News
- DataDome analysis claims agentic traffic has surged by 45% in Q2 2026
- Meta AI bots have grown over 163% on the previous quarter
- The analysis was conducted by bot management and agent control platform DataDome
If you run a website, every crawl costs bandwidth, resources, logging, and creates CDN transactions, and while search engine crawlers offered the promise of sending visitors, AI bots do not.
Analysis in a report from cybersecurity firm DataDome has shown that while bots from Meta AI have increased activity, they’re not delivering any significant returns to websites.
Conversely, ChatGPT crawlers have reduced in traffic, but are sending more referrals.
AI agent traffic is growingWhile Meta AI is usually considered to be the “chatbot within Facebook” it seems that it is becoming something more – and the emergence of the Meta-WebIndexer bot (which grew 163% on Q1) suggests that Meta may be indexing a library of websites, in much the same way Google has done for the past few decades.
The growth of Meta AI as an active crawler is only part of the story, as is ChatGPT’s comparative efficiency. The OpenAI tool seems to know enough about websites, so can provide the answers it already “knows.” Conversely, Meta AI’s activity indexing the web seems to explain its heavy impact in Q2 2026.
But also emerging is the Model Context Protocol (MCP) signal, which connects AI agents with external tools, and differs from standard crawler traffic.
“Q2 showed us that the ground is shifting faster than most organizations realize. Meta now dominates AI traffic on our network, MCP traffic has emerged as a real signal, and ChatGPT is driving more referral value with fewer crawls," noted Jérôme Segura, VP of Threat Research at DataDome.
The differences in the way the AI agents are interacting with websites – some behaving like users, others scraping content – means that organizations need to act accordingly.
“What the data makes clear is that not all agents are created equal. The organizations building policy around these distinctions are the ones gaining an edge, and that's exactly why agent trust adoption is accelerating."
Unfortunately, MCP’s existence and growth into a significant, measurable quantity, means that it should also be treated as part of an organization’s attack surface.
Allocating resourcesGiven the origins of the report, there is naturally a cybersecurity aspect to this. While ransomware, malware, and phishing are not going anywhere, autonomous software on the web needs addressing in a different way.
Those “organizations building policy” that Segura mentions might, for example, give full crawl access to Google, allow ChatGPT to retrieve results, but rate-limit Meta AI based on its poor return.
Meanwhile, unknown agents – perhaps cybersecurity threats – would require additional verification or be blocked entirely.
- Nvidia's RTX 5000 Super models are being readied, and board makers have the chips, a new rumor reckons
- However, these graphics cards are 'on hold' due to the high price of VRAM
- The Super refreshes pack a lot of VRAM, and so that cost could have an unfortunate impact on MSRPs – and none of this sounds particularly comforting for would-be buyers
Nvidia's RTX 5000 Super refreshes are apparently being readied, but they're on hold for now – and the reason why makes me even more nervous about the pricing of these GPUs when (well, if) they finally emerge.
Of course, these RTX Super models are still rumors – albeit so persistent at this point, there must be at least some validity to them – and the latest assertion comes from VideoCardz.
The tech site has apparently spoken to a source at one of Nvidia's board-making partners who claims that their company has already received 'graphics cards', which presumably refers to GPU chips (which is what Nvidia supplies, along with VRAM, to partners that make the boards).
At any rate, while this board maker supposedly has at least some of the necessary chips, it has been told by Nvidia that the RTX 5000 Super refreshes are now 'on hold'.
Why? Apparently, the delay is down to the price of the video RAM, specifically the new 3GB GDDR7 modules that are required (as per previous rumors) for the refreshed graphics cards.
Compared to the 2GB GDDR7 modules currently in use with Nvidia RTX 5000 models, the 3GB memory chips are around three times more expensive right now. Ouch.
Analysis: Super stumble?(Image credit: Future)This presents an obvious stumbling block because, due to these Super variants being packed with VRAM, the total cost of materials gets expensive quite quickly.
