Vimeo is leveraging artificial intelligence to automate video editing, and says its new AI suite of tools enables the creation of “a fully produced video in minutes by generating scripts from text prompts, recording videos in one take, and editing content as easily as a Word doc,” the company claims. Features include recording using a built-in screen teleprompter and the ability to quickly delete unwanted filler words (“ums” and “uhs”) and long pauses. The video hosting and sharing platform is rolling out the AI tools in July as part of the $20 per month standard subscription. Continue reading Vimeo Says Its AI Makes Video as Easy to Edit as Word Docs

Elon Musk and new Twitter CEO Linda Yaccarino shared a platform vision heavy on creator-commerce partnerships as well as video, which has grown vertical engagement to “more than 10 percent” of user time on the social service. The duo said on a video call with investors last week that the company is pursuing collaborations with entertainment figures, politicians, media publishers and payment services, and that Twitter is securing “money transmitter licenses” in each of the 50 U.S. states as part of Musk’s vision to turn the service into a super app. Continue reading Twitter’s New Business Plan Marks Shift to Video, Commerce

Amazon has tapped artificial intelligence to summarize some of its product reviews. The feature, currently being tested, sifts through customer reviews to create lists of what purchasers like and dislike. The summaries carry the disclaimer “AI-generated from the text of customer reviews.” The move comes as Amazon is also deploying AI to weed out “fake” reviews supplied by “review brokers” who are also now able to leverage the power of AI. Amazon, which has identified phony reviews as a major problem, now uses machine learning models to detect fraudulent behavior by analyzing thousands of data points. Continue reading Amazon Uses AI to Summarize Legit Reviews and Flag Fakes

A bill passed by the Louisiana State Legislature that bans minors from creating social media accounts without parental consent is the latest in a string of legal measures that take aim at the online world to combat a perceived mental health crisis among America’s youth. Utah also recently passed a law requiring consent of a parent or guardian when anyone under 18 wants to create a social account. And California now mandates some sites default to the highest privacy for minor accounts. The Louisiana legislation stands out as extremely restrictive, encompassing multiplayer games and video-sharing apps. Continue reading Louisiana Approves Parental Consent Bill for Online Accounts

Following nine months of difficult repositioning that included layoffs and consolidation as Meta Platforms segued to its “year of efficiency,” CEO Mark Zuckerberg recently shared his plans for the company’s future with employees at an all-hands meeting. In a discussion that has been reported as an effort to help bolster staff morale during this challenging period, Zuckerberg explained his strategy regarding job cuts, offered insight on the tech giant’s approach to artificial intelligence, and took a swipe at Apple’s upcoming Vision Pro mixed reality headset while talking about his goals for VR and the metaverse. Continue reading Zuckerberg Shares Meta Strategy with Staff After Rocky Year

Meta Platforms previewed its in-development Twitter rival, called Project 92, for staff last week. Chief product officer Chris Cox demoed the decentralized app, which the company plans to launch through Instagram. Meta received feedback from creators and high-profile figures indicating they want “a sanely run” platform. Project 92 — also referred to internally as “P92” or “Barcelona” — bears similarities to Twitter but unlike that closed system will interoperate with other decentralized social apps like Mastodon and Bluesky. Although a specific timeline wasn’t shared, Cox reportedly said Meta plans to launch P92 “as soon as we can.” Continue reading Meta Unveils Its Upcoming Twitter Competitor for Employees

TikTok is targeting a massive four-fold increase in global e-commerce revenue this year, aiming for $20 billion in sales. The social media platform reported gross merchandise activity of $4.4 billion last year, which reflects the total sale of goods via the TikTok Shop e-commerce solution. TikTok is banking on significant growth in markets including Indonesia, where influencers live-stream shopping pitches for everything from denim jeans to lipstick. The U.S. and Europe account for a tiny portion of the projected goal, but TikTok is hoping for modest gains in those areas as well. Continue reading TikTok Is Aiming for $20 Billion in Global E-Commerce Sales

The European Union wants deepfakes and other AI-generated content labeled, and is pressing signatories to its Code of Practice on Online Disinformation to adopt technology that will clearly identify output that is generated or manipulated by machines. “The new AI technologies can be a force for good” that offers “new avenues for increased efficiency and creative expression. But, as always, we have to mention the dark side,” EU values and transparency commissioner Vera Jourova said, citing “new risks and the potential for negative consequences for society.” Continue reading EU Urges Tech Companies to Label All AI-Generated Content

