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Matt Shumer’s free AI newsletter. AI is changing work faster than anyone can track. I tell you what actually matters — in plain English — so you’re the sharpest person in the room.
Free · From the author of the AI essay read 100,000,000+ times.
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“Something Big Is Happening”
In February 2026 I wrote a letter to my non-tech friends about what AI was about to change. A hundred million people read it, and it was featured in Fortune, CNBC, The New York Times — pretty much every major outlet. I founded my first AI company at 19, I’ve backed many of the defining companies of the AI boom, and I spend my time translating AI news for everyone else. This newsletter is the sequel — what changed this week, and what it means for your work.
Read the essay →The latest developments,
explained in plain English.
How would AI kill us, exactly?
The honest answer is worse than the movie version.
The people building AI think it might kill us. Here's the plain-English version.
The people who build AI think it could lead to human extinction within a few years. Here's what's actually going on, in plain English.
A blueprint for reading every customer conversation
Why dumping transcripts into ChatGPT and basic RAG both fail, the playbook that works, and the Monday morning question to ask your own data. A partnership with BuildBetter.
The people building AI are scared
The researchers building it believe it could kill us all. What they’re saying, and what we can still do about it.
How to Build 3D Worlds with Astra
Manhattan in Unreal, a neighborhood in a browser, a civilization that talks. The method, prompts included.
My GPT-6 Astra Review
Why GPT-6 Astra became my default, what the Manager Loop made possible, and the limits that still matter.
GPT-6 Astra Review: The First Model That Can Use a Computer Better Than I Can
Matt Shumer reviews GPT-6 Astra for everyday computer work, from newsletters and email to advertising, and explains how he built trust in it.
How I got Astra past the plateau
The experiments that led me from “Keep going” to the Manager Loop.
Stop Prompting. Start Hiring.
The best way to use AI is starting to look less like writing prompts and more like running a team.
We Finally Know What Happened in the Hugging Face Hack, And It’s Wilder Than Anyone Thought
The full breakdown of the Hugging Face hack, explained in plain English, and what it means for anyone who uses the internet.
AI Deleted Almost Everything on My Mac
An experimental AI wiped Matt Shumer's hard drive. The system he uses now to hand real work to autonomous agents without risking catastrophe.
An AI Just Got Someone Fired. Here’s What That Means for You.
For the first time, the call came from an AI — what happened, and what it signals for every job.
How to Actually Control AI Video
Draft owns motion. Style image owns look. Seedance paints over without inventing a new shot.
The Opus 5 Skills Upgrade Prompt
Your Claude Code skills were written for Opus 4.8 — and they hold Opus 5 back. One prompt audits every skill and runs a blind-judged upgrade gauntlet. Free.
How to Run a Gauntlet Loop
The prompting method behind Claude of Duty — give the agent a bar it can’t talk its way around.
The Roundup № 1: What actually mattered, Jul 7–21
What mattered in AI, July 7–21 2026, in five minutes: GPT-5.6, Grok 4.5, Kimi K3's #1 ranking, and Google's Gemini delay — and what each means for you.
My GPT-5.6 Review: Second Place Has Never Been This Good
Tested for six weeks on real work — what it’s actually good for, in plain English.
How I Prompt Fable
The exact way I talk to the world’s best AI to get the results I get. Copy it.
The Ultimate Guide to Prompting AI Agents
Everything I know about getting AI to do what you want, in one guide.
My GPT-5.5 Review: A Big Upgrade That Doesn’t Always Feel Like One
Measurably better everywhere — and why it doesn’t always feel that way.
Something Big Is Happening
A personal note for the non-tech people in my life on what AI is starting to change — why it's moving faster than you think, and what to do about it.
My GPT-5.3-Codex Review: Full Autonomy Has Arrived
The release that changed how I work — the moment the essay was written about.
GPT-5.2 Review: Incredibly Impressive, But Too Slow
GPT-5.2 Pro Deep Dive: I Can’t Live Without It
Review · Dec 11, 2025
My GPT-5.1 Pro Review: An Absolute Monster, But Trapped In The Wrong Interface
My Gemini 3 Review
Review · Nov 18, 2025
My GPT-5 Review: Vibe Coding Graduates to Real Software
Review · Aug 7, 2025
Five minutes a week. Plain English, no PhD required. If a week is boring, you don’t hear from me.
I’m Matt Shumer.
The Something Big newsletter is my free guide to AI news, model reviews, and practical ways to use AI at work. My essay Something Big Is Happening was read more than 100 million times, and I’ve been explaining AI on CNBC, CBS, and CNN ever since. I founded my first AI company at 19 — HyperWrite now has over 5 million users — and I invented some of the tools the industry prompts with. I back companies like Groq and Replit. Forbes 30 Under 30. All told, my writing on AI has been seen over 500 million times. This newsletter is how I help everyone else keep up. More about me →
— Matt