The Signal: Meta releases Llama 3.1, doing the thing, and tolerating pain

Hey friends 👋 Happy Sunday.

Here’s your weekly dose of AI and introspection.

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AI Highlights

1. Meta releases Llama 3.1.

Llama 3.1 405B is Meta’s most capable model to date. It already outperforms GPT-4o on several benchmarks and delivers improved reasoning capabilities with a larger 128K token context window.

Alex’s take: Many people are still blissfully unaware of ChatGPT. I can only feel integrating Llama 3.1 into Meta's products (WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook) will help continue to skyrocket AI adoption.

2. Intel is now powering AI PCs with a brand-new architecture.

Intel Core Ultra processors combine a CPU, GPU and add a new Neural Processing Unit (NPU) to perform AI functions, providing up to 2.2x AI performance gen-over-gen.

Alex’s take: I’ve been impressed with what Intel’s been building recently and had a lot of fun experimenting with AI gaze correction when on meetings. Intel is in a strong place to lead the AI PC revolution with its legacy & ecosystem. Check out my video for more.

3. Mistral AI releases Mistral Large 2.

Just 24 hours after Meta released Llama 3.1 405B, Mistral announced Large 2. This is a much smaller model than Llama 3.1, with only 123B parameters (1/3 the size). Yet Large 2 performs equal or even superior to both Llama 3.1 and GPT-4o across leading benchmarks.

Alex’s take: Large 2 has incredible performance, given the model's size. If this isn't the catalyst for Sam Altman and OpenAI to release GPT-5, I don't know what is.

1 Article I Enjoyed

things that aren't doing the thing.

I thought this short article by ‘Strangest Loop’ was excellent.

Getting stuff done isn’t accomplished through preparation, to-do lists, or scheduling time.

The only thing that is doing the thing is actually doing the thing.

Some mental cues I find useful that help me do the thing:

• Focusing on one thing at a time.

• Taking action overcomes the thinking mind.

• Understanding the first try won’t be perfect and embracing the idea of getting going and then getting good.

1 Idea I Learned

Excellence is the capacity to take pain.

The best maxim in the history of entrepreneurship is from Isadore Sharp, the founder of Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts.

“Excellence is the capacity to take pain.”

Everyone wants to achieve greatness.

But anybody who’s done anything difficult knows the euphoria and terror it takes—it’s the entrepreneurial emotional rollercoaster.

You have to love not just the glory, but the grind as well.

Figure out what you want to do in this one life you have.

Then chase after it like your life depends on it, because it does.

I found this idea from David Senra’s conversation with Patrick O’Shaughnessy.

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1 Quote to Share

Jordan Peterson on embracing life:

“The only way out is through. You take more of the thing that poisons you until you turn it into a tonic that girdles the world around you.”

Many people spend their time avoiding life: preoccupied with addictions and distractions. We must let life flow through us and channel it into the people and life around us.

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1 Question to Ponder

Worried you are too late?

You'll be even later tomorrow.

If you are thinking about doing something: just start.

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💡 If you enjoyed this issue, share it with a friend.

See you next week,

Alex Banks

P.S. How to stand out in a crowded market.