Wework plans to axe up to 4,000 jobs October 23, 2019 Wework is planning to axe up to 4,000 jobs as Softbank launches a turnaround plan after taking control of the business earlier this week. The redundancies will reduce Wework’s global workforce of 14,000 people by just under 30 per cent. Read more: Softbank takes control of Wework Wework is seeking to move its cleaning operation [...]
BBC launches dark web news site in bid to dodge censors October 23, 2019 The BBC has made its international news website available on the dark web in a bid to sidestep censorship attempts. The corporation said its website can now be accessed on Tor, an internet browser designed to hide a user’s activity and identity. Read more: Louis Theroux leaves BBC Studios to launch his own production company [...]
‘I actually don’t know if Libra’s going to work’: Congress grills Zuckerberg over Facebook’s digital currency plans October 23, 2019 Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg has appeared before Congress to defend the social media giant’s controversial proposed digital currency, Libra. Zuckerberg told US lawmakers that Facebook would not support Libra launching before the stablecoin has won the approval of all US financial regulators. Read more: Bitcoin falls to lowest level since June amid Libra concerns [...]
Bitcoin falls to lowest level since June amid Libra concerns October 23, 2019 Bitcoin has tumbled eight per cent as concerns mount over cryptocurrencies ahead of Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg’s appearance before Congress this afternoon. Zuckerberg is set to be questioned on Libra, Facebook’s proposed digital currency, from 3pm UK time. Regulators and lawmakers from around the world have raised concerns about the possibility of Libra being used [...]
Real estate tech company Blueground launches in London October 23, 2019 Blueground, a startup providing tech-driven flexible apartment rentals, is launching in London and has raised $50m (£39m) in a funding round. The real estate tech firm offers Airbnb-style apartment rentals aimed at business travellers, offering rental lengths of one month or longer. Read more: Exclusive: Flexible office space firm Central Working falls into administration Blueground, [...]
Tiktok launches safety campaign after removing IS propaganda videos October 23, 2019 Tiktok has rolled out a new safety campaign days after it emerged Islamic State (IS) militants had used the platform to spread propaganda videos. The video-sharing app has released a series of so-called awareness videos that it said will help to keep its users informed by highlighting safety features. Read more: Social media firms urged [...]
What can AI and big data do for finance? October 23, 2019 | City Talk Larry Cao, CFA, is the author of AI Pioneers in Investment Management from CFA Institute. AlphaGo brought artificial intelligence (AI) out of computer labs and into the living room. From October 2015, when the AlphaGo AI first beat a professional human competitor, to January 2018, several months after it defeated Ke Jie, the top-ranked player in the [...]
Facebook vs. democracy: Let’s get serious about disinformation October 23, 2019 On Monday, Facebook announced new measures to help combat the spread of disinformation in the looming UK General Election. Plans include working with fact checkers, tracking the origin of political ads, and doing more to take down content that breaks Facebook’s rules. Read more: The number of deepfake videos online has almost doubled While positive, [...]
Snap beats expectations as 7m new users sign up October 22, 2019 Snapchat’s parent company Snap beat expectations in the third quarter of the year, as investment in new technology such as augmented reality continued to drive growth. Revenue soared 50 per cent to $446m (£346.2m) and the company’s net loss shrunk from $325.1m in the third quarter of 2018 to $227.3m this year. Read more: Snap [...]
US states join Facebook antitrust probe October 22, 2019 An antitrust investigation into Facebook has been backed by 47 attorneys general from across the US. New York Attorney General Letitia James announced today that more states, districts and territories have joined the probe into the social media giant, focusing on Facebook’s dominance in the industry. Read more: MPs challenge Sir Nick Clegg over Facebook’s [...]