Musk’s attempt to remove ‘block’ feature on X thwarted by app stores
A tweet from Elon Musk appeared to worry X users when the billionaire claimed that “Block is going to be deleted as a “feature”, except for DMs’ on the platform, therefore putting users at risk of harassment.
However, this assertion is met with scepticism, as it violates the guidelines stipulated by both the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. They both state that for an app to be accessible on their platform, they must give users the feature to block abusive users to keep themselves safe.
Musk attempted to remove the block feature because it reduces ad impressions, by limiting content exposure. However it is incredibly unlikely that he will be allowed to go through with his plan.
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TikTok’s plan to avoid a ban in America revealed
ByteDance, TikTok’s Chinese parent company, has spent the last few years negotiating a national security agreement with the Biden Administration that would avoid a ban on the platform in the United States. This week, a draft of that agreement revealed just how much control ByteDance may have to give the U.S. government.
If the agreement is finalised, the government would be granted nearly unfettered access to internal TikTok information, and it would have unprecedented control over essential functions that it doesn’t possess over other major free speech platforms. This would include the ability to examine TikTok’s U.S. facilities, records, equipment and servers with minimal or no notice, alongside being able to block changes to the app’s U.S. terms of service, moderation policies and privacy policy.
With more than 150 million users, TikTok has vast influence over commerce, culture, and discourse in the United States, as well as access to sensitive, private information about nearly half the nation. American regulators are concerned that the Chinese government may use ByteDance to spy on American citizens or influence what messages they see if the app is not governed correctly.
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Musicians to be protected by YouTube from generative AI cases
YouTube has unveiled a program to better regulate generative AI in music content while also adapting its Content ID protocols to address new AI use cases.
This move was prompted by a recent incident where a convincing generative AI track featured Drake’s voice, raising copyright concerns and spurring the music industry to action. YouTube’s CEO, Neal Mohan, introduced three AI principles guiding the platform’s decisions: recognising AI’s potential to infringe copyrights, developing an AI framework in collaboration with music partners like Universal Music Group, and refining the Content ID system to cover AI-generated content.
It’s clear from their actions surrounding AI in the last few months that YouTube is planning to explore AI’s creative boundaries, while enhancing its ability to detect AI misuse, including misleading celebrity appearances in generative AI content.
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Snapchat expands use of AI with ‘Dreams’ feature
Following the launch of its AI chatbot ‘My AI’, Snapchat is looking to further increase its AI capabilities on the platform with its new ‘Dreams’ feature, which is set to combine the app’s current creativity features with the power of AI.
The upcoming “Dreams” feature will venture into AI-generated images, reportedly giving users the ability to place themselves and their friends in imaginative backgrounds. This feature aims to generate new scenarios from selfies users upload or take, similar to other AI photo apps, and from there suggest a range of creative backgrounds to use for their posts on the platform.
Additionally, “Dreams with Friends” is in development, which would allow users to generate joint AI “dream” images with their friends on the platform. The company has made references to purchasing “Dream Packs”, hinting at possible future monetization.
Find out more here.