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☆ Bluesky has 'the juice' — but it still doesn't have the normies
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-19 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

There's a hero we need: Pop Crave. Bluesky has seen explosive growth in the last few weeks — hitting 20 million users. What Bluesky has right now is a ton of new users, mostly of a certain type — the brainiac set. However, there is a Pop Base account — a competitor to Pop Crave. Pop Base confirmed to me that they're on Bluesky — they said they joined in 2022 but only started posting regularly in the last few weeks.

Persons: it's, Bluesky, Elon Musk's, Donald Trump, — brainiacs, Max Read, Sabrina Carpenter stan, —, Olivia Rodrigo Organizations: Twitter, Pop Base Locations: Bushwick, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Forest Hills, Queens

☆ Netflix's Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson fight showed that getting attention is what Jake Paul does best
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-18 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

AdvertisementAround 60 million people watched Jake Paul fight Mike Tyson on Netflix on Friday night. On Friday night, 60 million people watched live on Netflix as Jake Paul beat Mike Tyson in eight rounds of a boxing match. AdvertisementI've underestimated Jake Paul before, and I've learned my lesson. In a way, Paul vs. Tyson was simply the ultimate content "collab." It's unclear where Jake Paul goes from here, or where boxing goes.

Persons: Jake Paul, Mike Tyson, Jake Paul's, Mike wallop Paul, Paul, I'm, I've, Paul hadn't, influencers, Tyson, Beyoncé, they'll Organizations: Netflix, YouTube, Twitter, Facebook

☆ Amazon's new discount section 'Haul' looks like a Temu version of Temu
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-14 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

I've gotta say, sadly: It's the Temu version of Temu. It's Amazon's attempt to compete with cheap e-commerce apps like Temu, Shein, and the TikTok Shop. The Haul section of Amazon's app is now in beta mode. The sweater section on Amazon's Haul section has a familiar aesthetic. But for now, to me, it just feels like a sort of crummy version of Temu.

Persons: —, Ava Max, Lady Gaga, It's, Obama, Shein, China — Organizations: Amazon, Service, Apple, Business Locations: Temu, China, Utah

☆ Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime Video subscribers are hitting 'pause' instead of canceling altogether
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-11 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Streaming video services are seeing more customers hitting "pause," The Wall Street Journal reports. The Journal examined subscription data from analytics firm Antenna to see the pattern of people quitting Netflix, Apple TV+, Disney+, Hulu, Max, Amazon Prime Video, and others. The average rate of U.S. customer cancellations among premium streaming video services reached 5.2% in August, but after factoring in re-subscribers, the rate of defections was lower at 3.5%. Meanwhile, last month, the Federal Trade Commission finalized a "click to cancel" rule that is supposed to make it easier for customers to cancel online subscriptions. In them, he's dancing shirtless to an audio meme to promote his FX show, "English Teacher," which streams on Hulu.

Persons: I'm, —, Brian Jordan Organizations: Street, Hulu —, Service, Netflix, Apple, Max, Amazon Prime, Federal Trade Commission Locations: Hulu

☆ Monsters walk among us — and they're watching Netflix at 1.5x speed.
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-10 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

But for some people, this is the dream: They're watching Netflix at 1.5x speed. What craven need for speed goes on in the dopamine-wrecked frontal cortex of someone who watches stuff at super speed? Netflix's "Love Is Blind" was mentioned several times as an example of something great to speed watch. Our modern, insatiable appetite for video content might mean that we've adapted and stretched our brains to watch faster and faster. As much as I'd like to accuse these speed watchers of being monsters, I have to consider my own preferred method of watching movies: at regular speed, on the big TV — but looking at my phone the entire time.

