Sometime Thursday night, timelines stopped updating for a number of users on X, the social network owned by billionaire Elon Musk. Many users report that their notifications stopped working yesterday, meaning they aren’t being alerted to new posts by the people they follow on X. This reporter is experiencing the issue, as well. My X…
Category: X
Astro Teller, Disrupt, Disrupt 2025, Global IT News, Global Security News, Startups, TC, TechCrunch Disrupt 2025, X
Astro Teller is joining us at TechCrunch Disrupt 2025 in October
We are thrilled to announce that Astro Teller, the head honcho of Alphabet’s “moonshot factory,” X, will be joining us as a featured speaker at TechCrunch Disrupt 2025, happening from October 27-29 at Moscone West in San Francisco. The whole affair promises to be fun-filled and rife with intel and insights that you won’t want…
AI, Global Security News, Social, social media, X
A year after Elon Musk’s takeover, UK revenues for X plummeted
X has not been fairing well in the U.K., previously a major source of revenue for the social network prior to Elon Musk’s arrival. Still named Twitter UK Ltd, revenues and profits for X’s UK entity collapsed by over 60% in the year after Musk took it over and changed its moderation controls, according to…
AI, Global Security News, Meta, openai, Social, Social networks, Twitter, X
OpenAI is reportedly developing its own X-like social media platform
OpenAI is building its own X-like social media network, according to a new report from The Verge. The project is still in the early stages, but there’s an internal prototype focused on ChatGPT’s image generation that contains a social feed. The report states that it’s unknown if OpenAI plans to launch the social network as a…
AI, Elon Musk, Global Security News, Grok, Social, X, xAI
The xAI–X merger is a good deal — if you’re betting on Musk’s empire
When Elon Musk announced that his AI startup, xAI, had acquired his social media company, X (formerly known as Twitter), in an all-stock deal, it raised some eyebrows. But in many ways, the deal made sense. xAI’s chatbot, Grok, was already deeply integrated with X, X was floundering financially, and Musk needed a way to…
AI, Elon Musk, Europe, GDPR, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Grok, Social, X, xAI
Ireland’s data regulator investigates X’s use of European user data to train Grok
Ireland’s data regulator, the Data Protection Commission (DPC), said Friday that it has opened an investigation into Elon Musk’s X over the social media platform’s use of personal data collected from European users to train Grok. The DPC will investigate how X processes personal data “comprised” in publicly accessible posts by European users for the…
Apps, Bluesky, Global Security News, open social, Social, social media, Social networks, TC, X
Bluesky’s latest update adds chat reactions and an Explore page, similar to X
Social network Bluesky is rolling out a new version of its software, which adopts some of the features former X users have missed. Nope, it’s not an edit button! Instead, the open social network is adding support for chat reactions in its direct messages feature and is revamping its search page as “Explore,” directing users…
Apps, Bluesky, Global Security News, open social, Social, social media, Social networks, TC, X
Bluesky’s latest update adds chat reactions and an Explore page, similar to X
Social network Bluesky is rolling out a new version of its software, which adopts some of the features former X users have missed. Nope, it’s not an edit button! Instead, the open social network is adding support for chat reactions in its direct messages feature and is revamping its search page as “Explore,” directing users…
Apps, Bluesky, Global Security News, open social, Social, social media, Social networks, TC, X
Bluesky’s latest update adds chat reactions and an Explore page, similar to X
Social network Bluesky is rolling out a new version of its software, which adopts some of the features former X users have missed. Nope, it’s not an edit button! Instead, the open social network is adding support for chat reactions in its direct messages feature and is revamping its search page as “Explore,” directing users…
Apps, Global IT News, Global Security News, Social, Threads, X
Threads is testing a feature that lets you follow the same creators you follow on X
Meta is starting to test a new feature in Threads that lets users follow the same creators they follow on X, the company confirmed to TechCrunch. “We’re currently testing a way for you to find and follow creators from other platforms on Threads, making it easier to connect with the people and conversations that matter…
AI, Global IT News, Global Security News, Grok, India, X, xAI
X users treating Grok like a fact-checker spark concerns over misinformation
Some users on X are turning to Grok for fact-checking, raising concerns among fact-checkers. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.