Remember that the grapevine believes that the RTX 5080 Super and RTX 5070 Ti Super will bristle with 24GB of VRAM, and even the RTX 5070 Super will have a weighty 18GB on board. Gamers are going to love the latter as an upgrade to the lean 12GB of the vanilla version – but not if it pushes the price of the GPU through the roof.
Going by what VideoCardz tells us about pricing in US dollars as the market currently stands, in the case of the RTX 5070 Super, the greater quantity of RAM, and more expensive modules, would mean 18GB costs in the order of $360 (maybe a bit more), versus $120 for the current RTX 5070's 12GB loadout, whacking an extra $240 on the price (or the regional equivalent elsewhere).
These graphics cards were already expected to be pricey, but that kind of additional premium lumped on top, this could make them real wallet-worriers.
The good news for those hoping for new GPUs from Nvidia is that at least these RTX 5000 Super models do seem to be happening. It's just that we may have to wait some time for them yet – although another recent rumor did suggest they were due this year. The latter speculation also theorized that an RTX 5060 Super 12GB model was incoming, but that didn't make a lot of sense, and I note that it isn't mentioned in this latest rumor. As ever, don't go lightly with the seasoning on all this.
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Despite its large capacity, the unit can recharge from a standard AC outlet in around 2.4 hours, while solar charging is also supported through Jackery's SolarSaga panels.
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Weighing 27kg, the HomePower 3000 is still portable enough to transport between locations while offering enough energy storage to handle extended outages or demanding workloads.
In his review of the Explorer 3000 V2 (same as the HomePower 3000), our expert Jack said, "High output and high storage mean that this is superb for most home uses in an emergency or using off peak charging to use during the day."
If you've been considering a high-capacity portable power station that combines fast charging, strong output, and broad connectivity, I can wholeheartedly recommend this model.
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- JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon warns controls may be needed for Claude Mythos
- The AI model from Anthropic is highly advanced, and has been proven to detect zero-day vulnerabilities and even develop working exploits
- The US government has previously instructed Anthropic to block access to foreign nationals, citing security concerns
Artificial intelligence is becoming increasingly powerful, a fact highlighted with the US government’s recent instruction to limit access to Anthropic’s Claude Mythos model.
Now, the CEO of JPMorgan has described the risks the technology poses as a “real issue,” and likened wide access to the AI as “giving ballistic missiles to individuals.”
Speaking at the Pennsylvania Defense and Innovation Summit, JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon underscored the risks posed by the AI, which has already been shown to both identify and exploit cybersecurity challenges.
Mythos isn’t SkynetCurrently, Claude Mythos is limited to a small selection of organizations, companies, and federal and military departments. Public access to the AI has been blocked, and worldwide access has been blocked due to the potential security issues of this powerful AI.
Claude Mythos is not the type of threat that can become self-aware and take over military appliances like the fictional Skynet of the Terminator movie series. However, it does have the capacity to cause immense damage in the wrong hands.
The AI is capable of detecting cybersecurity vulnerabilities and reporting on them; it is also able to generate automatic exploits. So, for white hat cybersecurity analysts, it is a powerful defensive tool, but in the wrong hands, it is a destructive power. In addition, its automated capabilities make it easy for black hats to scale their cybercrime operation and make ransomware, phishing, and other data-based scams more profitable.
It isn’t just cybersecurity where Anthropic’s Claude Mythos AI has demonstrated such incredible capacities. Scientific research, specifically biology, can be targeted by attackers using AI to turn complex concepts into terms, potentially to misuse the information.
There is also the challenge of a strategic imbalance between single nations or bodies having exclusive access to the technology.
Will the public ever access Anthropic’s Claude Mythos?Given the security considerations, it seems unlikely that Claude Mythos will be publicy available anytime soon. However, Anthropic has already stated that it intends Mythos-level features and capabilities to become more widely available.