Persons: —, craven, It's, weren't, I've, Nicholas Quah, incentivized Organizations: Service, Netflix, YouTube Locations: 1.25x

☆ Dear Santa: Please bring me a Skibidi Toilet for Christmas
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-08 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Now in Walmart aisles: a Skibidi Toilet action figure — a $45 mystery toilet bowl. For $44.95, I could be the proud owner of the Skibidi Toilet — complete with toilet-themed toys in the bowl. The Skibidi Toilet is marketed as a "mystery surprise toilet" by Bonkers Toys. AdvertisementThe original Skibidi Toilet was the creation of animator Alexey Gerasimov, who made it for his YouTube channel DaFuq! He said the Skibidi Toilet was outselling LankyBox by around double.

Persons: Bonkers, —, you've, Lindsay Dodgson, Dan Meyer, Meyer, it's, Blake Droesch, Emarketer, Alexey Gerasimov, Gerasimov, Adam Goodman, DreamWorks SKG, Goodman, Logan Paul, KSI, they've Organizations: Service, Walmart, YouTube, Bonkers, DreamWorks, Paramount Pictures Locations: San Diego, discounters, Santa

☆ Mark Zuckerberg played it safe with Donald Trump this election. That strategy worked.
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-06 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Mark Zuckerberg played it safe this election — deemphasizing politics on Meta's platforms. In the elections of 2016 and 2020, Facebook came under intense scrutiny. In 2024, Zuckerberg and Meta played it safe by trying to stay as far away from the election as possible. It was part of the rhetoric from Trump grumbling about the 2020 election outcome. After the assassination attempt on Trump in July, Zuckerberg referred to Trump as looking "badass."

Persons: Mark Zuckerberg, Donald Trump, Zuckerberg, that's, —, Meta, there's, Zuckerberg's, Elon Musk, Trump, he's, — Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos Organizations: Meta, Big Tech, Service, Facebook, Cambridge, Trump, Trump grumbling

☆ Election Day means at least one good thing: No more political text messages!
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-05 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The 2024 election cycle has been a brutal assault on our text message inbox. But whatever that outcome is, one thing will unify both sides: Those awful campaign text messages will finally stop. If you, too, have felt bombarded with political texts, you're not alone. Katie Notopoulos / Business InsiderWhat the political text rules sayThe Federal Trade Commission makes rules around robocalls and robotexts: They're exempt from the federal "Do Not Call" list, but there are other rules they have to follow — political messages sent by an autodialer require "the called party's express consent." But messages sent manually don't require an opt-in, so that's why you get so many messages saying, "Hi, Katie!

Persons: —, There's, I've, Joanna Stern, Katie Notopoulos, Katie, Suzie, it's Organizations: Service, Trump, The Wall Street, Federal Trade Commission Locations: United States, France

☆ Meta's Threads has 275 million users. It sure doesn't feel that way.
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-04 | by ( Peter Kafka | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Snapchat says it averages 850 million monthly users. Meanwhile, Twitter's current owner, Elon Musk, says his service has 600 million monthly users. Back in April, Meta said Threads had 150 million monthly users. Some of them click on Threads posts they see there, and become Threads users that way. Threads doesn't seem like it's ever going to be that, and Meta doesn't seem very interested in trying to make that.

Persons: —, Mark Zuckerberg, Snapchat, Twitter, Elon Musk, Meta, It's, You'll, Katie Notopoulos, Adam Mosseri's Organizations: Service, Twitter, US Securities and Exchange Commission, Meta Locations: Japan, Taiwan, Instagram

☆ Gen Z is just now discovering Trump's 'Grab 'em' comments on TikTok. Don't let that make you feel old.
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-02 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Gen Z is apparently discovering Donald Trump's lewd "Grab 'em" comments that came to light in 2016. AdvertisementWant to feel old? Some members of Gen Z are apparently only now discovering Donald Trump's infamous "Grab em …" comments that came during a hot mic moment. (Please, let's agree to never tell Gen Z about "left shark".) Don't let this make you feel old; let it make you wiser.

Persons: Donald Trump's, —, Gen, Kate Sullivan, Trump, Billy Bush, Ron DeSantis, Elon Musk, Dana Carvey's Bush, millennials, let's, youngs, Billie Eilish, Z Organizations: Service, Washington Post, Florida Gov Locations: Ohio, Florida, The Washington, .

