Knowledge Updates

Observations while developing web applications and creating great software.

  • Introducing Apple Business — a new all‑in‑one platform for businesses of all sizes ↗︎

    I’ve been building this at Apple since June 2024.

    Apple today announced Apple Business, a new all-in-one platform that includes key services companies need to effortlessly manage devices, reach more customers, equip team members with essential apps and tools, and get support from experts to run and grow efficiently and securely. 

    Here’s some highlights.

    Built-In MDM

    Apple Business offers built-in mobile device management (MDM), facilitating a comprehensive view of an organization’s Apple devices, settings, and more from a single interface. Previously available as a subscription within Apple Business Essentials in the U.S., Apple Business is designed to make IT easy — including for small businesses without dedicated IT resources.

    Email, Calendar, Directory

    Apple Business introduces fully integrated email, calendar, and directory services that are designed to make it seamless to start a new business with a professional identity. Businesses can bring their own custom domain name or purchase a new one through Apple Business, helping founders elevate communication and collaboration. These services streamline operations, with scheduling tools like calendar delegation and a built-in company directory to make it easy for employees to connect with user groups and personalized contact cards.

    Brand and Location Features in One Convenient Place

    Brand management tools previously available in Apple Business Connect will now be available through Apple Business, making it easier than ever for businesses to set up and manage how their brand and locations appear across Apple services and apps.

    Availability

    Starting April 14, Apple Business will be available as a free service in the U.S. and 200+ countries and regions to new and existing users of Apple Business Connect, Apple Business Essentials, and Apple Business Manager.

    Apple Business Essentials, Apple Business Manager, and Apple Business Connect will no longer be available once Apple Business launches. Business Essentials customers will no longer be charged their monthly service fee for device management after April 14. Existing Business Connect data — including claimed locations, place card information, photos, organization information, account details, and more — will automatically migrate to Apple Business at launch.

    For more information, visit business.apple.com/preview and the Apple Newsroom article.

  • Worktrunk ↗︎

    Worktrunk is a CLI for git worktree management, designed for running AI agents in parallel.

    AI agents like Claude Code and Codex can handle longer tasks without supervision, such that it’s possible to manage 5-10+ in parallel. Git’s native worktree feature give each agent its own working directory, so they don’t step on each other’s changes.

    But the git worktree UX is clunky. Even a task as small as starting a new worktree requires typing the branch name three times: git worktree add -b feat ../repo.feat, then cd ../repo.feat.

    In addition to improving common tasks like switching and cleaning up worktrees, Worktrunk provides workflow automation too:

    Worktrunk is dual-licensed under MIT and Apache-2.0 licenses.

  • Banned in California ↗︎

    California has outsourced its industrial base while still consuming products which depend on it. Sam D’Amico, founder of Impulse Labs who makes the most powerful and precise stove ever made with a integrated battery for home energy storage, made this visual guide to the industrial processes you can no longer permit in the state of California — and the grandfathered facilities that still can.

  • Apple accelerates U.S. manufacturing, with Mac mini production coming later this year ↗︎

    Apple:

    Apple today announced a significant expansion of factory operations in Houston, bringing the future production of Mac mini to the U.S. for the first time. The company will also expand advanced AI server manufacturing at the factory and provide hands-on training at its new Advanced Manufacturing Center beginning later this year. Altogether, Apple’s Houston operations will create thousands of jobs.

    “Apple is deeply committed to the future of American manufacturing, and we’re proud to significantly expand our footprint in Houston with the production of Mac mini starting later this year,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “We began shipping advanced AI servers from Houston ahead of schedule, and we’re excited to accelerate that work even further.”

    This expands the $500 billion U.S. spend commitment made one year ago and an additional $100 billion commitment in U.S. manufacturing last August for a total of $600 billion. This expands the Houston facility beyond manufacturing AI servers announced one year ago.

    Apple supports more than 450,000 jobs with thousands of suppliers and partners across all 50 states — including significant expansions last year in Arizona, California, Iowa, Kentucky, Nevada, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Texas, and Utah.

    Since announcing its $600 billion commitment to the U.S. last year, Apple and its American Manufacturing Program partners have already reached several milestones:

    • Apple exceeded its target and sourced more than 20 billion U.S.-made chips from 24 factories across 12 states, including those of partners like TSMC, Broadcom, and Texas Instruments.
    • GlobalWafers has begun production at its new $4 billion bare silicon wafer facility in Sherman, Texas. At Apple’s direction, wafers produced in Sherman will be used by Apple’s chip manufacturing partners in the U.S., including TSMC and Texas Instruments.
    • Supported by Apple’s investment, Amkor broke ground on its new $7 billion semiconductor advanced packaging and test facility in Peoria, Arizona, where Apple will be the first and largest customer.
    • Corning’s Harrodsburg, Kentucky, facility is now 100 percent dedicated to cover glass for iPhone and Apple Watch shipped globally, and by the end of this year, every new iPhone and Apple Watch will have cover glass made in the state.
    • In 2026, Apple is on track to purchase well over 100 million advanced chips produced by TSMC at its Arizona facility — a significant increase from 2025.
    • Apple opened its Apple Manufacturing Academy in Detroit, which is already supporting more than 130 small- and medium-sized American manufacturers with hands-on training in AI, automation, and smart manufacturing. The academy recently expanded with new virtual programming, giving businesses across the country on-demand access to the curriculum developed by Apple experts and Michigan State University faculty.
  • Something Big Is Happening ↗︎

    Matt Shumer:

    The person who walks into a meeting and says “I used AI to do this analysis in an hour instead of three days” is going to be the most valuable person in the room. Not eventually. Right now. Learn these tools. Get proficient. Demonstrate what’s possible. If you’re early enough, this is how you move up: by being the person who understands what’s coming and can show others how to navigate it.

    Build the habit of adapting. This is maybe the most important one. The specific tools don’t matter as much as the muscle of learning new ones quickly. AI is going to keep changing, and fast. The models that exist today will be obsolete in a year. The workflows people build now will need to be rebuilt. The people who come out of this well won’t be the ones who mastered one tool. They’ll be the ones who got comfortable with the pace of change itself. Make a habit of experimenting. Try new things even when the current thing is working. Get comfortable being a beginner repeatedly. That adaptability is the closest thing to a durable advantage that exists right now.

    Here’s a simple commitment that will put you ahead of almost everyone: spend one hour a day experimenting with AI. Not passively reading about it. Using it. Every day, try to get it to do something new… something you haven’t tried before, something you’re not sure it can handle. Try a new tool. Give it a harder problem. One hour a day, every day. If you do this for the next six months, you will understand what’s coming better than 99% of the people around you. That’s not an exaggeration. Almost nobody is doing this right now. The bar is on the floor.