Your Hub for Tech News and Handy Online Tools.

Social Media

Facebook Groups Hit by Mass Suspensions: Meta Acknowledges Technical Issue

Meta is addressing a technical error causing mass suspensions of Facebook Groups, impacting numerous communities across various categories. Group admins report receiving vague violation notices, often unrelated to their content. While Meta is working on a fix, the cause of the bans remains unknown, with speculation pointing to faulty AI moderation. Users are advised to wait for automatic reversal rather than appealing.

Artificial Intelligence

AI's Emotional Evolution: The Rise of Empathetic Models

AI development is shifting towards emotional intelligence, with models now competing on user preference and emotional understanding rather than just analytical skills. Open-source tools like LAION's EmoNet are emerging to democratize emotional AI technology.

Benchmarks like EQ-Bench show significant progress in AI's ability to understand complex emotions, with models outperforming humans in psychometric tests. However, concerns arise about potential manipulation and unhealthy emotional attachments to AI.

Experts believe that emotional intelligence in AI could act as a counter to harmful manipulative behavior, but careful development is needed to strike a healthy balance. The goal is to create AI assistants that are emotionally intelligent and can help humans live more emotionally healthy lives.

Social Media

Facebook Groups Hit by Mass Suspensions: Meta Acknowledges Technical Error

Meta is addressing a technical error causing mass suspensions of Facebook Groups across various categories. Group admins report receiving vague violation notices, with many suspecting faulty AI-based moderation is to blame.

Users are advised to wait for the issue to be resolved automatically rather than appealing the bans. Meta has not yet disclosed the cause of the problem.

Other social networks like Pinterest and Tumblr have also faced complaints about mass suspensions recently, leading to concerns about AI-automated moderation.

Business & Entertainment

All-In Podcast's Exclusive Tequila Sells Out Instantly

The All-In Podcast team, known for their venture capital and political commentary, launched a limited-edition tequila brand that quickly sold out online.

Priced at $1,200 per bottle, only 750 bottles of the exclusive tequila were produced, featuring packaging inspired by poker chips, reflecting the group's affinity for the card game.

The launch event, held at Delilah in Los Angeles, had a 1960s Rat Pack ambiance and was attended by tech figures like Brianne Kimmel, with attendees sharing "SPAC jokes" during the festivities.

Technology

Apple Wallet Users Frustrated by Unwanted 'F1' Movie Ad Push

iPhone users are expressing their discontent with Apple for sending unsolicited advertisements for the 'F1' movie through the Apple Wallet app. The ad, offering a discount on Fandango tickets, has sparked complaints across social media platforms like Reddit and X, with users objecting to receiving ads on a device they paid a premium for. Many users are drawing parallels to Apple's past marketing missteps, such as the forced U2 album installation on iTunes. While iOS 26 beta includes an option to disable 'Offers & Promotions' in Apple Wallet, current users can only disable notifications or card benefits, highlighting a potential increase in future marketing efforts through the app.

Artificial Intelligence

Wispr Flow Secures $30M to Advance AI-Powered Dictation App

Wispr Flow, an AI-powered dictation app, has raised $30 million in Series A funding led by Menlo Ventures. The company plans to use the funds to expand its team, develop an Android app, and cater to enterprise users. Wispr Flow aims to become an AI-powered assistant that understands personal context and helps users with daily tasks. The app currently supports dictation in 104 languages and has seen a 50% month-over-month user growth.

Technology Regulation

UK Regulator Considers Forcing Google to Offer Search Alternatives and Fairer Rankings

The U.K.'s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is considering designating Google with "strategic market status" under the new Digital Markets Competition Regime.

This could require Google to provide alternative search options to users, rank search results more fairly, and offer greater control to publishers over their content used in search and AI Overviews.

Proposed measures include choice screens for search services, fair ranking principles, better content controls for publishers, and data transfer options for users.

The CMA is collecting opinions and will decide on the designation by October 13.

Environmental Innovation

Novoloop's Innovative Upcycling Process Transforms Plastic Waste into Valuable Materials

Novoloop has developed a groundbreaking method to upcycle difficult-to-recycle plastics into thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU), a material in high demand for various products like sneakers and car seats. The company's demonstration plant can produce up to 70 metric tons of TPU annually and is already sold out. Following a successful test run, Novoloop secured $21 million in Series B funding to construct its first commercial-scale plant. The company's unique process involves breaking down polyethylene plastic into monomers and synthesizing new polymers, resulting in Lifecycled TPU, a material that is more valuable than the original plastic. Novoloop is also exploring mechanically recycling TPU scraps from factory floors. The company chose to build its demonstration plant in India due to Aether Industries' expertise in small-scale chemical manufacturing and cost-effectiveness.

Cybersecurity

Government Bans WhatsApp on US House Devices Citing Security Risks

The U.S. government has banned WhatsApp from devices used by U.S. House of Representatives staff due to potential security risks. The Office of Cybersecurity cited a lack of transparency in user data protection, absence of stored data encryption, and other security risks. Staff are recommended to use apps like Signal, iMessage, FaceTime, and Microsoft Teams instead. Meta reported disrupting a hacking campaign targeting WhatsApp users in January, linked to Israeli spyware maker Paragon Solutions, acquired by a U.S. private equity firm. Several countries are suspected to be customers of Paragon's spyware.

Autonomous Vehicles

Waymo Robotaxis Now Available in Atlanta via Uber

Waymo and Uber have expanded their "Waymo on Uber" robotaxi service to Atlanta, initially covering about 65 square miles. This follows their successful launch in Austin. Uber users can opt-in to be matched with a Waymo robotaxi, which will cost the same as UberX, Uber Comfort, or Uber Comfort Electric.

Uber manages the charging, maintenance, and cleaning of the autonomous vehicles, while Waymo monitors the technology and autonomous operations. Waymo currently provides 250,000 paid robotaxi rides every week across Austin, Los Angeles, Phoenix and San Francisco. The addition of Atlanta should increase those numbers.

The fleet in Atlanta is in the “dozens” and will be expanded over time. Riders use the Uber app to unlock the vehicle, open the trunk, and start the trip.