Page 11 - Metaverse

Meta pushes back on US FTC's attempt to amend 2020 privacy settlement

The agency has accused Meta of misleading parents about protections for children

US Senator asks social media firms about preparations for polls in India

An influential American Senator on Friday asked the US social media companies as to what preparations they have made for elections in India, where social media platforms, including Meta-owned WhatsApp, have a long track record of amplifying misleading and false content. The letter, written by Senator Michael Bennet, a member of the Senate Intelligence and Rules Committees, which has oversight over US elections, comes on the eve of the announcement of elections in India by the Election Commission of India (ECI). The letter by Bennet to the leaders of Alphabet, Meta, TikTok, and X is addressed to seeking information from these companies about their preparations for elections in various countries, including India. The dangers your platforms pose to elections are not new users deployed deepfakes and digitally altered content in previous contests but now, artificial intelligence (AI) models are poised to exacerbate risks to both the democratic process and political stability. The ...

Meta sees big opportunity in gaming industry: MD Sandhya Devanathan

According to a study by GWI, an audience research company 90 per cent of gamers who discover new games on social media, do so through Meta with Reels playing a leading role in discovery

Forced to change: Tech giants bow to global onslaught of regulations

Apple, Google, Meta operated unfettered for years. But new laws have compelled them to make major shifts to their businesses

TMS Ep636: Private capex, Softbank AI, Novelis IPO, Mumbai Metaverse

Can private capex offset govt spend curbs in FY25? Can AI help Softbank turn around in India? What does Novelis IPO mean for Hindalco investors? What is Mumbai Megapolis Metaverse? Answers here

MCA, Meta to curb AI-generated misinformation with WhatsApp helpline

The Misinformation Combat Alliance (MCA) and Meta have announced that a dedicated fact-checking helpline on WhatsApp - aimed at combating deepfakes and deceptive AI-generated content - will be available for the public in March 2024. The pledge to crack down on deepfakes comes at a time when the world's largest democracy is preparing for general elections. The Lok Sabha elections are due in April-May this year. "The Misinformation Combat Alliance (MCA) and Meta are working on launching a dedicated fact-checking helpline on WhatsApp in an effort to combat media generated using artificial intelligence (AI) which may deceive people on matters of public importance, commonly known as deepfakes, and help people connect with verified and credible information," according to a release. The helpline will be available for the public to use in March 2024, it added. MCA is a cross-industry alliance bringing companies, organisations, institutions, industry associations and entities together to ..

Highlights of the day: Ladakh shuts down as thousands march for statehood

Updates: Catch all the latest updates from around the world

Zuckerberg's wealth surges by $28 bn as Meta rallies, surpasses Bill Gates'

It's a big comeback for Zuckerberg's wealth, which fell below $35 billion in late 2022 as tech stocks collapsed in the face of inflation and interest rate hikes, only to come soaring back in 2023

Meta soars after first-ever dividend plan, 'Year of Efficiency' pays off

The company flagged strong ad sales and a rebound in user growth during its fourth-quarter results on Thursday, while also forecasting current-quarter revenue above analysts' estimates

Meta's profits, revenue surge in Q4 thanks to cost cuts, ad rebound

Meta Platforms Inc. tripled its profit and posted sharply higher revenue in the final quarter of 2023, boosted by a rebound in digital advertising as well cost cutting and layoffs in what CEO Mark Zuckerberg called the year of efficiency. "The company can talk all it wants to about AI and the metaverse, but it's still a social media company that gets nearly all its revenue from advertising, and advertisers still clearly love Meta, said longtime tech analyst Debra Aho Williamson. The Menlo Park, California-based parent company of Facebook and Instagram said Thursday that it earned $14 billion, or $5.33 per share, in the October-December period. That's up from $4.65 billion, or $1.76 per share, a year earlier. Revenue grew 25% to $40.11 billion from $32.17 billion. Analysts, on average, were expecting earnings of $4.82 per share on revenue $39.1 billion, according to FactSet Research. This was a pivotal year for our company. We increased our operating discipline, delivered strong ..

Meta CEO Zuckerberg apologises to parents at US Senate social media hearing

Under prodding from Republican Senator Josh Hawley, Zuckerberg stood up and addressed families who held up pictures of their children who they said had been harmed by social media

Meta, TikTok, X CEOs face questions on child safety at US Senate hearing

Senator Amy Klobuchar on Wednesday questioned what she said was inaction in the tech industry, comparing it to the response shown when a panel blew out of a Boeing plane earlier this month

TikTok CEO pledges $2 bn during testimony to protect 170 mn US Users

It's Chew's second time testifying before Congress. Last year, he was called to a hearing in the House focused on the potential national security threats stemming from its Chinese ownership

Meta sets stricter message settings for teens on Instagram, Facebook

These measures come as regulatory bodies across the globe have been raising questions about the safety of children on these social media platforms

Ads running on Meta saw return on spending increase by 32% with help of AI

Ads using AI also reduced the cost of acquisition by about 17%, Mendelsohn said in an interview with Bloomberg Television from the World Economic Forum in Davos on Thursday

WhatsApp launches voice notes, multiple admins, other features for Channels

These features include voice updates, users can now listen to voice updates. WhatsApp which has a user base of over 2 billion send seven billion voice messages daily

Google, Meta, Tiktok's debts removed from Russian state bailiffs' database

But the database, accessed by Reuters on Wednesday, still includes X (formerly Twitter) and Twitch, with fines totalling 51 million roubles ($560,730) and 23 million roubles ($252,879), respectively

Big tech firms nearly pause recruitment in India amid global slowdown

These companies have registered a 90% decline in active job postings in India in 2023 when compared to the last year, according to a report

Meta bets on new AI features across social media apps to boost appeal

Meta's core social platforms are advertising behemoths, but users on Facebook and Instagram have largely plateaued at 2 billion and 3 billion people per month, respectively

Meta announces new policy for advertisers to curb AI-curated misinformation

The policy also asks for altered media depicting a realistic event that allegedly occurred, but that is not a true image, video, or audio recording of the event, to be disclosed