Today, Block’s Open Source Program Office launched an open source non-commercial agentic framework that connects AI to real-world actions. It’s modular, works with popular LLMs, and integrates seamlessly with developer tools and other software like Google Drive and Figma. By handling repetitive tasks, it frees you up to focus on more impactful work.
Developers can learn how it works and what’s next for codename goose here: https://block.github.io/goose/
This is well done.
…the problem isn’t that African countries solicit foreign help and expertise. The paradigmatic examples of rapid modernization and economic development in Japan, South Korea, the Gulf, and China all involved a fair amount of local adaptations/deployment of foreign expertise.
This, in fact, is supposed to be a key advantage of being a late developer. In my view, the real problem is how African states use foreign expertise. Instead of helping with questions of “how to get things done,” outsiders are often recruited into the driving seat and tasked with deciding “what is to be done.”
https://www.africanistperspective.com/p/what-explains-the-ambition-gap-among?
It’s been 5 years.
4 since we knew these weren’t necessary.
Why don’t airports remove them? 
Should have some available next month. Pick and place machine setup ongoing. Waiting on a few parts.
We setup the first (I believe) Africa Nostr relay 2 years ago here in Kenya - still going strong too.
wss://nostr-1.nbo.angani.co
Big thanks to Riyaz and the Angani team for managing it.
I still remember the late nights talking for hours with nostr:npub1ynflwp4l4vm0sp948tnuscwug9x4r540r0czsthq6p94sz434yjs4xwfm8 about how this was the first real architectural shift we’d seen on the Internet in decades.
The road is long, but if we work for it, the future can be amazing.
We’ve been having fun working up a locally made in Kenya #Bitaxe bitcoin miner. First couple designed and testing.
Hii ni shoka yetu
“This is our axe”
Funnily enough the slowest horse has been that we didn’t have any Bitmain machines, but we finally got some S19 chips. 
Whirlwind trip to the US. Looking forward to Nashville, NYC, and LA!
Gridless has established the first of its kind: a biomass waste powered Bitcoin mining operation in Kenya
Partnering w/ one of the largest sisal producers, @GridlessCompute was instrumental in helping commission a 1.7MW waste biomass power plant at the sisal plantation
Sisal is a natural fiber derived from the sword-shaped leaves of the Agave sisala plant. Sisal is strong & durable natural fiber used to make rugs, mats, ropes, twine, & brushes, as well as in agricultural & industrial products like sacks & reinforcement materials
The leaves are harvested, crushed & scraped to separate fibers from pulp. The fibers are washed, sun-dried, brushed, & graded before being bundled. The sisal plants die after ~10yrs, leaving behind a large bulb. In the past, these redidues were collected & burned in the field
The plantation sought to commission a 1.7MW plant that would use the biomass. But due to covid related delays & the gov canceling a PPA that would permit excess power to feed into the grid, commissioning the plant became uneconomical as it would run at low power & inefficiently. Given that commissioning costs were the same, regardless of generation power, the power plant stood idle & the sisal bulbs were burned in fields, their biofuel potential wasted
Gridless identified the stranded power opportunity & partnered w the sisal production facility, consuming the unused power to run up to 1.1MW of Bitcoin miners. By providing an end use for excess power, Gridless Compute made it economically feasible to commission the powerplant
https://photos.app.goo.gl/Cx7k9wZPrFYK1rGJ7
The power plant is fueled by dry sisal bulbs that would be wasted by field burning. The sisal bulbs are dried, transported to the site, & crushed. Biomass is fed to a vertical suspension boiler via a conveyor system & the boiler produces steam to run a turbine & generate power
Before the power generation facility was commissioned, the plantation faced several challenges. The sisal fiber production facility uses 500kW, but their demand has large peaks, fluctuating between 200 and 800kW. The electricity supplied by the national grid is intermittent, with up to 4 power cuts a day. During outages, expensive diesel generators are needed to supply electricity to the factory & time is lost restarting machines after a power outage
Bitcoin miners are power problem solvers. They're the perfect demand response tool & can locate directly at stranded power, incl waste biofuel. Miners also provide a demand response service as the sisal production facility ramps up/ down to balance the load on the power plant
The beauty of this project is that Gridless Compute supported renewable generation in Kenya, & the 1st of its kind at that. Another incredible case study of Bitcoin miners presenting a novel way to identify stranded power & support electricity infrastructure in a far corner of the world
Lastly this project is close to my heart: my Masters thesis focused on biomass supply availability (for biofuels) & I helped shape biofuel policy in Canada before I joined this industry. So I jumped at the chance to come full circle & visit this biofuel Bitcoin mining site
A big thank you to the Gridless Compute team for being incredible hosts & taking us on a tour of the mining site & power plant & facilitating a tour of the sisal production facility. Thank you nostr:nprofile1qqsq87lh6t4wx9e85snh80v4lhskefmwdagnjf3z4amwgu699yjx0asprpmhxue69uhhyumnd3shjtnxd9shg6npvchxxmmdqyvhwumn8ghj7mn0wd68ytn6v43x2er9v5hxxmr0w4jqz8rhwden5te0dehhxarj9e3xjarrda5kuetj9eek7cmfv9kqwh8984 nostr:nprofile1qqsymsrgsk4tf8ant58hk5a59guucq9l8r7tkd6gazq0cefje7fyvqqpz4mhxue69uhkkattddejummjvuhkummnw3eqzrthwden5te0dehhxtnvdakqzxthwden5te0vfhhxarj9ehx76m0w3shymewwahhy6cq6ea0n Janet & Florah for a memorable trip!
