NASA’s new dark energy space telescope can also detect killer asteroids
technologyreview.com·2h ago
Data Science
Simon Willison's Blog·3 min read
Google I/O, Gemini Spark, Antigravity
TL;DR
Tech journalists face a credibility problem when covering unreleased software: preview features often diverge from final products. Simon Willison adopted a policy of only writing about generally available tools to avoid misleading readers.
✦ Why It Matters
Only document generally available software to avoid misleading users about features that may change before release.
Key Takeaways
- Wait for general availability status before documenting features to ensure accuracy.
- Preview announcements often diverge from final releases; account for this in technical writing.
- Establish clear editorial standards about what product maturity level you'll cover.
- Distinguish between roadmap items and released features in your technical documentation.
Full Summary
Software preview announcements create a gap between what companies demonstrate and what users eventually receive. Simon Willison, a technical writer covering AI and web development, established a editorial standard: only write about software in general availability (GA status—meaning released to all users, not limited beta access).
This policy emerged from past experiences where preview features changed significantly before public release, potentially spreading inaccurate information. At Google I/O, many major announcements were labeled "coming soon," making them ineligible for his coverage under this standard.
Gemini 3.5 Flash was mentioned as an exception—likely already available. This approach trades early-stage coverage for reliability, ensuring readers get information about stable, tested products rather than aspirational roadmap items.