For this to happen, however, it needs to develop and apply various safeguards.
The most likely scenario is that public access to Mythos is eventually unblocked, with restrictions to specific features that relate to cybersecurity and biological/medical tasks and research.
Project Glasswing is already in operation with a handful of key partners (including Amazon Web Services, Anthropic, Apple, Broadcom, Cisco, CrowdStrike, and others), and will probably be expanded until the safeguards are demonstrated to be fit for purpose, and public use.
Via Reuters
- Amazon's AWS cloud services billing system went wild on Friday
- Customers saw bills in the trillions
- AWS apologized and is working on a fix
AWS, the cloud platform that serves millions who use Amazon's servers to run websites and businesses you use every day, just freaked out many of its customers with usage bills that literally went into the trillions.
"I just saw $1.5 trillion on my AWS bill and my soul left my body," wrote Bharath_uwu on X (formerly Twitter) on Friday, and he wasn't alone.
The Guardian originally spotted the Tweet and multiple social posts relating to the seemingly widespread glitch.
AWS doesn't mail out invoices. Instead, customers logging into the Billing and Cost Management console spotted the billion- and trillion-dollar bills and expressed emotions ranging from concern to panic.
I just saw $1.5 trillion on my AWS bill and my soul left my body https://t.co/EgfQKJTHVl pic.twitter.com/L0gXYbDio7July 17, 2026
As Dan Harvey, who heads marketing at Learning Through Landscapes, told the Guardian, "I almost had a heart attack when I received an email alert from Amazon Web Services with the billing for our charity’s school grounds audit app."
Some tried to take the billing error in stride. Chinmay on X encouraged others to post their highest AWS bills. As of 10 hours ago, he was at $333B.
Others called out AWS for the error with something less than good humor. "I bet someone must have had a real heart attack. This shouldn't be legal...," wrote Mr Doob on X.
Amazon, to its credit, has been delivering multiple updates starting at around 1:30AM PDT on Friday, July 17, when they first spotted the error: "We are investigating issues with Cost Explorer reflecting inaccurate estimated billing data."
A few hours later, AWS reported it had found the culprit: "We have identified the root cause as an issue with unit pricing within the estimated billing computation subsystem, and we are working on a mitigation," they wrote on the AWS Status page.
However, hours later, AWS admitted, "Our efforts to backfill corrected estimated cost and usage data are still underway. We are progressing slower than anticipated."
The good news is that AWS is not asking anyone to pay these incorrect fees and that, while this has been a big frustration for services that run their websites and businesses on AWS, the cloud system has been working flawlessly, and there have been no reports of outages or performance issues on Friday (if you don't count the years shaved off freaked-out customers' lives).
AWS has even tried to make light of the mistake, posting this on X:
"Typo alert: Some customers saw quadrillion-dollar AWS billing estimates today. Slight miscalculation on our end (very slight ). We're fixing it now. No action needed on your end. Sorry for the confusion. Real question: what will you do with those trillions instead?"
Yes, everyone can all laugh now, though I'm not certain customers like Harvey, Bharath, and others are chuckling along with them.
Was your business affected? How big was your AWS Billing mistake? Let us know the "damage" in the comments below.
A new NYT Strands puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Friday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Friday, July 17 (game #866).
Strands is the NYT's latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it's great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints.
Want more word-based fun? Then check out my NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc's Wordle today page for the original viral word game.
SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.
NYT Strands today (game #867) - hint #1 - today's themeWhat is the theme of today's NYT Strands?• Today's NYT Strands theme is… A healthy breakfast
NYT Strands today (game #867) - hint #2 - clue wordsPlay any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.
- COUNT
- STAY
- WOOLY
- LUNCH
- LONG
- LARGE
• Spangram has 13 letters
NYT Strands today (game #867) - hint #4 - spangram positionWhat are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?• First side: left, 4th row
• Last side: right, 4th row
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.
