{
  "version": "https://jsonfeed.org/version/1.1",
  "title": "Brainiac",
  "home_page_url": "https://rajgokal.github.io/brainiac/",
  "feed_url": "https://rajgokal.github.io/brainiac/feed.json",
  "description": "Daily reads for builders thinking about humanity's next chapter. Curated by AI, edited by taste.",
  "authors": [
    { "name": "Raj Gokal", "url": "https://github.com/rajgokal" }
  ],
  "language": "en-US",
  "items": [
    {
      "id": "vol1-1-block-ai-layoffs",
      "url": "https://www.cnbc.com/2026/02/26/block-laying-off-about-4000-employees-nearly-half-of-its-workforce.html",
      "title": "Block Slashes Workforce by Nearly Half, Shares Soar 24%",
      "summary": "Jack Dorsey cuts 4,000+ employees — half of Block — betting that small teams with AI tools will outperform. Stock jumps. Dorsey says most companies will reach the same conclusion within a year.",
      "date_published": "2026-02-27T13:00:00Z",
      "authors": [{ "name": "CNBC" }],
      "tags": ["AI", "workforce", "fintech", "management"],
      "_picks": {
        "selection_reason": "This is the canary. Dorsey didn't trim 10% — he cut HALF and the stock went up 24%. Balaji called it 'the first AI cut.' If he's right that most companies follow within a year, the labor market you're building in is about to look very different. Worth thinking about what this means for Solana ecosystem companies too.",
        "category": "trend",
        "confidence": 0.92,
        "topics": ["AI-workforce-displacement", "corporate-restructuring", "fintech"],
        "audience": ["founders", "executives", "builders"],
        "effort": "quick-read",
        "mood": "sobering",
        "source_domain": "cnbc.com",
        "volume": 1,
        "position": 1
      }
    },
    {
      "id": "vol1-2-sovereign-individual-critique",
      "url": "https://iai.tv/articles/the-sovereign-individual-is-a-dangerous-fantasy-auid-3506",
      "title": "The 'Sovereign Individual' Is a Dangerous Fantasy",
      "summary": "A philosopher argues that Thiel's favorite book fatally misunderstands the self. Individuality is forged by friction with others — remove the resistance and you erase meaning itself. Draws on Arendt, Nietzsche, and Bataille to dismantle tech's favorite autonomy fantasy.",
      "date_published": "2026-02-27T13:00:00Z",
      "authors": [{ "name": "James I. Porter" }],
      "tags": ["philosophy", "sovereignty", "individualism", "tech-ideology"],
      "_picks": {
        "selection_reason": "You live in Balaji's world — network states, sovereign individuals, crypto as exit. This is the smartest pushback I've seen on that worldview. Porter doesn't strawman it; he uses Arendt and Nietzsche to argue that absolute self-sovereignty would be self-annihilation. The kind of thing that's uncomfortable precisely because it's probably partially right. Good serendipity pick.",
        "category": "reframe",
        "confidence": 0.88,
        "topics": ["political-philosophy", "tech-ideology", "network-states", "individualism"],
        "audience": ["founders", "philosophers", "crypto-natives"],
        "effort": "medium-read",
        "mood": "contemplative",
        "source_domain": "iai.tv",
        "volume": 1,
        "position": 2
      }
    },
    {
      "id": "vol1-3-iran-strike-looming",
      "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/feb/27/us-urges-citizens-leave-israel-threat-strike-iran",
      "title": "US Urges Citizens to Leave Israel as Iran Strike Looms",
      "summary": "Trump says he's 'not happy' with Iran's nuclear negotiations, military force including regime change still on the table. US embassy staff told to leave Israel TODAY. Two carrier strike groups positioned. European countries advise against Israel travel.",
      "date_published": "2026-02-27T13:00:00Z",
      "authors": [{ "name": "The Guardian" }],
      "tags": ["geopolitics", "Iran", "Israel", "US-foreign-policy", "nuclear"],
      "_picks": {
        "selection_reason": "Dinner table pick. This is the biggest story in the world right now. US embassy staff were told to leave Israel at midnight with 'get on any flight anywhere' urgency. Two carrier groups are positioned. Whether it's brinkmanship or real, it reshapes energy markets, regional alliances, and the global risk landscape overnight. Shivani will want to talk about this.",
        "category": "cautionary",
        "confidence": 0.95,
        "topics": ["US-Iran-relations", "nuclear-proliferation", "Middle-East", "geopolitical-risk"],
        "audience": ["everyone"],
        "effort": "quick-read",
        "mood": "sobering",
        "source_domain": "theguardian.com",
        "volume": 1,
        "position": 3
      }
    }
  ]
}