Apps, Elon Musk, Fundraising, Global IT News, Global Security News, Social, Twitter, X
Elon Musk’s X reportedly bounces back to $44B valuation
Social media site X’s valuation has bounced back to $44 billion, according to a new report from the Financial Times. Elon Musk purchased the platform, formerly known as Twitter, for $44 billion back in 2022. However, a report from Bloomberg states that X has raised close to $1 billion from investors in a deal that…
Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Rumman Chowdhury, SXSW, X
Ex-Twitter AI ethics lead Rumman Chowdhury is worried about Musk’s impact on the federal government
Rumman Chowdhury, a data scientist, nonprofit founder, and former director of Twitter’s machine ethics team, had strong words for Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) during an SXSW panel on Thursday. “When your funding is frozen and you don’t know if you’re gonna be fired, and there’s this, like, absolutely unhinged person…
Application Security, Cloud Security, Cloudflare DDoS Protection, cyber attacks during ukraine war, cyber attacks russia, Cybersecurity, Dark Storm Team, DDoS, DDoS attack, Denial of Service, Denial of Service (DoS) attacks, denial of service attacks, denial of service vulnerability, DevOps, DevSecOps, distributed denial of service, Distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks, distributed denial of service attack, Editorial Calendar, Elon Musk, elon musk twitter, Featured, Global Security News, Governance, Risk & Compliance, hacktivism ukraine cyber-attacks, Humor, Incident Response, Industry Spotlight, IoT, IoT & ICS Security, malware, Most Read This Week, Network Security, News, Popular Post, Russia, Russia-Ukraine, russia-ukraine conflict, Russia's War on Ukraine, SB Blogwatch, Security Awareness, Security Boulevard (Original), Social - Facebook, Social - LinkedIn, Social - X, Social Engineering, social media, Social Media Attack, social media attacks, social media cyber attacks, Social Media Cybercrime, Social Media Exploits, Spotlight, Threats & Breaches, Ukraine, ukraine conflict, Ukraine Cyber War, Ukraine-Russia War, Ukraine/European Security, vulnerabilities, X
No, Elon — X DDoS was NOT by Ukraine
X marks the botnet: Outage outrage was a Ukrainian cyberattack, implies our favorite African billionaire comedy villain. The post No, Elon — X DDoS was NOT by Ukraine appeared first on Security Boulevard.
Check Point, Cybercrime, Cybersecurity, Dark Storm, DDoS, Elon Musk, F5, Global Security News, Threats, Twitter, X
X suffered a DDoS attack. Its CEO and security researchers can’t agree on who did it.
Social media service X was hit by a series of distributed denial-of-service attacks Monday, which rendered the platform formerly known as Twitter inaccessible at times for users with intermittent outages and errors, according to researchers. The cause of those attacks has been much harder to discern. Elon Musk, the site’s owner, described the incident as…
Global IT News, Global Security News, Outage, Social, X
Elon Musk says X is down due to cyberattacks
Elon Musk’s X was inaccessible on Monday morning for thousands of users, including many in the U.S. After about eight hours of outages, Musk posted that the platform is facing a “massive cyberattack.” “There was (still is) a massive cyberattack against 𝕏. We get attacked every day, but this was done with a lot of…
Global IT News, Global Security News, Outage, Social, X
X is experiencing outages on Monday morning
Elon Musk’s X was inaccessible on Monday morning for thousands of users, including many in the U.S. According to Downdetector, a website that tracks users’ reports of online outages, X went down for some users around 5:30 AM ET, with over 20,000 users reporting outages. Though these outages seemed to have resolved after about an…
communities, Global IT News, Global Security News, Social, social media, social networking, Twitter, X
X updates Communities with new filters, sorting options, and a way to see your own posts
X is bringing more attention to Communities, a feature that allows X users to connect and engage in discussions around a given topic, similar to how it’s done on Reddit. Today, tabs to access popular Communities are pinned to the top of the app’s homepage alongside your For You feed and other Lists. Now, you’ll…
doge, Elon Musk, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, privacy, signal, Social, X
X is blocking links to Signal, a secure messaging platform used by federal workers
Elon Musk’s X (formerly Twitter) is blocking links to Signal.me, a URL shortener used by the private messaging app Signal that allows users to send out a link that’s used to contact them directly through the service. The blocks, which impact direct messages, public posts, and profile pages, were first spotted by the blog Disruptionist. …
doge, Elon Musk, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government, Government & Policy, TC, X
DOGE staffer steps down after racist posts emerge
A 25-year-old Doge staffer resigned over racist posts on X. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.
