Business news

Business

Ubisoft shares jump following reports of Tencent, Guillemot family considering buyout

Shares of Ubisoft jumped more than 30% Friday, following reports that Tencent and the Guillemot family are considering a buyout of the video game maker.

Business

Is big tech harming society? To find out, we need research, but it's being manipulated by big tech itself

For almost a decade, researchers have been gathering evidence that the social media platform Facebook disproportionately amplifies low-quality content and misinformation.

Business

Meta must limit data use for targeted ads: EU court

Social media platforms such as Meta's Facebook must limit the use of personal data including someone's sexual orientation for targeted advertising, the European Union's top court ruled Friday.

Business

What next for OpenAI after $157 billion bonanza?

ChatGPT-maker OpenAI has become an AI powerhouse after securing Silicon Valley's largest-ever funding round. The company now faces the challenge of delivering on its promise to become the next Apple or Google.

Business

Irish regulator to probe Ryanair use of facial recognition

Ireland's data watchdog said Friday it will probe whether budget airline Ryanair's use of facial recognition to check the identity of customers booking through third-party websites violates EU privacy laws.

Business

Green subsidies may have hidden costs, experts warn

Government subsidies for business practices and processes should be approached with caution, even when they seem to be environmentally friendly, writes a group of scientists and economists in this week's Policy Forum in the ...

Business

Google is working on reasoning AI, chasing OpenAI's efforts

Google is working on artificial intelligence software that resembles the human ability to reason, similar to OpenAI's o1, marking a new front in the rivalry between the tech giant and the fast-growing startup.

Business

Revolut urges Meta to step up on cyber fraud reimbursement

British online bank Revolut on Thursday urged Facebook owner Meta to reimburse victims of password security breaches, blasting the US tech giant's data-sharing partnership with several UK banks as "woefully" inadequate.

Business

PFF adds an in-game grading feature to its NFL analysis

Pro Football Focus changed how many fans followed the NFL by providing grades and advanced statistics to help quantify how every player performed on a play-by-play basis from high-profile quarterbacks like Patrick Mahomes ...

Business

Dutch airline KLM unveils 'firm' cost-cutting measures

Dutch airline KLM on Thursday announced a sweeping package of "firm" cost-cutting measures it hopes will lead to a boost in operating profits of around 450 million euros ($496 million) "in the short term."

Business

Historic funding round values OpenAI at $157 billion

OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, secured $6.6 billion in new funding, propelling its valuation to $157 billion and cementing its position as the world leader in artificial intelligence.

Business

Oracle to invest $6.5 bn in Malaysian cloud services region

Tech giant Oracle on Wednesday said it plans to invest more than $6.5 billion on cloud services data centers in Malaysia, joining a list of US titans rushing to build up their AI infrastructure in Southeast Asia.

Business

Best of MWC: Screens that roll, ChatGPT interactive glasses

The father of the cellphone was there. So was Huawei and a host of other Chinese tech companies. Tens of thousands of visitors also flocked to the MWC tech fair to be dazzled by the latest advances in AI, smartphones, robotics ...

Business

The multiple paradoxes of Meta and Mark Zuckerberg

From Facebook's psychological experiments on unwitting users in 2014 to the Cambridge Analytica scandal in 2018 or the Facebook files in 2021, controversies involving the company have been numerous. Despite an increased demand ...

Business

Twitter's new 'violent speech' policy similar to past rules

Twitter on Wednesday unveiled a new policy prohibiting "violent speech" on its platform, though the rules appear very similar to guidelines against violent threats that the company had on its books before Elon Musk took it ...

Business

Metaverse in spotlight at MWC tech fair even as doubts arise

I climbed into the front seat of the air taxi, buckled the seat belt and braced as the aircraft lifted off. The futuristic cityscape of Busan, South Korea, dropped away, and a digital avatar popped up on the windscreen with ...

Business

Commerce Department launches applications for microchip funding

The U.S. Commerce Department opened applications Tuesday for $39 billion in funding for semiconductor chip manufacturing, kicking off unprecedented federal spending in the tiny component that's crucial for modern technology ...

Internet

Here are the countries that have bans on TikTok

The U.S. and Canada issued orders this week banning the use of TikTok on government-issued mobile devices as privacy and cybersecurity concerns about the video-sharing app grow.

Internet

TikTok sets new default time limits for minors

TikTok said Wednesday that every account held by a user under the age of 18 will have a default 60-minute daily screen time limit in the coming weeks. The changes arrive during a period in which there are growing concerns ...

Business

Chinese phone makers emerge from Huawei's shadow

Western governments are falling over each other to restrict social media platform TikTok, but Chinese firms are still huge in sectors from smartphones to network equipment and are only looking to grow.

Business

Why TikTok is being banned on gov't phones in US and beyond

The United States is ratcheting up national security concerns about TikTok, mandating that all federal employees delete the Chinese-owned social media app from government-issued mobile phones. Other Western governments are ...

Internet

Study analyzes fake interaction services on social media

A study by the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M) and IMDEA Networks analyzes fake interaction services on social media. In addition to cataloging the fraudulent ecosystem of "likes," views, followers or online visits, ...