Staff Writer
Technology journalist who has spent over a decade covering AI, cybersecurity, and software development. Former contributor to major tech publications. Writes about the tools, systems, and policies shaping the technology landscape, from machine learning breakthroughs to defense applications of emerging tech.
20
Articles
59,000+
Words Written
6
Categories
Cyber attacks are up 144% since 2018. Your ISP is selling your browsing data. The right VPN costs $2-3 per month. There's no good reason not to have one.
Alex Chen·11 min read
Software & SaaSEvery PM tool does the same 15 things. The difference is which one your team won't abandon by week three. Here's how to pick.
Alex Chen·11 min read
TechnologyMatter killed the compatibility nightmare. An $8 smart plug now works with Alexa, Google, and Apple. Here's how to build a smart home.
Alex Chen·9 min read
AI & Machine LearningIt takes three seconds to clone your voice. A gaming PC makes 4K deepfakes in real time. The best detection tools fail half the time.
Alex Chen·10 min read
AI & Machine LearningA Chinese hedge fund built a reasoning model matching OpenAI at 1/100th the cost. Fifteen months later, DeepSeek has 89% market share in China.
Alex Chen·11 min read
Software & SaaSThe CRM market is worth $80 billion and 60% of implementations still fail. The problem isn't bad software. Here's which one to pick.
Alex Chen·11 min read
Science & SpaceThere is an object at the center of our galaxy four million times more massive than the Sun. We photographed it in 2022. Here's what we know.
Alex Chen·10 min read
Productivity & LifeYou can download YouTube videos safely in 2026 using YouTube Premium, the free command-line tool yt-dlp, or desktop apps that wrap yt-dlp under the hood.
Alex Chen·10 min read
Science & SpaceFor the first time since 1972, humans have left Earth orbit. The crew includes the first woman, first person of color, and first non-American to travel this far from home.
Alex Chen·13 min read
Productivity & LifeOBS Studio with PipeWire screen capture is the best screen recording tool for Linux in 2026. For quick recordings, GNOME's built-in shortcut works too.
Alex Chen·10 min read
Productivity & LifeThe average person completes 53% of their planned tasks each week. More apps won't fix that. The right ones might.
Alex Chen·13 min read
Software & SaaSThe best one costs $10 per year. The second best one is free. You have no excuses left.
Alex Chen·14 min read
AI & Machine LearningChatGPT has 900 million weekly users, ads in the free tier, and a $200/month plan that almost nobody needs. Here's what actually deserves your money.
Alex Chen·15 min read
TechnologyNotion has 100 million users and an army of template creators who only make money if you choose their platform. Obsidian has 1.5 million users, zero venture capital, and $25 million in annual revenue from people who voluntarily pay for a free product.
Alex Chen·14 min read
TechnologyTogether, Wix and Squarespace power 55% of all websites built with a website builder. Shopify dominates ecommerce. WordPress powers 43% of the entire internet. And yet, most people only need to consider three.
Alex Chen·14 min read
TechnologyWindows Defender scored 6 out of 6 in AV-TEST's December 2025 evaluation across protection, performance, and usability. So did Norton. So did Bitdefender. The free option that came with your computer now performs identically to the ones charging $50-$100 per year.
Alex Chen·14 min read
TechnologyYour phone, laptop, and tablet all have built-in screen recorders. None of them tell you they exist, and each one has a specific limitation that will ruin your first recording if nobody warns you.
Alex Chen·14 min read
Reviews & DealsA $700 phone now does 90% of what a $1,200 phone does. Battery life has dethroned price as the biggest factor driving purchases. And the iPhone 17 Pro's battery is, by some tests, genuinely disappointing.
Alex Chen·14 min read
Reviews & DealsApple released a $599 MacBook. It has an all-aluminum body, a Liquid Retina display, 16-hour battery life, and the same keyboard as the MacBook Pro. The entire laptop market just shifted underneath everyone's feet.
Alex Chen·8 min read
AI & Machine Learning900 million people use ChatGPT every week. Most of them type a sentence, get a mediocre answer, and assume that's all it can do. The gap between "meh" and "genuinely useful" is about five techniques.
Alex Chen·10 min read