NYT Strands today (game #867) - the answers(Image credit: New York Times)The answers to today's Strands, game #867, are…
- SWEET
- OATY
- NUTTY
- CRUNCHY
- SALTY
- WHOLESOME
- SPANGRAM: BOWLOFGRANOLA
- My rating: Easy
- My score: Perfect
I go through phases with breakfasts of having the same thing for ages before getting bored and switching to something new.
In recent months I’ve been through porridge, overnight oats, fruit and yoghurt, and recently a BOWLOFGRANOLA all in pursuit of “a healthy breakfast" when in truth I would love to eat bacon and eggs every day.
I digress. After finding SWEET and OATY the search became a hunt for the obvious — although I was unaware granola could also be SALTY.
Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Friday, July 17, game #866)- ENTERTAINMENT
- NATURE
- SPORTS
- GEOGRAPHY
- SPANGRAM: TRIVIALPURSUIT
Strands is the NYT's not-so-new-any-more word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable that has been running for a year and which can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.
I've got a full guide to how to play NYT Strands, complete with tips for solving it, so check that out if you're struggling to beat it each day.
A new Quordle puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Friday's puzzle instead then click here: Quordle hints and answers for Friday, July 17 (game #1635).
Quordle was one of the original Wordle alternatives and is still going strong now more than 1,500 games later. It offers a genuine challenge, though, so read on if you need some Quordle hints today — or scroll down further for the answers.
Enjoy playing word games? You can also check out my NYT Connections today and NYT Strands today pages for hints and answers for those puzzles, while Marc's Wordle today column covers the original viral word game.
SPOILER WARNING: Information about Quordle today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.
Quordle today (game #1636) — hint #1 — VowelsHow many different vowels are in Quordle today?• The number of different vowels in Quordle today is 4*.
* Note that by vowel we mean the five standard vowels (A, E, I, O, U), not Y (which is sometimes counted as a vowel too).
Quordle today (game #1636) — hint #2 — repeated lettersDo any of today's Quordle answers contain repeated letters?• The number of Quordle answers containing a repeated letter today is 1.
Quordle today (game #1636) — hint #3 — uncommon lettersDo the letters Q, Z, X or J appear in Quordle today?• No. None of Q, Z, X or J appear among today's Quordle answers.
Quordle today (game #1636) — hint #4 — starting letters (1)Do any of today's Quordle puzzles start with the same letter?• The number of today's Quordle answers starting with the same letter is 0.
If you just want to know the answers at this stage, simply scroll down. If you're not ready yet then here's one more clue to make things a lot easier:
Quordle today (game #1636) — hint #5 — starting letters (2)What letters do today's Quordle answers start with?• K
• T
• B
• C
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.
Quordle today (game #1636) — the answers(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)The answers to today's Quordle, game #1636, are…
- KNAVE
- TIGHT
- BLEAT
- CHAOS
This was already a tricky game, with two words featuring silent letters. I navigated those okay, then crashed out — ending my win streak on the final word.
I had four possibilities for words ending I-G-H-T and I picked three wrong ones before I ran out of guesses.
Why I went with the obscure “wight” rather than TIGHT I can’t explain.
