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| Here are today's top tech stories: - Apple Vision Pro pre-orders appear to sell out in the U.S.
- EU expected to block Amazon's iRobot acquisition.
- Apple could open up contactless payment tech in the EU.
- Amazon plans to launch paid version of Alexa.
Beth
p/beth-duckett | |
| 1 | | Apple has reportedly sold out of pre-orders for its Vision Pro mixed reality headset, at least for now, on the same day it became available in the U.S. Within an hour of pre-orders opening, the shipping date for the headset was pushed from Feb. 2 to mid-March. Details: Apple first announced the Vision Pro at its WWDC conference last June, introducing its first new product category since the Apple Watch in 2015. The Vision Pro features dual 4K displays, allowing users to switch between augmented reality and virtual reality with a dial. Running on visionOS, the headset is controlled through eye movements, hand gestures, and voice commands, so no need for a controller. Software: The headset will have dozens of dedicated apps available at launch, including Amazon Prime Video, Paramount+, and Max. However, none of the top 46 App Store apps will have a native visionOS app, at least for now. This means services like Netflix, Spotify, and YouTube can only be accessed via the headset's web browser. What the numbers show: Apple's spatial computing device is by far the priciest in the AR/VR market, starting at $3,499 for the 256GB version. Despite its hefty price tag, consumers seem undeterred as orders have reportedly surpassed the available supply. Powered by Apple's M2 and R1 chips, the Vision Pro is Apple's pricier response to Meta's Quest Pro and the Pico 5 Pro Max headsets. 
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| 2 | | The EU's competition watchdog plans to block Amazon's $1.7B purchase of Roomba maker iRobot, according to sources cited by The Wall Street Journal. The move comes after the watchdog released its preliminary findings in November, saying the deal could restrict competition in the robotic vacuum cleaner market. More: - The European Commission, the EU antitrust regulator, reportedly told Amazon representatives on Thursday that the deal would likely be rejected.
- The company reportedly failed to offer remedies to the EU's antitrust concerns before a Jan. 10 deadline.
- A ruling is expected by Feb. 14.
Zoom out: - Amazon announced plans to buy iRobot in 2022 for $61 per share in an all-cash deal, valuing the smart vacuum maker at $1.7B.
- Amazon has argued that iRobot faces "intense" market competition, and the company could invest in the Roomba maker to cut prices.
- U.K. authorities approved the deal earlier this year, while the U.S. Federal Trade Commission is still investigating.
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| 3 | | As many as 100,000 children experience sexual harassment on Facebook and Instagram on a daily basis, as revealed in an unredacted filing in a lawsuit against Meta Platforms. The lawsuit, brought by New Mexico's Attorney General, claims Meta's social networks have become a "breeding ground" for child predators. More: - Newly unredacted portions of the complaint reveal reveal numerous allegations against the company from Meta employees' presentations and staff communications.
- For example, during a 2020 internal Meta company chat, one employee asked a colleague about what actions Meta was taking to prevent child grooming.
- "Somewhere between zero and negligible," the colleague responded. "Child safety is an explicit non-goal this half."
- Also in 2020, an Apple executive alerted Meta that their 2-year-old child was solicited via IG Direct, Instagram's messaging product.
- In response, a Meta employee told colleagues, "This is the kind of thing that pisses Apple off to the extent of threatening to remove us from the App store."
Zoom out: - The New Mexico AG's lawsuit accuses Meta of not protecting underage users from online predators and failing to follow safety recommendations.
- Meta spokesperson said the company has already resolved many issues in the complaint, including disabling of over half a million accounts for child safety policy violations in a single month.
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| 4 | | Apple has pledged to open up its contactless payment technology to outside app developers, allowing it to avoid antitrust fines in the EU. Apple plans to open up its payments chip to other mobile wallet providers, giving them access to its closely guarded near-field communication (NFC) technology, which powers tap-and-go payments within the Apple Pay system. More: - The European Commission has accused Apple of restricting access to its NFC technology, preventing rivals from offering alternative payment options to compete with the Apple Pay and Wallet apps.
- Apple has now proposed a 10-year plan to open up the technology to third-party developers, allowing them to offer NFC contactless payments from within their own iOS apps.
- The tech giant would grant third parties access to the NFC functionality through APIs without fees, including access to payment information security technology.
- The EU is now seeking feedback from "all interested parties" on the matter. If the proposal addresses the concerns, it would become legally binding.
Zoom out: - If Apple doesn't open up the technology, it faces a fine of up to 10% of its global revenue, potentially tallying billions of dollars.
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| 5 | | Amazon is expected to offer a paid version of Alexa featuring more powerful generative AI capabilities, Business Insider reports. "Alexa Plus" currently has a launch date of June 30. The current Alexa will remain unchanged and free. More: - Amazon first announced Alexa's rework last September, with over 15,000 users testing the technology under the code name "Remarkable Alexa."
- According to reports, generative AI will give Alexa a more engaging and informative personality rather than the more "clinical" responses it's known for.
- Amazon says the AI upgrade turns Alexa into a more conversational companion that can keep context, fetch real-time information, and handle multiple requests from a single command.
- However, Business Insider interviewed employees, who claimed that the new Alexa often provides lengthy and inaccurate answers, and struggles with complex, multi-service requests.
- Amazon will likely charge a monthly fee for Alexa Plus, providing the company with a revenue stream to compensate for the billions of dollars it has lost on the voice assistant.
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| 6 | | Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg shared an update on the company's AI initiatives, saying that the long-term goal is to build and open-source artificial general intelligence. Meta is also restructuring its AI efforts, bringing its Fundamental AI Research (FAIR) unit "closer together" with the GenAI research team to advance AI toward more human-like intelligence, he said. More: - In the video, Zuckerberg said it's now clear that building full general intelligence will be necessary for the next generation of AI products and services.
- The company has begun training Llama 3, its next-generation large language model, which is expected to have code-generating capabilities.
- Meta's plans for AI will also require it to build a "massive compute infrastructure," Zuckerberg said.
- Highlighting Meta's investments in AI, he said that the company expects to end this year with 350,000 Nvidia H100 GPUs.
- These graphics cards used for AI training and inference reportedly cost around $30,000 apiece, amounting to billions of dollars.
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 | AI and technology writer | | Beth is a contributing editor and writer of Inside's AI and Tech newsletters. She has written for notable publications like USA Today and the Arizona Business Gazette. During her time as a public policy reporter at The Arizona Republic, she received recognition with a Pulitzer Prize nomination and a First Amendment Award for her collaborative reporting on pension cost increases. Beth also authored a book on the solar photovoltaic industry in 2016. You can reach her at Beth.Duckett@yahoo.com. | | This newsletter was edited by Eduardo Garcia | |
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