Victoria Fox's Blog, page 202
July 19, 2023
Google’s rumored ‘Genesis’ AI tool for journalists could probably write this article
The New York Times cites anonymous sources in a report saying Google demonstrated Genesis for media execs from the Times, Washington Post, and Wall Street Journal owner News Corp, presenting “responsible” technology that takes in facts and spits out news copy. Two execs mentioned in the article “said it seemed to take for granted the effort that went into producing accurate and artful news stories,” while another saw it as more of a personal assistant / helper.
Asked about the report, Google spokesperson Jenn Crider provided the following statement to The Verge:
In partnership with news publishers, especially smaller publishers, we’re in the earliest stages of exploring ideas to potentially provide AI-enabled tools to help journalists with their work. For instance, AI-enabled tools could assist journalists with options for headlines or different writing styles. Our goal is to give journalists the choice of using these emerging technologies in a way that enhances their work and productivity, just like we’re making assistive tools available for people in Gmail and in Google Docs. Quite simply these tools are not intended to, and cannot, replace the essential role journalists have in reporting, creating, and fact-checking their articles.
Without seeing it, judging the responsibility of the tool is difficult. but the examples of CNET / Red Ventures and, more recently, a flawed Star Wars list posted to io9 by its owners at G/O Media show the weaknesses of trying to use machines to boldly make the mistakes that human journalists are already more than capable of making on our own, thank you.
We’ve seen Bard and the Journal recently reported that even Google’s AI model for hospitals “included more inaccurate or irrelevant content in its responses” than real doctors in testing. Other than that, Google’s fickle attention span for new products (we have a list) is presumably a concern for anyone considering the tool.
Also, in case anyone forgot, the media industry as a whole has more than a few issues with Google, no matter how many promises are made about Google News exposure for local papers. The media has tried organizing to negotiate against Google, there was the whole AMP fiasco, and newspaper giant Gannett is suing Google in federal court, saying that its adtech monopolies have hurt local news.
Update July 20th, 12:43AM ET: Added statement from Google.
It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia Season 16 Episode 8 Is Based On A Real-Life Glenn Howerton Breakdown
In “Dennis Takes a Mental Health Day,” Dennis’s doctor tells him that his high blood pressure requires medication, which Dennis refuses to believe. Instead, he gets a smart watch to help him monitor his blood pressure and heart rate, avoiding stressful situations any time his blood pressure starts to rise. It’s a great set-up that allows him to get into loads of situations that would be irritating to anyone, let alone someone with Dennis’s short temper. His watch beeps as he gets agitated, so of course there is a lot of beeping as the gang pesters him, his car rental appointment is double booked, and then he loses his phone and can’t get back into his fancy electric rental car.
In real life, Howerton drives a Tesla and the key fob stopped working, so he used the app on his phone that serves as a back-up. The only problem? He and his friend went to a movie screening and parked in an underground parking garage, where they couldn’t get phone or WiFi reception. That meant they couldn’t get into the car, which meant they were stuck there. Both Howerton and Dennis ended up in customer service loops, trying to get help and getting nowhere — though Dennis’s situation gets absolutely asinine, while, in real life, Howerton just took an Uber and figured it out later.
Netflix brings password-sharing crackdown to India and every other market
Netflix is bringing password-sharing crackdown to consumers in India and every other market starting today, the global streaming giant said after a limited rollout of the restriction helped the firm sign up nearly 6 million subscribers in the quarter ending June.
The streaming giant said it will start to address account sharing between households in almost all of its remaining countries starting Thursday. Netflix, which once supported the practice of account password-sharing, now finds it posing complex challenges to its business prospects.
It began testing the restriction last year, much to many subscribers’ chagrin, and expanded it to a number of other countries including Canada, New Zealand, Portugal, Spain and the U.S. in 2023. In some aforementioned markets, Netflix allowed those sharing the password to pay extra to accommodate their friends.
The firm has clarified that it won’t be introducing an additional membership option for customers in countries where it’s newly enforcing account sharing restrictions. The reason behind this decision is the relatively low market penetration in these markets, along with the availability of more economical Netflix subscription tiers, the company wrote in a letter to shareholders.
