Instagram Co-Founders Launch Personalized News App ‘Artifact’

Artifact, the personalized news reader built by Instagram’s co-founders, is now open to the public, no sign-up required. TechCrunch reports: With today’s launch, Artifact is dropping its waitlist and phone number requirements, introducing the app’s first social feature and adding feedback controls to better personalize the news reading experience, among other changes. […] With today’s launch, Artifact will now give users more visibility into their news reading habits with a newly added stats feature that shows you the categories you’ve read as well as the recent articles you read within those categories, plus the publishers you’ve been reading the most. But it will also group your reading more narrowly by specific topics. In other words, instead of just “tech” or “AI,” you might find you’ve read a lot about the topic “ChatGPT,” specifically.

In time, Artifact’s goal is to provide tools that would allow readers to click a button to show more or less from a given topic to better control, personalize and diversify their feed. In the meantime, however, users can delve into settings to manage their interests by blocking or pausing publishers or selecting and unselecting general interest categories. Also new today is a feature that allows you to upload your contacts in order to see a signal that a particular article is popular in your network. This is slightly different from Twitter’s Top Articles feature, which shows you articles popular with the people you follow, because Artifact’s feature is more privacy-focused.

“It doesn’t tell you who read it. It doesn’t tell you how many of them read it, so it keeps privacy — and we clearly don’t do it with just one read. So you can’t have one contact and like figure out what that one contact is reading … it has to meet a certain minimum threshold,” notes [Instagram co-founder Kevin Systrom]. This way, he adds, the app isn’t driven by what your friends are reading, but it can use that as a signal to highlight items that everyone was reading. In time, the broader goal is to expand the social experience to also include a way to discuss the news articles within Artifact itself. The beta version, limited to testers, offers a Discover feed where users can share articles and like and comment on those shared by others. There’s a bit of a News Feed or even Instagram-like quality to engaging with news in this way, we found.

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AI-Created Images Lose US Copyrights In Test For New Technology

Images in a graphic novel that were created using the artificial-intelligence system Midjourney should not have been granted copyright protection, the U.S. Copyright Office said in a letter seen by Reuters. From the report: “Zarya of the Dawn” author Kristina Kashtanova is entitled to a copyright for the parts of the book she wrote and arranged, but not for images she made using Midjourney, the office said in its letter, dated Tuesday. The decision is one of the first by a U.S. court or agency on the scope of copyright protection for works created with AI, and comes amid the meteoric rise of generative AI software like Midjourney, Dall-E and ChatGPT.

The Copyright Office said in its letter that it would reissue its registration for “Zarya of the Dawn” to omit images that “are not the product of human authorship.” […] Midjourney is an AI-based system that generates images based on text prompts entered by users. Kashtanova wrote the text of “Zarya of the Dawn,” and Midjourney created the book’s images based on her prompts.

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Amazon Closes $3.9 Billion Deal To Acquire One Medical

An anonymous reader quotes a report from CNBC: Amazon on Wednesday said it had closed its $3.9 billion deal for primary care provider One Medical. Amazon agreed last July to acquire One Medical to deepen its presence in health care, and “dramatically improve” the experience of getting medical care. Amazon has long had ambitions to expand into health care, buying online pharmacy PillPack in 2018 for $750 million, then launching its own virtual clinic for chronic conditions, and prescription perks for Prime members. The deal gives Amazon access to One Medical’s more than 200 brick-and-mortar medical offices in 26 markets, and roughly 815,000 members.

The purchase was the first major deal announced since CEO Andy Jassy took the helm from founder Jeff Bezos in July 2021, and Jassy has indicated he sees health care as a major area of expansion. In a statement, he said health care is ripe for disruption, citing long appointment times and the complexities of primary care. “Customers want and deserve better, and that’s what One Medical has been working and innovating on for more than a decade,” Jassy said in a statement. “Together, we believe we can make the health care experience easier, faster, more personal, and more convenient for everyone.” Amazon said it would discount One Medical memberships for U.S. users to $144 from $199 for the first year, regardless of whether they’re a Prime subscriber.

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Biden Won’t Stop a Potential Ban On Importing Apple Watches

Medical device maker AliveCor announced today that President Biden has upheld an International Trade Commission ruling that could result in a potential import ban on the Apple Watch over its EKG feature. The Verge reports: Back in December, the ITC issued a final determination (PDF) that Apple had infringed on AliveCor’s wearable EKG tech. In the ruling, the ITC recommended a limited exclusion order and a cease-and-desist order for Apple Watch models with EKG features. If enforced, that would mean that Apple would no longer be able to import Apple Watch with EKG capabilities into the US for sale. According to Apple spokesperson Hannah Smith, the company will appeal the ITC’s decision to the Federal Circuit.

