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| Here's a look at today's Tech briefing: - Apple will host its "Scary Fast" product launch event today.
- Biden signed an executive order covering AI.
- Meta will offer ad-free Instagram and Facebook in Europe.
Thanks for reading, Beth
p/beth-duckett | |
| 1 | | Apple is expected to announce new Macs and M3 chips during its "Scary Fast" event today. The product launch will be streamed starting at 5 p.m. PT/8 p.m. ET on Apple's website and YouTube. More: - Reports speculate that Apple will reveal a new 24-inch iMac and an updated MacBook Pro refresh powered by the company's new M3 and M3 Pro chips.
- Upgrading to M3 will improve overall performance, especially GPU, and will support more RAM.
- While still early, 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models could also see an update with the M3 Pro and the M3 Max.
- Apple also plans to replace the Lightning port with USB-C in various Mac accessories, such as the Magic Mouse, Magic Trackpad, and Magic Keyboard.
Zoom out: - Apple has also confirmed that it will release its Q4 fiscal 2023 results this Thursday, Nov. 2.
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| 2 | | U.S. President Biden issued an executive order today designed to improve the safety of artifical intelligence technologies. The order wll require certain AI companies, like Microsoft and Google, to share safety test results of their AI models with the federal government. More: - The order also directs the U.S. Commerce Department to device guidance for AI watermarking, or embedding digital markers into AI models or datasets to identify their outputs.
- It establishes a cybersecurity program to develop AI tools for identifying flaws in critical software.
- Through the order, the government will offer guidance to landlords and federal contractors about how to stop AI algorithms from worsening discrimination.
- The Department of Health and Human Services was directed to look into potentially harmful AI-related healthcare practices and provide resources for responsible AI use in education.
- It also expands AI research grants in areas like climate change and updates criteria for skilled immigrant workers to stay in the U.S.
- A full list of the actions is available here.
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| 3 | | Meta plans to offer paid ad-free subscriptions for Facebook and Instagram in Europe starting next month. EU privacy regulators have pushed Meta to seek explicit user consent for targeted ads. In response, the company said it would charge users who opt out, which will help it offset losses from its European revenue. 
Details: Residents of the EU, EEA, and Switzerland will be able to sign up for ad-free access to both platforms for €10 ($10.61) per month via the web or €13 ($13.79) through iOS and Android apps. Beginning March 1, users must pay an additional €6 on the web and €8 more on iOS and Android for each linked ad-free account. Zoom out: The move will allow Meta to comply with "evolving European regulations" that require user consent to serve targeted ads. People can still use Facebook and Instagram for free with ads in their feeds. To further comply, Meta will also temporarily halt ads for users under 18 in regions where the ad-free subscription is offered. | | | |
| 4 | Broadcom and VMware said their $61B merger is still on track to close by late November, despite a lingering Chinese regulatory review. Chipmaker Broadcom announced the deal last year to acquire cloud and virtualization tech developer VMware for the equivalent of $61B in cash and stock, making it one the largest tech deals of all time. More: - The companies previously said that they expected to close by today, Oct. 30.
- However, China has yet to sign off on the deal. Reports speculated that Beijing could choose to delay its decision, effectively causing the merger to fail.
- The deal expires on Nov. 26. If not completed by then, Broadcom will be liable for a $1.5B termination fee as per the agreement.
- Broadcom previously cleared regulatory scrutiny in the U.S., the U.K., and the EU.
Zoom out: - Broadcom previously purchased CA Technologies for $18.9B in 2018 and Symantec's security business for $10.7B in 2019.
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| 5 | | Former Wikimedia Foundation head Katherine Maher was appointed as the new CEO of Web Summit, Europe's largest tech conference. Maher takes over from co-founder Paddy Cosgrave, who stepped down earlier this month after making controversial posts on social media about the Israel-Hamas war. More: - In the comments, Cosgrave criticized Israel's actions in Gaza, prompting companies like Google, Meta, and Intel to withdraw from the tech conference.
- His replacement, Maher, was executive director of the Wikimedia Foundation, the nonprofit that runs Wikipedia, from March 2016 through April 2021. She also served as its CEO for two years.
- Cosgrave still retains majority ownership of Web Summit's parent company. However, his co-founders have privately urged board directors to push for Cosgrave to sell his shares, saying his ownership places the business at risk.
Zoom out: - Entrepreneur Damian Kimmelman, a co-founder of Batelle, has also been appointed as a non-executive board member of Web Summit
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| 6 | | Google plans to invest as much as $2B in generative AI startup Anthropic, according to a Friday report by the Wall Street Journal. Sources familiar with the operation said that Google has invested $500M upfront in Anthropic, known for its Claude chatbot, and pledged another $1.5B over time. More: - Google invested around $300M-$400M in the startup in February.
- Anthropic later announced that Google Cloud would be the startup's preferred cloud provider.
- In May, Anthropic secured a $450M Series C round led by Spark Capital, followed by $100M from SK Telecom in August.
Zoom out: - Google's latest funding comes a month after Amazon pledged up to $4B in Anthropic, an AI startup founded by former OpenAI staffers, siblings Dario and Daniela Amodei.
- Amazon's initial investment will be $1.25B, with the chance for an additional $2.75B.
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| 7 | | 
Community Corner Last week, we asked our tech community, "What's one tool or app that has significantly made your life easier at work?" Here are some highlighted responses we received: - John Seeder (p/john-seeder) answered: "Definitely sharing documents between my team and clients has really helped a smooth onboarding process and communication. The only thing that can be difficult is having enough cloud storage so there are definitely tradeoffs. I used Notion for a bit but unless your business needs a large wiki for what you are doing I didn't really find it worth the price."
- James Spurway (p/james-spurway) answered with Read AI: "AI-generated summaries, transcripts, playback, and highlights to make your meetings more efficient and effective. I now don't need to take notes during the 10-15 calls I do each day. Besides the full transcription and the summary, it also provides things like a list of deliverables/commitments that people made during the call, and gives you feedback (% out of 100) on the level of engagement of the people on the call, allowing the host/presenter to adjust their content or delivery to achieve better results. I know that Zoom now has an AI assistant, but comparing it to the power/scope of Read and others, it's like comparing the skills of a pre-schooler to a PhD student."
Join the conversations at Inside.com, and we may shout out your name and business or contact you for more! ⭐️ | | | |
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 | AI and technology writer | | Beth is an editor and writer of Inside's AI and Tech newsletters, with a career spanning journalism since 2007. She has written for publications including The Arizona Republic and USA Today and authored a book on the solar industry in 2016. Reach her at Beth.Duckett@yahoo.com. | | This newsletter was edited by Eduardo Garcia | |
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