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IBM CEO dismisses fears of AI-induced job cuts among programmers

  • IBM CEO Arvind Krishna reassures that AI will not lead to job cuts among programmers, instead predicting a 30% productivity increase.
  • Krishna acknowledges AI’s potential to automate repetitive tasks but insists it’s unlikely to replace entire jobs.
  • Despite phasing out certain roles, Krishna emphasizes that AI has created more jobs than it has eliminated within IBM.
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Artha Venture sees 19x return with partial exit from Uber-backed Everest Fleet

  • Artha Venture has partially exited mobility startup Everest Fleet, yielding a 19x return and an initial rate of return of 105%.
  • Everest Fleet, which operates in India’s shared mobility space, recently closed a $20 million funding round led by Uber.
  • This marks Artha Venture’s 31st exit, with the firm having a portfolio of over 100 startups and recently launching the Artha Continuum Fund for family offices and UHNIs.
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Google to implement stricter rules for bulk email senders in 2024

  • Google announces changes to its email handling, requiring bulk senders to authenticate their emails, provide an easy unsubscribe option, and stay under a reported spam threshold.
  • Bulk senders, defined as those sending over 5,000 messages to Gmail addresses in a day, could lose access to users’ inboxes if too many emails are marked as spam.
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AI image algorithms show bias towards redder skin tones, Sony study reveals

  • Sony researchers found that AI image algorithms, including Twitter’s image-cropper and two image-generating algorithms, favor redder skin tones, potentially disadvantaging populations with more yellow-hued skin.
  • The researchers proposed a new method to represent skin color, using two coordinates to specify both a place along a scale of light to dark and on a continuum of yellowness to redness.
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User tricks Bing Chat into bypassing CAPTCHA restrictions

  • A user on X demonstrated a method to trick Bing Chat into quoting a CAPTCHA, a task AI chatbots are typically restricted from performing.
  • The user tricked the chatbot by pasting the CAPTCHA text onto an image of an open locket, claiming it was a special code from his deceased grandmother.
  • This is not the first instance of users exploiting AI chatbots to perform tasks they are not supposed to, raising questions about the security of these systems.
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Wattpad transitions from ‘Paid Stories’ to ‘Wattpad Originals’ freemium model

  • Wattpad is replacing its ‘Paid Stories’ program with a freemium model, ‘Wattpad Originals’, allowing authors to monetize while growing their non-paying audience.
  • The new model is invite-only, with top-tier content selected based on reader engagement; readers can unlock chapters with coins or a monthly subscription, or wait for free access.
  • Wattpad’s sister platform, Webtoon, implemented a similar model in 2019, paying out over $27 million to English-language comic artists from 2020 to 2022.
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Dunzo continues to delay payment of former employees’ pending salaries

  • The Bengaluru-based company, Dunzo, has once again deferred the payment of pending salaries to its former employees.
  • Despite missing several previous deadlines, the company now promises to clear all dues, including June and July salaries, by January-February 2024.
  • This latest delay comes as two of Dunzo’s four co-founders, Dalvir Suri and Mukund Jha, are set to depart the financially struggling startup.
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LinkedIn introduces new AI features for recruitment, learning, marketing, and sales, powered by OpenAI

  • LinkedIn is launching new AI features across its job hunting, marketing, and sales products, including an update to its Recruiter platform, an AI-powered LinkedIn Learning coach, and a new tool for marketing campaigns.
  • The company, which is owned by Microsoft, is using technology from OpenAI and Microsoft to power these new features.
  • The new features include Recruiter 2024, an AI-assisted recruiting experience, an AI learning coach for LinkedIn Learning, and an AI tool called Accelerate for marketing campaigns.
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Ofcom advocates for antitrust investigation into Amazon and Microsoft’s cloud market control

  • British media regulator Ofcom is pushing for an antitrust investigation into Amazon and Microsoft’s dominance in the UK’s cloud computing market.
  • The two tech giants hold a combined market share of 60-70%, with Ofcom expressing concerns about the difficulty for customers to negotiate deals and the potential anti-competitive nature of their practices.
  • Both companies have pledged to cooperate with Ofcom, though Microsoft warned that an investigation could ultimately harm consumers.
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Disney’s visual effects artists vote unanimously for unionization

  • A group of visual effects (VFX) artists at Walt Disney Pictures has voted unanimously to unionize with the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees.
  • This move comes on the heels of a similar decision by Marvel Studios’ VFX staff, marking a growing trend of unionization in the VFX industry.
  • The unionization aims to secure better working conditions and quality of life for VFX workers, an area of Hollywood that has traditionally resisted such efforts.
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Elon Musk potentially facing fraud charges over delayed Twitter investment disclosure

  • U.S. District Judge Andrew Carter has allowed shareholders to attempt to prove Elon Musk intended to defraud them by delaying the disclosure of his 5% stake in Twitter.
  • Shareholders, led by an Oklahoma firefighters pension fund, claim Musk’s delay caused them to sell Twitter shares at artificially low prices.
  • Despite dismissing an insider trading claim against Musk, the judge found evidence that Musk understood the 5% disclosure rule, having complied with it in the past.
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Arc browser introduces AI-powered features with OpenAI and Anthropic’s models

  • Arc browser launches AI-powered features, ‘Arc Max’, using OpenAI’s GPT-3.5 and Anthropic’s models, offering capabilities like renaming pinned tabs and downloaded files, and providing link summaries.
  • Users can access these features through the command bar and choose which ones to enable, including conversing with ChatGPT.
  • CEO Josh Miller stated that these features will be kept for at least 90 days to gather user feedback and decide which ones to retain.
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Teen-founded AI startup Induced AI secures funding from Sam Altman and others

  • Induced AI, an AI startup founded by teenagers, has secured funding from Sam Altman, Peak XV, and others. The startup aims to assist businesses in automating workflows in innovative ways.
  • The platform enables businesses to input workflows in plain English, converting them into pseudo-code for repetitive tasks. It also allows browser instances to interact with websites without an API.
  • The startup has raised $2.3 million in seed funding from investors including SignalFire, Untitled Ventures, SV Angel, and others. It has already signed up a few small to mid-sized customers.
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PayPal and Venmo cards can now be added to Apple Wallet

  • PayPal and Venmo credit or debit cards can now be integrated into Apple Wallet for in-store, online, and app payments.
  • Users can add their cards through the Apple Wallet app, with future updates allowing direct addition through PayPal or Venmo apps.
  • This development follows PayPal’s recent announcement that its stablecoin, PYUSD, is now available on Venmo.
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Spotify Premium to offer 150K audiobooks at no extra cost

  • Spotify announced a new business model, offering 150,000 audiobooks to Premium subscribers without additional charges, initially in the U.K. and Australia, with the U.S. to follow.
  • The move, facilitated by Spotify’s acquisition of digital audiobook distributor Findaway, is expected to increase user engagement and reduce churn, while addressing the audiobook market’s distribution and discovery issues.
  • Despite the broad catalog, the service will be time-limited to 15 hours per month, with options to purchase additional time, and will feature editorial and personalized book recommendations.
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Zoom introduces AI-powered workspace ‘Zoom Docs’ to rival Google Docs

  • Zoom is launching ‘Zoom Docs’, an AI-powered workspace, to compete with Google and Microsoft, offering users the ability to draft, edit, summarize, and include meeting discussions.
  • The new feature, set to be available in spring 2024, will integrate with the meetings feature and include options for tables, charts, and images.
  • Despite the competition, Zoom CEO Eric Yuan does not expect Zoom Docs to replace other note-taking applications, but rather provide an alternative to switching between tabs during meetings.
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