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| 1 | | Apple has acquired augmented reality (AR) startup Mira, known for its AR headsets used at Super Nintendo World and its contracts with the U.S. Air Force and Navy. The acquisition, confirmed by Apple, comes after the company recently unveiled its first mixed-reality (AR/VR) headset, the $3,500 Vision Pro. More: - According to reports, Apple has brought on board at least 11 employees from Mira, which previously onboarded former Apple product designer Jony Ive as an adviser.
- While the Los Angeles startup initially focused on hardware for consumer apps, Mira has since pivoted toward more lucrative industrial applications.
- The company's headsets have been used by pilots at California's Travis Air Force Base and a Mario Kart ride at Universal Studios' Nintendo World theme parks.
- Further details of the acquisition, including the purchase price and Apple's plans for the company, remain unknown.
Zoom out: - In 2020, Apple acquired Spaces, a DreamWorks VR spinout that specialized in video conferencing software and face-scanning technology for virtual reality setups.
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| 2 | | What happened: Reddit became the latest tech company to lay off a significant number of employees. As part of a new restructuring, the social media site plans to lay off around 90 employees, amounting to approximately 5% of its workforce. Related: The latest staffing reductions in the tech sector have affected Linktree, ZoomInfo Technologies, and Spotify, which announced on Monday that it will cut 200 employees in its podcast division as part of a "strategic realignment." What the numbers say: Nearly 750 tech companies have laid off more than 190,000 employees this year, surpassing the 165,000 let go during all of 2022, according to data tracker Layoffs.fyi. Since the pandemic, four of the largest tech giants — Amazon, Meta, Google, and Microsoft — have laid off a combined 70,000 workers. Here's a deeper look at all the tech layoffs so far in 2023. 
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| 3 | | Meta has created a task force to address concerns raised by a WSJ investigation, which found that Instagram's algorithms facilitate a large network promoting underage sexual content. The investigation by The Wall Street Journal, along with Stanford University and the University of Massachusetts Amherst, found that the algorithms actively promote and connect pedophiles with content sellers on Instagram. More: - Instagram not only hosts such activities, but actively promotes them through its recommendation systems, according to the findings.
- Rivals Snapchat and TikTok weren't found to facilitate similar networks. While Twitter has a smaller number of accounts linked to child sexual abuse content, it appears to take quicker action in removing them, the report said.
- Meta, Instagram's parent company, has acknowledged the issue and established an internal task force to investigate it further.
- The company said it has taken steps to improve its content review processes and take down predatory accounts, removing a total of 27 pedophile networks from 2020 to 2022.
- In January, it took down 490,000 accounts for violating its child safety policies.
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| 4 | | Apple is allowing users to access its developer betas of iOS 17, iPadOS 17, and macOS Sonoma for free, without requiring the usual $99 annual fee for the Apple Developer Program. The change means anyone with an Apple ID or a Developer Program account can try out the latest beta releases immediately, instead of waiting for the public betas in July. More: - Apple announced the latest versions of its operating systems for the iPhone, iPad, and more during WWDC on Monday.
- The company updated its support page to clarify that anyone with an Apple ID can now download the latest developer betas.
- However, since the beta versions are in early development and can be buggy, it's not recommended to install them on your main device.
- For those who want to test the updates without risking stability or data loss, Apple will release more stable public beta versions starting next month.
- The final public version of iOS 17 is due out in mid-September.
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| 5 | | Samsung has confirmed that its upcoming Galaxy Unpacked event will be held in late July in South Korea, the company's home country. The event will likely showcase the company's next-gen foldable devices, the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and the Galaxy Z Fold 5. More: - Samsung said it chose Seoul for the annual event due to its influence on global trends and innovative culture.
- Moving forward, the company plans to focus on different trend-leading cultural cities that align with the theme of each event.
- While the exact date of this year's event isn't confirmed, rumors suggest it could be on July 26.
- The company is expected to introduce its updates to the Galaxy Z Flip and Z Fold series, with reports suggesting a bigger cover display for the Z Flip 5 and a thinner design for the Z Fold 5.
- Both would be powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip.
Galaxy Z Flip 5 leaked renders. Credit: @Tim_tom_0 | | | |
| 6 | | Instagram is developing an AI chatbot, according to app researcher Alessandro Paluzzi. His leaked images suggest that the chatbot will be able to answer questions, offer advice, and help write messages. More: - Paluzzi's screenshots show that Instagram users would get to choose from 30 different personalities for the chatbot.
- Users will be able to invite the bot to join ongoing conversations by mentioning it with the @ symbol.
- Some of the features bear similarities to Snapchat's My AI chatbot, which has not been well received.
- In addition to the chatbot, there are rumors of Instagram working on a Twitter competitor, codenamed Barcelona, which would be a standalone text-based app integrated with Instagram.
- Meta has floated plans to experiment with AI on Instagram, as well as Messenger and WhatsApp.
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- The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) Chair, Gary Gensler, said there is no need for more digital currency.
- Due to increased tension between Washington and Beijing, venture capital firm Sequoia Capital is splitting its China business into a separate entity.
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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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