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henryl

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engineer, reach me at: aGFueWFuZ2xpdUBnbWFpbC5jb20=

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It's probably impossible to detect ALL languages without training for them specifically, but there's good generalization happening. Our model is a unified model rather than a separate model per language. We started out with language-specific models but found that the unified approach yielded slightly better results in addition to being more efficient to train.

I'm the founder of a real estate tech startup that caters to realtors.

This article was written before Opendoor and before a record breaking $10B was pumped into proptech in 2018.

The consensus now is that this industry is undergoing rapid change. At the bottom end of the market (maybe 10%), iBuyers like Opendoor will likely completely disrupt the traditional brokerage model. Next, you will see discount brokerages (Redfin, Purplebricks, et al) take more and more of the market. Full commission brokerages will still be the mainstream for the foreseeable future, but commissions will come down modestly, even for them.

As purchasing or selling a home is one of the most expensive, most emotional, and most intimidating transactions you will ever do, seeking the help of a real estate agent is generally a good idea. Increasing competition will create more options and more value for consumers than we've ever seen before and that's a good thing.

The truth is they are both right. Technology is accelerating but it is also changing directionally. It is no longer accelerating along a physical axis but instead along a virtual one. What Peter Thiel doesn't see is that the virtual curve will be even more transformative than the physical one. Physical technology has had hundreds of thousands of years to evolve but virtual technology will obsolete it in just a few decades. How? The answer starts out looking a little like Angry Birds but probably ends up more like the Holodeck.

The issue of measurement IS important. The problem with all of Peter Thiel's metrics is that they are inherently indicators of external activity. The triumph of the virtual curve reveals itself in the only metric that really matters: time.

All forms of technology have the same purpose: to optimize the utility obtained during a finite lifespan. Some forms of technology increase the utility per unit time, others simply increase the units of time we have left. Therefore, more and more time spent in virtual space is an indication that virtual technology is out competing the substitutes provided by physical technology. As we go higher up the virtual curve and technology becomes more advanced at fulfilling our emotional and psychological needs by moving bits instead of atoms, eventually physical progress will slow to baseline: literally life support (maybe with gamified life extension projects taking place in virtual land).

Alas, the last technology invented by man will not be the singularity, it will be near perfect virtual reality; closer to Angry Birds than Skynet.

This is revolutionary and really closes the collect data -> analyze -> act feedback loop. Come to think of it, it really minds me of a DMP. If I were building a consumer app today, MP would be a big part of my growth strategy.

I hate to be that guy, but the key thing on my mind and the thing that constantly pushes me towards hybrid solutions: performance. Whats the verdict?