Network Support Blog

Michael Hytha / Bloomberg: LA-based Webtoon, owned by South Korea's Naver, files for a US IPO; sources: the online comics platform could seek to raise up to $500M at a $3B-$4B valuation  —  Los Angeles-based Webtoon said in a filing Friday with the US Securities and Exchange Commission that South Korean internet company Naver … http://www.techmeme.com/240531/p29?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240531p29

Mike Scarcella / Reuters: Filing: Meta agrees to settle a 2022 lawsuit by Texas accusing Meta of using facial recognition tech to collect biometric data of Texans without their consent  —  Meta's Facebook (META.O) has agreed to settle a lawsuit by the state of Texas that accused the social media giant … http://www.techmeme.com/240531/p27?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240531p27

Counterpoint Research: Global foldable phone shipments were up 49% YoY in Q1, marking its highest rate of increase in six quarters; Huawei led with a 35% share, overtaking Samsung  —  - Global foldable smartphone shipments were up 49% YoY in Q1 2024, driven by Huawei, HONOR and Motorola. http://www.techmeme.com/240531/p22?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240531p22

Ben Lovejoy / 9to5Mac: Meta is notifying Instagram and Facebook EU users that it's using their data to train its AI models, and users can opt out, “if your objection is honoured”  —  If you use Instagram or Facebook, Meta is using your data to train its AI models.  The company uses posts as training material for its generative AI systems. http://www.techmeme.com/240531/p20?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240531p20

Kurt Wagner / Bloomberg: How Meta revamped Facebook's feed to show more posts from outside a person's network of friends and family, in a move to fight TikTok and win back younger users  —  - Feed now features a broader array of posts based on interest  — More young adults are back on Facebook after years of declines http://www.techmeme.com/240531/p10?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240531p10

Sam Kim / Bloomberg: Government data: South Korea's chip inventories fell 33.7% YoY in April, largest drop since 2014, underscoring the pace at which demand is outstripping supply  —  - Demand for memory chips increases in line with AI development  — Samsung, SK Hynix vie to become main supplier to Nvidia http://www.techmeme.com/240530/p50?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240530p50

Abner Li / 9to5Google: Google explains AI Overviews' viral mistakes and updates its systems, including better detection of nonsensical queries and limiting satire and humor content  —  Google this afternoon published a long response about AI Overviews and their accuracy.  The Search feature launched at I/O 2024 … http://www.techmeme.com/240530/p47?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240530p47

Sarah Perez / TechCrunch: Spotify has initiated a refund process for its discontinued Car Thing dashboard device, as consumers file a lawsuit claiming Spotify misled them  —  Spotify is facing continued backlash over its decision to discontinue support for Car Thing, its in-car streaming device … http://www.techmeme.com/240530/p44?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240530p44

Emma Roth / The Verge: Meta begins rolling out TweetDeck-style customizable feeds on Threads globally, following a test that started earlier this month  —  Threads is widely rolling out a desktop site redesign that lets you customize your homepage with a series of feeds, similar to TweetDeck. http://www.techmeme.com/240530/p36?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240530p36

Bloomberg: Source: Elon Musk and Donald Trump are discussing crypto policy, as Trump increasingly highlights bitcoin and other digital assets as a way to reach new voters  —  - Trump campaign discusses having Musk speak at convention  — Billionaires talk about Musk business interests, including EVs http://www.techmeme.com/240530/p26?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240530p26

Jamie Crawley / CoinDesk: In a risk assessment, the US Treasury says NFTs are “highly susceptible to use in fraud and scams” and NFT platforms lack controls to combat money laundering  —  “Illicit actors can use NFTs to launder proceeds from predicate crimes, often in combination with other methods … http://www.techmeme.com/240529/p38?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240529p38

Steven Lee Myers / New York Times: Researchers: an ex-Florida deputy sheriff who received asylum in Russia has built a network of 160+ fake news sites with the help of ChatGPT and other AI tools  —  In 2016, Russia used an army of trolls to interfere in the U.S. presidential election.  This year, an American given asylum … http://www.techmeme.com/240529/p37?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240529p37

Sara Fischer / Axios: The Atlantic and Vox Media sign multi-year licensing and product deals with OpenAI; The Atlantic plans an experimental Atlantic Labs with OpenAI tech  —  - The Atlantic has been publishing content since 1857. … - Both agreements also allow OpenAI to tap into the respective publishers' current content … http://www.techmeme.com/240529/p33?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240529p33

