Technology
Zuckerberg and Jensen show off their friendship as an AI necklace covets yours
A Fireside Chat Between Jensen Huang and Mark Zuckerberg SIGGRAPH 2024 took an unexpected turn. What began as a conversation concerning the capabilities of Nvidia GPUs and Zuckerberg’s vision for the longer term of AI chatbots quickly became something more casual — including an exchange of custom-made jackets, a rare swear word from CEO Meta, and a rather disturbing anecdote about slicing tomatoes.
Bumble, Hinge and other apps exposed to stalkerswith vulnerabilities that allowed users to be tracked inside a 2-meter radius of their physical location. It took researchers a little bit of work to discover the issue, which has since been fixed, but it surely’s one other reminder that privacy isn’t a couple of loophole away from being breached.
Intel broadcasts mass layoffsaffecting 15,000 employees as the corporate continues to grapple with declining revenue, a scarcity of success with its artificial intelligence initiatives and a forecast that the remaining of the yr shall be “more challenging than previously expected,” in line with CEO Pat Gelsinger.
SEC Charges BitClout Founder Nader Al-Naji with Fraud and an unregistered securities offering, claiming he used a pseudonym to avoid regulatory scrutiny while raising greater than $257 million in cryptocurrency. BitClout, a decentralized social media platform, was formed from a who’s who of firms like a16z, Sequoia, Social Capital, Coinbase Ventures, and Winklevoss Capital.
Meta reached a $1.4 billion settlement with Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton this week. The settlement stems from a two-year-old lawsuit that alleged that Meta’s past use of facial recognition technology violated state privacy protections and that Facebook did not disclose the practice to users or obtain their consent. The first payment of $500 million is due next month, in line with court documents.
News
Now you’ll be able to try Apple Intelligence: Apple is finally rolling out a few of its long-awaited Apple Intelligence features within the iOS 18.1 developer beta. Here’s tips on how to enable them in your iPhone. read more
OpenAI begins rolling out voice mode: After controversy and delays, OpenAI is giving a small group of ChatGPT Plus users access to the advanced GPT-4o voice mode. The company says the feature shall be available to all Plus users in fall 2024. read more
This necklace desires to be your friend: Friend is a wearable AI device designed to combat loneliness. Instead of specializing in productivity, the AI necklace acts as an always-listening walkie-talkie you’ll be able to check with. read more
Meta launches AI Studio: Creators within the US will now give you the option to construct AI bots across all Meta platforms. The bots may be used to create captions, format posts, generate memes, and even create personal chatbots to interact with their followers. read more
Here’s tips on how to opt out of facial recognition at airports: U.S. airports are deploying facial recognition technology to scan travelers’ faces before they board flights, but Americans can opt out of it altogether. read more
Turns out doomscrolling might be not good for you: A brand new study published within the journal Computers in Human Behavior Reports finds a link between doomscrolling and existential anxiety, despair, distrust, and suspicion of others. read more
Canva acquires Leonardo.ai: To expand its AI tech stack, Canva has acquired generative AI content and research startup Leonardo.ai. As a result, all 120 of the startup’s employees will join Canva. read more
Flo Health becomes a unicorn: The fertility-focused period-tracking app has raised $200 million in a Series C round, valuing the startup at greater than $1 billion after the round of funding. The funding shall be used to draw more users and add features for menopause and perimenopause. read more
Is the era of enemies and foes of OpenAI and Microsoft starting? Microsoft has invested heavily in OpenAI and uses its models in lots of products. And while OpenAI being listed as a “competitor” in its SEC filing could also be questionable, there’s a nuance to it. read more
Welcome back, Motorola Razr flip phones: Samsung remains to be the king of foldables, but there’s a whole lot of competition within the category. We compare the brand new Galaxy Fold 6 to the Motorola Razr+ (which, yes, is available in that iconic pink shade). read more
Analysis
Why did Wiz hand over $23 billion? Google reportedly offered $23 billion to accumulate Wiz. Then Wiz backed out. Why? Ron Miller says that by turning down what might have been probably the most lucrative deal ever offered to a startup, Wiz showed he had nerve—and that he was willing to bet big on himself. read more
Can you create an AI companion for teenagers? Ambitious startup Heeyo wants to construct an AI that’s each a friend and a teacher to children. But with such a target market, privacy and security are of the utmost importance, and Rebecca Bellan put each to the test in her exclusive exploration of their chatbot. read more