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☆ This Week in Audio: Biden’s Age, Cringe Comedy and Beyoncé’s World Tour
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( New York Times Audio | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

This week, we traveled to Afghanistan and Ukraine, debated gerontocracy and dove into the golden age of cringe comedy. Welcome to your weekly newsletter from New York Times Audio. The app features exclusive shows, narrated articles and much more, and is included for news subscribers on iOS. Download the app here. Every week, the app’s editors select their favorite listens that provided news, depth and serendipity.

Organizations: New York Times Locations: Afghanistan, Ukraine

☆ Reddit sparks outrage after a popular app developer said it wants him to pay $20 million a year for data access
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Now, a similar revolt against Reddit may be gaining steam after a popular app developer said Wednesday the social media company wants to charge him $20 million a year to continue offering software that lets Reddit users view and interact with the platform. Reddit’s API is what allows Reddit content to be displayed to the Apollo app’s 900,000 daily active users. Reddit’s initial announcement had been light on pricing details, leaving many to speculate about the future of third-party access to Reddit. According to Selig’s post Wednesday, Reddit intends to charge $12,000 for every 50 million attempts to access the company’s data. Selig isn’t the only app developer crying foul.

Persons: ”, Christian Selig, Reddit, “, Tim Rathschmidt, Selig, Selig’s, Rebecca Wright, CNN “, ” Selig, Wednesdsay, Selig didn’t, Selig isn’t, Steve Huffman Organizations: Washington CNN, Twitter, CNN, New York Times

☆ A Week With the Wild Children of the A.I. Boom
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Yiren Lu | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +4 min

Maybe in a few decades from now, we’ll look back at all these seminal A.I. As two analysts at N.E.A., an investment firm, put it in a recent report, generative A.I. But with large language models, incumbents like Google and Microsoft have had a huge head start in both developing the technology and acquiring market share among consumers. Moreover, the capital-intensive nature of training large language models means that smaller companies like OpenAI and Anthropic creating their own large language models have few alternatives beyond making Faustian “partnerships” with tech giants. Beyond the incumbents, one beneficiary might well be the indie hacker, the kind of coder for hire who does niche A.I.

Persons: Mark Cuban, ChatGPT, Diego Basch, “, Sahil Lavingia, ” Organizations: Dallas Mavericks, Twitter, Google, Microsoft, N.E.A Locations: whiteboards, Hillsborough, HF0, S.A.S

☆ Listen Early to This American Life: Jane Doe
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-27 | by ( New York Times Audio | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

The New York Times Audio app includes podcasts, narrated articles from the newsroom and other publishers, and exclusive new shows that we’re making available to readers for a limited time. Download the audio app here. Our new audio app is home to “This American Life,” hosted by Ira Glass. New episodes debut in our app a day earlier than the regular podcast feed, and we’ve also got an archive of the award-winning program. The app’s “Best of This American Life” section includes acts from the show broken down into bite-size clips.

☆ Montana’s TikTok ban throws users into new era of uncertainty
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-21 | by ( Catherine Thorbecke | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Keri Williams wouldn’t have her business without TikTok. But earlier this week, Montana Gov. Now, Williams, who lives near Montana’s largest city — Billings — is scrambling to figure out the future of her business. The law, set to take effect in January, has already been the subject of a lawsuit by a group of TikTok users who allege it infringes on their First Amendment rights. TikTok said in March that it has 150 million monthly active users in the United States, up from 100 million users in 2020, when the Trump administration first threatened to ban the service.

☆ Why Montana’s TikTok ban may not work
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

The TikTok ban immediately prompted one lawsuit from TikTok users who allege it violates their First Amendment rights, with more legal challenges expected. How can a state ban TikTok? Montana’s new law, SB419, makes it illegal for TikTok and app marketplaces to offer the TikTok service within state lines. How can Montana enforce a TikTok ban? But internet providers are not named as a type of entity subject to the TikTok ban.

