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☆ Meta starts rolling out generative AI tools for all advertisers
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg delivers a speech, as the letters AI for artificial intelligence appear on screen, at the Meta Connect event at the company's headquarters in Menlo Park, California, U.S., September 27, 2023. REUTERS/Carlos Barria/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsOct 4 (Reuters) - Social media giant Meta Platforms (META.O) said on Wednesday that it has started rolling out generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools that can create content like image backgrounds and variations of written text for all advertisers. The company started testing these tools in May, giving access to a select group of advertisers in a "testing playground". The tools will be available in Meta's Ads Manager and their rollout will be completed next year. Meta's portfolio of AI products includes its language model "Llama 2" and an AI chatbot called Meta AI that can generate text responses and photo-realistic images.

Persons: Mark Zuckerberg, Carlos Barria, Instagram, Zaheer Kachwala, Katie Paul, Shailesh Kuber Organizations: Meta, REUTERS Locations: Menlo Park , California, U.S, Bengaluru

☆ Meta has Apple to thank for giving its annual VR conference added sizzle this year
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-30 | by ( Jonathan Vanian | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

The iPhone maker in June announced its Vision Pro mixed-reality headset at an eyepopping price of $3,499 when it goes on sale next year. "There's curiosity for sure with Apple entering the market," said Tom Symonds, CEO of the UK-based VR firm Immerse. Apple CEO Tim Cook stands next to the new Apple Vision Pro headset. At its high price point, the Vision Pro will likely be more of a product for businesses, Seitz said. Initially, the price is too high and the Vision Pro will require users to wear a battery pack, creating an added nuisance during a workout.

Persons: Andrew Bosworth, Josh Edelson, Mark Zuckerberg, it's, Tom Symonds, Meta, Zuckerberg, Tim Cook, Justin Sullivan, Aneesh Kulkarni, Kulkarni, Josette Seitz, Seitz, Gaspar Ferreiro, Apple, Ferreiro, Jeffrey Morin, Morin, Litesport, " Morin, Apple's Organizations: Facebook, Meta, AFP, Getty, VR, Menlo, Apple, Street, Apple Vision, Baltu Technologies, Car Studios, Vision Locations: Menlo Park , California, Web3, billings

☆ Meta's mandatory return to office is 'a mess'
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-29 | by ( Kali Hays | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Meta's return to office mandate has gone about as well as the metaverse so far. One person noted that, after days of trying to get a room for a meeting at Meta's campus in Menlo Park, a small room became available. They assume the backlog of remote work applications to be "in the thousands." Coming in to be on ZoomOne employee noted their team is mostly in other offices. Others are in the same boat, at least for several more weeks, as they wait for remote work applications to be approved.

Persons: They've, Meta's, let's, they're, We've, Adam Mosseri Matt Winkelmeyer, Adam Mosseri, Instagram, they'd, Lori Goler Organizations: Meta, Menlo Park Locations: Menlo Park

Meta's AI initiatives are likely to be a key aspect of how it monetizes products and services going forward, while bringing more users and customers into the AI fold. Whereas Meta's headset is priced for mass-market adoption, Apple's headset is clearly a premium device targeted to those who demand the most cutting-edge technology — such as micro-OLED lenses with eye-tracking capabilities . Similarly, JMP Securities argued that the event "highlights Meta's AI tailwinds," which could "unlock additional advertising budgets with new chat-based customer service." Meanwhile, we expect adoption of Meta's Quest 3 hardware to grow. But the integration of the Meta AI assistant into that platform should ultimately make the glasses a more valuable product over time.

Persons: Ray Ban, Jim Cramer, Bing, Ray, Meta, Jim Cramer's, Jim, Mark Zuckerberg, Josh Edelson Organizations: Meta's, Meta, EssilorLuxottica, Apple, Microsoft, JMP Securities, CNBC, AFP, Getty Locations: Menlo Park , California

☆ Meta's new AI chatbot trained on public Facebook and Instagram posts
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-28 | by ( Katie Paul | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Carlos Barria/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsMENLO PARK, California, Sept 28 (Reuters) - Meta Platforms (META.O) used public Facebook and Instagram posts to train its new Meta AI virtual assistant, but excluded private posts shared only with family and friends in an effort to respect consumers' privacy, the company's top policy executive told Reuters in an interview. "We've tried to exclude datasets that have a heavy preponderance of personal information," Clegg said, adding that the "vast majority" of the data used by Meta for training was publicly available. He cited LinkedIn as an example of a website whose content Meta deliberately chose not to use because of privacy concerns. Meta AI was the most significant product among the company's first consumer-facing AI tools unveiled by CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Wednesday at Meta's annual products conference, Connect. The public Facebook and Instagram posts that were used to train Meta AI included both text and photos, Clegg said.