Kyle Wiggers / TechCrunch: Mistral AI releases 22B-parameter Codestral, its first generative AI model for coding, trained on 80+ programming languages and prohibited for commercial use  —  Mistral, the French AI startup backed by Microsoft and valued at $6 billion, has released its first generative AI model for coding, dubbed Codestral. http://www.techmeme.com/240529/p25?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240529p25

Mary Ann Azevedo / TechCrunch: Solutions by Text, which offers conversational messaging tools for businesses to let users pay bills and more via text, raised $110M, after raising $35M in 2021  —  Solutions by Text, a company that gives people a way to pay their bills and apply for loans via text messaging, has secured $110 million in new growth funding. http://www.techmeme.com/240529/p15?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240529p15

Kim Zetter / Wired: How researchers recovered access to ~$2M worth of bitcoin stored in a software wallet, using a flaw in a decade-old version of the RoboForm password manager  —  Thanks to a flaw in a decade-old version of the RoboForm password manager and a bit of luck, researchers were able to unearth … http://www.techmeme.com/240528/p25?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240528p25

Sergiu Gatlan / BleepingComputer: The US Treasury sanctions three Chinese nationals and three Thailand-based companies linked to a botnet controlling residential proxy service “911 S5”  —  The U.S. Treasury Department has sanctioned a cybercrime network comprising three Chinese nationals and three Thailand-based companies linked … http://www.techmeme.com/240528/p23?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240528p23

Michael Kan / PCMag: The US will reactivate Trump-era tariffs on June 15 that apply to select imported goods from China, including graphics cards, motherboards, and desktop cases  —  The tariffs, which will last at least until May 31, 2025, will also affect motherboards and PC desktop cases assembled in China, along with robot vacuums. http://www.techmeme.com/240528/p19?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240528p19

Ivan Mehta / TechCrunch: Google unveils new AI features for Chromebook Plus devices, including Gemini, and says new Chromebook Plus owners will get a free year of Google One AI Premium  —  Google announced new AI-powered features today for its Chromebook Plus line of devices, such as a writing assistant … http://www.techmeme.com/240528/p10?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240528p10

CNBC: T-Mobile plans to acquire most of UScellular, including its stores, some of its spectrum assets, and its customers, in a $4.4B deal, including up to $2B of debt  —  Shares of U.S. Cellular popped nearly 6% Tuesday after T-Mobile announced that it plans to acquire most of the company … http://www.techmeme.com/240528/p9?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240528p9

Reuters: China set up a new ~$47.5B state-backed investment fund on May 24 as the third and largest phase of its Big Fund to boost the country's semiconductor industry  —  China has set up a new state-backed investment fund with registered capital of 344 billion yuan ($47.5 billion) to boost the country's semiconductor industry. http://www.techmeme.com/240526/p11?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240526p11

Wall Street Journal: An analysis of ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot, Gemini, and Perplexity's responses to some real-life questions and everyday tasks: Perplexity ranked first overall  —  We tested OpenAI's ChatGPT against Microsoft's Copilot and Google's Gemini, along with Perplexity and Anthropic's Claude.  Here's how they ranked. http://www.techmeme.com/240526/p10?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240526p10

Michael Nuñez / VentureBeat: Researchers find that GPT-4 can outperform human analysts in predicting the direction of future corporate earnings even when given only financial statements  —  Researchers from the University of Chicago have demonstrated that large language models (LLMs) can conduct financial statement analysis … http://www.techmeme.com/240526/p9?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240526p9

Financial Times: A look at the UK's $5.5B gaming industry, as private equity firm EQT makes a £2.2B offer for Keyword Studios, and other developers shore up their balance sheets  —  Developers shore up their balance sheets after a difficult few years  —  Pass the controller. http://www.techmeme.com/240526/p8?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240526p8

Mark Gurman / Bloomberg: A closer look at Apple's AI strategy: Project Greymatter, local and cloud LLM data processing, Siri, sealing a chatbot partnership deal with OpenAI, and more  —  Though Apple's first set of modern AI features won't be as impressive as rival offerings, the company is betting that its massive customer base can give it an edge. http://www.techmeme.com/240526/p7?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240526p7