“In these markets, we’re not offering an extra member option given that we’ve recently cut prices in a good number of these countries (for example, Indonesia, Croatia, Kenya, and India) and penetration is still relatively low in many of them so we have plenty of runway without creating additional complexity. Households borrowing Netflix will be able to transfer existing profiles to new and existing accounts.”
Netflix’s password-sharing crackdown helped deliver a robust subscriber growth in the quarter ending June, the company said on Wednesday. Following a loss of nearly 1 million customers in the same quarter last year, the company said it now gained 5.9 million subscribers. This increase is largely due to individuals who, no longer able to share the service at no cost, have chosen to pay for their own accounts.
Netflix CFO Spence Neumann said that the revenue growth for the firm is “largely driven by our paid sharing rollout.” He added: “It is our primary revenue accelerator in the year, and we expect that impact … to build over several quarters.”
The ongoing effort against password-sharing could potentially further challenge Netflix’s competitive edge in various markets. Take India, for example, where Netflix faces stiff competition from JioCinema, a platform backed by James Murdoch and Mukesh Ambani. JioCinema not only streams numerous popular shows and movies from NBC, HBO, and Warner Bros., but it also hosts some of the region’s most sought-after sporting events. JioCinema’s annual subscription costs about $12.
China’s OpenAI challenger Zhipu AI gets Meituan funding
Zhipu AI, one of China’s most promising challengers to OpenAI, has received funding from the country’s food delivery giant Meituan, which has a market cap of around $100 billion at the time of writing.
An affiliate of Zhipu AI recently added a Meituan subsidiary as its shareholder, which now owns a 10% stake in the firm, local media reported citing business filing information. The startup hasn’t disclosed its exact funding to date, only saying it raised “hundreds of million yuan” ($1 = 7.23 yuan) from a Series B round last September. Its investors include Qiming Venture Partners, Legend Capital and Tsinghua Holdings.
A multitude of Chinese companies are working to develop large language models (LLMs) that could potentially challenge their Western equivalents. One such company, Zhipu AI, hails from the academic realm, having spun out of the country’s prestigious Tsinghua University. Founded in 2019, the startup is led by Tang Jie, a professor in the university’s Department of Computer Science and Technology.
Zhipu recently open-sourced its bilingual (Chinese and English) conversational AI model ChatGLM-6B, which is trained on six billion parameters and claims to be able to carry out inferences on a single consumer-grade graphics card, significantly lowering the cost of running an LLM. It also previously open-sourced a more robust, general-purpose variant, the GLM-130B trained on 130 billion parameters. Its user-facing chatbot app ChatGLM is currently in a close beta phase. first targeted at academic and industry players.
Meituan’s investment came at a curious time. Just three weeks ago, the Chinese internet giant announced it would be acquiring Light Years Beyond, another prominent LLM player in China, for a hefty $234 million, despite the startup’s inception only four months prior. The change in ownership came after Light Years Beyond’s founder, Wang Huiwen, who’s also the billionaire co-founder of Meituan, announced his resignation from all corporate roles at the food delivery giant due to health reasons.
These investments are expected to give Meituan’s AI capabilities a big talent boost. In turn, the AI firms stand to gain by potentially tapping Meituan’s vast reach of 450 million users ordering food, buying groceries, or booking hotels with the on-demand platform.
Farizon, Geely’s truck unit, raised $600M to expand outside China
Farizon, a maker of hybrid and electric trucks owned by China’s Geely, has closed a $600 million Series A raise, the company said in a statement. The Hangzhou-based company plans to use the funds to expand its operations outside of China.
A key focus for Farizon’s expansion will be Europe, where the automaker plans to start selling a light electric cargo van called the Super Van as early as 2024. Farizon hopes the Super Van will become one of Europe’s top three e-cargo vans.
Recently, California-based Rivian began to deliver its first e-cargo vans for Amazon in Europe. Rivian hopes to continue to build its presence in the region. Both new entrants will have to compete against Ford’s e-Transit van.
Farizon is also hoping to establish a presence in Asia-Pacific, South America and the Middle East. Many Chinese EV-makers have begun to pursue strategies in the Middle East after being unable to compete meaningfully in Europe with Western brands.
