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☆ Instagram cofounder says the app has 'lost the soul'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Aaron Mok | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Instagram cofounder Kevin Systrom said the app has "lost the soul" on an episode of "On with Kara Swisher." The app, he said, used to be for family and friends to share photos. "My biggest regret, I think, at Instagram is how commercial it got," Systrom said. "I think we've lost the soul of what made Instagram Instagram," Systrom said during a podcast interview with tech reporter Kara Swisher. That creates a "terrifying" dynamic, he said, where Instagram users believe that the curated facades they see on the app are people's real lives.

☆ HQ Trivia imploded fast but its legacy lives on
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Samantha Murphy Kelly | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

But like HQ Trivia, these efforts rarely seem to last. Video Ad Feedback What is HQ Trivia 02:32 - Source: CNNThe short life of HQ TriviaTwice a day, for 30 minutes, the world stopped as players watched one or more people receive what could be a significant amount of money instantaneously on HQ Trivia – and viewers had their own shot at the pot, too. Unlike HQ Trivia, however, Wordle does not require its users to share that experience at the exact same moment in the day. BeReal may arguably be HQ Trivia’s most lasting legacy, despite it not being a trivia game. The aim is different – creating authenticity – but like HQ Trivia, it prompts users to be in the moment.

☆ These are the startups to bet your career on, based on 3 key factors
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Diamond Naga Siu | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

I'm Diamond Naga Siu, and a little more than a year ago, I bet my career on Insider. A few key factors molded my decision: the editor (AKA my boss), my team, the ability to have journalistic impact, and our company's trajectory. Although I made the jump in very different economic circumstances, these are integral factors to consider for anyone's next career steps. They found the 43 startups to bet your career on this year, looking at a variety of factors, including the founding team, the market, and its stature among investors. From left to right: Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins, Nikhil Mathew, Jaleh Rezaei, and Anurupa Ganguly Promise; Mutiny; Prisms; Marianne Ayala/InsiderThese are the startups to bet your career on.

Companies Twitter Inc FollowAlphabet Inc Follow(Reuters) - Damien Kieran, who resigned as Twitter (TWTR.MX) Inc's chief privacy officer in November after Elon Musk took over the social media giant, has joined photo sharing app-maker BeReal as its top lawyer. Kieran started Monday as general counsel at Paris-based BeReal, he said in posts on LinkedIn and Twitter. Kieran and BeReal, whose popular social media app prompts users to share a daily photo, did not immediately respond to requests for comment. In addition to his role as chief privacy officer, Kieran was also vice president and deputy general counsel at Twitter before leaving in November, according to his LinkedIn account. Other top lawyers, including deputy general counsel James Baker, have also been fired or resigned.

☆ Discord is paying for teens to give each other compliments
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Kaitlin Balasaygun | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The Discord app is seen on an iPhone in this photo illustration in Warsaw, Poland on April 3, 2021. We've been here and done this before when it comes to social media: a new, fast-growing app is providing a way for online users to share inspiration and encouragement. At some point in most social media companies' histories, dating all the way back to Facebook's role in global "democratization" during Arab Spring, early social media success has been focused on positive effects. Seattle Public Schools' recently filed lawsuit against TikTok, Meta, Snap and others alleging a youth mental health crisis caused by social media. But Gas has continued to grow as a place for teens to engage with peers, amassing 7.4 million installs.

☆ Gen Z loves the flip phone
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-15 | by ( Ramishah Maruf | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Now, Gen-Z’s latest “vintage” obsession is the flip phone – that mid-1990s era phone that has suddenly become oh so popular with millennials. “I’m team flip phone revolution,” singer Camila Cabello tweeted Thursday, posing with a TCL flip phone, vintage. Maybe I can write the theme song guys 💪💪💪💪 pic.twitter.com/yOJgCdAgNq — camila (@Camila_Cabello) January 13, 2023“I found a little 90s, Matrix-y flip phone,” Cameron said. “At parties people will say, ‘oh my goodness, is that a flip phone?,’” Palazzolo said. And yes, new Nokia flip phones are still available – the Nokia 2760 Flip is sold at Walmart from prepaid brands such as Verizon for $19.99.