Persons: Mark Zuckerberg, Carlos Barria, Meta, Global Affairs Nick Clegg, We've, Clegg, Bing, Mickey Mouse, Katie Paul, Kenneth Li, Matthew Lewis Organizations: Meta, REUTERS, MENLO, Facebook, Reuters, Global Affairs, Google, Microsoft's, Thomson Locations: Menlo Park , California, U.S, , California, Menlo Park, California

☆ Meta's new AI assistant trained on public Facebook and Instagram posts
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-28 | by ( Katie Paul | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

He cited LinkedIn as an example of a website whose content Meta deliberately chose not to use because of privacy concerns. Meta AI was the most significant product among the company's first consumer-facing AI tools unveiled by CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Wednesday at Meta's annual products conference, Connect. The public Facebook and Instagram posts that were used to train Meta AI included both text and photos, Clegg said. Interactions with Meta AI may also be used to improve the features going forward, the spokesperson said. Clegg said Meta imposed safety restrictions on what content the Meta AI tool could generate, like a ban on the creation of photo-realistic images of public figures.

Persons: Mark Zuckerberg, Carlos Barria, Meta, Global Affairs Nick Clegg, We've, Clegg, Bing, Mickey Mouse, Katie Paul, Kenneth Li, Matthew Lewis, Lincoln Organizations: Meta, REUTERS, MENLO, Facebook, Reuters, Global Affairs, Google, Microsoft's, Thomson Locations: Menlo Park , California, U.S, , California

☆ Meta Connect: All the details on Quest 3, Ray-Ban smart glasses, AI chatbots
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg delivers a speech, as a pair of Ray-Ban smart glasses appear on screen, during the Meta Connect event at the company's headquarters in Menlo Park, California, U.S., September 27, 2023. AI CHATBOTS, STICKERSMeta unveiled more than two dozen chatbots that will work within its social media applications. The company announced Meta AI Studio, a platform for developers to build custom AI chatbots. RAY-BAN SMART GLASSESMeta announced new generation Ray-Ban smart glasses, priced at $299. The smart glasses will also have Meta AI built in, with the ability to give information on the item a user is looking at.

Persons: Mark Zuckerberg, Carlos Barria, Snapdragon, Meta, Microsoft's Bing, Bear Grylls, Chloe Kim, Josh Richards, RAY, Yuvraj Malik, Shounak Dasgupta Organizations: Meta, REUTERS, Gaming, Facebook, United States, Thomson Locations: Menlo Park , California, U.S, WhatsApp, United, Bengaluru

☆ Mark Zuckerberg takes the stage later today for Meta's annual conference. Get ready for new AI chatbots.
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-27 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Mark Zuckerberg is set to talk about AI and the new Quest 3 on Wednesday at Meta Connect. Meta's developers are working on AI, but the team will have to compete with ChatGPT. NEW LOOK Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Much like tech peers Google and Microsoft, Meta has long had a big research team of computer scientists devoted to advancing AI technology. But it's been overshadowed as the release of ChatGPT sparked a rush to profit off of "generative AI" tools that can create new prose, images, and other media.

Persons: Mark Zuckerberg, —, TikTok, Yoram Wurmser, Zuckerberg, Meta, it's, ChatGPT Organizations: Meta Connect, Facebook, Service, —, giant's, Meta, Google, Microsoft Locations: , California

☆ Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg looks to digital assistants, smart glasses and AI to help metaverse push
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-27 | by ( Jonathan Vanian | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Meta has new artificial intelligence tools and celebrity-endorsed digital assistants that CEO Mark Zuckerberg hopes will help eventually help jumpstart the metaverse. Zuckerberg showed off the AI software as well as the company's new Quest 3 virtual reality headset and latest Ray-Ban smart glasses on Wednesday at Meta's Connect conference for VR developers at its headquarters in Menlo Park, California. Zuckerberg also introduced new AI-powered editing tools coming next month to Instagram that will let users alter their photos and pictures with written prompts. He showed in a demonstration how various prompts could modify one of his childhood photos to picture the young executive wearing an ugly sweater in one image and sporting blue hair in another. Powering the new AI tools is the company's Emu computer vision model, which Zuckerberg characterized as a kind of sibling technology to its Llama family of language-generating software.