For the moment, the majority of Farizon’s sales come from China. The company sold about 37,800 light commercial vehicles in China in 2022, according to consultant group LMC Automotive. Between January and May 2023, Farizon sold 24,760 vehicles. By the end of the year, Farizon has said it hopes to reach 150,000 units sold. The company said Thursday that it already produced that number of commercial vehicles.
In addition to expansion, Farizon said it will use its Series A funds to further its technology and product development.
The funding round comes nine months after Farizon raised a pre-Series A round of $300 million. Private equity firm Boyu Capital and state-owned Yuexiu Industrial Fund led the Series A, with participation from United Clean Energy, Linjiang Industry Group and previous investors Hidden Hill Capital and Industry Foundation fo Xiangtan.
Why Is Netflix Crashing On Roku (And What You Can Do About It)
If you believe that there’s a disconnect between the versions of your Roku and the Netflix app, then the next move is to perform a system update on your Roku. This process will have your Roku check online for the latest firmware updates, and if any are available, install them. Your Netflix app is usually updated on its own, but your Roku may occasionally need a manual check.
Go to the Settings menu.
Select System.
Select System Update.
Select Check now.
If there is an update, follow the instructions to install it.
Your Roku may need to restart if the update is substantial. After the update is finished, try using Netflix again.
If all else fails, you may need to employ a factory reset on your Roku, restoring it to its out-of-the-box settings. A factory reset should be a last resort however, as it will completely remove any saved preferences, apps, and accounts, forcing you to set everything up again.
Go to the Settings menu.
Select System.
Select Advanced system settings.
Select Factory reset.
Select Factory reset everything.
It will take a few minutes for your Roku to wipe itself, after which it will reboot and guide you through the initial setup process again.
5 Cheap Android Tablets That Are Better Than You’d Think
The Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite is another great choice for budget-conscious users. Despite being labeled as the “lite” version, it delivers several features and functionalities that make it stand out among other tablets in its price range.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite features slim bezels and a stylish aluminum unibody, giving it a premium look and feel. The tablet also comes bundled with an S Pen, which enhances the note-taking and drawing experience. The display of the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite is another standout feature. It boasts a 10.4-inch LCD screen that offers vibrant colors and crisp visuals. The tablet also delivers clear audio through its speakers, enhancing the entertainment value.
In terms of performance, the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite offers commendable capabilities for everyday use. It runs on an Exynos processor, which is not the fastest but provides reliable performance for web browsing, media consumption, and productivity applications. Battery life is another area where the Galaxy Tab S6 does well. Its 7,040mAh battery delivers impressive endurance, lasting throughout the day with regular usage.
One limitation of the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite is the lack of optimized apps for larger tablet displays, which can be a common challenge for Android tablets. However, it still provides a satisfactory tablet experience with its sharp display, strong audio, and thin bezels.
Korean fashion platform Musinsa bags $190M Series C led by KKR at a $2.7B valuation
Musinsa, a Seoul-based fashion marketplace, said Wednesday it has raised a $190 million round of Series C funding led by KKR, with participation from Wellington Management.
The new capital put Musinsa’s valuation at approximately $2.76 billion (more than 3 trillion won), per sources familiar with the situation. The Korean fashion e-commerce startup declined to provide an exact valuation figure but confirmed to TechCrunch it’s more than 3 trillion won. The post-money valuation increased from its previous $2 billion (2.5 trillion won) in 2021 when the startup picked up a $115 million Series B round from Sequoia Capital and IMM Investment. Its total raised since 2001 now stands at roughly $330 million (430 billion won).
With the Series C financing, Musinsa will continue to scale its online and offline business, expand into overseas markets and make acquisitions in order to diversify its portfolios. Musinsa, once used to sell only menswear products, acquired women’s wear online shopping platforms 29CM and StyleShare for $265 million in 2021 to expand its client base and product categories.
When asked about its initial public offering plan, a spokesperson at Musinsa told TechCrunch it “plans to discuss the possibility of an IPO in the second half of 2024.”
Along with its local competitors like Kakao’s fashion platform Zigzag, Korean retail giant Shinsegae’s W concept, and Brandi backed by Naver, Musinsa is one of the biggest and most popular fashion marketplaces, offering more than 8,000 local and foreign fashion brands to 13 million users. The startup claims over $2.35 billion(3 trillion won) in annual gross merchandise value (GMV) as of 2022.
