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| 1 | | Meta Platform has initiated its final round of recent layoffs, impacting around 6,000 employees. The cuts are a part of Meta's "Year of Efficiency," aimed at restructuring the company to reduce costs and streamline its operations. More: - CEO Mark Zuckerberg previously announced plans to cut a total of 10,000 jobs in two rounds of layoffs in April and May, adding to the 11,000 roles eliminated in November.
- The latest round of cuts, which started today, primarily targets Meta's ad sales, marketing, user experience, recruiting, and partnership teams.
- About 490 employees at Meta's international headquarters in Dublin are expected to be let go, representing almost 20% of its Irish workforce.
- Meta has also paused the recruitment process for around 5,000 open positions.
Zoom out: - With the latest cuts, roughly 21,000 individuals have lost their jobs at Meta, reducing its global workforce by a quarter since November when it had around 87,000 employees.
- The company, which owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, has cited the need to improve efficiencies after excessive hiring during the pandemic.
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| 2 | | What happened: U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy has issued a stark warning about social media's impact on children and adolescents, citing evidence of a "profound risk of harm" to their well-being and mental health. Details: In a new public advisory, Murthy calls on U.S. tech firms and lawmakers to establish safer digital spaces for young people. He recommends age restrictions and safety standards, along with more transparent data sharing and research into the risks of online interactions. What the numbers say: YouTube remains the most widely used platform among teens, followed by TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat. According to Pew Research, as many as 95% of U.S. teens aged 13 to 17 use social media, with 19% reporting that they are on YouTube "almost constantly." While 54% of teens said it would be difficult to give up social media, 36% acknowledged spending too much time on the platforms. What it means: Spending over 3 hours a day on social media doubles the risk of mental health issues, including depression and anxiety, in children and adolescents, according to Murthy. Meanwhile, a recent survey indicated that teens spend 3.5 hours a day on average on social media. Despite the drawbacks, social media can also benefit teens by fostering connections with friends and offering a platform for creativity, support, and acceptance, according to Pew. 
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| 3 | | Apple announced the schedule for its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), running from June 5-9. The keynote on June 5 at 10 a.m. PT is expected to reveal an AR/VR headset, iOS 17, macOS 14, a 15-inch MacBook Air, and more. More: - While typically focused on new software for Apple devices, this year's event will also include hardware reveals.
- The biggest unveiling could be Apple's mixed reality headset, which combines virtual reality and augmented reality for sports, gaming, and workouts and costs upwards of $3,000.
- The device, reportedly named Apple Reality Pro, is expected to run iPad apps and its own VR operating system, xrOS, based on iOS.
- Its announcement is all but confirmed after Apple invited XR media outlets to the WWDC keynote for the first time.
Other announcements: - Apple could also announce the 15-inch M2-powered Air — bigger than previous models — and the Apple M-Series Mac Pro.
- On the software side, viewers can expect the latest updates to iOS, iPadOS, WatchOS, and TVOS platforms.
- iOS 17, the iPhone software update, could include the addition of an Apple-branded journaling app for logging thoughts and activities.
- Apple will live stream the WWDC keynote on its website and YouTube channel. The full WWDC lineup is available here.
Credit: Concept art of the first Apple VR headset, by designer Antonio De Rosa | | | |
| 4 | | On Wednesday, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is expected to announce his candidacy for the 2024 presidential race in a Twitter Spaces conversation with Elon Musk. The event, scheduled for 6 p.m. ET today, will be moderated by David Sacks, a tech entrepreneur and DeSantis supporter. More: - While Musk has previously expressed support for DeSantis, he clarified during a WSJ summit that he is not endorsing any specific candidate at this time.
- The Twitter owner expressed his interest in using the site as a public forum, saying it could be a place "where all voices are heard and where there's the kind of dynamic interaction that you don't really see anywhere else."
- DeSantis is expected to file official paperwork with the Federal Election Commission on Wednesday.
- The governor has positioned himself as a critic of tech platforms and has accused them of censoring conservative voices.
Zoom out: - According to Reuters, it's the first time a presidential announcement of this kind will take place on social media.
- By teaming up with Musk, DeSantis could tap into his massive following and enhance his campaign's credibility.
- However, his choice to use Twitter Spaces, the site's platform for audio chats, carries some risks given its track record of technical glitches.
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| 5 | | Netflix is cracking down on password sharing in the U.S. and has started notifying users about the new policy. Netflix accounts are now limited to a single subscriber and people in their household. The company offers two options: transferring outside profiles to a new paid membership, or adding an extra outside member to a household for $7.99/month. Details: - Netflix defines a household as devices connected to the internet at the primary viewing location, utilizing IP addresses, device IDs, and account activity to identify household membership.
- The move aims to boost its subscriber growth and revenue, as more than 100 million households worldwide currently share accounts.
- While the crackdown has resulted in many cancellations, it's also expected to add $1.6B in revenue per year in new subscriptions.
How it works: - Netflix's Standard plan, which costs $15.49 per month, allows users to add one extra member for $7.99 monthly.
- Its Premium package, offering 4K streaming, allows up to two extra members at an additional cost of $7.99 each.
- The Basic ($9.99/month) and Standard plans with ads ($6.99/month) do not have the option to add extra members.
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| 6 | | Adobe is introducing a new AI tool in Photoshop called Generative Fill. With the tool, users can easily add, extend, or remove content in images by using only natural language text prompts. More: - The beta version of Generative Fill is currently being tested and will be available to the public in the second half of 2023. It utilizes Firefly, Adobe's new creative generative AI engine.
- Firefly allows users to describe the image or object they want to create using words and phrases.
- Once an image is generated or added in Photoshop, Generative Fill enables users to extend the image by adding AI-created backgrounds. It also adds and removes objects using text prompts.
- Adobe ensures that the tool maintains the original scene's perspective, lighting, and style. Images created or modified using AI will also be labeled in their content credentials, it said.
- Currently, Generative Fill is exclusively available in the Photoshop desktop beta app, or as a module within the Firefly beta app.
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 | AI and technology writer | | Beth is a writer and editor at Inside.com covering artificial intelligence and daily technology news. She has written the Inside AI newsletter since 2019. You can reach her at Beth.Duckett@inside.com. | | This newsletter was edited by Eduardo Garcia | |
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