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This week, Apple finally added support for Rich Communication Services (RCS) to Messages as part of the second developer beta of iOS 18. Until now, iPhone users could send SMS or MMS messages from the Messages app only for people who didn’t have an Apple device. You can now share high-quality images and get read receipts and click indicators when messaging with Android users – but the text bubbles are still green.
OpenAI is delaying the release of the new voice mod. The company had planned to begin rolling out the advanced voice mode in alpha to a small group of ChatGPT Plus users in late June, but said ongoing issues forced it to push the launch to sometime in July. Depending on internal security and reliability controls, Advanced Voice Mode may not launch for all ChatGPT Plus customers until the fall, the company says.
The FCC proposed an easier way for consumers to unlock their phones from their carriers, suggesting that all devices should be unlockable only 60 days after purchase. The rule would potentially allow phones to work with different cellular networks after that time period, but may be at odds with today’s phone and cell phone market.
tidings
OpenAI releases ChatGPT for Mac: ChatGPT is now available to all macOS users through a new app. Mac users can quickly invoke ChatGPT using the keyboard shortcut Option + Space after installing the new application. Read more
Apple reportedly won’t integrate Meta’s AI models after all: Days after the Wall Street Journal reported that Apple and Meta were in talks to integrate the latter’s artificial intelligence models, a Bloomberg report says Apple scrapped the idea over privacy concerns. Read more
Waymo removes waitlist in San Francisco: Waymo announced that now anyone can download its app and instantly hail a robotaxi in San Francisco, removing the final barrier for customers who want to use self-driving technology. Read more
Zuckerberg condemns AI as “closed” In a new interview, Meta’s CEO said he doesn’t believe there will be “just one AI” and emphasized the importance of open source AI. Zuckerberg also said that closed-source AI competitors are trying to “create God.” Read more
Andrew Ng’s AI Fund wants to raise a lot of money: According to a new SEC filing, Andrew Ng’s AI Fund plans to raise over $120 million for its second venture. The startup incubator supports small teams of experts looking to solve major problems using AI. Read more
Gemini AI comes to Gmail: Google is rolling out a Gemini AI sidebar to Gmail to help you compose emails and find information from your inbox. The Gemini sidebar will also be available in Docs, Sheets, Slides and Drive. Read more
OpenAI continues its M&A division: OpenAI has acquired Multi, a startup developing an enterprise-focused collaboration platform, first video. A source familiar with the matter tells TechCrunch that most of Multi’s team will join OpenAI after the deal closes. Read more
A scary smiling robot with living skin: Will robots ever have living human skin? Researchers at the University of Tokyo and Harvard have been exploring this question – and they’ve come up with some pretty disturbing results. Read more
Meta’s Chatbots Go to India: After months of testing during the general elections, Meta is making its AI-powered chatbot Llama 3 available to all users in India. But Meta AI currently only supports English. Read more
Prosus zeroed his shares in Byju’s: One of Byju’s biggest investors said its once $2.1 billion stake in the Indian edtech startup is now worth nothing. However, Prosus still hopes that Byju’s can be saved. Read more
ANALYSIS
Silicon Valley is being weird about DEI again: DEI has become too divisive. A prime example of the tension is the heated conversation by startup Scale AI founder Alexandr Wang, in which he discussed moving away from DEI to instead embrace “MEI”—merit, excellence, and intelligence. But Dominic-Madori Davis and Kyle Wiggers write that, according to the data, a “meritocracy” is no better than DEI. Read more
What Ayana Parsons’ resignation means: Fearless Fund co-founder Ayana Parsons is stepping down. The announcement comes in the wake of ongoing legal issues and the pendulum swing in technology that has resulted in increased anti-DEI sentiment. Julie Bort and Dominic-Madori Davis explore how the latest developments for the Fearless Fund, and the move to publicly traded DEI, are a sad reflection on the world of black women VC. Read more
#Apple #finally #supports #RCS #iOS #update #TechCrunch
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