Back in 2018, Musinsa set up its venture capital arm, Musinsa Partners, to back small and medium startups in the fashion industry.
Musinsa recorded $545 million(708.3 billion won) of sales in 2022, up 54 percent on-year, more than three times its sales in 2019 before the pandemic. But, its operating profits plunged to $2.5 million in 2022 due to excessive investments for international expansions and the loss of its sneaker reselling unit SLDT, per media reports.
“Musinsa has developed itself as a top consumer internet platform in Korea as a differentiated marketplace by its ability to scale rising brands, enable the creator economy for fashion, engage and provide a high-quality e-commerce experience for customers,” Mukul Chawla, partner and head of growth equity, Asia for KKR, said in a statement. “We see enormous opportunity for Musinsa to build on its leading position in a fast-growing K-fashion (Korea’s fashion) market that continues to shift online and expand globally on the back of K-culture’s explosive reach.
The latest funding marks KKR’s first technology growth investment in South Korea in line with its next-generation technology (NGT) strategy, which supports Asia-based innovative companies in software, consumer technology and fintech. Other investments from the private equity firm’s strategy include Lenskart, an India-based omnichannel eyewear retailer; Advanced Navigation, an Australian AI-based robotics technology developer; Privy, an Indonesian digital identity provider; GrowSari, the Philippines-based B2B e-commerce platform for small-and-medium enterprises; NetStars, a Japanese QR code payment gateway operator.
More to follow…
July 18, 2023
TikTok expands its music streaming service test to Australia, Mexico and Singapore
TikTok has started inviting users in Australia, Mexico and Singapore to participate in a closed beta test for its new music streaming service, according to TechCrunch and CNBC. The short-form video hosting app initially launched beta testing for its fledgling streaming service in Brazil and Indonesia in early July. Now, it’s expanding the scope of its music service’s experimental phase and giving invited users in those regions a free three-month trial to be able to try it out.
TikTok Music is a completely separate app that testers will be able to download from the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store. It does, however, connect to the main TikTok app, so users can find the full versions of songs that go viral on the video-sharing platform. The music streaming app reportedly offers personalized song recommendations, real-time lyrics, collaborative playlists and the ability to find songs through a lyrics search feature, as well. TechCrunch says it has a Shazam-like feature, which presumably means it can find songs by listening to it, and will let users download tracks for offline listening.
The ByteDance-owned app told TechCrunch that once the testers’ trial period is done, it will cost them AUD12 (US$8.16) per month in Australia, Mex$115 (US$6.86) in Mexico and S$9.90 (US$7.48) in Singapore to be able to keep using the service. TikTok already has a music streaming service called Resso available in India, Brazil and Indonesia, but it’s shutting the app down in the last two countries in September. The company has yet to announce if and when its music app is also coming to the US, but it did file a trademark application for “TikTok Music” in the country back in May 2022.
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Why Is Judge Guy’s Leather Notebook In Justified: City Primeval So Important?
That David’s grumpy Judge Alvin Guy asks Givens to co-lead the manhunt for the perpetrator is already slightly sketch. The rationale given is “Sometimes it takes an angry white guy to catch an angry white guy,” but what’s clear is that Guy wants this wrapped up quickly and cleanly — and it nearly is.
The culprit is an ex-con who wants revenge for Guy hitting him with a maximum sentence and then, rather boldly, sleeping with his mother. When one of Givens’ fellow marshals confronts Guy with this information, he meets her suggestion of potential legal sanctions with a vague threat of indiscretions committed by local law enforcement. This is all just bluster at first, since they quickly locate and apprehend the bomber.
The opportunity for a quick prosecution is bungled, however, when Guy winds up in a road rage incident with Clement Mansel, also known as “The Oklahoma Wildman” (Boyd Holbrook). The first episode is clearly setting up Clement as the central villain of the miniseries, but, as far as we know at the moment, he’s never explicitly crossed paths with Guy. It’s just a random dust-up between two hotheads.
This dispute ends with Guy and his assistant (Rae Gray) being brutally executed by Clement, who helps himself to the contents of the Judge’s jacket pockets. It’s here he comes across a brown leather notebook seemingly thick with high-dollar transactions. It’s been established that Guy possessed a busted moral compass. Was he perhaps engaged in serious criminal behavior from the bench?
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