are endless sources of inspiration for any brand.

Yours in Wonder,
Charbel
Founder of Velvet Onion, Faster Zebra and more to come …

Today’s Highlights

  • AI: OpenAI Treats Developers to Intriguing New Tools

  • Design: The Crab Effect: Aesthetics Recycled a Million Times

  • Science & Tech: Inserting Modified Pig Kidney In a Human Body: A Success So Far

  • Founding: Skeptoptimism: Slow & Practical Planning, Fast & Optimistic Execution

  • Product: Creating a customer-friendly profitable pricing page

  • Today’s AI image: Sharing is Caring

  • Quote for the day: Out of Nowhere, From No One

AI

OpenAI Treats Developers to Intriguing New Tools

OpenAI’s dropped a major update, bringing o1 to the API with new tools and lower prices – just in time for the festive season.

The o1 model uses 60% fewer “thinking tokens” than its o1-preview counterpart, making it quicker and cheaper – a win for both developers and budgets.

New Tools in the API:

  • Vision Inputs: o1 can now process and reason over images, making it useful for tasks like providing feedback on photos from manufacturing or lab environments.

  • Reasoning Effort: Developers can now set how long o1 should think before responding, saving time and money on simpler prompts.

  • Developer Messages: This lets developers dictate the model’s behaviour, from tone to style, giving more control over responses.

  • Function Calling: o1 can now interact with third-party data and APIs, expanding its usefulness.

  • Structured Outputs: When specific, organised data is needed, o1 can deliver it efficiently.

Better Performance with o1

OpenAI’s testing shows o1 outperforms GPT-4o, particularly in function calling and structured outputs, getting things right when it needs to.

For a taste of the new capabilities, check out OpenAI’s demo where o1 uses vision inputs, function calling, and structured outputs to spot and fix errors in a tax form.

Why is this a big deal?

With o1 being faster, smarter, and more affordable, developers can now dive into advanced AI applications without the previous roadblocks.

This is set to speed up AI adoption across a wider range of use cases, making it a merry Christmas for AI enthusiasts.

Also in AI

Design

The Crab Effect: Aesthetics Recycled a Million Times

Creativity, much like evolution, often follows patterns. Think of it as an endless loop of imitation – the same shape, the same shell, just with a few tweaks.

To break free, we must ask: where does true creativity come from?

Carcinisation in Design

Carcinisation is how species independently evolve into crab-like forms.

This sparks a thought: design is following a similar path, where each iteration mirrors the last, until everything feels like a crab – predictable, structured, and stuck in a cycle of repetition.

The Imitation Trap

As we rely more on algorithms, inspiration becomes oversimplified. Trends get recycled, and design becomes a shallow pool of borrowed ideas.

Originality takes a backseat as companies mimic viral designs, stripping away the deeper principles that made them work.

Look Beyond Screens for Inspiration

Inspiration shouldn't just come from the usual sources. Look inward at your product’s vision, and outward to the world around you.

Stripe’s website, for example, drew inspiration from the Yale library and a family estate, proving that great design often comes from unexpected places.

Design With Purpose

A strong design has a core that can’t be easily replicated. It stems from a clear vision, an understanding of the problem, and a team that shares that vision.

If your design feels like just another crab-like imitation, it’s a sign you don’t genuinely understand your product or your audience.

To fuel your creative practice, step away from the screen. Visit museums, walk through gardens, or attend symphonies.

True inspiration comes not from what’s already been done, but from what’s waiting to be discovered.

Real, timeless creativity thrives beyond imitation – it’s personal, living, and adaptable.

Also in Design

Science & Tech

Inserting Modified Pig Kidney In a Human Body: A Success So Far

A woman from Alabama, Towana Looney, is now healthier after receiving a gene-edited pig kidney at NYU Langone Health, marking a major step in tackling the organ shortage crisis.