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☆ Temu's low prices catapulted the Chinese app to the top of the US download charts. Here's what we know about it — and how it could avoid its competitors' pitfalls.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Madeline Stone | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Temu, a new shopping app from Chinese e-commerce giant Pinduoduo, is making waves in the US. In December, Temu had 9 million US downloads, topping Amazon, which had 4.2 million downloads; Shopify's Shop app, which had 3.4 million downloads; and fellow Chinese player Shein, which had 3 million downloads. Like Shein, Temu also boasts a large selection of products, with its app description claiming that it offers thousands of new items a day. Shein was the most downloaded app globally in 2022, with 229 million downloads, while Amazon was the top app in the US. Notably, Pinduoduo was also a top downloaded app globally, ranking seventh with 79 million downloads.

☆ The tech we couldn’t live without in 2022
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( Cnn Staff | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —Bone conduction headphones, TV streaming devices and Bluetooth speakers are among the tech gadgets topping holiday wish lists this year. Other notable products – ahem, the new 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max – are near impossible to find. Since my move to New York, I’ve had to find all new favorite spots for good food and drinks. – Victor Blackwell, co-anchor of CNN NewsroomHBO MaxNow that I commute home at the ungodly hour of 1 a.m., I lean heavily on my HBO Max app (starts at $9.99 a month). – Samantha Kelly, CNN senior tech writerRev.comI remember being an intern over a decade ago logging half hour long interviews for producers.

☆ The perks of tech work are rapidly disappearing. Here's why.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-19 | by ( Jordan Parker Erb | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

But we've got more to talk about today, including the disappearance of lavish tech industry perks, and which generation of workers are most likely to feel "tech shame." When Elon Musk purchased Twitter, one of the first things he did was take away perks related to wellness, family planning, productivity, training, and home offices. The disappearance of perks is a shift from the decade before, when perks helped companies differentiate themselves from competitors. We explain why the perks of tech work are rapidly disappearing. Musk made the comments before the closure of his Twitter poll, which asked users if he should stay.

☆ Meta Just Issued a Status Update. Wall Street Should Read Into It.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-17 | by ( Laura Forman | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

A leading social network is going retro. Instagram Notes, which launched in many countries worldwide this past Tuesday, is “essentially a status update,” said Instagram head Adam Mosseri . Think of it as a 2022 take on a feature Facebook unveiled way back in 2006, then mimicking AOL’s AIM “away message.” Also “new” on Instagram: Candid Stories, a feature being tested as a way for users to share “what’s happening right now” using both the front and the back of the camera at the same time. That is essentially a copycat of Gen Z phenomenon BeReal, but integrated into Instagram Stories.

AOL Instant Messenger, or AIM, is dead — but the away message lives on, thanks to a recent Instagram update. Within hours of the platform unveiling the new features, social media users noticed Instagram notes' similarity to the away messages of the early 2000s. "Was not expecting instagram to reinvent AIM away messages tbh," writer Ella Cerón tweeted. Sports reporter Maddy Hudak wrote: "I’m sorry did Instagram give us AIM away messages lmao." Others pondered the ramifications of the AIM away message on those who grew up with it.

☆ Instagram is the new 'business card' for creators. Here's why industry experts say this could be Meta's secret weapon.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Sydney Bradley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Instagram has become a "business card" or "Rolodex" for creators and business owners. Here's why creator industry insiders and experts say messaging is a big opportunity for Instagram. "I could not do my business without Instagram DMs," said Eric Wei, a former Instagram staffer who left to found creator economy fintech startup Karat. Meta's making moves to monetize messagingCracking how to monetize messaging isn't so straightforward. This year, Meta hosted "Conversations" in May, a developer event focused on business messaging, after canceling its annual and broader developer event, F8.

