An End to Summer 

“Oh, it’s a long, long while from May to December, but the days grow short when you reach September.” — September Song

And just like that, “summer” as we know it is over. It’s supposed to be the start of autumn, but it surely doesn’t feel that way. Outside my apartment, it’s 85 degrees. Inside is not much different. But then, San Francisco has its own moods, vibe,and seasons. We’re kicking off our brief summer — aka the “Indian summer” — that’s going to last a couple of months. And that means I can get by with a T-shirt and a light jacket, and sneakers instead of boots. I’m taking the end of summer as an opportunity to finally send this “letter,” as it’s been a while since I sat down and wrote one. 

What Have I Been Up To?

To be honest, not much. I haven’t been inspired and, as a result, not very creative. I don’t really have a reason. Yes, I’ve written a few analytical pieces, but those were more momentary sparks of imagination than anything else. Over the years, I’ve learned that sometimes you can’t fight whatever is preventing you from being creative. 

That lack of inspiration didn’t prevent me from traveling. In late May, I took a trip to Svalbard with my friend Chris Michel. It was a delightful experience. While the rest of the photographer posse was busy with long lenses capturing wildlife, I created abstracts with my Leica Q3. I left my big cameras at home, opting for this single camera with a fixed 43mm lens.

The constraint of one camera and one focal length proved liberating, allowing me to find a new vernacular for my photos. I should have written about the trip and shared some images, but I haven’t gotten around to editing them. My trip notes remain in a journal, and I have no desire to publish them online due to their personal nature. If you’re interested in seeing the photos, I’ll post them soon on my photo blog. Hopefully, you’re subscribed to my photos-only newsletter. 

In early July, I went to Santa Fe. This week-long trip allowed me to explore the city and its surrounding areas at a slow, languid pace. I will soon share a set of Santa Fe photos — I am almost finished narrowing my choices. I liked Santa Fe well enough, though the thin high-desert air didn’t agree with me. That said, I could see myself living there, though the pull of the seashore is too strong. 

This time, I went to Santa Fe with a Ricoh GR3x, another 45mm camera. It’s a slim, wonderful device, but I don’t love it. I wanted to give it a try before selling it. Unless they’re aesthetically beautiful objects, I’m busy selling off possessions that don’t spark joy or get much use. This too has been a very freeing act. Since that last trip to Santa Fe, I’ve stayed in San Francisco and enjoyed “Fogust,” the perfect time to get some serious reading done. Pico Iyer eloquently sums up the meaning of home when he says, “Home is not necessarily the place that welcomes you. But it is the place where you stop thinking of other places.”

The time at home has allowed me to spend much of my time with my fountain pens — writing in my journal, working on my book, and generally futzing about. It has enabled me to connect more deeply with my thoughts and feelings. Attending the San Francisco Pen Show only fueled my passion further, introducing me to new ideas and brands. As I consider starting a fountain pen-only newsletter, I hope it will not only encourage me to use my pens more often but also help me discern which ones are indispensable in my collection.

So that was my summer 2025 — mellow, meandering, and measured. I am ready for fall and whatever comes next, with a higher cadence of writing, if not photography. I have 

What’s on my mind? 

I’ve really racked up some serious time with various AI platforms and have become accustomed to them as a power user.While I haven’t written any “apps,” I’m now able to do more custom one-off work that aids my research. I suppose being a former reporter means I have a natural tendency to question everything. As a result, my prompts are becoming more conducive to helping the “machine” do heavy lifting for me. There is a reason why continue to refer to AI (at present) as augmented intelligence. 

Everyone should try these platforms primarily because they provide a clear, easy understanding of where we are in the “hype cycle” and why this represents a powerful shift in how humans interact with information. In case you missed it, I’ve written about this topic in recent months here and on CrazyStupidTech, my collaborative newsletter with Fred Vogelstein. I recommend revisiting my article, “Why AI Will Eat the Browser,” to grasp the changing dynamics ofinformation interaction and emerging internet behavior. 

The fact that most large platforms are busy building their own “browsers” to perform dedicated tasks signals that even they lack a clear vision of the future. They’re simply trying to capture traffic, intent, and engagement. The real payoff for AI lies many years down the road. 

Talking about CrazyStupidTech, Fred recently penned a magazine-style treatise on Cloudflare and its plan for publishers, big and small, to take control of their internet destiny in the age of AI. While I’m not fully convinced, Fred makes acompelling case in his beautifully written piece. Over the summer, Fred and I jointly decided to focus on one piece each month, aiming to make the newsletter even more high-signal. We’ll only publish in-depth articles. After a lifetime of unending news cycles, I’ve grown weary of deadlines. Ultimately, this is a passion project, and we don’t want to push out articles that don’t resonate with us first and foremost. 

In summation, I quote one of my favorite writers, F. Scott Fitzgerald, who said so well: “Life starts all over again when it gets crisp in the fall.”

