Chairs and London

Benchma(r)king

James Bridle | Emergence | 14th October 2026

Story of one person's attempt to use AI for "something actually useful": making a chair. As a relatively new carpenter, they knew that the chair's simplicity is deceptive and this item of furniture is "trickier than you expect" to make. There are many interesting and original ways to fail. ChatGPT's bizarre version is "a chair designed by someone who has read a lot about chairs but never actually sat in one" (4,200 words)

Puzzle: Play Nomido, the Browser’s daily word game.

On Leaving London: Culture Machine

Laura Marling | Patterns In Repeat | 6th November 2026

The UK's capital city is, for better or worse, still its cultural heart. It is very difficult to make art at the highest level without being pulled into it. Yet central London has in the past couple of decades been transformed into a soulless, corporate "experience machine", "a Blade Runner style highway of tourists, flashing lights and theme stores" overlooked by the "harsh insistence of a 15ft LED advert" (2,700 words)