Persons: Meta, Mark Zuckerberg, Zuckerberg, Messenger, it's Organizations: Meta's, VR Locations: Menlo Park , California

☆ Meta Quest 3: Zuckerberg unveils mixed-reality VR headset
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-27 | by ( Jennifer Korn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

New York CNN —Meta is moving forward in its efforts to dominate the AR world with the new and improved Meta Quest 3. Unveiled by CEO Mark Zuckerberg at the company’s virtual Meta Connect event Wednesday, the headset starts at $500 and is a complete redesign of earlier models. The Meta Quest 2 allows for strictly virtual reality, while the Meta Quest Pro has advanced passthrough cameras for seeing your actual surroundings, but it costs a whopping $1,000. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg unveils the Meta Quest 3 at Meta Connect in Menlo Park, California, on September 27, 2023. To get ahead of Apple’s June unveiling of the Vision Pro, Zuckerberg teased the Meta Quest 3 just days before its rival’s big announcement.

Persons: Mark Zuckerberg, ” Zuckerberg, Zuckerberg, Meta, Morgan Stanley Organizations: New, New York CNN, Meta, Pro, Meta Connect, Facebook, Quest, Apple Vision, Vision, Street, IDC, Apple Locations: New York, Menlo Park , California

☆ A Laser Fusion Breakthrough Gets a Bigger Burst of Energy
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-25 | by ( Kenneth Chang | More About Kenneth Chang | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

“We expected a similar yield,” Dr. Town said. The better-than-predicted result indicates that with a few tweaks, laser fusion can become markedly more efficient. “It was a little bit surprising that we did not achieve ignition on all of them,” Dr. Town said. Instead of laser energy arriving perfectly balanced to compress the hydrogen fuel capsule, a slight imbalance nudges the capsule off in one direction. “If you can couple effectively more energy to the hot spot, you should get more yield,” Dr. Town said.

Persons: “, ”, Siegfried Glenzer Organizations: TNT, Livermore, Accelerator Laboratory Locations: Menlo Park, Calif, Livermore

☆ Robinhood is cutting jobs, reorganizing teams, and focusing on credit cards to solve a shrinking user base, insiders say
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-21 | by ( Ashley Stewart | Rebecca Ungarino | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Robinhood is laying off more employees and reorganizing teams as part of a new focus on credit cards as the company tries to mitigate a shrinking user base, insiders say. In June, Robinhood announced plans to acquire no-fee credit card startup X1 for $95 million. Credit cards are much higher-margin products than stock-trading and generally less exposed to volatile markets. X1 and Robinhood's future in credit cards were the focus of the company's last all-employee meeting, the person said. The layoff was widely reported, but audio of an all-hands meeting reviewed by Insider recently showed ongoing cuts have been deeper .

Persons: Robinhood, we've, Vlad Tenev, Tenev Organizations: Robinhood, JPMorgan, Menlo, Say Technologies, TechCrunch Locations: , California

☆ The Technology Facebook and Google Didn’t Dare Release
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-09 | by ( Kashmir Hill | More About Kashmir Hill | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The absurd hat-phone, a particularly uncool version of the future, contained a secret tool known only to a small group of employees. The room went silent; the demo was underway. Mr. Leyvand turned toward a man across the table from him. Two seconds later, a robotic female voice declared, “Zach Howard.”“That’s me,” confirmed Mr. Howard, a mechanical engineer. But when the phone started correctly calling out names, he found it creepy, like something out of a dystopian movie.