nostr:nprofile1qqsvdrn79csgpdydwez4wrn6hqm42a4arvcjp7fnx8x6dj7n3zvn2kspzfmhxue69uhhqatjwpkx2urpvuhx2ucpr3mhxue69uhkummnw3ezucnfw33k76twv4ezuum0vd5kzmqpzpmhxue69uhkummnw3ezuamfdejsh2z9k3 nostr:nprofile1qqsq04ppqc5dzfk5p86fg08xu2stpnnhtzfu6fh9vv0vgp43qg8jvucpr4mhxue69uhkummnw3ezucnfw33k76twv4ezuum0vd5kzmp00wjpr0 nostr:nprofile1qqsw4eldlh9hnu3327s6lyv5j4ryujd2w63zukjkvu2g72tvzkz6s7gprpmhxue69uhhqun9d45h2mfwwpexjmtpdshxuet5qy2hwumn8ghj7mn0wd68yetvd96x2uewdaexwqgmwaehxw309aex2mrp0yhxy6t5vdhkjmnsv9exktnrdaksp5ek8n nostr:nprofile1qqs8aa03k9tw5hn7n7dhslme2xedzq0h0qrpv75dgjc3g69ppc8u6fcpz4mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerpd46hxtnfduhsz8mhwden5te0dehhxarj95crxtnydaexzenpvd6x7une9ehhyee0qy0hwumn8ghj7mn0wd68ytfsxghxgmmjv9nxzcm5dae8jtn0wfnj7cmj708
Thanks for joining us Mags!
Time for some offgrid family time.
(Kindle synced, Starlink going off in 3, 2, 1…) 
Really glad to hear nostr:npub1sg6plzptd64u62a878hep2kev88swjh3tw00gjsfl8f237lmu63q0uf63m talk about how #nostr is more than just a Twitter clone, but your identity moved across application and service types.
Nostr is a different way to architect the Internet that we’ve known for 30 years.
I think bitcoin is phenomenal. It’s a base layer.
But I think the most exciting thing today is in media. Every time you interact in social media you feed into an algorithm.
#Nostr is the media protocol layer that is permissionless
- @jack at the Africa Bitcoin Conference with @ojomaochai #abc24
Getting kinda busy as we get ready for the Africa Bitcoin Conference next week. Looking forward to seeing everyone!
nostr:npub1ndzn5qgesdgw236qdnt7c07dedxtryz4g37w2ys9a322zzftj66s0j5nva
I had a conversation with Mike Peterson at Bitcoin Beach about how bitcoin mining makes energy profitable and how bitcoin financing will be the catalyst for rapid electrification in Africa.
Didn’t start this South America trip with a plan for El Salvador, but an invitation from Mike Peterson finds me in my way there for the Adopting Bitcoin conference this week!
Brazil has been a trip!
Impressive to see the Praia Bitcoin work, as well as be at Satsconf with so many local bitcoiners.
And SĂŁo Paulo is 4x the size of Nairobi at 23M people. Crazy! 
At Satsconf - great vibe!
Fun shirt by satlantis.io
#saopaulo #nostr 
Cool demo by nostr:npub1j8y6tcdfw3q3f3h794s6un0gyc5742s0k5h5s2yqj0r70cpklqeqjavrvg and Bernard Parah (Bitnob) of a point of sale system that prints #bitcoin vouchers and activates/uses cards at the Africa Bitcoin Conference.
#btcpay https://video.nostr.build/70a6710b196ba613496c05ba3e12c09d3c0c94f0386deba8a43eff115c1e3c84.mp4