Techmeme
January 3, 2025, 6:55 PM

Top News

Jason Koebler / 404 Media:
After backlash, Meta says newly viral AI profiles on Facebook and Instagram were created in 2023 in “an early experiment”, and it is deleting the profiles  —  Earlier this week, Meta executive Connor Hayes told the Financial Times that the company is going to roll out AI character profiles …
Carly Page / TechCrunch:
The US sanctions Beijing-based cybersecurity company Integrity Technology over its alleged links to China-backed hacking group Flax Typhoon  —  The U.S. government has sanctioned a Beijing-based cybersecurity company over its alleged links to a China government-backed hacking group, tracked as Flax Typhoon.
Mike Allen / Axios:
Sources: Tim Cook will personally donate $1M to President-elect Trump's inaugural committee in the spirit of unity; Apple is not expected to donate  —  The company is not expected to give.  — Cook, with a consistent presence in Washington, has made it clear over the years that he believes …
Jordan Novet / CNBC:
Microsoft says it expects to spend $80B in FY 2025 on the construction of data centers that can handle AI workloads, with 50%+ of the spending in the US  —  Microsoft expects to spend $80 billion in fiscal 2025 on the construction of data centers that can handle artificial intelligence workloads, the company said in a Friday blog post.
Alexandra S. Levine / Bloomberg:
An unredacted lawsuit from Utah's AG claims TikTok has long known that TikTok Live promoted sexual content streams to minors and facilitated money laundering  —  - Unredacted lawsuit claims TikTok knew about teen safety issues  — Lawsuit also alleges company facilitated money laundering
Reuters:
China says shipments of foreign smartphones, including iPhones, fell 47.4% YoY in November, after a 44.25% YoY drop in October, marking four months of decline  —  Shipments to China of foreign-branded smartphones, including Apple Inc's (AAPL.O) iPhone, fell by 47.4% in November from a year earlier …
Victoria Song / The Verge:
Apple and Strava partner to feature Strava athletes in Apple Fitness+ programming, add more detailed Fitness+ workout summaries in the Strava app, and more  —  Apple Fitness Plus is getting a fresh makeover in the Strava app.  The two companies just announced they're collaborating to revamp …
Bloomberg:
Car rental app Turo, which uses a risk algorithm to screen drivers, was used to book trucks in both fatal New Year's Day incidents in Las Vegas and New Orleans  —  - Startup uses risk algorithm to determine price of each rental  — Attacks in New Orleans, Las Vegas, used Turo vehicles
Winston Cho / The Hollywood Reporter:
Anthropic agrees with three publishers to stop Claude from providing lyrics to their songs or new lyrics based on copyrighted content, pending a court ruling  —  While the case is proceeding, Anthropic's Claude will no longer provide lyrics to songs owned by the music publishers or new lyrics based on copyrighted material.

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Featured Podcasts

Big Technology Podcast:
Anthropic's Mythos Dilemma, Violence Against AI, Tokenmaxxing at Meta
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Hard Fork:
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The Upstarts Podcast:
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OpenClaw for normies is here
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Nick Bilton, Dick Costolo, and Paul Kedrosky pull back the curtain on AI, startups, and the future rushing toward us, all with healthy dose of irreverence.
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Tools and Weapons with Brad Smith:
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Microsoft Vice Chair and President Brad Smith speaks with leaders in government, business, and culture to explore the most critical challenges at the intersection of technology and society.
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More News

Max Woolf / Max Woolf's Blog:
Molly White / Citation Needed:
Jess Weatherbed / The Verge:
Dave Lee / Bloomberg:

Earlier Picks

Katie Deighton / Wall Street Journal:
Rita El Khoury / Android Authority:
Bob Van Voris / Bloomberg:
David Shepardson / Reuters:
Ivan Mehta / TechCrunch: