Special agent Claude

Plus: ChatGPT just got an MD

October 22, 2025


Welcome back! New Yorkers just held a Friend protest—not against each other, but against an AI necklace. After a $1 million subway ad blitz for the Friend AI pendant, dozens gathered in Union Square to call out “fake connection tech,” tearing apart a cardboard version of the pendant and chanting “get real friends!” It’s part of a growing backlash against always-on AI companions.

Would you ever use an AI “friend” device like this?

Login or Subscribe to participate in polls.

Anthropic Unveils Agent Skills

Dario Amodei at TechCrunch Disrupt 2023

Anthropic introduced Agent Skills, a way to turn Claude into specialized agents by loading organized folders of instructions, scripts, and resources.

The problem it solves: General chatbots know a lot, but real work needs procedures and context—the stuff teams keep in playbooks, SOPs, and internal scripts. Agent Skills packages that knowledge so agents can discover and use it on demand.

Key features:

  • Composable skills you can mix-and-match across use cases. Each skill is a folder with markdown and referenced files like docs or assets. 

  • Portable format (just files and folders) that works across Claude.ai, Claude Code, Agent SDK, and Developer Platform.

  • Scales beyond context-window limits via on-demand file reads and code execution. It uses progressive disclosure to pull deeper files only when needed.

  • Security guidance for auditing skills and dependencies before use.

Big picture: This is the next step from chatbots ➡️ agents. Instead of one-off “prompt hacks,” teams will ship reusable capabilities. Think onboarding a new hire—except it’s your AI.

Wikipedia Traffic Slips as AI Summaries Rise

Wikipedia says human page views are down ~8% year-over-year after filtering out evasive bots.

What’s happening: People are increasingly getting answers from AI search summaries and social video without clicking through. Younger users, in particular, are defaulting to short-form content over the open web. And with browsers doubling down on AI integration (more on that in my video at the end), traffic could fall even further.

Why it matters: Knowledge is still flowing from Wikipedia—just less visibly. Fewer site visits can mean fewer editors and donations, which threatens the health of the commons. Expect more pushes for attribution, links, and traffic back from AI/search platforms.

OpenEvidence Raises $200M (Led by GV)

OpenEvidence, pitched as “ChatGPT for doctors,” is raising $200M at a $6B valuation, with a funding round led by Google Ventures.

What it does: Trains on top medical journals (JAMA, NEJM, etc.) to help clinicians query established medical knowledge during care. Access is free for verified professionals, supported by ads.

Why it matters: Vertical AI in STEM/medicine is exploding—but expect scrutiny on accuracy, provenance, and over-reliance. The winners will blend strong models with rigorous sourcing and guardrails.

Sales Meetings That Handle Paperwork Themselves

DemoDesk

Demodesk is an AI-powered sales meeting platform that automates processes during and after a call. 

How you can use it:

  • Auto-generate notes, next steps, and CRM updates after each meeting

  • Launch interactive demo rooms with role-based playbooks

  • Coach reps live with prompts and objection handling

  • Track performance with integrated analytics across your pipeline

Pricing: Paid

Turn Dry Docs Into Snackable Training

Arist

Arist converts internal documents into personalized microlearning. A multi-agent system handles content creation, routing, and delivery—no LMS logins required.

How you can use it:

  • Auto-build role-specific courses from SOPs and wikis

  • Deliver training directly in chat apps like Slack, Teams, SMS, and WhatsApp

  • Personalize learning paths and track completions/retention

  • Integrate with Workday, Salesforce, and enterprise systems

Pricing: Paid

Jobs, announcements, and big ideas

  • Netflix integrates generative AI into effects and pre-production workflows.

  • Skip the corporate jargon and endless doom—The Hustle delivers business and tech news that actually energizes you in just 5 minutes, trusted by 1.5M+ professionals who want to stay sharp without the headache—subscribe free today.*

  • Microsoft adds AI agents to Dynamics 365 to enhance business automation, insights, and decision-making.

  • Google revamps AI Studio with a new Build interface and one-click Cloud Run for rapid AI app prototyping.

  • YouTube rolls out likeness detection, letting creators remove AI-generated copies of their face or voice.

  • Amazon announces plans to automate 75% of operations, potentially replacing over 500,000 jobs with robots.

  • Google debuts a Skills platform, offering online training in AI, data analytics, and cybersecurity.

*This is sponsored advertising content.

OpenAI just launched a browser that talks back. ChatGPT Atlas remembers what you’re doing, chats across tabs, and automates your web life—from booking flights to editing docs.

That’s a wrap! See you Friday for more.

—Matt (FutureTools.io)

P.S. This newsletter is 100% written by a human. Okay, maybe 96%.