WhatsApp will now charge AI chatbots to operate in Italy

WhatsApp will now charge AI chatbots to operate in Italy

Meta announced Wednesday that it will charge developers for running chatbots on WhatsApp in regions where regulators are forcing the company to allow them. The move comes after the company’s ban on third-party chatbots on WhatsApp took effect on January 15.  For now, Meta will charge developers in Italy, where the country’s competition watchdog asked…

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Meta pauses teen access to AI characters

Meta pauses teen access to AI characters

“Meta pauses teen access to AI characters” Meta is halting teens’ access to artificial intelligence characters, at least temporarily, the company said in a blog post Friday. Meta Platforms Inc., which own Instagram and WhatsApp, said that starting in the “coming weeks,” teens will no longer be able to access AI characters “until the updated experience…

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Threads rolls out ads to all users worldwide

Threads rolls out ads to all users worldwide

Meta on Wednesday announced it’s expanding ads on Threads to all users globally. The expansion, which starts next week, will be gradual, the company says, noting it may take months for the full rollout to complete. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has repeatedly praised the social app and X rival, which has now grown to over…

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Well, there goes the metaverse!

Well, there goes the metaverse!

Meta’s enormous bet on virtual reality ended last week, with the company reportedly laying off roughly 1,500 employees from its Reality Labs division — about 10% of the unit’s staff — and shutting down several VR game studios, according to The Wall Street Journal. It’s a huge reversal for a company that, just four years…

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Microsoft announces glut of new data centers but says it won’t let your electricity bill go up

Microsoft announces glut of new data centers but says it won’t let your electricity bill go up

Although public backlash against data centers has been intense over the past 12 months, all of the tech industry’s biggest companies have promised additional buildouts of AI infrastructure in the coming year. That includes OpenAI partner Microsoft, which, on Tuesday, announced what it calls a “community-first” approach to AI Infrastructure. Microsoft’s announcement, which comes only…

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