☆ Polymarket's pro-Trump election predictions aren't so surprising when you look at the rest of the site
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-30 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The betting site Polymarket has emerged as a hot topic in the 2024 presidential race. Wagers in its pop culture section show the bro-y vibe of the site: Zyn, Andrew Tate, and Hawk Tuah. Let's look at some of the wagers:Will Trump say "skibidi" before the election? Will Donald Trump say "mog" in 2024? AdvertisementFor the record, I think the odds that Trump will say "skibidi" before the election are way too low.

Persons: Trump, Andrew Tate, Hawk, —, Will Trump, Will Kamala Harris, Joe Rogan's, Will Donald Trump, Roaring Kitty, Logan Paul, Max Read, Joe Rogan, Gen Z'ers, MAGA, Theo Von, Adin Ross, Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce, Shayne Coplan, There's, Polymarket, haven't, I'm, who's, John Herrman, McDonald's Organizations: Service, Trump, New, New York Magazine, Harris, Dodgers, Yankees Locations: MrBeast

☆ I created a chatbot of myself and had it answer my Instagram DMs. Boy, was I annoying.
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-27 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

— when I saw the way that Meta's new AI chatbot interpreted me. There's a relatively new feature that came this summer, along with some other AI chatbots, where some Instagram creators can answer DMs from fans using a chatbot based on themselves. Let's chat snacks casually 🍿"I appreciate that no one was able to get my AI chatbot canceled or convicted of a crime, but man, my AI was a real killjoy. I tested out chatting with a few of the other AI chatbots available for other creators, and the experience wasn't amazing. I asked a celebrity chef's AI chatbot, "What should I eat for dinner?"

Persons: There's, —, miley e, hatter, hem., y Organizations: Service

☆ Threads added a green dot to show you're online. I have a theory about why.
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-17 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Threads has added a green dot that shows when you're online. Instead, it's a green dot that signals when you're online. The green dot is turned on by default, but you can turn it off completely, or enable it to be seen only by mutual followers. But do you need a green dot to indicate you're talking about the Mets game or whatever is on Bravo at that moment? I don't imagine the green dot will change the way I engage with people, but I like to lean into the creepiness.

Persons: it's, It's, —, I've, Adam Mosseri, Meta, Alec Booker, Booker Organizations: Meta, Service, Twitter, Mets, Bravo, hashtags, Big Tech

☆ Most adults agree: Ban phones in schools. But that's the easy part — social media is the harder question.
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-15 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

A new Pew study says nearly 70% of adults agree that schools should ban phones during class. But the broader topic of social media and its effects on teen mental health is still being debated. The US Surgeon General recently suggested social media should come with a warning label for teens. AdvertisementResearch on social media and teen mental health isn't always clearOn the other hand, the argument that social media and phone use are causing a mental health crisis for teens is not as clearly a slam-dunk case. Consider a very recent kerfuffle: A researcher published a meta-analysis of studies on what happens when teens quit social media and suggested that Haidt's research was flawed.

Persons: —, shouldn't, they've, there's, Jonathan Haidt's, Banning, Haidt, Mark Zuckerberg, they're Organizations: Service, Pew Research Center, National Education Association, Meta, US, Big Tech Locations: Oxford

☆ That old Photobucket account you haven't touched in years could soon be licensed to train AI
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-15 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

If you have an old Photobucket account you haven't touched in a while, you'll need to reactivate it to opt out of any licensing deals by setting your account to "private." Related storiesSitting on a possible AI-training goldmineUnlike other mid-2000s photo-hosting peers like Flickr or Webshots, Photobucket hasn't deleted people's old photos. Those old images that Photobucket has been storing for all these years — things people uploaded in 2005 and forgot about — are still there. AdvertisementI have an old Photobucket account from around 2007 that I used for hosting images for an old blog. Presumably, there are plenty of people like me with an old Photobucket account, largely forgotten — maybe abandoned because we moved the photos somewhere else or simply didn't care.

