A newsletter by Ken Yeung

The AI
Economy

A sharp, curated look at the stories that reveal how AI is rewriting business, work, technology, and culture.

Ken Yeung

Subscribe free → Browse issues ↓

What you get

Built for people who work with AI, not just read about it.

Reported, not aggregated

Enterprise AI coverage from a journalist who covered the space before “generative AI” was a mainstream phrase. Sourced, contextual, with a point of view.

Platform strategy focus

Beyond the product announcements. Analysis of how AI is restructuring enterprise workflows, editorial operations, and the economics of content at scale.

Written for practitioners

Not for the hype-chasers. For the people who have to act on it.

Archive

Every issue.

All issues published to date. New issues arrive every week.

Open on Substack ↗
  1. Issue

    Microsoft’s AI Skills Fest Seeks World Record for Most Online AI Learners

    Microsoft has announced that it’s organizing a 50-day AI Skills Fest starting April 8. The goal is to help people advance their technical knowledge regardless of their skill level. The global event features hackathons, live in-person and virtual events, self-paced tutorials, community events, learning challenges, and more—something for everyone’s schedule and preference. Microsoft Wants a […]
  2. Issue

    LinkedIn Acquires Tumult Labs Team to Strengthen AI Agents and Privacy Tech

    LinkedIn has announced the acqui-hire of Tumult Labs, a startup that provides privacy-preserving data analytics for enterprises. The deal’s financial terms were not disclosed, though Tumult Labs says it will sunset “its current form” within the next 90 days. Only a portion of the Tumult Labs team will join LinkedIn—not the entire company or its technology. LinkedIn’s […]
  3. Issue

    Trevor Noah on AI: Embrace Curiosity Over Fear

    IN THIS ISSUE: Celebrity Trevor Noah appeared at Zendesk’s Relate conference this week, sharing his perspective on technology with his comedic perspective. He urges us not to surrender to our fear and instead embrace curiosity. Here’s what the host of the “What Now? With Trevor Noah” podcast said. Plus, why are AI-generated images in the […]
  4. Issue

    Microsoft Adds Deep Reasoning to Copilot Studio and Launches Reasoning Agents for M365

    Microsoft is introducing a new way for developers to create smarter Copilots. The company announced it is adding deep reasoning capabilities to Copilot Studio, the platform designed to help enterprise customers build custom bots tailored to their specific workflows. This update, available today, also includes the addition of agent flows. “These features represent the latest […]
  5. Issue

    Microsoft’s First CTO Says AI Is ‘Three to Five Miracles’ Away From Human-Level Intelligence

    Nathan Myhrvold had a front-row seat to the rise of modern computing that few can match. As Microsoft’s first CTO, he helped shape its technology strategy during its formative years from 1986 to 2000, working closely with Bill Gates and leading groundbreaking research efforts. Decades after this departure, he reflected on his career and shared […]
  6. Issue

    Searchquake: How Gen AI and Agents Are Reshaping SEO

    IN THIS ISSUE: Dive into the changing world of search to better understand how artificial intelligence is disrupting where websites get their traffic from. Google’s dominance isn’t at risk…yet. But apps like Perplexity and OpenAI’s ChatGPT are a threat at its doorstep. BrightEdge CEO Jim Yu joins “The AI Economy” to share his observations and […]
  7. Issue

    CES 2025: Now With More AI

    IN THIS ISSUE: Welcome to the final newsletter of 2024. Thank you for subscribing to and reading “The AI Economy.” Next month marks one year since I launched this publication, and I appreciate the reception it has received. In the coming year, expect more stories about AI’s impact on business, work, technology, and society. Regarding […]
  8. Issue

    Salesforce Unveils Agentforce 2.0, Bringing AI Agents to Slack and Introducing Advanced Atlas Reasoning

    As AI agents take center stage in 2024, Salesforce is fully leaning into the trend. In October, the cloud computing company launched Agentforce, a platform that lets anyone quickly build advanced AI bots and connect them to enterprise data. Two months later, it’s introducing its next-generation AI agent offering, which aims to redefine “AI agents across […]
  9. Issue

    Google’s NotebookLM Adds a Premium Tier, Adaptable UI, and Interactive Audio Overviews

    Google is taking its popular NotebookLM app to the next level. No longer just an experiment, the company is unveiling a series of updates on Friday that position the notebook tool as a fully mature product. The first is a premium tier called NotebookLM Plus, designed with enterprise users in mind, followed by a revamped […]
  10. Issue

    Lessons From My First AWS re:Invent

    IN THIS ISSUE: My conference adventures continue as I journey to Amazon’s re:Invent conference to hear about AWS’ approach to AI. Plus, explore the company’s AI partnership with the NFL and how they use the technology to help support players’ philanthropy. And don’t miss the roundup of AI news you may have missed from the […]

Peer review

What the AIs say.*

We asked the leading AI tools to weigh in on The AI Economy. Their ratings speak for themselves. (Results may vary depending on training data and general disposition toward newsletters.)

Claude — Anthropic

★★★★★

5.0

out of 5

“[Its] strength lies in its ability to cover both technical developments and business implications of AI, making it valuable for a wide audience ranging from tech enthusiasts to business executives.”

ChatGPT — OpenAI

★★★★★

5.0

out of 5

“Expertly combines in-depth interviews and industry analysis, making it a must-read for AI enthusiasts and professionals.”

Gemini — Google

★★★★★

5.0

out of 5

“Provides valuable insights and analysis, making it a great resource for anyone interested in AI.”

Copilot — Microsoft

★★★★★

5.0

out of 5

“A sharp, reporter‑caliber intelligence brief for the AI era—fast, authoritative, and genuinely ahead of the curve.”

* Disclaimer: My newsletter has not been actually endorsed by OpenAI, Google, or Anthropic. I solicited reviews from their respective gen AI services. Sounded cool though, huh?

Questions

Common questions.

  1. What is The AI Economy?

    A newsletter covering consumer and enterprise AI, platform strategy, and the companies reshaping how work gets done. Reported, not aggregated — written by a technology journalist who has covered the space since before generative AI was a mainstream phrase.

  2. How often does it publish?

    No fixed schedule—just coverage when something worth your attention happens. Plus, there's a Friday news roundup that's published exclusively on LinkedIn.

  3. Is it free?

    Yes. Every issue is free. Subscribe on Substack and it arrives in your inbox. No paywall, no premium tier. If that changes, subscribers will be notified well in advance.

  4. How is this different from other AI newsletters?

    Most AI newsletters cover product announcements and funding rounds. The AI Economy focuses on the downstream effects: how enterprise teams are actually deploying AI, where the editorial and operational models are breaking down, and what platform-level shifts mean for practitioners making decisions this quarter. It is written for people doing the work, not watching it from the outside.

  5. Where can I read past issues?

    The full archive is listed above on this page. All issues are also available on Substack. The plan is to host the canonical archive here on thelettertwo.com as the publication grows — independent of any platform.

  6. Can I republish or cite content from the newsletter?

    Yes, with attribution. Short excerpts with a link back to the original issue are fine. For longer republication or syndication, reach out via LinkedIn.

The AI Economy

AI Moves Fast. I Separate Signal From Spin.

A sharp, curated look at the stories that reveal how AI is rewriting business, work, technology, and culture.

Join 3,000+ readers gaining practical wisdom.

No spam. Unsubscribe any time.

Read on Substack ↗ Browse all issues ↓