Snapchat is rolling out a new feature for its premium Snapchat+ platform that enables users who send Snaps to My AI let the artificial intelligence know what they’re up to “receive a unique generative Snap back that keeps the conversation going” via My AI Snaps. The feature was previewed at the Snap Partner Summit in April as part of a larger push on AI updates, including the ability to invite the My AI chatbot to participate in group chats with friends and the ability to get AI Lens suggestions and place recommendations. In addition, the My AI chatbot — made free to all users this year — was updated to reply to users’ Snaps with a text-based response. Continue reading Snapchat+ Introduces ‘My AI Snaps’ for Chatbot Snap Backs

Twitter is emphasizing crowdsourced moderation. The launch of Community Notes for images in posts seeks to address instances where morphed or AI-generated images are posted. The idea is to expose altered content before it goes viral, as did the image of Pope Francis wearing a Balenciaga puffy coat in March and the fake image of an explosion at the Pentagon in May. Twitter says Community Notes about an image will appear with “recent and future” posts containing the graphic in question. Currently in the test phase, the feature works with tweets featuring a single image. Continue reading Twitter Community Notes Aim to Curb Impact of Fake Images

TikTok is floating a trial balloon of its own AI chatbot, named Tako, now testing in select markets. Tako invites users to ask questions about TikTok videos and is also designed to help with discovery and recommendations. Tako’s public testing was first reported by Israeli app intelligence firm Watchful. TikTok subsequently confirmed testing in the Philippines and said Tako tests were live in some other global markets, but said the chatbot is not yet deployed in the United States. Unlike Microsoft’s Bing Chat, Google’s Bard and Snap’s My AI, Tako seems hyperfocused on TikTok content. Continue reading TikTok Embraces AI with Tako Chatbot, Now in Limited Tests

Meta Platforms has agreed to sell Giphy to Shutterstock for $53 million in net cash, winding down a yearslong legal battle with the UK Competition and Markets Authority, which ordered the divestiture. Shutterstock, which licenses photos and other image content, said Giphy adds 1.7 billion in daily mobile users and global partners that include Meta’s own Instagram, Facebook and Whatsapp in addition to Microsoft, Samsung, Twitter, TikTok, Slack and Discord. Meta acquired Giphy in 2020 for $315 million and was one year later ordered by the UK CMA to unwind the deal, citing antitrust issues. Continue reading Meta Platforms Is Selling Giphy to Shutterstock for $53 Million

Meta Platforms has been hit with a record $1.3 billion fine for violating European Union rules that prohibit transferring the data of EU citizens to other countries. Ireland’s Data Protection Commission, the agency of record in the region in which Meta was sued, said that the tech giant continues to operate outside of compliance with the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) after a 2020 ruling by the bloc’s highest court found that Facebook user data was being shipped to America without adequate protection from U.S. spy agencies. Continue reading Meta Is Fined $1.3 Billion for Facebook’s EU Privacy Violation

Details are emerging about the text-based Twitter competitor being developed by Meta Platforms. What is being referred to internally as “Instagram’s new text-based app for conversations” will offer a feed with text posts of up to 500 characters that are capable of attaching links, photos, and videos. The move comes as alternatives including Bluesky, Cohost, Hive, Mastodon and Substack try to gain market share by luring disaffected Twitter users to their platforms. Instagram’s entry in progress — codenamed “P92,” and alternately referred to as “Barcelona” — may soon be interoperable with all of them. Continue reading Meta Testing Decentralized Instagram App as Rival to Twitter

The U.S. Supreme Court opted to uphold the status quo as concerns Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, opting in two separate cases not to strike down as unconstitutional the statutory provision that shield social media platforms from liability for user posts. The rulings, which involved Google, Twitter and Facebook, were greeted with relief by Big Tech. Although Congress has been vocal about paring back Section 230, a change in the law would be far less disruptive than the seismic aftershocks that would inevitably have been triggered by a reversal. Continue reading Supreme Court Sides with Social Media Platforms on Liability