Persons: Tommer Leyvand, Leyvand, —, “ Zach Howard, ”, Howard Organizations: Mr Locations: Menlo Park, Calif

A logo of Meta Platforms Inc. is seen at its booth, at the Viva Technology conference dedicated to innovation and startups, at Porte de Versailles exhibition center in Paris, France June 17, 2022. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier Acquire Licensing RightsCompanies Meta Platforms Inc FollowSept 8 (Reuters) - A U.S. federal judge said Meta Platforms (META.O) must face a lawsuit claiming that it violated the medical privacy of patients who were treated by hospitals and other healthcare providers that used its Meta Pixel tracking tool. According to the plaintiffs, Meta Pixel provided sensitive information about their health to Meta when they logged into patient portals, where the tracking tool had been installed, enabling Meta to make money from targeted advertising. When the litigation began in June 2020, lawyers for one plaintiff said they had found at least 664 hospitals and other healthcare providers that used Meta Pixel. The case is In re Meta Pixel Healthcare Litigation, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, No.

Persons: Benoit Tessier, William Orrick, Meta, Orrick, John Doe, Jane Doe, Jonathan Stempel, Jason Neely Organizations: Meta, Inc, Viva Technology, Porte de, REUTERS, U.S, Facebook, Menlo, Healthcare, Court, Northern District of, Thomson Locations: Porte, Paris, France, San Francisco, California, Menlo Park , California, Northern District, Northern District of California, New York

The 43-page document paints a disturbing picture of failures at the homes in Menlo Park and Paramus where dozens of deaths occurred early in the outbreak. “Even by the standards of the pandemic’s difficult early days, the facilities were unprepared to keep their residents safe,” the report said. The facilities are operated by the state’s Department of Military and Veterans Affairs, each with just over 300 beds. Murphy’s administration came under harsh criticism for his handling of the pandemic in veterans homes, with Republicans calling for investigations into his management of the outbreak. But the actual number of residents who died of COVID-19 was much higher, the report said.

Persons: Phil Murphy, ”, Murphy, ‘ Organizations: U.S Justice Department, U.S . Veterans Affairs, state’s Department of Military, Veterans Affairs, Democratic, Veterans Homes, Justice, Justice Department, DOJ, Menlo, Facility, Paramus Locations: TRENTON, N.J, Menlo Park, Paramus

The logo of Robinhood Markets, Inc. is seen at a pop-up event on Wall Street after the company's IPO in New York City, U.S., July 29, 2021. The Massachusetts Supreme Judiciary Court reversed a lower-court judge's decision in favor of Robinhood in a lawsuit it filed after Massachusetts Secretary of State Bill Galvin in 2020 accused it of encouraging inexperienced investors to place risky trades. Galvin is seeking to have Robinhood's state broker-dealer license revoked. She noted that Galvin deemed the rule necessary "to protect investors confused by the increasingly blurred line between broker-dealers providing investment advice and investment advisers." "The rule that has been upheld by the Supreme Judicial Court today will give the highest protections to Massachusetts investors when brokers provide investment advice," Galvin, a Democrat, said in a statement.

Persons: Andrew Kelly, Bill Galvin, Galvin, Lucas Moskowitz, Robinhood's, Robinhood, stockbrokers, Dalila Wendlandt, Galvin permissibly, Nate Raymond, Jonathan Oatis, Alexia Garamfalvi Organizations: Inc, REUTERS, BOSTON, Court, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, Robinhood, Menlo, Thomson Locations: New York City, U.S, Massachusetts, Menlo Park , California, Friday's, Boston

☆ Robinhood defeats investors' appeal over meme stock frenzy
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-10 | by ( Jonathan Stempel | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File PhotoAug 10 (Reuters) - Robinhood Markets (HOOD.O) on Thursday defeated an appeal by investors over the stock trading platform's decision to restrict purchases of 13 "meme stocks" during a January 2021 frenzy that squeezed hedge funds. "When Robinhood restricted its customers' ability to buy meme stocks, it took a sizable - and perhaps justifiable - hit in the court of public opinion," Circuit Judge Britt Grant wrote. "But in this court, Robinhood is only accountable for specific legal duties." The meme stock frenzy has been fueled in part by investors using online forums such as Twitter and the subreddit WallStreet Bets. Robinhood is also being sued by investors who sold nine meme stocks at a loss in late January and early February 2021.