Elon Musk, Global Security News, linda yaccarino, Social, X
X expands lawsuit over advertiser ‘boycott’ to include Lego, Nestlé, Pinterest, and others
X is now suing more advertisers in an antitrust lawsuit focusing on what the company’s CEO Linda Yaccarino has claimed is a “systematic illegal boycott.” The company formerly known as Twitter first filed the lawsuit against the World Federation of Advertisers and its brand safety initiative the Global Alliance of Responsible Media in August 2024.…
Bluesky, evergreens, Global IT News, Global Security News, Mastodon, Social, Twitter, twitter/x, X
How to delete X and move on with your life
As Elon Musk’s X sees a decline in daily active users, some people are deciding to ditch the social network entirely, whether that’s for Bluesky, Mastodon, Threads, or perhaps, better yet, nothing at all. Since the Tesla and SpaceX CEO bought Twitter in 2022, numerous alternatives have cropped up, seeking to ensnare people who are…
Apps, Bluesky, Global IT News, Global Security News, Meta, Social, Threads, Twitter, X
Threads adds a ‘media’ tab and the ability to tag people in photos
Meta’s newer social network Threads announced on Thursday that it’s introducing a dedicated “media” tab for both photos and videos, only days after its rivals, including X (formerly Twitter) and the startup Bluesky, did the same for videos. In addition, Meta will also now allow users to tag people in the photos they share. Instagram…
AI, chatbot, Elon Musk, Global IT News, Global Security News, grok 3, X, xAI
Grok 3 seemingly went live for some users
The next flagship AI model from Elon Musk’s AI company, xAI, might be nearing release. Over the weekend, several users on X, including reverse engineer Alexey Shabanov, reported gaining access to Grok 3, the successor to xAI’s current model, Grok 2, via X’s Grok chatbot app. Before their access was revoked, the users say that…
Exclusive, Global IT News, Global Security News, short video, Social, X
X expands its vertical video feed to global users
X has started expanding its dedicated vertical video feed to users outside the U.S., TechCrunch has exclusively learned and confirmed with the company. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.
Enterprise, Europe, european union, Global Security News, Google, Government & Policy, LinkedIn, Meta, Microsoft, Social, TikTok, X
The EU wants to talk to US tech companies ahead of Germany’s upcoming election
The European Union will give tech and social media companies a “stress test” to see how they handle misinformation ahead of Germany’s election next month. European Commission officials have invited tech companies, including: X, Meta, Snap, TikTok, Google, Microsoft, and LinkedIn, to a meeting on January 31, according to multiple news outlets. During this meeting,…
Apps, Global Security News, revenue, Social, twitter/x, X
X sees a jump in consumer spending on mobile, despite decline in daily active users
Social network X has grown its in-app revenue over the past year, despite a decline in active users, new data shows. Global consumer spending in the X mobile app across both iOS and Android has climbed by 76.3% year-over-year, when comparing two similar periods in January, according to data from app intelligence firm Appfigures. However,…
Europe, Germany, Global Security News, Government & Policy, In Brief, Social, Twitter, X
Europe orders Elon Musk’s X to submit documents on its recommendation algorithms
The European Commission (EC) says it has requested information from Elon Musk’s X related to the algorithms that determine the content it recommends to users. The EC wants to determine how those algorithms may or may not be compliant with the Digital Services Act (DSA), which imposes key obligations on online platforms operating across the…
AI, chatbot, Elon Musk, Global IT News, Global Security News, Grok, musk, Social, social media, unhinged model, X
Grok may soon get an ‘Unhinged Mode’
Last April, Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of X, teased a mysterious “Unhinged Mode” for X’s AI-powered chatbot, Grok. Nearly a year later, xAI, the Musk-owned company behind Grok, has updated an FAQ page on its website that sheds light on the new mode. Grok in Unhinged Mode will provide responses “intended to be objectionable,…
BMW, CES, Global IT News, Global Security News, Hardware, honda, linda yaccarino, X
CES 2025 Day 1: Honda, BMW, X’s victory lap, and the first show floor gadget reveals
CES 2025 is officially underway in Las Vegas. Monday’s press day saw keynotes from Samsung, Nvidia, Toyota, and Sony, among others, while Tuesday was all about the exciting new gadgets on the show floor. TechCrunch reporters are on the ground giving you the latest reveals at the conference. Below, you’ll find a list of the…
Global IT News, Global Security News, journalism, Media & Entertainment, News, Social, TC, X
X hires former WSJ editor and bureau chief to lead news group
X, formerly Twitter, wants to make its platform a home to the future and news and journalism. On that front, the company has now hired John Stoll, a former editor and Detroit bureau chief at The Wall Street Journal to lead its news group and partnership team at X. The hiring news was announced on…
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…
Apps, Bluesky, Global IT News, Global Security News, Social, social apps, social media, social networking, Startups, Threads, Twitter, X
Bluesky bump from X exodus is slowing down, data shows
Social network and X competitor Bluesky’s massive growth slowed in December in the U.S., after having surged from 9+ million in September to north of 20 million users in November. The slowdown is based on an analysis of web traffic and mobile app daily active users by analytics firm Similarweb, which found that Bluesky grew…
Elon Musk, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Social, TC, Twitter, X
Elon Musk’s pro-Trump critics claim they’re being censored on X
Conservative activists claim X is censoring them for being critical of its owner, Elon Musk. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.
AI, generative ai, Global IT News, Global Security News, Grok, grok-2, Social, X, xAI
X gains a faster Grok model and a new ‘Grok button’
XAI, Elon Musk’s AI company, may be embroiled in an escalating lawsuit with OpenAI. But that’s not stopping it from shipping new products — on a Friday night, no less. This evening, xAI revealed that it has begun to roll out an upgraded version of its flagship Grok 2 chatbot model to all users on…