Daily Sequence today (game #1636) — the answers(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)The answers to today's Quordle Daily Sequence, game #1636, are…
- DEPTH
- CHUCK
- CRISP
- ETHOS
- Quordle #1635, Friday, 17 July: CUMIN, PALER, GRASS, INBOX
- Quordle #1634, Thursday, 16 July: IGLOO, PLAIT, YEAST, AROMA
- Quordle #1633, Wednesday, 15 July: PROXY, BRICK, BROTH, SURGE
- Quordle #1632, Tuesday, 14 July: EBONY, AVOID, RODEO, CUTIE
- Quordle #1631, Monday, 13 July: VOICE, BISON, BURNT, BUILT
- Quordle #1630, Sunday, 12 July: STAIN, BINGO, LARVA, DICEY
- Quordle #1629, Saturday, 11 July: WORTH, PRONG, DINGO, DRUID
- Quordle #1628, Friday, 10 July: GREET, STEAK, DUSKY, HAUTE
- Quordle #1627, Thursday, 9 July: CRUMP, PHONE, SHINY, STONY
- Quordle #1626, Wednesday, 8 July: GHOST, TREND, EXALT, ALONG
- Quordle #1625, Tuesday, 7 July: ARRAY, SUITE, KIOSK, BOULE
- Quordle #1624, Monday, 6 July: TRAWL, SPICE, PIANO, SHARK
- Quordle #1623, Sunday, 5 July: PINEY, SWOON, TITLE, PINTO
- Quordle #1622, Saturday, 4 July: ARGUE, MOTEL, OPERA, TRUCE
- Quordle #1621, Friday, 3 July: AVERT, MOTOR, MANIC, WORDY
- Quordle #1620, Thursday, 2 July: BULKY, PARSE, BELOW, MOVIE
- Quordle #1619, Wednesday, 1 July: EASEL, OTTER, LYRIC, SHACK
- Quordle #1618, Tuesday, 30 June: HALVE, DRYER, THERE, MINTY
- Quordle #1617, Monday, 29 June: SLURP, CRACK, CRANK, PHONY
- Quordle #1616, Sunday, 28 June: RUPEE, TOPAZ, FULLY, BEING
A new NYT Connections puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Friday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Connections hints and answers for Friday, July 17 (game #1132).
Good morning! Let's play Connections, the NYT's clever word game that challenges you to group answers in various categories. It can be tough, so read on if you need Connections hints.
What should you do once you've finished? Why, play some more word games of course. I've also got daily Strands hints and answers and Quordle hints and answers articles if you need help for those too, while Marc's Wordle today page covers the original viral word game.
SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Connections today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.
NYT Connections today (game #1133) - today's words(Image credit: New York Times)Today's NYT Connections words are…
- TRAVEL
- FLY
- QUIZ
- SCORE
- OPINION
- CARRY
- HEALTH
- TART
- CULTURE
- MIND
- TIME
- GOALTEND
- VIEW
- LIVES
- DOUBLE DRIBBLE
- ATTITUDE
What are some clues for today's NYT Connections groups?
- YELLOW: NBA fouls
- GREEN: Your convictions
- BLUE: Arcade scoring systems
- PURPLE: Begin with a musical sound
Need more clues?
We're firmly in spoiler territory now, but read on if you want to know what the four theme answers are for today's NYT Connections puzzles…
NYT Connections today (game #1133) - hint #2 - group answersWhat are the answers for today's NYT Connections groups?
- YELLOW: COMMIT A BASKETBALL VIOLATION
- GREEN: BELIEF
- BLUE: THINGS TRACKED IN VIDEO GAMES
- PURPLE: WORDS AFTER "POP"
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.
NYT Connections today (game #1133) - the answers(Image credit: New York Times)The answers to today's Connections, game #1133, are…
- YELLOW: COMMIT A BASKETBALL VIOLATION: CARRY, DOUBLE DRIBBLE, GOALTEND, TRAVEL
- GREEN: BELIEF: ATTITUDE, MIND, OPINION, VIEW
- BLUE: THINGS TRACKED IN VIDEO GAMES: HEALTH, LIVES, SCORE, TIME
- PURPLE: WORDS AFTER "POP": CULTURE, FLY, QUIZ, TART
- My rating: Hard
- My score: 1 mistake
I made my mistake after successfully threading ATTITUDE, MIND, OPINION and VIEW, although I was thinking about components of a debate rather than a BELIEF.
My error was, of course, confusion over basketball terminology. DOUBLE DRIBBLE and GOALTEND I knew, but instead of TRAVEL I selected SCORE. Which, on reflection, makes no sense.
