IO+ week: The bugs, the wishes and the getting used to a new platform

Our editor-in-chief, Aafke Eppinga, updated you in detail about our platform's outer and inner changes a week ago. We are now a week further and I must say: we’re already starting to get used to it. I hope the same goes for you, our audience.

Something you won't notice is the back end of our site: the place where the stories are created. Well, maybe you'll see it anyway because working with Payload is downright a breath of fresh air after years with a jumble of WordPress plugins. It’s easy, versatile, and, above all, incredibly fast. It makes you spontaneously happy—big compliments to colleague Frans van Beveren, who cobbled it together in just a few months.

But of course, there is still something that needs to be desired. The nitty-gritty details that don't work as they should. You regularly reminded us of this last week. The archive does not yet function as it should, the language button falters, there's no RSS, the contact form has no send function (oopsy), and the button to the newsletters is missing. Frans started working on all that (and so on) immediately; part of it has already been solved, and with additional updates, he will make sure that we get to the perfect situation step by step. Meanwhile, keep pointing out the things that still need improvement (or send [email protected] a friendly compliment).

Our new website

A little experiment

Last Wednesday was the annual HighTechNext event at our own High Tech Campus. Dozens of companies gave demos, there were keynotes and panel discussions, and the campus itself informed everyone about its impressive growth plans.

We were also able to do a cool little experiment of our own. With our Laio tool, we were one of the participants in the live demo room. Organizers Hilde de Vocht and Kelly Antonis had asked us to show what AI in general and Laio in particular is capable of. We decided to focus on the speed and efficiency of reporting. Our assignment was to create a ready-made report of Christian Kromme's keynote speech, which had to be written and published before Kromme himself had left the stage.

So we recorded the 45-minute keynote, transcribed the audio file with Good Tape, uploaded the transcription to our AI tools and copied the result into our new CMS. We manually adjusted the headline, added the name of the event in the introduction and checked the text.

We sent the photo we took during Kromme's closing speech directly to the CMS. Okay, we got a little lucky: Kromme answered two more questions from the audience, so we had all the time in the world to hit the publish button.

In short: while the audience left the room, everyone could immediately see our story on the big screens in the reception area. Read it for yourself here.

“But how did you ...?” Well, this is how . No magic, just using the right tools. Christian Kromme himself was also pleased with the result:

Christian Kromme on Linkedin

Despite those kind words, we are aware that this story will not win a Pulitzer, nor does it compete with the really great journalists. Still... it can broaden the scope of any newsroom, especially if you start exploiting Laio's *real* capabilities.

Founders Dinner

If this newsletter arrives in your digital mailbox a little later than usual, it's because we still had to rub the sand out of our eyes. Last night, we celebrated the second Founders Dinner of our Gerard & Anton Community. With all former winners of a G&A Award and the community's partners, we were invited to the Philips Stadium, where we ate, drank, chatted, and watched PSV—FC Groningen together. Details will soon be available via gerardanton.com; for now, I'll leave it at the picture above this article.

And yes, we also had an eye for other news:

• Dutch Diaries: Things are well organized in the Netherlands, but a little more love for the homeland couldn't hurt'
• VPNs for beginners: the pros and cons listed
• The Netherlands is good at quantum research, but not at its commercial execution: 'Build a strong story around your product'
• Climate, social challenges: gaming helps society move forward
• AI can predict survival of children after resuscitation
• Netherlands shines in global climate rankings, but challenges loom
• Navigating the uncertainty of climate change. 'It's like surfing waves'
• On to the factory that can operate autonomously thanks to advanced technologies
• Brain-computer interfaces as seamless connection between the brain and the digital world
• Brand new student team sets out to transform the space industry
• The Dutch recipe for innovation: Collaboration, independence and an anti-hierarchical mentality
• Living lab on TU/e campus seeks solutions for grid congestion

Have a great week, on behalf of our entire team!