Techmeme
October 12, 2023, 8:45 PM

Top News

Javier Espinoza / Financial Times:
The EU opens an investigation into X over hosting disinformation tied to Hamas' Israel attack and sends X a formal request for information under the DSA  —  Investigation is the first under the bloc's Digital Services Act and comes after letter to Musk raising concerns
Reuters:
In a letter to Thierry Breton, X CEO Linda Yaccarino says X has removed hundreds of Hamas-linked accounts, labeled tens of thousands of posts, and more  —  The X social media platform has removed hundreds of Hamas-affiliated accounts and taken action to remove or label tens of thousands …
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
Google updates its Search Generative Experience with the ability to generate images using prompts and to write drafts that can be customized for tone and length  —  Google's AI-powered search feature, SGE (Search Generative Experience), is gaining some new skills, starting today.
Lucas Shaw / Bloomberg:
Netflix plans to open Netflix House, permanent stores where fans can buy clothes, eat themed food, and try live experiences, starting with two US venues in 2025  —  - Its first permanent retail sites will be named ‘Netflix House’  — Initial locations in US will be followed by global expansion
Sarah Wynn / The Block:
The CFTC charges Voyager Digital co-founder Stephen Ehrlich with fraud, saying he and Voyager lied to clients and hid the crypto lender's true financial health  —  - Stephen Ehrlich and the firm the co-founded, Voyager Digital, lied to customers and hid the crypto lender's true financial health, according to the CFTC.
Ben Schoon / 9to5Google:
Threads rolls out voice posts and a free edit button that lets users edit a post repeatedly within five minutes of sending; Threads doesn't show an edit history  —  Meta's Twitter competitor, Threads, is now rolling out one of its most-requested features - an edit button.
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
Blake Brittain / Reuters:
Google vows to defend users of generative AI tools in Google Cloud and Workspace from copyright claims; Microsoft, Adobe, and others have made similar pledges  —  Google (GOOGL.O) said on Thursday that it will defend users of generative artificial-intelligence systems in its Google Cloud …
New York Times:
SBF's trial: the personal dynamics between him and his friends have become a vital component of the case, revealing how much his inner circle has turned on him  —  The FTX founder's criminal trial has made clear just how much his inner circle has turned against him.
Zack Abrams / The Block:
Jacquelyn Melinek / TechCrunch:
Akash Sriram / Reuters:
Atlassian plans to acquire video messaging platform Loom for ~$975M, split as ~$880M in cash and the rest in stock, set to close in Q1 2024; Loom has 25M+ users  —  Atlassian (TEAM.O) said on Thursday it had agreed to acquire privately held video messaging platform Loom for about $975 million …
Andy Greenberg / Wired:
Elliptic: the FTX hackers who stole $415M to $432M in crypto in November 2022 used Russia-linked money launderers in October 2023 after moving the funds in 2022  —  Whoever looted FTX on the day of its bankruptcy has now moved the stolen money through a long string of intermediaries—and eventually some that look Russian in origin.
Michael Kan / PCMag:
SpaceX plans to offer its Starlink Direct to Cell service to LTE phones, starting with texting in 2024, and adding voice, data, and IoT device support in 2025  —  The site reveals SpaceX is targeting next year to launch the service to power satellite-based text messaging.
Amir Efrati / The Information:
Sources: Sam Altman told staff that OpenAI is generating revenue at a $1.3B/year pace, implying the company now generates $100M+/month, up 30% in three months  —  ChatGPT maker OpenAI is generating revenue at a pace of $1.3 billion a year, CEO Sam Altman told staff this week, according to several people with knowledge of the matter.
Ian King / Bloomberg:
Filing: Qualcomm plans to cut 1,258 jobs in California, including 750+ from its engineering ranks, starting in mid-December 2023; the company has ~50,000 staff  —  - Workforce reductions to come in mid-December chipmaker says  — Company not commenting on any actions outside of California
Noema:
Today's most advanced LLMs have many flaws, but decades from now, they will be recognized as the first true examples of artificial general intelligence  —  Today's most advanced AI models have many flaws, but decades from now, they will be recognized as the first true examples of artificial general intelligence.
Alex Konrad / Forbes:
Over 220 VC firms, including Bain, Bessemer, and GGV, sign a statement supporting Israel and call for the investor community to support Israel's tech ecosystem  —  The open letter published on Thursday is the latest effort by startup investors to provide support for the state of Israel and its tech community, with 221 firms signed on.

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Earlier Picks

Yoolim Lee / Bloomberg:
BBC:
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Kif Leswing / CNBC:
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
Caitlin Huston / Hollywood Reporter: