I’ve always found New Year’s resolutions weird, you know I am talking about the one where we say New Year, New me. We tend to chase status games and superficial goals, but by mid-February, most of us are right back where we started. This year feels different. Between the rapid rise of the solo economy and AI shifting from a helper to a full-on engineer, the world is moving too fast for us to stay stuck in old patterns. In this issue, I want to move past the typical productivity hacks and look at what it actually takes to evolve alongside these massive tech shifts.

In a landmark address at the 2026 World Economic Forum in Davos, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen officially confirmed the launch of EU Inc. This initiative introduces a 28th regime, a standardized, optional legal framework that allows startups to incorporate as a single European entity rather than navigating 27 different national legal systems. The move is designed to replicate the efficiency of the U.S. Delaware C-Corp model, providing a unified rulebook for the continent's most ambitious tech founders.

The core promise of EU Inc. is a 48-hour fully digital incorporation process available in any Member State. By harmonizing investment documents and capital regimes, the framework aims to unlock cross-border venture capital, which has historically been stifled by legal complexity. This shift ensures that an innovative company founded in Rome or Tirana can scale across the entire Union with the same ease as a startup moving from California to New York, significantly reducing the jurisdiction shopping that currently drains startup resources.

Beyond mere paperwork, EU Inc. is the cornerstone of a broader strategy to keep European talent and value within the bloc. With the European Parliament already showing broad support, the official legislative proposal is expected in March 2026. By standardizing stock options and streamlining cross-border employment, Europe is finally building the infrastructure needed to transition from a collection of fragmented markets into a global startup powerhouse capable of competing with the U.S. and China.

In a deep-dive interview with Lex Fridman, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei outlined a future where AI progress is no longer measured in years, but in months. Amodei reaffirmed his prediction that "powerful AI" systems capable of matching or exceeding human-level expertise across most professional domains could arrive as early as 2026. This rapid advancement is driven by the relentless logic of scaling, where massive increases in compute and data continue to yield exponential gains in reasoning and technical skill.

Beyond just coding, Amodei described a shifting landscape where AI models function like a "country of geniuses in a datacenter." As these systems gain the ability to use computers autonomously, the barrier between software and real-world execution is dissolving. For businesses, this means the focus is moving from simple automation to the deployment of sophisticated agents that can manage entire workflows, from complex scientific research to high-level strategic planning.

However, the CEO also raised concerns about the growing concentration of power and the security risks associated with such rapid growth. As training costs for a single model are projected to exceed $10 billion in 2026, the gap between elite labs and the rest of the world is widening. Amodei argues that the industry must prioritize "mechanistic interpretability", understanding exactly how these black boxes make decisions, to ensure that the most powerful technology in history remains under human control.

Anthropic has officially launched Claude Code, a high-end agentic tool designed to live within a developer's terminal and handle complex engineering tasks. While the tool offers deep integration with the Claude 3.5 Sonnet and Opus models, it comes with a significant price tag of up to $200 per month for pro-tier access. For enterprise teams, the cost is justified by the tool's ability to autonomously navigate million-line codebases, but for individual developers, the investment has sparked a debate over the true value of proprietary AI agents.

In direct response to this high-cost entry point, Block has introduced Goose, an open-source alternative that provides nearly identical autonomous coding capabilities for free. Goose is built on a Rust-based architecture and is model-agnostic, meaning users can connect it to any LLM provider or run it locally to avoid monthly subscription fees. This shift highlights a growing divide in the tech industry between "walled garden" solutions that offer polished, integrated experiences and open-source projects that prioritize flexibility and cost-efficiency.

The emergence of Goose as a credible, no-cost competitor puts pressure on Anthropic to prove that its "secret sauce" of context management and tool execution is worth the premium. While Claude Code currently holds an edge in UI maturity and enterprise-grade security features, the rapid development of open-source agents suggests that the barrier to high-level AI engineering is falling.

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Red Bull Basement is back for 2026, scaling its mission to empower the next generation of tech innovators across more than 40 countries. This year, the global initiative is specifically targeting "software-first" ideas with artificial intelligence at their core. Open to students and recent graduates aged 18 to 24, the program provides a high-stakes platform for young teams to transform early-stage concepts into impactful digital solutions without the immediate need for a registered business structure.

The competition focuses on originality, technical feasibility, and the potential for real-world social impact. Participants from Albania, Kosovo, North Macedonia and beyond have until early March to submit their projects, utilizing dedicated AI-assisted tools provided by the platform to refine their pitches. A professional jury will evaluate the entries, looking for visionary founders who can leverage digital innovation to solve modern challenges.

The rewards for the Global Winner are substantial, featuring a $100,000 non-equity funding prize to accelerate product development. This unique financing model allows winners to scale their startups while maintaining full ownership and intellectual property rights. Beyond the capital, finalists gain massive global media exposure and access to an elite network of mentors, making it a premier launchpad for the tech leaders of tomorrow.

The E-commerce Berlin Expo is celebrating its 10th anniversary with a massive move to Messe Berlin this February 17 and 18. This milestone edition is set to be the largest in the event’s history, expecting over 14,000 visitors and 300 service providers. As the DACH region’s premier B2B gathering, the expo has outgrown its previous venues, signaling a robust era for European digital trade despite broader economic shifts.

This year’s agenda places a heavy emphasis on the AI-first retail landscape and the aggressive expansion of Asian e-commerce strategies into Western markets. With more than 150 speakers from giants like Google, TikTok, and Douglas, the conference will span four stages and include masterclasses designed for immediate technical application. Key discussions will focus on how established brands like MediaMarktSaturn are integrating AI to combat rising competition from new-age celebrity brands and high-speed international retailers.

Beyond the keynotes, the expo is introducing a high-energy "short talk" format to spotlight emerging voices and disruptive startups. Networking remains a core pillar, but the addition of live podcast recordings and deep-dive workshops on Retail Media confirms that the event has transitioned from a simple trade fair into a comprehensive knowledge hub.

For professionals looking to navigate the future of online retail, Berlin is the non-negotiable destination this February.

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