Hey folks,
Just a warning that today's big story will likely also be a big story on Friday. The story today is that we're close to a decision on TikTok. I lay out the various paths it may take. If you want my take on the decision after it happens tomorrow, you may want to get the paid subscription.
We also have Oura trying to tell you if you may be coming down with a cold before you get the sniffles, and OnlyFans is unblocked in China? Is this a jobs program?
Tom
Big Story
"TikTok Awaits Appeals Court Ruling as US Ban Looms - Bloomberg"
Read on Bloomberg
"TikTok Ruling in Focus for Meta, Alphabet, Oracle Investors - Bloomberg"
Read on Bloomberg
"EU puts TikTok on watch over election security | TechCrunch"
Read on TechCrunch
This will be bigger news by the end of Friday, but just in case you were wondering what's been happening with the potential restriction of TikTok in the US: The Court of Appeals in Washington is due to issue its decision on TikTok's appeal by 10 AM Eastern Time Friday, December 6th.
To refresh your memory, the US passed a bipartisan law that requires TikTok to sell its US business by January 19th. If it does not, then app stores in the US are prohibited from distributing the app. TikTok has asked the court to rule that the law is unconstitutional. If TikTok loses the appeal, which it is expected to, it will appeal to the Supreme Court to issue an injunction against the law going into effect until after its court cases are decided.
A lot of folks expect that President Trump will declare that the existing Project Texas arrangement counts as divestiture under the law. Under Project Texas, a separate company from TikTok called US Data Security handles the management of all US TikTok user data on servers run by Oracle. That can't happen until President Trump is inaugurated on January 20th, one day past the deadline.
Meanwhile, in Europe, the European Commission has announced it will increase monitoring of the platform's compliance with the Digital Services Act amid concerns about TikTok's impact on the Romanian presidential election. A pro-Russian independent right-wing candidate led after the first round of voting. That candidate used TikTok a lot during the campaign. He was polling 1% on November 1st, but the campaign got him to 23% and the first-round lead by November 24th. TikTok is accused of failing to prevent fake accounts from being used to boost the candidate's content.
More Stories
"Oura’s smart rings can now tell when you’re getting sick - The Verge"
Read on The Verge
Oura smart rings now have a feature that can alert you if it detects early signs of an illness. The Symptom Radar can't diagnose specific illnesses but will alert you of changes in measurements like resting heart rate, heart rate variability, temperature trends, and breathing rate, that could indicate some kind of disease up to two days before you start feeling symptoms. Oura will then prompt the person to prioritize rest. You could also do whatever other things you do to prevent illnesses like taking zinc and such. All Oura users will get it by December 11th.
"Vodafone-Three £15 Billion Merger Wins UK Antitrust Approval"
Read on Bloomberg
UK regulators approved the merger of Vodafone and Three Thursday, which, when completed, will become the largest telco in the UK. The combined company must meet a commitment to improve 5G infrastructure in the UK. The deal is expected to close in the first half of 2025.
"Intel adds two new directors with CEO search underway"
Read on CNBC
As Intel continues to search for a new CEO, it has named two new directors to its board, indicating where its priorities lie. Former ASML CEO Eric Meurice and Microchip interim CEO Steve Sanghi both have significant manufacturing experience. Lip-Bu Tan, who left the board in August, was the only board member previously with manufacturing experience. Intel wants to create a foundry business that makes chips for other companies besides itself, separate from its chip design products business.
"Waymo announces robotaxi expansion to Miami"
Read on CNBC
"Waymo outsources fleet operations to African fintech Moove in Phoenix and, soon, Miami | TechCrunch"
Read on TechCrunch
Alphabet's Waymo autonomous car service will expand to Miami next year, with safety drivers on board the Jaguar I-PACEs. It plans to open paid rides to local users by 2026. Waymo also announced it will partner with Nigerian fintech company Moove to manage its fleet operations, facilities, and charging infrastructure in Phoenix and Miami.
"Key leaders behind Google’s viral NotebookLM are leaving to create their own startup | TechCrunch"
Today, we're doing a deep dive into a big move by some members of Google's NotebookLM team. Now former NotebookLM team lead Raiza Martin, designer Jason Spielman, and engineer Stephen Hughes have all left Google to create a startup in the space. Martin told TechCrunch, "thoughtful products are required to make the benefits of this technology accessible, useful, and obvious to everyday people — so our team is going to be focused on building a user-first AI product." What that will be, we have no other clues. That's crazy!
"Threads now lets users follow fediverse accounts – with limitations"
Threads users can now follow profiles from other platforms that use ActivityPub, like Mastodon, Flipboard, and more. Starting now, the ability is available for any account from the "fediverse" that likes, follows, or replies to your Threads account.
"OpenAI signs deal with Palmer Luckey’s Anduril to develop military AI"
OpenAI announced it will partner with Palmer Luckey's Anduril to develop defense technology for the US military. Specifically, the companies plan to use GPT-4o and OpenAI o1, and other models to improve defense against unpiloted aerial attacks. OpenAI prohibits the use of its models for weapons but removed a line from its policies last January that prohibited its use for "military and warfare." OpenAI says its technologies may only be used by Anduril to defend against unpiloted threats and not for other uses.
"OpenAI launches a new $200 monthly subscription and an updated model - The Verge"
OpenAI is also offering a full version of its o1 model, which is better at reasoning. There's also a new $200-a-month pro tier that includes unlimited access to OpenAI o1, GPT-4o, and Advanced Voice mode, as well as a version of o1 with more compute to provide better answers to harder problems. The $20-a-month version will continue to access all models, including preview versions, except for that advanced o1 model.
"Google has developed an AI tool that generates playable 3D worlds | Eurogamer.net"
Google announced its Genie2 model can now create a fully playable 3D game from a single image prompt. Genie1 could do the same for 2D games. Google describes it as being useful for prototyping.
"OnlyFans is now accessible in China | CNN Business"
Users on Weibo and X have noted and CNN has confirmed that OnlyFans is no longer blocked in mainland China. You can now access it without a VPN. Some Weibo users joked that this was meant to provide increased job opportunities. Unemployment measured 17.1% in China in October.
"Telegram finally takes action to remove CSAM from its platform"
Telegram took a significant step toward cooperating on the removal of CSAM from its platform. It is now partnering with the International Watch Foundation (IWF). This lets Telegram access tools to block links to CSAM material. Telegram was not a member of any programs to limit CSAM until now.
Interesting Reads
"'Accidental discovery' creates candidate for universal memory — a weird semiconductor that consumes a billion times less power | Live Science"
Read on Live Science
"Humane wants to put the AI Pin’s software inside your phone, car, and smart speaker - The Verge"
Read on The Verge
"A physical deck of Balatro cards can soon be yours for $16"
Read on Engadget
"First impressions of the new Amazon Nova LLMs (via a new llm-bedrock plugin)"
Read on Simon Willison
"Wubuntu: The lovechild of Windows and Linux nobody asked for • The Register"
Read on The Register
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