Hong Kong CNN —China’s Communist Party had “supreme access” to all data held by TikTok’s parent company Bytedance, including on servers in the United States, a former employer who is bringing a wrongful termination lawsuit has alleged. Yintao “Roger” Yu filed a lawsuit of wrongful termination against Bytedance in Superior Court in San Francisco earlier this month. Yu’s lawsuit alleges that the company made user data accessible to China’s Communist Party via a backdoor channel, no matter where the data was located. Yu worked for ByteDance Inc. for less than a year and his employment ended in July 2018,” which Yu disputed in his complaint. So the risk would be similar to any government going to an American company, asking for data,” Chew said at the hearing.

☆ Ex-ByteDance employee claims company stole content from competitors in earlier days
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-13 | by ( Ramishah Maruf | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

New York CNN —An ex-ByteDance employee claimed he was wrongfully terminated after raising concerns about what he believed were illegal practices by the company, such as allegedly stealing content from its competitors Snapchat and Instagram. “The Committee maintained supreme access to all the company data, even data stored in the United States,” the complaint obtained by the New York Times said. Yu claimed that shortly after starting his job, he realized ByteDance had been embroiled in a “worldwide scheme” to steal from the app’s competitors such as Instagram and Snapchat. Painting a picture of the company’s early days in 2018, he claimed ByteDance would take videos from its competitors and use them to populate its own video services. “We plan to vigorously oppose what we believe are baseless claims and allegations in this complaint,” the spokesperson said.

☆ TikTok Delays Full Opening of U.S. Shop
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Raffaele Huang | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

In March, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew responded to lawmakers’ questions about security concerns and potential Chinese government influence over the company. Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty ImagesSINGAPORE—TikTok’s Chinese parent has delayed the rollout of its shopping platform in the U.S. as concerns over the video-sharing app’s future deter merchants from joining, dragging on the company’s plans to earn more money from its prize global asset. ByteDance has postponed opening the shop to all sellers, originally intended for early spring, to June at the earliest, people familiar with the matter said. Its actual launch date might get pushed back further because of merchants’ concerns about a possible ban of the app and tepid adoption of live-streaming e-commerce in the U.S., the people said.

☆ Despite TikTok ban threat, influencers are flocking to a new app from its parent company
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Clare Duffy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

However, they denied rumors that ByteDance had paid creators to promote the new app on TikTok. Still, the app lacks some standard social platform features such as messaging and the option to tag other users in posts. Lemon8’s userbase remains a far cry from the 150 million users TikTok says it has in the United States. By launching a new app even with TikTok in the spotlight, “ByteDance clearly doesn’t feel like they’re at risk,” Lewis said. Even if TikTok and Lemon8 were banned, Cruz said, “I already have a following on all the other platforms.”

☆ FTC says Meta should be barred from monetizing data from younger users
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

The FTC said Meta should be banned from monetizing data it collects from younger users. In a statement on Wednesday, Meta spokesman Andy Stone called the FTC proposal “a political stunt” and vowed to contest the effort. Meta had allowed personal information to leak to apps that users of the platform were no longer using, the FTC alleged. That data sharing, the FTC claimed, contrasted with Meta’s public statements about how it cuts off a third-party app’s access to Facebook users’ information if the users stop using the third-party app for 90 days. In a statement, Bedoya said he was skeptical whether there was enough of a connection between Meta’s alleged harms and the proposed remedies to legally sustain a complete ban on monetizing the data of young users.

☆ What Is Bluesky and Why Are People Clamoring to Join It?
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Sheera Frenkel | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

But unlike Twitter, Bluesky plans to be a decentralized system, meaning people may eventually be able to build their own apps and communities within it. Ms. Graber said it was designed that way so that no individual could create rules for the entire Bluesky community. Bluesky also operates using an “open protocol.” This is unusual because social media platforms have traditionally been walled gardens, meaning that what is posted on individual platforms remains only on that platform. But because Bluesky is trying to be more open, it could someday allow posts to flow between different social media platforms with ease. Last month, a Bluesky user speculated that the app’s name came from Mr. Dorsey’s desire to transform Twitter into an open protocol, freeing Twitter’s bird mascot to a blue sky.

