Welcome again to Week in Review. I missed you! This week, we’re diving into all of the devices and bulletins out of this 12 months’s CES, Meta’s resolution to roll again its fact-checking program, TikTok’s response to workers affected by the California wildfires, and extra! Let’s do that.
CES 2025 got here and went this week. The occasion featured keynotes from the massive gamers in tech like Nvidia, Samsung, Toyota, and extra. In addition to that, there have been, in fact, the anticipated devices, gizmos, and attention-grabbing AI claims out on the present flooring. Our staff of reporters have been on the bottom, and you may atone for every part that caught our eye at this 12 months’s present proper right here.
Meta is overhauling its content material moderation insurance policies that it created in response to criticism that it had helped unfold political and well being misinformation. The firm is eliminating its third-party fact-checking program in favor of an X-like Community Notes mannequin, which critics see as an try and cater to the incoming Trump administration. The backlash has been swift, with curiosity in searches associated to deleting Meta accounts hovering.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman stated the corporate is shedding cash on its $200-per-month ChatGPT Pro plan as a result of persons are utilizing it greater than the corporate anticipated. Launched late final 12 months, ChatGPT Pro grants customers entry to an upgraded model of OpenAI’s o1 “reasoning” AI mannequin and lifts charge limits on a number of of the corporate’s different instruments, like its Sora video generator.
This is TechCrunch’s Week in Review, the place we recap the week’s largest information. Want this delivered as a publication to your inbox each Saturday? Sign up right here.
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Wildfires vs. the horrors of capitalism: TikTok advised members of its LA workers who have been affected by wildfires to make use of private/sick hours if they’re unable to make money working from home. The firm’s LA workplace stays closed as wildfires devastate the higher Los Angeles space. Read extra
Hello, Project Digits: At CES 2025, Nvidia unveiled Project Digits, a “personal AI supercomputer” designed for AI researchers, knowledge scientists, and college students that gives entry to the corporate’s Grace Blackwell {hardware} platform in a compact type issue. Read extra
More copyright woes for Meta: A brand new submitting claims that Mark Zuckerberg gave a inexperienced mild to the staff behind Meta’s Llama AI fashions to make use of a dataset of pirated e-books and articles for coaching, together with works from authors like Sarah Silverman and Ta-Nehisi Coates. Read extra
A robotic cat that cools down your tea: The newest lovable gadget from Yukai Engineering is the Nékojita FuFu, a tiny robotic cat that may be mounted on a mug or bowl and can blow air to assist cool off your espresso or soup. Read extra
X clarifies its stance on parody accounts: X stated it is going to start to label parody accounts on the platform. Users have mistaken posts from parody accounts as genuine statements since X rolled again conventional verification badges in favor of paid verification. Read extra
AI that simulates the true world: Google is forming a brand new staff to work on AI fashions that may simulate the bodily world. The staff might be led by Tim Brooks, who was one of many co-leads on OpenAI’s Sora. He left for Google DeepMind in October. Read extra
Cannabis model hit by cyberattack: Popular Los Angeles-based hashish model Stiiizy confirmed that hackers accessed delicate buyer knowledge, together with government-issued paperwork and medical hashish playing cards, throughout a November cyberattack. Read extra
This electrical spoon might make your meals style higher: Why add extra salt to your meal when a $127 spoon might do it for you? Kirin Holdings confirmed off an digital spoon that makes use of a weak electrical present to pay attention sodium ion molecules in your meals. Read extra
That’s loads of money: A Delaware decide has accepted a settlement that may see Tesla administrators return as much as $919 million to the…
