A Delaware judge has sanctioned Sheryl Sandberg, Meta’s former COO and board member, for allegedly deleting emails related to the Cambridge Analytica privacy scandal. The decision arises from a case Meta shareholders brought against Sandberg and another former Meta board member, Jeff Zients, late last year. The plaintiffs alleged that Sandberg and Zients used personal…
Category: Meta
Global IT News, Global Security News, Hardware, Meta, Oakley, ray-ban meta, SMART Glasses, TC
Meta is building Oakley smart glasses for athletes: report
Meta’s Reality Labs is expanding its lineup of AI smart glasses with a new pair of Oakley-branded spectacles targeted at athletes, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. Bloomberg reports the new smart glasses, with which Meta seeks to capitalize on the Ray-Ban Meta’s success, will be based on Oakley’s Sphaera glasses, and will shift the camera…
Apps, Facebook, Global IT News, Global Security News, Instagram, Meta, Social, WhatsApp
Meta will soon let you link your WhatsApp account with Instagram and Facebook
Meta announced on Tuesday that users will soon be able to add their WhatsApp account to their Accounts Center, a hub where users can manage connected experiences across their Facebook, Instagram, and Meta Quest accounts. With this integration, users will be able to cross-post their WhatsApp Status as Stories on Instagram and Facebook, getting rid…
Facebook, Global Security News, Instagram, Media & Entertainment, Meta, Social
Meta confirms it will keep fact-checkers outside the U.S. ‘for now’
Meta says it plans to keep its fact-checking program in place outside the U.S. for the time being, though it could eventually expand it elsewhere. “We’ll see how that goes as we move it out over the years,” Meta’s head of global business Nicola Mendelsohn told Bloomberg in a report from Davos on Monday. “So…
Apps, Global IT News, Global Security News, Instagram, Meta
Meta announces a new video editing app called Edits amidst TikTok and CapCut ban
Meta today announced a new video editing app called Edits, after ByteDance’s video editing app CapCut was removed from Apple’s App Store and the Google Play Store as part of the TikTok ban. Instagram head Adam Mosseri (pictured above) said on Threads that the app will launch next month on iOS, with an Android version…
Apps, Global IT News, Global Security News, Instagram, Meta, Social, social media, TikTok Ban
Instagram Reels rolls out new features for U.S. users as TikTok is banned
Instagram announced a timely update to its video feature Reels this morning, alongside the news that the Supreme Court upheld the law that will ban TikTok in the U.S. on January 19. The update, says Meta, will make it easier for users to discover the content that friends and followers are liking on the platform…
Apps, Global IT News, Global Security News, Meta, Social, Threads
Threads might let you add music to your posts in the future
Meta’s Threads is internally prototyping the ability to add music to posts, the company confirmed to TechCrunch. The option to add music to posts is already available on Meta’s other social apps, Instagram and Facebook. It looks like the company is now thinking about bringing the feature to Threads, its X competitor. The feature isn’t…
account portability, Apps, federated apps, fediverse, Global IT News, Global Security News, Mastodon, Meta, mobile apps, Social, social apps, social media, social networking, Threads
Instagram Threads won’t share a timeline for account portability
Will Instagram Threads truly integrate with the fediverse, also known as the open social web, to allow its users not only to interact with people on other services like Twitter alternative Mastodon but also to move their account elsewhere if they decide that Meta’s policies are no longer to their liking? Today that answer remains…
AI, ai copyright, generative ai, Global IT News, Global Security News, Llama, Mark Zuckerberg, Meta, TC
In AI copyright case, Zuckerberg turns to YouTube for his defense
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg appears to have used YouTube and its battle to take down pirated content to defend his own company’s use of a data set containing copyrighted e-books to train AI models, newly released snippets of his deposition reveals. The deposition, which was part of a complaint submitted to the court by plaintiffs’…
AI, Climate, data centers, Engie, Enterprise, Facebook, Global IT News, Global Security News, Meta, renewable energy, Solar Power
Meta adds 200 megawatts of solar to its 12 gigawatt renewable portfolio
The news comes as tech companies ramp up their AI ambitions, adding data centers at a breakneck pace and boosting demand for power. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.