Musk has repeatedly warned recently of the dangers of AI, amid a proliferation of AI products for general consumer use, including from tech giants like Google and Microsoft. In his interview with Carlson, Musk said “we’re going to start something which I call TruthGPT.” Musk described it as a “maximum truth-seeking AI” that “cares about understanding the universe.”“Hopefully there’s more good than harm,” Musk said. More recently, Musk is reportedly working to build a generative AI startup that could rival OpenAI and ChatGPT. During his conversation with Carlson, Musk addressed his ownership of Twitter — which he bought for $44 billion and has been engaged in controversy since. “I thought there’d probably be some negative reactions,” Musk told Carlson, saying the public will ultimately decide the app’s future.

☆ The city without TikTok offers a window to America's potential future As Americans face a future without TikTok, Hong Kong offers a glimpse into that reality
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-08 | by ( Jessie Yeung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Hong Kong CNN —Across the United States, more than 150 million people are being faced with the possibility of a new reality: life without TikTok. In Hong Kong, there’s no need to imagine that reality: TikTok discontinued its services there in 2020. Lost opportunitiesTikTok announced its exit from Hong Kong in July 2020, a week after China imposed a controversial national security law in the city. At the time, Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts had yet to arrive in Hong Kong. And while they occasionally wonder what’s happening on TikTok outside Hong Kong, the allure of it is lost when nobody else around them uses it either.

☆ Australia bans TikTok on federal government devices
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Chris Lau | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Australia has joined other Western countries in banning the use of TikTok on government devices as the Chinese-owned video app comes under increasing pressure over claims it presents a security concern. So far, there’s no evidence the Chinese government has accessed TikTok user data, and no government has enacted a broader ban targeting TikTok on personal devices. During a high profile congressional hearing on the matter, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew was grilled about the tech firm’s alleged ties to the Chinese government. Chew has said the Chinese government had never asked TikTok for its data and that the company would refuse any such request. For its part, China’s Commerce Ministry said it would “firmly oppose” any decision resulting in the forced sale of TikTok, adding that it would “seriously damage” global investors’ confidence in the United States.

Multiple experts identified the presence of malware on the Pinduoduo app that exploited vulnerabilities in Android operating systems. Evidence of sophisticated malware in the Pinduoduo app comes amid intense scrutiny of Chinese-developed apps like TikTok over concerns about data security. Pinduoduo has previously rejected “the speculation and accusation that Pinduoduo app is malicious.”CNN has contacted PDD multiple times over email and phone for comment, but has not received a response. Google Play is not available in China, and Android users in the country download their apps from local stores. Engineers also found their access to big data, data sheets and the log system revoked, the source said.

☆ Don’t Forget to Block Your Ex on Your Payment Apps
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Dalvin Brown | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

When a payment app goes ding, we expect it’s somebody giving us money—or wanting money from us. It also could be someone we don’t want to hear from. Alexuis Baremore was asleep in her High Point, N.C., apartment early on Jan. 27 when Cash App’s coin-dropping alert woke her up. The 28-year-old slid her arm under her pillows to feel around for her phone, held it to her face…and then rolled her eyes.

☆ Musk’s Twitter markdown falls short of the mark
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( Lauren Silva Laughlin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The billionaire owner of Twitter has offered stock grants to the social media app’s shrunken staff at a valuation of about $20 billion, less than half the price he paid in October. In fact, based on Twitter’s operating performance, the effects of leverage and public market comparisons, the equity is probably worthless. Net out $13 billion of debt, as of January, and equity holders are left with just over $20 billion, or about the figure reported over the weekend by The Information. First, Twitter wasn’t generating consistent earnings before Musk bought it, and so it’s hard to believe it’s doing so now. Back out the debt and the equity is less than zero, assuming their cash position hasn’t meaningfully changed.