☆ 'Goblin mode' is Oxford University Press' 2022 word of the year
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( Christian Edwards | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

If so, you might already be in “goblin mode” – chosen by the public as the 2022 Oxford word of the year. In its place is goblin mode – the opposite of trying to better yourself. The OUP word of the year – also known as the Oxford word of the year – was chosen by the public for the first time. A group of lexicographers at OUP gave people a choice of: “Goblin mode,” “metaverse,” and “#IStandWith.”“Goblin mode” triumphed, racking up 318,956 votes – 93% of the total. Hello goblin mode.

☆ Introducing Insider's 100 people transforming business
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Matt Weinberger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

It's my pleasure to introduce to you Insider's list of 100 People Transforming Business in 2022 — our annual celebration of the people who are bucking trends and upending convention across industries. Insider's annual list of the 100 People Transforming Business. 100 People Transforming Business. Twitter insiders worry that a crash is incoming. TCI, a major investor in Google's parent company Alphabet, sent a letter on Tuesday urging Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai to cut costs.

☆ Our list of top leaders transforming tech shows how transparency and productivity are more important than ever
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Katie Malone | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Tech companies that proactively reacted to consumer and enterprise demands came out ahead this year. 100 People Transforming Business is an annual list highlighting people across industries who are changing the way the world does business. The emerging technology leaders featured on Insider's annual "100 People Transforming Business" list have stepped up to do just that. Virtual-whiteboard platforms are seen as an essential workplace tool that some predict are set to stay a popular tool in business tech. Tech transparency becomes a talking point across platformsAt home, this year showed that tech consumers wanted more transparency.

☆ Four Reasons Why Android Is the World’s Most-Used Operating System
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( Dalvin Brown | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

E20BeReal vs. TikTok: Can 'Authentic' Social Media Compete Without Ads? “Authentic” social media apps like BeReal, Locket and LiveIn have the internet buzzing. WSJ’s Dalvin Brown takes a look at whether they can generate the profits to compete against more established social media like Instagram, TikTok and Facebook. Illustration: Elizabeth Smelov

☆ The co-founder of social-media app Gas tells Elon Musk to hire him as Twitter's product chief
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-29 | by ( Jyoti Mann | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Nikita Bier, a cofounder of Gas, offered to work for Elon Musk as Twitter's VP of product. Gas, a viral platform, topped the App Store ranks and is popular with high-school students. 1 among social-media platforms in the App Store, is asking Elon Musk again to hire him as Twitter's vice president of product after Musk took over Twitter this week. Gas — a social-media app where high-school students can anonymously vote in polls — is quickly gaining popularity since it was released in August this year. Bier cofounded a similar social-media app called Tbh, which also topped the App Store charts before Facebook announced it was acquiring the app in 2017.

☆ Why teens are giving up their smartphones and joining the 'Luddite Club'
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( Avery Hartmans | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

They're giving up social media and relying on face-to-face conversations in an effort to free themselves from the attention-hogging tyranny of smartphones. Download Insider's app here. Shub is now part of the Luddite Club, a group of New York City teens who meet at their local library. Decade-old Tesla Roadsters are selling for over $100,000. Why Tesla Roadsters are becoming hot collectibles.

☆ A new social media app for high schoolers has dethroned TikTok and BeReal in the App Store rankings — and is surprisingly not toxic
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( Hannah Towey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A new app for high schoolers is ranked #1 in the app store right now, beating out BeReal and TikTok. The app "Gas" lets users send anonymous compliments to their friends and classmates through polls. Gas app screenshotsAnonymous social media apps for teenagers have a history of burning up in flames. "Gas" app screenshotsCurrently, the app is fighting a different kind of controversy: a rumor spreading across TikTok and Snapchat that it's involved in human trafficking. Right now, "is gas a sex trafficking app" is a top Google Search query related to the app.