Persons: Andrew Kelly, Robinhood, Britt Grant, Thursday's, Judge Cecilia Altonaga, Jonathan Stempel, Matthew Lewis Organizations: Inc, REUTERS, Thursday, AMC Entertainment, GameStop, Circuit, Twitter, Menlo, Thomson Locations: New York City, U.S, Atlanta, Miami, Menlo Park , California, New York

☆ Google-parent Alphabet offloads nearly 90% stake in trading app Robinhood
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File PhotoAug 4 (Reuters) - Google-parent Alphabet (GOOGL.O) said on Friday it had slashed its stake in Robinhood Markets (HOOD.O) by nearly 90%, days after the trading app said it had turned a profit for the first time as a public company. Shares of the company, whose trading platform was at the center of a meme stock frenzy in January 2021, have lost 86% since hitting their peak in August of the same year. To counter this weakness in its mainstay trading business, Menlo Park, California-based Robinhood is looking for new revenue streams. In its regulatory filing, Alphabet said it had around 612,214 shares in Robinhood as of June 30, compared with 4.9 million shares in the first quarter ended March 31. As of Robinhood's last close on Thursday, Alphabet's stake would be worth just about $7 million, according to Reuters calculations.

Persons: Andrew Kelly, Robinhood, Alphabet's, Niket, Nivedita Bhattacharjee, Anil D'Silva Organizations: Inc, REUTERS, Robinhood, Menlo, Thomson Locations: New York City, U.S, Menlo Park , California, Robinhood, Bengaluru

☆ Robinhood beats revenue estimates, shares fall on decline in users
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-02 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Robinhood reported higher second-quarter revenue on Wednesday as interest rates continued to buoy the online brokerage's interest income, achieving profitability for the first time as a public company even as it saw fewer users. Shares of the company, which was at the center of 2021's retail trading frenzy, were last down 4% in extended trading as investors scrutinized the platform's decline in monthly active users. As a result, transaction-based revenue declined 5% in the second quarter. Monthly active users also decreased to 10.8 million, one million fewer compared to the previous quarter and 3.2 million fewer than the year prior. Earnings per share in the second quarter were $0.03, beating analysts' average estimate of a loss of $0.01, according to Refinitiv data.

Persons: Robinhood, We've, we've, Jason Warnick Organizations: Menlo Locations: U.S, Menlo Park , California

☆ Meta prepares AI-powered chatbots in attempt to retain users - FT
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Aug 1 (Reuters) - Meta Platforms (META.O) is preparing to launch a range of artificial intelligence (AI) powered chatbots that exhibit different personalities as soon as September, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday. Meta has been designing prototypes for chatbots that can have humanlike discussions with its users, as the company attempts to boost its engagement with its social media platforms, according to the report, citing people with knowledge of the plans. The Menlo Park, California-based social media giant is even exploring a chatbot that speaks like Abraham Lincoln and another that advises on travel options in the style of a surfer, the report added. The purpose of these chatbots will be to provide a new search function as well as offer recommendations. The Facebook parent reported a strong rise in advertising revenue in its earnings last week, forecasting third-quarter revenue above market expectations.

Persons: Meta, Abraham Lincoln, Google's Bard, Ajax, Rishabh, Rashmi Organizations: Financial Times, Menlo, Facebook, Bloomberg News, Apple, Thomson Locations: , California, Bengaluru

☆ The strange, improbable rise of Mark Zuckerberg 3.0
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-30 | by ( Kali Hays | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +27 min

In early July, Mark Zuckerberg unveiled the latest and perhaps most consequential product in Meta's history: a new model of Mark Zuckerberg. Silicon Valley Zuck was a husband and father with a legacy to build and protect at all costs. Silicon Valley Zuck was suddenly faced with something he'd never dealt with before, shrinking revenue. Still clinging to his persona as Silicon Valley Zuck, Zuckerberg engaged in an all-out media blitz to hawk his vision for the metaverse. They were the sort of people Harvard Zuck would have scoffed at and Silicon Valley Zuck would have gently ignored.

Persons: Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk, Joe Rogan, Zuckerberg, Clark Kent, TikTok, Sheryl Sandberg, Mike Schroepfer, Wall, McKinsey Zuck, Rogan, Meta, Harvard Zuck, —, Priscilla Chan, Ray's, pullover, Harvard Zuck —, Dianna, Mick, McDougall, Paul Sakuma, Zuckerberg's, Apple, Facebook, he'd, That's, Frances Haugen, Chris Cox, Zuck, Zach Gibson, Meta's, Sandberg, Marne Levine, who'd, Javier Olivan, he's, bode, Bain, Maher Saba, Lori Goler, He's, He'd, Katie Harbath, it's, Andrew Bosworth, Bosworth, Mark Zuckerberg McKinsey Zuck, Mark Shmulik, Bernstein, Augustus, Julius Caesar, Kali Hays Organizations: Meta, Menlo, Harvard, Apple, McKinsey, Business, Facebook, Cambridge, Capitol, Labs, Menlo Park, Q, Bain & Company, Reality Labs, Wall, Mark Zuckerberg McKinsey, Phillips Exeter Academy, Tech, Twitter Locations: California, Hawaii, United States, Davos, Silicon, contrition, Meta, verbiage, Harvard, Rome