☆ Asian Americans are anxious about hate crimes. TikTok ban rhetoric isn’t helping
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +15 min

And the Chinese government’s authoritarian approach to numerous other issues clashes with important American values, said many Asian Americans interviewed for this article. Concerns about China have gone mainstream as US national security officials and lawmakers have publicly grappled with state-backed ransomware attacks and other hacking attempts. People rallied during a "Stop Asian Hate" march to protest against anti-Asian hate crimes on Foley Square in New York, on April 4, 2021. But to Chu, the incident was an example of the way politics surrounding China, technology and national security have fueled anti-Asian sentiment. “Asian American issues are American issues, and all Americans deserve to be treated with respect.

☆ TikTok users are making fun of Congress members for their questions to app CEO Shou Chew
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-25 | by ( Ramishah Maruf | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Meanwhile, TikTok creators are leading the way ridiculing members of Congress. “There needs to be an age limit in Congress,” one caption by user @rachelhannahh said about a clip of US Rep. Many of the TikTok video clips suggested Congress members don’t know how modern technology works. They believe members of Congress are detached from technology and unaware of how tech companies within their own country operate, resulting in easily mockable questions. “What color is the algorithm?” said user Christian Divyne in a video mocking some of the questions Congress members asked Chew.

The last time Cook visited China was in 2019. We also have a thriving App Store,” the Apple chief was quoted as saying in state-run China Daily. On Friday, Cook had posted a picture of himself smiling with customers and staff at the Apple store in the shopping district of Sanlitun on China’s Twitter-like social media site Weibo. “TikTok CEO was under siege at the US hearing, while Apple CEO was enthusiastically welcomed by people at its flagship Chinese store. China’s commerce ministry said Thursday that a forced sale of TikTok would “seriously damage” global investors’ confidence in the United States.

☆ Lawmakers’ Drive to Rein In TikTok Intensifies After CEO’s Testimony
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( Natalie Andrews | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

WASHINGTON—Momentum in Congress to crack down on TikTok is growing after the chief executive of the social-media company failed to win over lawmakers in a marathon hearing, though lawmakers are divided on what path to take. Republicans and Democrats pounced on TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew, his company and its Beijing-based parent company, ByteDance Ltd., in the hearing Thursday. Over five hours, lawmakers seemed dissatisfied with Mr. Chew’s answers on Beijing’s potential influence over the video-sharing app, as well as concerns about the effect that the app’s algorithm has on teens and young adults.

Both are owned by Beijing-based parent company ByteDance, but Douyin launched before TikTok and became a viral sensation in China. Like TikTok, it’s a short-form video app. Then in 2017, the privately-owned tech company bought a US-based video startup and released TikTok as the overseas version of Douyin. The download page for the TikTok app displayed on an Apple iPhone. Besides TikTok, there’s also shopping app Temu, fast fashion retailer Shein and video editing app CapCut, which is also owned by ByteDance.

☆ Where TikTok users may go if the app gets banned
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( Samantha Murphy Kelly | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —On the eve of a high-profile TikTok hearing this week, the company shared that it now has more than 150 million US monthly active users. “This uncertainty could push some TikTok content creators to focus more on, and possibly begin, pushing their audiences to other social network platforms,” Mogharabi said. Snap’s stock rose in the days leading up to TikTok’s appearance before Congress amid renewed talks among federal officials of a TikTok ban. Alex Brandon/APIf that happens, Lian Jye Su, an analyst with ABI Search, believes users will follow their favorite TikTok influencers and content creators wherever they go. For now, talk of a TikTok ban may still be premature.

☆ Premarket stocks: Americans are going all-in on cash. That could spell more trouble
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

The goal of a money market fund is to provide investors with a relatively stable investment option that offers higher returns than traditional savings. What’s happening: Since the Fed began to raise interest rates a year ago, the amount of money in money market funds has increased by roughly $400 billion. Goldman Sachs economists wrote in a note on Thursday that Americans could sell as much as $1.1 trillion in stocks this year and put that money into credit and money market assets instead. Money market funds are deeply interconnected with the wider financial system, and often face the same risks as banks. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, a US government agency that insures deposits in banks and savings associations, does not insure cash invested in money market funds.

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