Persons: Photobucket, —, Ted Leonard, it's, Leonard, Leonard didn't, Photobucket Photobucket, Meta, OpenAI, I've Organizations: Service, Myspace, Business, News Corp, soccer, Flickr, Yahoo Locations: Denver

☆ Meta's head of Threads shares advice about how and when to post — as the debate swirls around engagement bait
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-14 | by ( Sydney Bradley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Meta is sharing new advice for creators on Threads about engaging content and how often to post. We spoke with Meta's head of Threads about what the platform is advising creators to do on the app. If there's one takeaway that Dalton Smith has for creators using Threads, it's that they should remember it's "a real-time conversation app." Advertisement"Most of the content will be distributed in just a few hours over the course of the day," Dalton Smith told BI. Here are five takeaways from BI's conversation with Meta's Emily Dalton Smith:

Persons: —, here's, Katie Notopoulos, Adam Mosseri —, Mosseri, Emily Dalton Smith, Dalton Smith Organizations: Service, Meta

☆ TikTok was the best place to tune into Hurricane Milton coverage
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-10 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

As Hurricane Milton hit, TikTok was filled with live streams from people in Florida. But even though there were plenty of live videos, it was hard to follow for breaking news. As night fell and power outages swept the coast, I watched live streams of palm trees swaying in the dark rain. And indeed, TikTok found controversy for Hurricane Milton. That was far different from on X, which previously used to be the best place to get live news.

Persons: Hurricane Milton, TikTok, —, Milton, Elon Musk, X, Dan Rather's, Anderson Cooper, BillWeirCNN, EZNnpz3K6e, Brian Stelter, Caleb, Hurricane Helene, didn't, Caroline Calloway, Ross, Donald Trump, Max Read, TikTok isn't Organizations: Hurricane, Service, Elon, CNN, BI, Twitter Locations: Florida, Hurricane, North Carolina

☆ Millennials love Reddit. That combination of helpful answers and slightly cringe humor appeals to 30s and 40s.
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-09 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Maybe Reddit is popular because it's text-based, and that's what millennials grew up with. And its helpful advice and slightly cringe humor hit just right for people in their 30s and 40s. Reddit is the social platform most saturated by millennials, according to an Emarketer report on US digital habits by generation. Of logged-in users on Reddit, 43.3% are millennials, compared to 29.6% who are Gen Z. Maybe Reddit is a safe space for millennials to be cringe and free.

Persons: millennials, eMarketer Daily, we're, Gen Z, Millennials Organizations: eMarketer, Insider Inc, Insider Intelligence, Service, BI, YouTube, Facebook, Google Locations: Emarketer

☆ I don't let my child use Roblox. Here's why.
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-08 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Unlike most of the video games for Xbox or PlayStation, Roblox's games are user-generated — and there are thousands of them. A screenshot of Roblox games rated "all ages." Roblox screenshotOn Tuesday, Hindenburg Research, a short-seller, published a report accusing Roblox of inflating user metrics and deceiving investors. The Hindenburg report also accused Roblox of "exposing children to grooming, pornography, violent content, and extremely abusive speech." Nonetheless, Roblox users identifying as 9 years old and up can still beat up homeless people in "Beat Up People Outside of 7/11" with over 900,000 visits.

Persons: —, he'd, SpongeBob, Mickey Mouse, Hindenburg, Roblox, I've Organizations: Hindenburg Research, Service, Xbox, Roblox, Bloomberg, Wal, Safety Locations: Hindenburg, Roblox's, Roblox

☆ Harvard students made Meta Ray-Bans do facial recognition. Meta execs once thought this was a good idea.
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-04 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Harvard students rigged their Meta Ray-Bans to do facial recognition, 404 Media reports. Nguyen told Business Insider that the experiment wasn't meant to show that popular Meta Ray-Bans are a problem. Another goal of the experiment, he said, was to help spread awareness on how to protect yourself digitally against facial recognition software. Meta's glasses can't recognize faces by defaultA spokesperson for Meta told Business Insider, "To be clear, Ray-Ban Meta glasses do not have facial recognition technology. Facial recognition.