☆ Peter Thiel paid staff an extra $1,000 a month if they lived close to the office so they were more likely to work late, book says
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-30 | by ( Jyoti Mann | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Peter Thiel paid staff an extra $1,000 a month if they lived near the office, a former worker said. The billionaire investor offered it so staff "were more likely to stay late," Michael Gibson wrote. Gibson made the claim in his book "Paper Belt on Fire: The Fight for Progress in an Age of Ashes." Peter Thiel offered his staff a monthly bonus of $1,000 if they lived close to the office, according to a former employee of the billionaire investor. It also offered employees with families a one-off payment of at least $15,000 for housing.

Persons: Peter Thiel, Michael Gibson, Gibson, Thiel, Meta, Davis Polk, Wardwell, they're, Insider's Aaron Mok, Meta didn't Organizations: Employees, Palantir Technologies, Guardian, Bloomberg, Facebook, Street Journal, ARC Locations: San Francisco, Menlo Park, Silicon Valley, ZipRecruiter

☆ Meta's VP of Metaverse says 'the metaverse hype is dead,' but that's OK
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Haley Tenore | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Meta's VP of Metaverse said the hype cycle for the metaverse is dead, but that's okay. The metaverse team can "put their heads down and build" the experiences, Vishal Shah told Fortune. "I think the metaverse hype is dead. People access Meta's metaverse apps through the company's Quest lineup of headsets, but Apple recently announced the $3,499 Vision Pro headset. Interestingly enough, Apple is avoiding the term metaverse in favor of "spatial computing."

Persons: Metaverse, Vishal Shah, Fortune, Shah, Mark Zuckerberg's, Mark Zuckerberg, NOAH BERGER, Zuckerberg, Kali Hays, Ashley Stewart, Meta, Tim Cook, Greg Joswiak, Andrew, Boz, Bosworth Organizations: Morning, Tech, Facebook, Meta, Getty Images, Anadolu Agency, Getty, The Washington Post, Apple, Wall Street Journal Locations: Utah, Menlo

☆ Illumina hit with record $476 million fine for closing Grail deal without EU approval
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( Annika Kim Constantino | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

European Union regulators on Wednesday fined Illumina a record 432 million euros ($476 million) for closing its acquisition of cancer test developer Grail without first securing regulatory approval. The fine from the European Commission, the EU's executive body, amounts to 10% of San Diego-based Illumina's turnover. The Illumina fine exceeds the commission's previous largest merger regulation fine of $125 million, or 1% of annual turnover, imposed on telecommunications company Altice in 2018. Illumina has already put aside $453 million to cover a potential maximum fine of 10% of turnover, according to a regulatory filing from earlier this year. "This is a very serious infringement, which requires the imposition of a proportionate fine, with the aim of deterring such conduct," the European Commission continued.

Persons: Illumina Organizations: European Commission, EU, Altice Locations: San Diego, Menlo Park , California

☆ Meta loses as top EU court backs antitrust regulators over privacy breach checks
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-04 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Meta Platforms on Tuesday lost its fight against a German data curb order that strikes at the heart of its business model as Europe's top court backed the German antitrust watchdog's power to also investigate privacy breaches. The ruling from the Luxembourg-based Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) potentially hand antitrust authorities more leeway in Big Tech probes. At issue was whether the German antitrust agency overstepped its authority by using its antitrust power to address data protection concerns, which are the remit of national data protection authorities. Thomas Graf, a partner at law firm Cleary Gottlieb, was more cautious on whether antitrust authorities would want to go into the details of privacy law. "Are antitrust authorities going to become GDPR regulators?

Persons: Andreas Mundt, Benoit Coeure, Thomas Graf, Cleary Gottlieb, Graf, Max Schrems Organizations: Justice, European Union, Big Tech, Meta, Facebook, Data Protection Locations: Menlo Park , California, Luxembourg

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