Meanwhile my confidence over WORDS AFTER “POP” was fragile, but I successfully guessed FLY instead of SCORE. Before googling I thought it was an alternative to a zip fly. I now know it’s a baseball term.
Yesterday's NYT Connections answers (Friday, July 17, 2026, game #1132)- YELLOW: GRAND FINALE: EPILOGUE, FAREWELL, LAST DANCE, SWAN SONG
- GREEN: SEEN IN AN ARCADE: CRANE GAME, PINBALL, TICKETS, TOKENS
- BLUE: FOUR GROUPS OF FOUR: CARDINAL DIRECTIONS, CLASSICAL ELEMENTS, SEASONS, SUITS
- PURPLE: ENDING IN PARTS OF A CAR: PLOT SPOILER, ROBIN HOOD, SATIRES, TREE TRUNK
NYT Connections is one of several increasingly popular word games made by the New York Times. It challenges you to find groups of four items that share something in common, and each group has a different difficulty level: green is easy, yellow a little harder, blue often quite tough and purple usually very difficult.
On the plus side, you don't technically need to solve the final one, as you'll be able to answer that one by a process of elimination. What's more, you can make up to four mistakes, which gives you a little bit of breathing room.
It's a little more involved than something like Wordle, however, and there are plenty of opportunities for the game to trip you up with tricks. For instance, watch out for homophones and other word games that could disguise the answers.
It's playable for free via the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.
- Survey inds 69% of Americans support Bernie Sanders’ policy of requiring AI firms to transfer 50% of their stock to a public fund
- Respondents are also overwhelmingly in favor of giving the federal government the power to block new AI services deemed “risky”
- Support does appear to drop when Sanders' name is mentioned
AI is developing an image problem, and respondents to a new survey have made their feelings clear: Bernie Sanders’ demand that AI firms contribute stock to a massive public fund is widely supported.
Conducted during June 2026 by the nonpartisan survey research company Verasight, the survey consisted of 17 questions sent to 1,690 adults (18 and above), finding over two-thirds (69%) supporting Sanders’ policy – a figure that only drops to 64% once it is revealed which politician the idea is associated with.
The bad news for the AI industry doesn’t end there, as respondents demonstrated a notable distrust for how AI companies conduct themselves, with nearly half (43%) believing that the regulations proposed by the AI companies are designed to benefit those same companies. Incredibly, 30% of respondents trust the US federal government more than companies like OpenAI and Anthropic.
How does AI wealth distribution work?(Image credit: Getty Images / Tasos Katopodis)Senator Bernie Sanders’ plan gives the public a direct stake in America’s largest AI companies, with a one-off tax paid not in cash, but in stock. "Since AI is built on the collective knowledge of humanity, the wealth it generated must benefit humanity," he said, announcing his planned Act on social media.
This would, according to Sanders’ proposal, deliver an annual $1000 check to U.S. citizens, and fund healthcare and education.
"The findings from our latest survey demonstrate a rare instance of bipartisan agreement," noted Ben Leff, CEO and Co-Founder of Verasight.
"There is an undeniable desire among Americans of both parties for federal oversight, absolute transparency, and accountability to ensure AI safety and to enable all Americans to participate in the economic benefits of AI."
Even with a polarizing figure like Bernie Sanders attached, the wealth fund idea retains support, which suggests that while people are happy to use AI to answer questions, streamline processes, and make tasks quicker, they’re less comfortable with the industry’s wider impact.
A poor public perceptionWhile AI companies are becoming increasingly unpopular, it isn’t all bad news. The survey quizzed subjects about their feelings on other industries, including tobacco, pharmaceuticals, and casinos, along with social media. If the tide is turning against AI, it still isn’t regarded as poorly as casinos or tobacco.
Feelings about AI companies are also notably more positive than social media. Given the concerns expressed about federal oversight and public wealth funds, there could be an avenue for OpenAI, Google Gemini, Anthropic, Microsoft, and others to improve the general feeling about AI: accepting a degree of social responsibility.