Persons: Andrew Bosworth, —, AnhPhu Nguyen, Caine Ardayfio, LhxModhDpk, Meta Ray, Meta, Nguyen, Ray, Insider's Peter Kafka, Bosworth, It's Organizations: Service, Media, Harvard, Business, Meta, Google, BuzzFeed, Reality Labs, European Union, IDC Locations: Illinois , Texas

☆ Harvard students used Meta Ray-Bans to do facial recognition. Meta execs once thought this was a good idea.
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-04 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

☆ Amazon's AI chatbot will help you shop. Just don't ask it for a 'dupe.'
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-03 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Amazon's Rufus AI chatbot answers questions about products and recommends items. The new chatbot illustrates Amazon's complicated relationship with copycat items: The company forbids selling counterfeit or illegally replicated products on its platform. Amazon has warehouses full of products that don't have brand names that people would immediately recognize but might be similar to those brands' products. In theory, Rufus should be able to help — AI should help people compare similar items and answer questions about them. For now, Amazon's Rufus probably won't.

Persons: Rufus, —, It's, Maria Boschetti, Jennifer Ortakales Dawkins, Charlotte, you've, TikTokers, Amazon's Rufus Organizations: Service, Amazon, Adidas Locations: Sephora, Charlotte Tilbury, Supergoop

☆ Threads joins X in blocking posts to apparently leaked documents about JD Vance
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-27 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Threads is blocking links to an article that may contain links to leaked documents about JD Vance. AdvertisementThreads is following X's lead, blocking links to purportedly leaked documents about vice presidential candidate JD Vance. Meta says the links could come from hacked or leaked sources — and it's blocking them because of the potential connection. ThreadsThreads is now blocking links to the post, too. Threads posts that contain a link to Klippenstein's Substack article aren't being removed, but the link isn't clickable.

Persons: JD Vance, X, —, Meta, Trump, Ken Klippenstein, Klippenstein, Hunter Biden, Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, Sen, Jim Jordan Organizations: Meta, Service, FBI, Independent Locations: Iran

☆ In defense of that 'Goodbye Meta AI' post that's all over Instagram
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-26 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Even celebrities like Tom Brady and Cat Power have joined the "Goodbye Meta AI" movement. AdvertisementCan the "Goodbye Meta AI" copypasta that's been floating around Instagram Stories — even getting posted by celebrities like Tom Brady, Cat Power, and James McAvoy — actually stop Meta from using people's data to help train AI? The "Goodbye Meta AI" copypasta that's been floating around Instagram. I know you're giving away Llama, but you've got Meta AI. When it comes to using people's Facebook or Instagram posts to train AI, people could have reason to feel uncomfortable.

Persons: Tom Brady, Power, —, Cat Power, James McAvoy —, that's, Meta, Instagram, they're, Alex Health, Mark Zuckerberg, didn't, it's, you've, Zuckerberg Organizations: Service, Facebook, Meta Locations: Instagram

☆ Mark Zuckerberg's shirt says 'All Zuck or All Nothing' in Latin
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-25 | by ( Katie Notopoulos | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Mark Zuckerberg wore a custom t-shirt with the Latin phrase "AUT ZUCK, AUT NIHIL" at Meta Connect. It's a play on "Aut Caesar, aut nihil," which means "Either a Caesar or nothing." It's not the first time Zuck's worn a custom Latin shirt. AdvertisementAt the Meta Connect developers' event, CEO Mark Zuckerberg wore a black boxy custom t-shirt with the words "AUT ZUCK AUT NIHIL." In Latin, this translates to "All Zuck, or all nothing" — a play on the famous phrase "Aut Caesar, aut nihil."

Persons: Mark Zuckerberg, Caesar, aut, It's, — Organizations: Meta, Service, Meta Connect, Business Locations: Carthage

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