A veto from Biden would have rendered the issue moot. According to The Hill, while presidents generally don’t interfere with ITC rulings, in 2013, former President Obama vetoed a similar import ban after the ITC ruled that iPhones and iPads infringed on Samsung tech. It’s possible that Apple was hoping for history to repeat itself, as it reportedly amped up lobbying last week ahead of Biden’s decision.
https://www.theverge.com/2023/1/11/23550036/the-apple-watchs-blood-oxygen-feature-is-at-the-center-of-a-potential-import-ban
Biden’s decision doesn’t mean every Apple Watch from the Series 4 to the Apple Watch Ultra (excluding both generations of the SE) is about to disappear off shelves. Apple’s Smith told The Verge the ITC’s ruling doesn’t have any real impact at the moment. That’s because the Patent Trial and Appeal Board recently ruled that AliveCor’s EKG tech isn’t actually patentable, and AliveCor would have to win its appeal (PDF) to that ruling for any potential ban to take effect. However, AliveCor isn’t the only medical tech company that’s seeking an import ban on the Apple Watch via the ITC. Masimo also sued Apple for allegedly infringing on five of its pulse oximetry patents. Last month, an ITC judge also ruled in Masimo’s favor and will decide whether a potential import ban is warranted in May. If so, that import ban would impact any Apple Watch with an SpO2 sensor (i.e., the Series 6 or later, excluding the SE.)

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Microsoft To Test Bing Chat Tones, Allows Longer Chat Sessions

Microsoft will start testing Bing Chat tones, enabling users to switch between receiving answers that are either more creative or more focused on their queries. Once the new option is available, you can choose between precise, balanced, or creative replies from Redmond’s AI-powered Bing chat bot. BleepingComputer reports: We are “going to begin testing an additional option that lets you choose the tone of the Chat from more Precise — which will focus on shorter, more search focused answers — to Balanced, to more Creative — which gives you longer and more chatty answers,” the Bing Team said. “The goal is to give you more control on the type of chat behavior to best meet your needs.”

Microsoft also says chat limits (5 chat turns per session and a total of 50 per day) that were introduced on Friday to address Bing Chat’s confusing and, at times, aggressive replies have now been expanded to allow for a more “natural daily use of Bing.” Starting today, the number of chat turns has been increased to six per session, to 60 chats per day. Next, Redmond plans to increase the daily cap to 100 total chats and ensure that normal searches will no longer count against the total number of chats.

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Tumblr iOS Revenue Increased 125% Since Launching Its Parody of Paid Verification

Tumblr’s parody of paid verification has already delivered the social network and blogging platform a 125% boost in iOS in-app purchase revenue since November, according to a new analysis of the app’s in-app consumer spending. TechCrunch reports: The company, now operated by WordPress.com owner Automattic following its 2019 acquisition, launched its response to Twitter’s paid verification hustle with the addition of its own purely cosmetic double blue checks — a sort of tongue-in-cheek rebuttal to the idea that subscription-based verification had any real value. As it turns out, at least some Tumblr users were willing to pay — though perhaps not for clout, but because in-jokes have proven to be a more successful monetization strategy for the blogging network than some of its more legitimate attempts to make money, such as its creator-focused subscription, Post+. After being met with community backlash, at one point Post+ was being outperformed from a monetization perspective by crabs — a goofy paid feature that let users send animated dancing crabs to each other’s dashboards.

According to new data from app intelligence firm Sensor Tower provided to TechCrunch, consumer spending on Tumblr’s iOS app increased since November 2022’s double-blue check launch, now totaling $263,000 in net revenue. While that’s not a significant figure in the grand scheme of things by any means, it still represents a 125% jump in spending compared with the prior three-month total of August through October 2022. When looking at more long-term trends, Tumblr’s revenue remains up — but not by as much. Sensor Tower says the in-app purchase revenue on iOS is up 19%, compared with the prior ten months ahead of the blue check’s launch (January through October 2022).

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A Second Hellboy Reboot is Officially on the Way

An anonymous reader shares a report: Almost two decades after the release of the Guillermo del Toro-directed Hellboy, the character is getting yet another reboot. Millennium Media has confirmed that Hellboy: The Crooked Man will enter production next month in Bulgaria, Deadline reports. Casting for the titular character (originally played by Ron Perlman and then David Harbour) is yet to be announced, but the new film will be directed by Brian Taylor, best known for the Jason Statham action movie Crank.

