TikTok prepares for US shutdown, Zuckerberg to axe thousands of ‘low performers’
TikTok plans to shut its app for U.S. users from Sunday, when a federal ban on the social media app could come into effect, unless the Supreme Court moves to block it, people familiar with the matter said. The outcome of the shutdown would be different from that mandated by the law. The law would mandate a ban only on new TikTok downloads on Apple or Google app stores, while existing users could continue using it for some time. Under TikTok’s plan, people attempting to open the app will see a pop-up message directing them to a website with information about the ban. Reuters
Mark Zuckerberg is preparing to sack thousands of low performers at Meta as part of a productivity drive that “celebrates aggression”. The US billionaire has unveiled plans to cut and replace 5pc of the company’s lowest performers – equivalent to around 3,600 staff – in the coming months. In a memo to staff on Tuesday, first reported by Bloomberg, Mr Zuckerberg said: “I’ve decided to raise the bar on performance management and move out low-performers faster.” Telegraph
Kate Mosse and Richard Osman have hit back at Labour’s plan to give artificial intelligence companies broad freedoms to mine artistic works for data, saying it could destroy growth in creative fields and amount to theft. The best-selling novellists spoke out after Keir Starmer a national drive to make the UK “one of the great AI superpowers” and endorsed a 50-point action plan that included changes to how technology firms can use copyrighted text and data to train their models. The Guardian
Apple has already been in the news this week after Bloomberg journalist and Apple expert Mark Gurman claimed that the entry level iPad could soon be upgraded to run on the same processor as the iPad mini. The A17 Pro would give it the requirements necessary to offer Apple Intelligence. However, that wasn’t the only thing his Power On newsletter mentioned – Gurman claimed that a new Apple TV 4K was on the cards for this year, too. And it’s “planned for release toward the end of the year”, he revealed. T3.com
Apple AI is sending misleading push notifications about sensitive stories like Gisele Pelicot’s mass rape trial, Britain’s grooming gang scandal and a prison officer filmed having sex with an inmate. Concerns have now been raised with Apple by multiple news organisations over the AI summary feature, which is available on iPhones with Apple Intelligence. The feature “must be revoked”, the National Union of Journalists told Sky News, as the “inaccurate news summaries shared to audiences through Apple Intelligence demonstrate the feature is not fit for purpose”. Sky News
The US markets watchdog has filed a lawsuit against Elon Musk alleging he failed to disclose that he had amassed a stake in Twitter, allowing him to buy shares at “artificially low prices. “The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) lawsuit alleges that the multi-billionaire Tesla boss saved $150m (£123m) in share purchases as a result. According to SEC rules, investors whose holdings surpass 5% have 10 days to report that they have crossed that threshold. Musk did so 21 days after the purchase, the filing says. In a social media post Musk called the SEC a “totally broken organisation.” BBC
A Volkswagen ID.7 Pro S, equipped with a standard technology package and a 210 kW (286 PS) motor, recently completed a 941-kilometer journey on a single battery charge at the Nardò Technical Center in southern Italy. This significantly surpassed the model’s WLTP-certified range of up to 709 kilometers, achieving an average consumption of just 9.2 kWh/100 km. The test, conducted on the Low-Speed Ring at Nardò, aimed to determine the maximum efficiency of the ID.7 Pro S. Tech Digest