☆ Beware of fad stocks. Truly owner, Snap & Zoom have plunged
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( Paul R. La Monica | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

The Sam Adams brewer, which also owns the hard seltzer brand Truly, is struggling as the popularity of alcoholic seltzer appears to be fading fast. “The continuing decline of the hard seltzer segment … is deeper than previously expected,” said Boston Beer founder and chairman Jim Koch on the company’s earnings call in July. Sam Adams owner Boston Beer made a big bet on Truly Hard Seltzer. Sales have slowed, the company is still losing money, its founders have left, and the stock has plunged nearly 80% this year. E-signature software company DocuSign (DOCU) and virtual health company Teladoc (TDOC) have also plunged this year after getting huge boosts from Covid in 2020.

Earlier this summer, Snap executives told managers they should put at least 10% of their teams on performance improvement plans. In a few weeks, Snap employees have gone from feeling relatively stable to joking that they now work at "Snapazon," a reference to the sometimes grueling, metric-heavy approach of Amazon. Snap is chopping the Snap Pixy mini drone, its accelerator program, Snap Originals, Snap Minis and its Games vertical. Other Snap workers expressed similar doubts about the company's acquisition strategy. AR likely will not be a major success story, despite Snap's leadership in the area.

☆ Google Cloud plans to unfreeze hiring by October, leaked memo says
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-16 | by ( Jordan Parker Erb | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A leaked email shows the firm plans to unfreeze hiring by October, reversing a pause that was set in motion in July. A leaked memo shows Google Cloud plans to unfreeze hiring. In an email sent to staff and obtained by Insider, Brad Calder, Cloud's vice president of technical infrastructure, said leadership is aiming to unfreeze hiring by October. The news comes months after Google announced plans to pull back on hiring due to uncertain economic conditions (though the firm has been hiring for critical roles across certain teams). Calder also said Google Cloud must hone its priorities for 2023, and that there are "too many Code Yellows and Purples."

☆ Top Widgets app lets you add little squares of info to iPhone lock screen
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-14 | by ( Sofia Pitt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Top Widgets is the second most popular free app in Apple's App Store. Apple's iOS 16 iPhone update, released this week, lets iPhone users add little squares or rectangles of information known as "widgets" to the lock screen. That's helped popularize Chinese app Top Widgets, which rocketed to the second most popular free app in the App Store behind social media app BeReal. Top Widgets lets you personalize your home screen or lock screen with little squares or rectangles of information, like how much storage is left on your phone, pictures, the amount of steps you've taken, custom icons for apps and more. And it makes good use of the new always-on display on iPhone 14 Pro or Pro Max, which still show widgets on the screen even when the phone is idle.

☆ BeReal: This social app bans edited photos to encourage users to be more authentic
▼ + stars: | 2022-04-21 | by ( Faith Karimi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

BeReal is a social media app that encourages users to share a slice of their life in real time. The result is a far cry from the polished, overly curated photos popular on other social media platforms. The BeReal app launched in late 2020 and is rapidly growing in popularity among young people. If someone tries to keep their social media presence highly polished and produced, BeReal is not the app to use.”Ben Telerski and Alexandra Henn in an image from his BeReal app. “For those who think we need a new social media app in order to be truly authentic, maybe we should take that as a sign to be more authentic throughout our existing social media presence,” he says.

☆ This social app prohibits edited photos to encourage users to be more authentic. It’s growing fast
▼ + stars: | 2022-04-21 | by ( Faith Karimi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

BeReal is a social media app that encourages users to share a slice of their life in real time. The result is a far cry from the polished, overly curated photos popular on other social media platforms. The BeReal app launched in late 2020 and is rapidly growing in popularity among young people. Telerski says he tries to maintain a certain level of authenticity on social media regardless of the platform. “For those who think we need a new social media app in order to be truly authentic, maybe we should take that as a sign to be more authentic throughout our existing social media presence,” he says.

Persons: it’s, Austin Steele, “, Ben Telerski, ”, Telerski, ” Ben Telerski, Alexandra Henn, Ben, you’re, BeReal, BeReal Morgan Nott, Nott Organizations: CNN, Facebook, Georgetown University Locations: Apptopia, France, Reno

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