AI, ChatGPT, Global IT News, Global Security News, GPT4, Llama, Meta, TC
Meta execs obsessed over beating OpenAI’s GPT-4 internally, court filings reveal
Executives and researchers leading Meta’s AI efforts obsessed over beating OpenAI’s GPT-4 model while developing Llama 3, according to internal messages unsealed by a court on Tuesday in one of the company’s ongoing AI copyright cases, Kadrey v. Meta. “Honestly… Our goal needs to be GPT-4,” said Meta’s VP of Generative AI, Ahmad Al-Dahle, in…
Apps, Global IT News, Global Security News, Layoffs, Mark Zuckerberg, Meta, Social
Meta to cut roughly 5% of its workforce based on performance
Meta is reducing its workforce by about 5% through performance-based terminations, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday. The company plans to hire new people to fill the roles, CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in an internal memo to staff. “I’ve decided to raise the bar on performance management and move out low-performers faster,” Zuckerberg said in the note. “We…
Apps, Camera filters, Global IT News, Global Security News, Meta, stickers, WhatsApp
WhatsApp is adding a way to turn selfies into stickers
WhatsApp is adding new features including creating new stickers from selfies, sharing sticker packs, and adding new camera effects. Stickers and camera effects are good engagement ploys to keep users interacting with their contacts. The chat app added the ability to create custom stickers from photos last year. Now, the company is adding an option…
Celebs, Global IT News, Global Security News, Meghan Markle, Meta, Social
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are slamming Meta over its fact-checking policy
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have joined the ranks of those displeased with Meta’s changes to fact-checking and have released a statement saying that the changes “directly underminds free speech.” “Meta’s changes to its ‘Hateful Content Policies’ do not protect free expression but instead foster an environment where abuse and hate speech silence and threaten…
content moderation, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Instagram, Meta, Social, TC, Threads, Zuckerberg
Mark Zuckerberg defends Meta’s latest pivot in three-hour Joe Rogan interview
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg defended his decision to scale back Meta’s content moderation policies in a Friday appearance on Joe Rogan’s podcast. Zuckerberg faced widespread criticism for the decision, including from employees inside his own company. “Probably depends on who you ask,” said Zuckerberg when asked how Meta’s updates have been received. The key updates…
Apps, Facebook, Global IT News, Global Security News, Instagram, Mark Zuckerberg, Meta, Social, Threads
How to delete Facebook, Instagram, and Threads
In the wake of Meta’s decision to remove its third-party fact-checking system and loosen content moderation policies, Google searches on how to delete Facebook, Instagram, and Threads have been on the rise. People who are angry with the decision accuse Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg of cozying up to the incoming Trump administration at the expense…
DEI, Global IT News, Global Security News, Mark Zuckerberg, Meta, Social
Meta eliminates DEI programs
Axios reports that Meta is eliminating its biggest DEI efforts, effective immediately, including ones that focused on hiring a diverse workforce, training, and sourcing supplies from diverse-owned companies. Its DEI department will also be eliminated. In a memo leaked to the outlet, Meta said it was making these changes because the “legal and policy landscape…
AI, copyright, generative ai, Global IT News, Global Security News, lawsuit, Llama, Meta
Mark Zuckerberg gave Meta’s Llama team the OK to train on copyrighted works, filing claims
Counsel for plaintiffs in a copyright lawsuit filed against Meta allege that Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg gave the green light to the team behind the company’s Llama AI models to use a data set of pirated ebooks and articles for training. The case, Kadrey v. Meta, is one of many against tech giants developing AI…
Ads, bug bounty, bugs, Cybersecurity, Facebook, Global IT News, Global Security News, hacking, infosec, Meta, Security, security vulnerability, vulnerability
Facebook awards researcher $100,000 for finding bug that granted internal access
A security researcher found a bug in a Facebook ad platform, which gave him access to the company’s internal infrastructure. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.