Perhaps most interesting is that the comics’ original creator Mike Mignola has written the script for the upcoming film alongside Chris Golden. Both were reported to have worked on the script for the 2019 reboot by The Hollywood Reporter, though Andrew Cosby ultimately ended up with sole credit for writing the screenplay. The 2019 reboot is widely considered to have been both a commercial and critical failure, bringing in roughly $55 million at the box office on a budget of $50 million.

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UK ‘Barking Up Wrong Tree’ Trying To Get Over-50s Back To Work, Report Finds

Rishi Sunak’s government is “barking up the wrong tree” by trying to get people in retirement back to work to fix chronic staff shortages, according to a report that warns long-term sickness and pressure on the NHS is having a bigger impact on the jobs market. From a report: The sharp rise in economic inactivity — when working-age adults are neither in work nor looking for a job — is more likely to be driven by people waiting for treatment as the health service struggles to cope, as well as by people who permanently live in poorer health, according to the consultancy LCP. “There is a real risk of the government barking up the wrong tree when it comes to the growth in economic inactivity,” the report says.

It comes as the work and pensions secretary, Mel Stride, enters the final stages of an urgent review of options to boost workforce participation before next month’s budget. The government has so far focused on addressing early retirement, with the chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, urging the over-50s to get off the golf course. Official figures published last week showed early retirement explains none of the increase in inactivity since the start of the pandemic. While the number of people who are economically inactive is more than half a million higher than in February 2020, the number who have quit the labour market due to retirement has fallen. Sir Steve Webb, the former pensions minister who co-authored the LCP report, said rising long-term sickness was much more significant.

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Top Chinese Scientists Sketch Out Plans To Thwart US Chip Curbs

Key members of China’s most influential scientific body have outlined the country’s plan to circumvent US chip sanctions for the first time, codifying Beijing’s view of how it could win a crucial technological conflict with Washington. From a report: Two of the country’s senior academics wrote that Beijing should amass a portfolio of patents that govern the next generation of chipmaking, from novel materials to new techniques. That should propel its semiconductor ambitions while giving China the clout to push back against US sanctions designed to hamstring its semiconductor sector, Luo Junwei and Li Shushen wrote in the bulletin of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

The article, published to a social media account affiliated with the academy, offers a rare glimpse into how Beijing thinks about and might react to the Biden administration’s escalating hostilities over semiconductors. The academy advises China’s top decision makers and the article echoes remarks by President Xi Jinping calling for victory in developing core technologies. It comes as the country’s new technology overseer outlined his vision for moving past American sanctions, stressing the need to modernize and rectify weak links in its supply chain. China has a plan to develop next-generation chip materials that it put in place in 2020 as a reaction to Trump-era restrictions. Yet that national strategy has yet to yield a technological edge on the world’s leading chipmakers. Washington has implemented a series of measures limiting exports of technology such as chipmaking gear and artificial intelligence processors to China, part of a broader set of technology sanctions.

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11 US States are Now Considering ‘Right to Repair’ Laws for Farming Equipment

Colorado farmer Danny Wood had a problem with his Steiger 370 tractor, reports the Associated Press:
The tractor’s manufacturer doesn’t allow Wood to make certain fixes himself, and last spring his fertilizing operations were stalled for three days before the servicer arrived to add a few lines of missing computer code for $950. “That’s where they have us over the barrel, it’s more like we are renting it than buying it,” said Wood, who spent $300,000 on the used tractor.

Wood’s plight, echoed by farmers across the country, has pushed lawmakers in Colorado and 10 other states to introduce bills that would force manufacturers to provide the tools, software, parts and manuals needed for farmers to do their own repairs — thereby avoiding steep labor costs and delays that imperil profits….

The manufacturers argue that changing the current practice with this type of legislation would force companies to expose trade secrets. They also say it would make it easier for farmers to tinker with the software and illegally crank up the horsepower and bypass the emissions controller — risking operators’ safety and the environment…. “I know growers, if they can change horsepower and they can change emissions they are going to do it,” said Russ Ball, sales manager at 21st Century Equipment, a John Deere dealership in Western states.
The bill’s proponents acknowledged that the legislation could make it easier for operators to modify horsepower and emissions controls, but argued that farmers are already able to tinker with their machines and doing so would remain illegal.

The article quotes Wood’s representative in Congress, who also argues that local dealerships in rural areas would be impacted by the legislation. “I do sympathize with my farmers,” he’s quoted as saying, but added “I don’t think it’s the role of government to be forcing the sale of their intellectual property.”

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