Rick Claypool / Public Citizen: OpenSecrets: crypto sector-backed super PACs have raised $102M+ so far, the third-most of 2024 election PACs, including $54M from companies like Coinbase  —  Key Findings  — Super PACs backed by the cryptocurrency sector have raised more than $102 million, the third-most of all super PACs engaged … http://www.techmeme.com/240507/p5?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240507p5

Olivia Poh / Bloomberg: Amazon announces plans to double its cloud infrastructure investment in Singapore to $9B, to be done over the next four years, to meet the cloud and AI demand  —  - Cloud operator is latest global tech company to target region  — Firms grow in Southeast Asia as they diversify away from China http://www.techmeme.com/240507/p1?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240507p1

Joel Khalili / Wired: Q&A with Ethereum co-founder and Consensys CEO Joe Lubin on Consensys' lawsuit against the SEC, implications of SEC classifying ETH as a security, and more  —  Joe Lubin cofounded Ethereum.  Now his company is suing the Securities and Exchange Commission, and he says the future of the internet is at stake. http://www.techmeme.com/240506/p29?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240506p29

Rohan Goswami / CNBC: Palantir reports Q1 revenue of $634M, up 21% YoY, vs. $625M est., net income of $106M, up from $16.8M YoY; Palantir stock drops 9% after hours on weak guidance  —  Alex Karp, CEO of Palantir, arrives for the “AI Insight Forum” at the Russell Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on September 13, 2023 in Washington, DC. http://www.techmeme.com/240506/p19?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240506p19

Adamya Sharma / Android Authority: YouTube rolls out Jump Ahead, which uses AI to let users jump to parts of a video where most viewers skip ahead, to all US Premium members using its Android app  —  It's currently available in the US on the YouTube Android app.  —  •  —  TL;DR  — YouTube Premium members in the US … http://www.techmeme.com/240506/p8?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240506p8

Wall Street Journal: Interviews with finance experts and young adults suggest TikTok videos about the economy and consumerism are creating a distorted view of financial well-being  —  Endless videos about the economy and consumerism are giving 20-somethings a case of ‘money dysmorphia’  —  Americans under 30 get much of their news on TikTok. http://www.techmeme.com/240506/p3?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240506p3

Tassilo Hummel / Reuters: Atos says it received four distinct offers to restructure its debt and inject cash from investors including Atos' banks and its largest shareholder Onepoint  —  Debt-laden French IT company Atos on Monday confirmed it had received four distinct offers from investors to restructure its debt … http://www.techmeme.com/240506/p1?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240506p1

Pieter Haeck / Politico: The EU's crackdown on Huawei shows an EU-wide TikTok ban will likely take years of diplomacy, as the bloc lacks a formal say over national security concerns  —  Of all the shots Europe is firing at China, the threat of a blanket TikTok ban is likely to only scuff Beijing. http://www.techmeme.com/240505/p7?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240505p7

Ashley Carman / Bloomberg: Over 40K Audible books are marked as having been made with an AI “virtual voice”, saving authors hundreds or thousands of dollars per title on narration costs  —  While authors appreciate the new revenue stream, audiobook listeners are complaining about the influx of new material http://www.techmeme.com/240505/p6?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240505p6

Anthony Ha / TechCrunch: Jack Dorsey replies “no” to an X user who asked if he was still on the Bluesky board; it's not clear when he left, as Bluesky's FAQ still lists him as a member  —  It sounds like Bluesky's most prominent backer is no longer on its board.  —  On Saturday, Jack Dorsey posted on X … http://www.techmeme.com/240505/p5?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240505p5

Wall Street Journal: How role-playing with an AI chatbot can help prepare for difficult conversations with family, friends, and colleagues, such as for terminating an employee  —  Role-playing with an AI conversationalist can prepare you to handle difficult subjects with family, friends and colleagues http://www.techmeme.com/240505/p3?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240505p3

Muyao Shen / Bloomberg: DEX Screener: the value of decentralized social platform Friend.tech's native token, the Friend, fell ~98% to below $2 after making its trading debut on May 3  —  - “No one can figure out the tokenomics,” Delphi's Rinko says  — Friend.tech's growth has been driven in part by trading bots http://www.techmeme.com/240504/p19?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240504p19