Apps, Facebook, fact checking, Global IT News, Global Security News, Google Search, google trends, Instagram, Mark Zuckerberg, Media & Entertainment, Meta, meta content moderation, Social, social media, Threads, trends
Google searches for deleting Facebook, Instagram explode after Meta ends fact-checking
Google searches for how to cancel and delete Facebook, Instagram, and Threads accounts have seen explosive rises in the U.S. since Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that the company will end its third-party fact-checking system, loosen content moderation policies, and roll back previous limits to the amount of political content in user feeds. Experts see…
Global IT News, Global Security News, Mastodon, Meta, Social, Threads
Mastodon CEO calls Meta’s moderation changes ‘deeply troubling,’ warns users cross-posting from Threads
Mastodon CEO Eugen Rochko has spoken out about the significant moderation changes announced by Meta on Tuesday, which will see the social networking giant removing fact-checking across its apps in favor of a crowdsourced community notes feature, similar to X’s. The Mastodon founder, whose app competes with X and Meta’s X rival, Instagram Threads, called…
Commerce, eBay, Europe, Facebook, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Meta
Facebook Marketplace to display eBay listings to appease EU regulators
Meta is set to start displaying eBay listings in its own Facebook Marketplace classifieds platform, in an effort to appease European regulators. Back in November, Meta was hit with a €798 million fine by the European Commission (EC) in Europe for breaching antitrust rules. The EC contended that Meta created “unfair trading conditions” by connecting…
Apps, Bluesky, Global IT News, Global Security News, Meta, Social, Threads, Twitter, X
Threads prototypes custom display names and cover images for profiles
Instagram Threads is developing new features that would bring its user experience more in line with that of X (formerly Twitter) and the social network Bluesky. The Meta-owned company is internally prototyping the ability to set a display name and add a cover image to profiles. A spokesperson for the company confirmed to TechCrunch on…
Creators, Facebook, Global IT News, Global Security News, Meta, political content, Politics, Social, Threads
Meta to phase back in political content on Facebook, Instagram and Threads
As a part of a significant overhaul of its content moderation policies announced on Tuesday, Meta admitted that its approach to limiting political content across its platforms had been “pretty blunt” and would now be addressed. The company said it would once again phase in political content into Facebook, Instagram, and Threads, allowing people who…
fact checking, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Meta, misinformation, Social
Meta drops fact-checking and loosens its content moderation rules
Meta, the parent of Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp, today announced a major overhaul in how it’s handling content moderation on its site, taking off some of the guardrails that it had put in place over the last several years in response to criticism that it had helped to spread political and health misinformation. In a…
board, board of directors, Europe, Global Security News, Meta, Social
Meta appoints UFC’s president to its board
Meta has appointed three new members to its board of directors, the company announced Monday: UFC president and CEO Dana White, European investment company Exor CEO John Elkann, and tech investor and entrepreneur Charlie Songhurst. In a press release, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said that White, Elkann, and Songhurst “will add a depth of expertise…
Global Security News, Government & Policy, Mark Zuckerberg, Meta, Policy, TC
Meta policy chief Nick Clegg steps down
The President of Meta’s Global Affairs team, Nick Clegg, is stepping down from his position at the company, the executive announced in a tweet on Thursday. Clegg, Meta’s politically centrist policy chief since 2018, will be replaced by one of the company’s most prominent Republican executives, Joel Kaplan. Clegg noted on X that Kaplan is…
california, Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), Global Security News, Mark Zuckerberg, Meta, North America, NSO Group, pegasus, privacy, Spyware, U.S. courts, WhatsApp
Judge grants ruling in favor of WhatsApp against spyware firm NSO Group
A federal judge has dealt the first major legal blow against spyware maker NSO Group, ruling in favor of WhatsApp in a five-year-old lawsuit against the Israeli firm over allegations that it hacked the chat service. Northern California District Court Judge Phyllis Hamilton made her ruling on Friday as a summary judgment, thus not requiring…
Apps, Exclusive, Global IT News, Global Security News, Instagram, Meta, Social
Instagram tests a way to show you Story Highlights you didn’t get a chance to see
Instagram is testing a way for you to see content from friends that you might have missed. The social network has started displaying unseen Story Highlights from a user’s mutual followers at the end of the Stories tray, which is the area at the top of your feed where you see Stories from your friends.…
GitHub, Global IT News, Global Security News, Google, Meta, openai, Social, TechCrunch Week in Review, Week in Review
