The Latest About Social Media
Elon Musk’s X Sues New York, Escalating Free Speech War Over Hate Speech Law
Elon Musk's X Corp. has filed a federal lawsuit against New York, challenging the state's 'Stop Hiding Hate Act' as a violation of the First Amendment, escalating a global battle over free speech, content moderation, and government regulation of social media platforms.
Meta Announces All Facebook Videos Will Become Reels
Meta has announced a major strategic shift for Facebook, consolidating all video uploads into the Reels format to streamline creation and better compete with rivals.
Threads Launches Fediverse Feed, Sparking Strategic Debate
Meta's Threads now features a dedicated fediverse feed and user search, transforming it into a powerful reader for the open social web.
xAI’s New $9.3B Debt Gamble: Elon Musk’s Urgent Push for AI Dominance
Elon Musk's xAI is aiming to raisE a staggering $9.3 billion in a high-stakes gamble to fund its 'Colossus' supercomputer and push its controversial Grok AI into the enterprise market, challenging industry giants.
Meta Launches New Advantage+ AI Advertising Tools at Cannes Festival, Meeting Industry Skepticism
Meta's new generative AI tools for its Advantage+ platform signal a deeper push into full ad automation, a vision met with skepticism over past performance and brand safety concerns.
Users Report Mass Instagram Bans, Blame Flawed AI Moderation
Instagram faces a growing user backlash as its AI moderation system triggers a wave of mistaken account bans, impacting personal users and businesses while Meta remains silent on the escalating crisis.
WhatsApp Ads Arrive as Meta Breaks Another Zuckerberg Promise
In a major reversal of a decade-old promise, Meta is introducing ads and paid subscriptions to WhatsApp, signaling a new strategy to monetize its 2 billion users by integrating commercial features directly into the app's Status and Channels tabs.
Reddit’s AI Paradox: A Top Google Source in AI Overviews, But Facing a Traffic...
Reddit has become a top-cited source for Google's AI Overviews, a success that validates its data licensing strategy but also threatens to reduce vital user traffic, creating a high-stakes paradox for the company's future.
Meta’s AI App ‘Discover’ Feed Publicly Exposes Private Chats Without Users Knowing
Meta's AI app is publicly broadcasting sensitive user chats via its 'Discover' feed, creating a major privacy crisis that has sparked legal challenges and widespread backlash from privacy advocates.
Meta Invests $14B in Scale AI Deal in a High-Stakes Bid for AI Supremacy,...
Meta is investing $14B for a 49% stake in Scale AI, installing its founder in a new 'superintelligence' lab to combat a talent exodus and secure its AI future amid growing controversy over the partnership's military ties.
Google vs. Publishers: German Media Demands €1.3 Billion for AI Overviews
As Google's AI Overviews cause publisher traffic to collapse, a new German study puts a €1.3 billion price tag on the use of journalistic content, escalating a global copyright battle that could reshape the future of news.
Meta’s AI Video Editor Arrives Amidst Data Harvesting Concerns
Meta has launched a new generative AI video editing tool across its apps, offering fun, creative presets.
Meta and Yandex Caught Covertly Tracking Android Web Browsing Activity
Researchers have revealed a covert tracking method on Android used by Meta and Yandex to link private web browsing directly to user profiles. The disclosure has prompted a sharp rebuke from Google and a race by browser vendors to patch the major privacy vulnerability.
Meta Unveils Aria Gen 2 Experimental Smart Glasses for Researchers
Meta's Aria Gen 2 experimental smart glasses, a research-only platform with advanced sensors & AI, aims to accelerate breakthroughs in machine perception and shape future AR/MR.
Anthropic Sued by Reddit for Unauthorized Use of AI Training Data
Reddit has filed a lawsuit against AI startup Anthropic, accusing it of unlawfully scraping user-generated content to train its AI models without a licensing agreement, escalating the conflict over data rights and ethical AI development in the tech industry.