September 1, 2025. San Francisco

A Letter From Om, Technology
16 comments

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Om Malik is a San Francisco based writer, photographer and investor. Read More

16 thoughts on this post

  1. Seems important to note that we still have about 3 weeks of summer proper remaining. That’ll help the weather work out. And still time to pack a lot more in to Summer 2025.

  2. Hmmm, I can only hope this last newsletter was compiled using AI, since the editing was not at the typical Om level of polish. I appreciate the content’s nature and enjoy following along with the life and times of Om, and will forego the lack of polish for the content it provides. 🙂
    Although, I can see my wife having a field day with her correction pen, LOL! She does not approve of AI written content and editing. And at our age, I can’t fault her for it.
    Be well, and I look forward to future content!

    1. Thanks for the comment — apart from spelling and grammar edits which are done by the tool I use (admittedly an AI writing tool, Lex.page) the rest is my own. Sometimes even I don’t feel it :). Like is said, it has been an inspired time around my mind.

      Sorry for disappearing and disappointing you.

  3. How can I unsubscribe? I am a Luddite against all LLMs except for critical use in science or medicine. The massive data centers are going to increase the dangers of climate change. I don’t want to read or hear about your casual use of Al or from anyone.

    1. Alida

      First of all, it goes without saying that if you wish to opt out, you can do so by hitting the unsubscribe button. One of the key things about technology is that unless we use it, we don’t quite understand it. Secondly, the arguments about “AI” are arguments against computing and actually using technology. If you look beyond the hype of AI, you start to see that it is the next natural progression of how we interact with computers.

      Lastly, all the projections about its impact on climate change are based on assumption that we will continue to use the same technology as today. If you look at the efficiency of the computer chips, data centers and all devices, they have all gotten better and more efficient. However, we have more people using them. So that is sadly what is the outcome of modernity. When you say use. AI for science or medicine, then you have to remember that in order to put all that to work, you need to build systems to do all those. Those systems are cheaper when more people than mere scientists are using the,

      As for climate change, I don’t think we needed computers and AI to kill the planet — fossil fuels, rampant consumerism and industrialization at scale have done a good job.

      I hope you read this comment before you unsubscribe. Thanks for being a reader.

  4. Om, just subscribed a few weeks ago and it’s delightful to read you again 🙂
    In case you’re into going to Svalbard again, or to Alaska, there’s a group I’m a part of that is organizing 2 expeditions there, for February (Alaska) and April (Svalbard) to do both science/tech research and a little tourism. Would be happy to connect with you again – Niv https://www.linkedin.com/in/nivcalderon/

    1. Hi Niv,

      That sounds like such a wonderful plan. I wish I could go. I am more likely to fly to Alaska in the near term than to Svalbard, because of the time of the journey. Given my occasional travel to Delhi, I am doing too many super long flights and ten to avoid them. Alaska less about six hours away. If things change, I will try and join.

      Thank you for the invitation and for reading.

  5. Nice missive, Om.

    I love Fall. Obviously, the winters in the northeast are not great, but few sights are more majestic than the vibrant oranges, yellows, and especially reds of the leaves turning on the trees that populate the mountains and hills of upstate New York in late September and October. So we will make our annual trek to the Catskills and Adirondacks to bask in their evanescent beauty.

    1. Ah, what I would do to have a week or ten days in Maine. This would be so magical a time for one to be there. I am thinking about it right now. One more month and the images would be so sublime. Have a great month before it turns nippy.

  6. More and more I find myself doing what you did – leave my Sony A7V and the long lenses at home and take my Leica Q3. I’m willing to live with the cropped images in return for the freedom of carrying a small bag with a single fixed lens camera. It’s been liberating!

    1. Kishore,

      I think the constraints of a camera and lens makes you work harder for your photos. For me, the 43 is close enough to my preferred focal length of 50mm — and that is why I don’t quite miss the big camera as much. It has been good to not use the bigger cameras and it is unlocking a different kind of image making for me. Hope you enjoy your freedom from excessive gear.

      Cheers

  7. Hey Om, always great to hear from you. Really appreciated your recent piece on Substack and shared it with a bunch of writer friends in Foster — we found it helpful as many of us often wonder when/whether to exit the platform.

    Re: the piece about AI eating the browser, that makes sense to me, but here’s what I don’t understand: where will the content come from? Will publishers (of all sizes) still be publishing on web pages that AI then indexes, or will something else happen? For example, some people end up at Angel City Zen Center via ChatGPT, which is cool. Presumably it picked up on our web presence locally. But how might that work in the future? Inquiring minds (and writers) want to know. 🙂

    Enjoy the SF Indian summer!

  8. Om …
    Looking forward to hearing more on your new ideas and brands re fountain pens. Tech is great but fountains pens are good for your soul.

  9. Fall is Mine and My Wife’s Favorite time of the year… Apple picking, hot cider, fall colors and all. She decorates the house beautifully in fall colors. I always take lots of photos of her work.. Try and have a nice fall! GO CHICAGO BEARS!!! 🙂

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