You could hardly say Netflix is a business in trouble, but it does have a problem: for a lot of its shows, viewing figures are declining sharply after the first season. According to Bloomberg, Beef lost more than 70% of its viewers going into its second season, while The Night Agent lost 50% of its audience in season two.
This seems to be a pattern repeated over many Netflix shows, including some that rack up impressive viewing figures in their first season. The streaming platform relies on subscribers sticking around, and these stats are apparently "a major source of concern" for the executives at Netflix.
So what's going on? While I'm not privy to the internal discussions at Netflix or the statistics that its executives are available to them, I am a Netflix subscriber of many years standing — and I have a few ideas about what's going on.
Viewing fatigueThere's a lot to get through these days, isn't there? Tens of millions of songs on music streaming platforms, more movies than you'll ever have time to watch in ten lifetimes, and of course the entire history of TV — with new shows appearing weekly. It's perhaps no surprise that we're all finding it hard to stick with successive series when there's so much more out there to watch and listen to.
The way that Netflix's stats work, is that a drop-off in viewing numbers for a second season also includes those who abandoned the show somewhere along the way during the first run of episodes. And if you're not getting grabbed episode after episode by the plot and the characters, it's all too tempting to click away.
That's a shame for slow burn shows and those that need time to get going, and perhaps we all need to learn to be a bit more patient. However, it goes some way to explaining why Netflix shows can shed a lot of viewers after the initial pull of the first few episodes — there's an awful lot competing for our attention.
The binge modelFor the most part, Netflix continues to drop its shows all at once, so as soon as they're live you can binge watch an entire season. Sometimes it's great to be able to burn through a bunch of episodes, but it also means you can be done with an entire season very quickly.
This exacerbates the problem of gaps between series (of which more in a moment), but it also means shows can be quickly forgotten in the rush of everything else that's going on. Some of my favorite TV shows are those that come out week by week: I watch the episode, then I catch up on the recap podcasts.
It means shows last longer — not in terms of the actual running time, but in terms of how many days and weeks it takes to get through a season. I actually quite like being able to binge shows sometimes, but it does mean they can be quickly forgotten.
Stranger Things lasted almost 10 years from start to finish (Image credit: Netflix)Season-to-season gapsThis isn't something that only affects Netflix, but we're still seeing huge gaps between seasons of shows — and unless the viewing experience is very special, that's likely to lead to waning enthusiasm from audiences as the months and years drag on.
Silo isn't a Netflix show, but the point is the same: as I was settling down to watch the third season a few days ago, even the initial recap montage had me confused (there was a mere 18 months between the end of season two and the start of season three). There were parts I didn't remember, and I had to head over to Wikipedia to get caught up.
Stranger Things is a Netflix show, and while I did manage to drag myself through it in its entirety, it was a struggle towards the end. The show lasted for just shy of a decade, and there are huge swathes of it that are no longer in my memory banks. It's not easy to produce television shows quickly, but the slow rollouts aren't helping their chances.
A trust issueI've seen Netflix's regular cancellation of shows floated as a reason for second-series-syndrome, and I think this is an issue for program makers as well as audiences. If you don't know whether or not you're getting a second or third season, then you have to throw everything into the first one, and think more about wrapping it up neatly than extending it.
The Night Agent is one of the Netflix shows I've found it hard to stay with: the original rookie-on-the-run premise worked well and the first season was propulsive entertainment, but as it's continued, it's become more of a by-the-numbers action thriller. It's almost like they're making it up as they go.
Compare that with something like Bridgerton, which is a Netflix show I have managed to keep up with. It is of course based on a series of books (as is Apple TV's Slow Horses by the way), and that helps to ensure variety from season-to-season, with the focus switching between different characters and plotlines.
I'm not sure exactly how Netflix can fix the problem of viewing numbers declining in season two — I'm not a highly paid TV executive after all — but those are a few thoughts about why it's happening.