Oliver Whang / New York Times: Some researchers are training AI models on headcam footage from infants and toddlers, to better understand language acquisition by both AI and children  —  Could a better understanding of how infants acquire language help us build smarter A.I. models?  —  We ask a lot of ourselves as babies. http://www.techmeme.com/240504/p18?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240504p18

Ryan Weeks / Bloomberg: Crypto startups embrace open-ended, rolling funding rounds that quickly lift valuations, as crypto funds seek to deploy unspent cash raised in 2021 and 2022  —  - Startups are embracing so-called open-ended funding rounds  — Venture funds are seeking to deploy previously static cash http://www.techmeme.com/240504/p15?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240504p15

Cheng Ting-Fang / Nikkei Asia: As chipmakers move into or expand in the region around Germany's Dresden, skeptics say more government subsidies, skilled workers, and end customers are needed  —  Skeptics say more government subsidies, skilled workers and end customers are needed  —  DRESDEN, Germany/TAIPEI … http://www.techmeme.com/240504/p10?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240504p10

Manish Singh / TechCrunch: Filing: CRM software maker Freshworks acquires Connecticut-based Device42, which helps companies manage their IT infrastructure and had raised $38.5M, for $230M  —  Freshworks, the publicly listed SaaS firm, is acquiring U.S.-based startup Device42 for $230 million, the company disclosed in an SEC filing. http://www.techmeme.com/240503/p25?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240503p25

Nico Grant / New York Times: Google employees have mostly ignored the DOJ's antitrust case, and some expect only small business tweaks and some fines; closing arguments concluded on May 3  —  They shrugged off concerns about the company's fate ahead of closing arguments in the Justice Department's lawsuit this week. http://www.techmeme.com/240503/p22?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240503p22

Alison Snyder / Axios: CSET: global AI research more than doubled between 2017 and 2022; Chinese Academy of Sciences was the top producer of highly cited AI papers, followed by Google  —  - Roughly 32% of AI research focused on computer vision, which grew 121% in those five years. http://www.techmeme.com/240503/p19?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240503p19

Alex Kantrowitz / Big Technology: Elon Musk says he wants Grok to create news summaries by relying solely on X posts, without looking at article text, and improved story citations are coming  —  Musk emails with details on AI-powered news inside X. An AI bot will summarize news and commentary, sometimes looking through tens of thousands of posts per story. http://www.techmeme.com/240503/p16?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240503p16

Mark Bergen / Bloomberg: Estonian ride-hailing and scooter rentals startup Bolt Technology secures a €220M credit facility which it believes will help prepare the company for an IPO  —  Bolt Technology OU has secured a €220 million ($235 million) credit facility that the Estonian mobility company says will help it prepare for a public offering. http://www.techmeme.com/240503/p6?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240503p6

Ryan Naraine / SecurityWeek: Mimic, which helps businesses detect, deflect, and quickly recover from ransomware attacks, emerges from stealth with a $27M seed led by Ballistic Ventures  —  A new Silicon Valley startup called Mimic is coming out of the shadows with a hefty $27 million seed-stage funding round led by Ballistic Ventures. http://www.techmeme.com/240502/p52?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240502p52

Bloomberg: Microsoft adds deputy chief information security officers within its product groups after a spate of cyberattacks, but declines to identify the new officials  —  Ann Johnson named deputy security officer to oversee outreach and communication about company's security http://www.techmeme.com/240502/p48?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240502p48

Zac Hall / 9to5Mac: Apple not making major AI news at upcoming product event, WWDC still expected venue [Updated]  —  Update: It turns out Tim Cook was misunderstood in the CNBC story.  The full quote in context does not imply an AI software announcement at next week's hardware event, although Apple does infuse its silicon with AI readiness. http://www.techmeme.com/240502/p42?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240502p42

Kyle Wiggers / TechCrunch: Microsoft bans law enforcement from using its real-time facial recognition tech on mobile cameras to ID a person in “uncontrolled, in-the-wild” environment  —  Microsoft has changed its policy to ban U.S. police departments from using generative AI through the Azure OpenAI Service … http://www.techmeme.com/240502/p33?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240502p33

Tom Warren / The Verge: Microsoft rolls out passkey support for all consumer accounts; Microsoft account owners can generate passkeys across Windows, Android, and iOS  —  Microsoft is fully rolling out passkey support for all consumer accounts today.  After enabling them in Windows 11 last year … http://www.techmeme.com/240502/p23?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger#a240502p23