The Long Road to Transplant

Looney had been on dialysis for nearly eight years due to kidney failure caused by pregnancy complications.

Despite being on the transplant list, finding a suitable match was nearly impossible due to high antibody levels. She was granted approval for the gene-edited pig kidney under the FDA’s compassionate use program.

The Procedure

The surgery, led by Dr. Robert Montgomery and Dr. Jayme Locke, involved a seven-hour operation.

Looney received a pig kidney with 10 gene edits to improve compatibility with her immune system. This is the third successful xenotransplant (pig-to-human kidney transplant) performed at NYU Langone.

A New Hope

Looney, now free from dialysis, is the first person in the world to have a functioning pig organ. This marks a significant leap in xenotransplantation, a promising field that could offer solutions to the organ shortage crisis.

Xenotransplantation: The Future

With nearly 104,000 people on the transplant waiting list in the U.S., Looney’s case offers hope for the future of organ transplants.

The gene-edited pig kidney is a potential breakthrough in expanding the organ supply, with further trials and research underway.

Looking ahead, Looney’s case could pave the way for future clinical trials to test the safety of xenotransplants as a viable solution for organ shortages.

Founding

Skeptoptimism: Slow & Practical Planning, Fast & Optimistic Execution 

Moving at the speed of a sluggish sloth would lag you behind. Rushing harshly would mess the outcomes. The best ones carve a third path: Thinking Slow, Acting Fast. 

Plan thoroughly. Impeccably. Analyse risks and dangers, opportunities and treasures. All, piece-by-piece. By thinking slowly. 

When it’s time to move, make quick witty decisions confidently out of the arranged set of information you gathered. Act fast.

Skeptoptimism

“In God we trust! No matter what’s going on about us, we’d keep running–flying ahead.” – The Orthodox Optimists

“We have to plan and prepare for the meteor hit expected in 2050. What if our premises get destroyed? Board meeting!” – The Conservative Skepticists

Mindlessly rushing forward blinds you against challenges and troubles approaching you. So, a tad of skepticism offers you a practical, realistic perspective of the uncomfortable situations that are to be dealt with. 

Too much of strategic analysis overcomplicates your and team’s POV. Perhaps unnecessary risk assumptions, extreme doubt and dragged decision-making. An analysis paralysis. Here, sturdy optimistic beliefs help you cut the crap. Or more so, neglect the crap.

“Yes, we are going to face these problems. But we’ve got abundant potential to heroically deal with them and so will we do.” – The Skeptoptimist

Product

On creating a customer-friendly profitable pricing page

Imagine William, an accounting firm owner (and a potential customer) slides right down the sales funnel of your accounts management app and turns his back just because he found the pricing of the plans way too “complex”. 

You don’t want this to happen, right? So here’s a quick Dos and Don'ts for creating an ideal pricing page- 

DOs- 

🗸 Minimalistic design

🗸 Transparent pricing

🗸 A bulleted/ numbered list of features/ benefits 

🗸 3 plans- a freemium/ free trial, a mid-ticket plan and a high-ticket plan.

DON’Ts-

x More than 5 plans

x Hyper Designed UI/ UX: Keep it for ToFu. Customers want their money matters to be simple.)

x Hidden Pricing: Annoyed prospects might as well leave your website for this.

x A paragraphed product description: Vague, messy and tiring. 

Today’s AI Image: Sharing is Caring

Quote of the Day

Out of Nowhere, From No One

"Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass, it’s about learning to dance in the rain."

Unknown

What we’re working on

Velvet Onion & Friends

The new Velvet Onion & Friends will be launched soon. It’s our latest evolution, helping companies build products. It’s more than services.

Faster Zebra

February 2025 - the product and venture school journey begins. Whitepaper launching in January.

🧞Your wish is my command

Charbel

Keeping you updated with daily insights on rapid changes in business, tech, design, product, as well as news about science, environment, and wellness. Join the community today!

www.charbelx.com/subscribe