The latest iteration of AI startup Anthropic’s coding bot heralds a more democratised digital era. But while Claude Code simplifies the process of writing code, not everyone welcomes this new phase in AI-assisted programming.

How does it work?
Claude Code can generate code based on a prompt, allowing people with little to no coding experience to build their own websites, programs and apps, in a trend known as vibecoding. Unlike other widely used chatbots, Claude Code can “operate autonomously, with broad access to user files, a web browser and other applications”, said The Wall Street Journal.

Why is it going viral now?
The bot debuted last May, but its popularity “truly exploded” over Christmas, following an update that “improved the tool’s capabilities”, said The Atlantic. With a “surplus of free time over winter break, seemingly everyone in tech was using Claude Code.”

Engineers and amateurs alike have discovered a bevy of uses for the app. One user created a “custom viewer for his MRI scan”, while another had it “analyse their DNA”. Others have harnessed Claude Code as a life organiser, using it to “collate information from disparate sources – email inboxes, text messages, calendars, to-do lists – into personalised daily briefs”. The bot has also been used to “book theatre tickets, process shopping returns” and order fast food deliveries.

What does it mean for software engineers?
Claude Code “lacks the prowess of an excellent software engineer”, said The Atlantic. It “sometimes gets stuck on more complicated programming tasks” and occasionally “trips up on simple tasks”.

Even so, for those working in software development, the future “feels incredibly uncertain”, said Intelligencer. Optimists argue that the sector is “about to experience the Jevons paradox”, a phenomenon in which a “dramatic reduction in cost of using a resource” can counterintuitively lead to “far greater demand for the resource”. But after years of “tech-industry layoffs” and CEOs “signalling to shareholders that they expect AI to provide lots of new efficiencies”, others are “understandably slipping into despair”.

“If you see someone running” in the Palace of Westminster, “don’t stop to find out why they’re running; just follow them”. That’s Tory peer Michael Dobbs’ advice to anyone visiting the crumbling building that houses Parliament.

Price-tagged options have been laid out for repair, restoration and overhaul. But so far, MPs seem unable to commit to a clear plan for keeping one of London’s most iconic landmarks standing.

‘Notre Dame inferno in the making’
Our Parliament building has long had “neither proper sanitation nor adequate access”, said Isabel Hardman in The Spectator. Known hazards in the parliamentary estate include “lingering asbestos”, failing sewerage systems, water leaks and “regular fires”, said the BBC. The House of Commons “could burn down at any time”, Labour peer Peter Hain told the broadcaster. It’s “a Notre Dame inferno in the making”.

I first worked in the Houses of Parliament almost 40 years ago, said Simon Heffer in The Telegraph, and metaphorical “sticking plasters” were “being applied even then”. The heart of the problem is that it’s both a “place of work” and a “vital national monument”, and these “two functions do not easily go together”.

An expensive ‘decant’
Parliamentarians have two broad options, according to the latest proposals from the Restoration and Renewal Client Board, which includes MPs and peers. The first is a “full decant”, in which the Commons and Lords would be moved elsewhere for between 12 and 24 years, said Heffer. The House of Commons voted for this option in 2018, but nothing has happened since. The second choice would be to “decant” the House of Lords for 8 to 13 years, and move the Commons into the Lords’ chamber for up to two of those years. Works would continue during this time, and afterwards, for a possible total of 60 years.

The estimated cost of a full decant is between £7 billion and £13 billion, while the partial decant is estimated to increase costs to £18.5 billion. MPs won’t “want to vote for anything that’s seen to cost billions of pounds” when “families are struggling with the cost of living” and “public services are cash-strapped”, said The Spectator‘s Hardman. But inaction doesn’t come cheap, either: “even a managed decline could cost £70 million a year”.

Bad Bunny throws himself off the stage during his Super Bowl performance. The Puerto Rican singer is a vocal critic of the US immigration crackdown under Donald Trump, who hit back by describing his half-time show as “an affront to the Greatness of America”.

Stephen Lam / San Francisco Chronicle / Getty Images

Gone are the days of Portugal “lagging” behind its EU neighbours as a celebrated wine producer, said John Mariani in Forbes. Following Spain’s “progress and global recognition”, the Portuguese wine industry is having a deserved moment in the spotlight. From “tinta roriz and castelăo red grapes to the alvarinho and loueiro white”, the “wide variety of styles” can be “confusing” for consumers. With so much choice, here are three of the best bottles to try.

Symington Family Estates, Pequeno Dilema, Douro, Portugal 2022
This “complex yet subtly approachable” white wine has an “assertive freshness”, said Decanter. Viosinho, arinto, códega do larinho and a “sprinkle” of alvarinho grapes come together to create a wine with “equal amounts of classicism and energy”. Expect hints of white pepper, aniseed and chopped almonds, and a “strong mineral backbone”.

Bando de Corvos Murder of Crows Tinto 2023, Lisboa, Portugal
“Fruity with a touch of earth”, this high-quality blend is made with castelão, trincadeira and touriga nacional grapes, said Victoria Moore in The Telegraph. Produced “expressly” for the Wine Society, it’s a “very good value” red.

Taste the Difference Douro White 2024, Portugal
For lovers of white wine, this “brand new vintage” is an “excellent” choice, said Moore. “Bright and fresh”, it’s almost “sherbetty”, with “tangy notes of lemon rind” as well as hints of white peach and quince. “Shiveringly clean and crisp”, this is a deliciously refreshing tipple.

AI disrupting traditional careers may not be bad for children
Bill Gurley in the Financial Times
If you’re a parent, you may be “quietly panicking” about “your child’s future”, writes US venture capitalist Bill Gurley. With “the pace of technological change”, professions that once guaranteed financial security “now look uncertain”. But AI’s disruption of “traditional career paths” could “be a blessing”. Young people may be “forced to think more carefully” about what work would “truly” bring them happiness. And “the best way to support your child is to nourish their innate curiosity wherever it leads”.

After years spent documenting state terror, I know it when I see it. And I see it now in the US and Israel
Janine di Giovanni in The Guardian
“It starts,” writes veteran war correspondent Janine di Giovanni, “when governments begin to use words like security” and “deterrence”. Some people are deemed “dangerous”, “lists are drawn up” and then “good men and women look away, fearful they will lose jobs”. I see it in Israel and now in America – “lawyers in suits” distorting the truth; “deportations without due process”; the “criminalisation of dissent”. These are warning signs of “state terror” that “we cannot afford to ignore”.

Why is Prince William cosying up to MBS?
Malise Ruthven on UnHerd
It seems “odd – to put it mildly – that the Prince of Wales” is meeting Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman during a visit to Saudi Arabia this week, writes Middle East expert Malise Ruthven. There is “overwhelming evidence” that MBS, “aka Mohammed the Bone Saw”, ordered the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Prince William cultivates his “image as a thoughtful, socially conscious public figure”, and “it does not befit” him to associate with “a regime implicated in surveillance, murderous violence, and repression”.