Elon Musk’s xAI Seeks $5 Billion in Debt for AI Supercomputer Growth
Elon Musk's xAI pursues a $5.3B funding round, with a $5B debt package via Morgan Stanle, to fuel further AI development and expansion of its "Colossus" supercomputer.
Meta Targets Full AI Ad Automation by 2026
Meta Platforms reportedly aims to fully automate ad creation and targeting using AI by the end of 2026, a move that could reshape digital advertising but faces industry skepticism and technical hurdles.
Elon Musk’s X Enhances DMs with New Encrypted XChat, Audio/Video Calls
Elon Musk has announced XChat, a new encrypted direct messaging service for X, bringing so-called 'Bitcoin-style' encryption, vanishing messages, file sharing, and calls to users as he pushes X towards an 'everything app'.
AI Now Dominates Meta’s Product Risk Evaluation Reviews
Meta plans for AI to handle up to 90% of its product risk and privacy reviews for apps like Instagram and WhatsApp, aiming for faster updates but sparking expert concerns over potential safety and oversight compromises.
Meta Says it Halved Takedown Errors After Moderation-Policy Shift
Meta's Q1 2025 Transparency Report indicates its new 'free expression' focused content moderation policies have halved U.S. enforcement errors, while most violating content prevalence remains stable amidst ongoing platform governance debates.
Telegram & xAI Announce $300M Grok AI Deal Deal
Telegram and Elon Musk's xAI have announced a major one-year partnership, integrating the Grok AI chatbot into the messaging app with a $300 million investment, set to bring advanced AI capabilities to over a billion users this summer.
Meta’s Future Hinges on Judge’s Antitrust Ruling Post-Trial, Instagram WhatsApp Divestiture Looms
The landmark FTC antitrust trial against Meta Platforms has concluded, with Judge James E. Boasberg now set to determine if acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp constituted illegal monopolization, potentially leading to their divestiture.
Meta Shakes up AI Division, Forms AGI Foundations and AI Product Teams
Meta has restructured its AI division, forming new AI Products and AGI Foundations teams to accelerate innovation and better compete with rivals like OpenAI and Google, amidst ongoing talent migration and other industry challenges.
Judge Boasberg Denies Meta’s Early Exit in FTC Monopoly Showdown
Meta Platforms has concluded its defense in the significant FTC antitrust trial, arguing its acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp fostered innovation and benefited users, countering claims of illegal monopoly in social networking as closing arguments approach.
Meta Asks Judge to End FTC Antitrust Trial Early For Lack of Monopoly Evidence
Meta Platforms has asked a judge to dismiss the FTC's antitrust case mid-trial, claiming no proof of monopoly via Instagram/WhatsApp buys; a pivotal moment for the tech giant's future and potential divestiture.
Privacy Group noyb Targets Meta’s AI Data Practices in Europe, Issues Ultimatum Over GDPR...
European privacy group noyb has issued Meta a cease & desist over EU AI data use, demanding GDPR opt-in consent and threatening significant legal action including multi-billion Euro fines.
Meta’s Threads Now Shows Why Your Posts Get Demoted
Meta has enhanced its Threads platform with a new "Account Status" feature, providing users with crucial transparency on post removals, content demotions, and other account penalties, including a direct appeals process.
Meta Explores Stablecoin Payout Option for Content Creators 3 Years After Libra/Diem Failure
Meta is reportedly holding preliminary talks with crypto firms to explore using stablecoins for payouts, three years after abandoning its Diem project, signaling a potential return amid growing industry adoption.
Reddit Now Mandates Verification, Citing AI Bot Concerns after Controversial Research Study
A controversial AI study has prompted Reddit to introduce new identity checks while reaffirming its commitment to user anonymity and ethical standards.
Facebook Faces Massive Fine For 2019 Data Leak as German Users Join in Collective...
German consumers potentially affected by a massive Facebook data leak dating back several years now have a formal avenue to seek compensation. The country's...