OpenAI announces new o3 model — but you can’t use it yet
Welcome back to Week in Review. This week, we’re looking at OpenAI’s last — and biggest — announcement from its “12 Days of OpenAI” event; Apple’s potential entrance into the foldable market; and why Databricks is choosing to wait to go public. Let’s get into it. P.S. We’re off for the holidays! Week in Review…
AI, Apps, Artificial Intelligence, Global IT News, Global Security News, Instagram, Meta, Social
Instagram teases AI tools for editing appearances, backgrounds in videos using prompts
Instagram head Adam Mosseri is teasing upcoming generative AI features for the social app that will allow creators to “change nearly any aspect” of their videos using text prompts. The editing tools will be powered by Meta’s Movie Gen AI model, and are expected to launch on the social network sometime next year, Mosseri said…
AI, Artificial Intelligence, chips, Enterprise, Global IT News, Global Security News, Meta, Microsoft, nvidia
Microsoft bought nearly 500,000 Nvidia Hopper chips this year
Microsoft bought more than twice as many Nvidia Hopper chips this year than any of its biggest rivals. The tech giant bought 485,000 Nvidia Hopper chips across 2024 according to reporting from the Financial Times, which cited data from tech consultancy Omdia. To compare, Meta bought 224,000 of the same, flagship Nvidia chip this year.…
Apps, Global IT News, Global Security News, Instagram, Meta, scheduling, Social, Threads
Threads is testing a post scheduling feature
Meta’s social network Threads is experimenting with a feature that will let you schedule posts, Instagram head Adam Mosseri said. Users who will get to test this feature won’t be able to schedule replies. “We want to balance giving people more control to plan their Threads posts while still encouraging real-time conversations,” he said. People…
adam mosseri, Apps, Global IT News, Global Security News, Mark Zuckerberg, Meta, Social, TC, Threads
Mark Zuckerberg says Threads now has 100M daily active users
Meta’s X rival Threads is growing steadily with more than 100 million people using the service daily, the company’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg said Monday. Zuckerberg also noted that Threads now has 300 million monthly active users, up from 275 million monthly active users in November. While Meta has regularly released updated numbers about monthly active…
AI, generative ai, glasses, Global IT News, Global Security News, Hardware, live ai, live translation, Meta, meta ai, multimodal ai, ray-ban meta, Shazam, SMART Glasses
Meta updates its smart glasses with real-time AI video
Meta’s Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses are getting several new AI-powered upgrades, including the ability to have an ongoing conversation and translate between languages. Ray-Ban Meta owners in Meta’s early access program for the U.S. and Canada can now download firmware v11, which adds “live AI.” First unveiled this fall, live AI lets wearers continuously converse…
Apps, evergreens, Global IT News, Global Security News, Instagram, Instagram Threads, Meta, Social, Threads
What is Instagram’s Threads app? All your questions answered
Twitter alternatives — new and old — have found audiences willing to try out a newer social networks since Elon Musk took over the company in 2022. Mastodon, Bluesky, Spill and T2 are some of the social media platforms people are among them. So is Meta’s Threads platform. What is Threads? How do you create…
AI, Elon Musk, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Meta, openai, Startups
Meta asks California AG to block OpenAI’s conversion to for-profit
Facebook’s parent company Meta is supporting Elon Musk’s effort to block OpenAI’s conversion from a non-profit company into a for-profit one. As reported by The Wall Street Journal, Meta sent a letter to California Attorney General Rob Bonta arguing that allowing the shift would have “seismic implications for Silicon Valley.” And while the company asked…
Apps, Global IT News, Global Security News, Meta, video calls, WhatsApp
WhatsApp lets you select specific people within a group to start a group call without disturbing anyone
WhatsApp announced that it had added new video calling features just before the holidays, including participant selection for group video calls, better resolution, and a revamped call tab on the desktop. This is another step from Meta in making WhatsApp a viable option for both personal and work calls instead of using Google Meet or…
AI, deepfakes, generative ai, Global IT News, Global Security News, Media & Entertainment, Meta, meta video seal, open source, watermarking
Meta debuts a tool for watermarking AI-generated videos
Meta is open sourcing a method to watermark AI-generated videos. Called Meta Video Seal, the company says it’s robust against compression and edits. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.
Apps, Global IT News, Global Security News, Instagram, Meta, Social, TikTok, YouTube
Nearly half of US teens are online almost constantly, Pew study finds
Nearly half of teens in the U.S. are online almost constantly, and the platform they’re using the most is YouTube, a new study from the Pew Research Center has found. The center reports that 46% of teens say they’re online “almost constantly,” and 90% of teens it surveyed said they use the Google-owned video platform,…