November 14, 2025

The Download: how AI really works, and phasing out animal testing

This is today’s edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology. OpenAI’s new LLM exposes the secrets of how AI really works The news: ChatGPT maker OpenAI has built an experimental large language model that is far easier to understand than typical models. Why…

Snap announces tests of sponsored links in My AI, new ad products for Spotlight and Stories

May 2, 2023

After Snap’s stock took a hit from its weak first-quarter earnings, the company today made its pitch to advertisers at IAB’s NewFronts where it introduced new ad products and opportunities. Here, Snap’s new President of Americas Rob Wilk, previously Microsoft’s Head of Advertising, and Chief Creative Officer Colleen DeCourcy, spoke about a test that allowed […]

Snap announces tests of sponsored links in My AI, new ad products for Spotlight and Stories by Sarah Perez originally published on TechCrunch

Mozilla buys Fakespot, a startup that identifies fake reviews, to bring shopping tools to Firefox

May 2, 2023

Mozilla announced today that it has acquired Fakespot, a startup that offers a website and browser extension that helps users identify fake or unreliable reviews. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Fakespot’s offerings can be used to spot fake reviews listed on various online marketplaces including Amazon, Yelp, TripAdvisor and more. Founded […]

Mozilla buys Fakespot, a startup that identifies fake reviews, to bring shopping tools to Firefox by Aisha Malik originally published on TechCrunch

Finix becomes a payments processor, heating up its competition with Stripe

May 2, 2023

Payments infrastructure startup Finix has slowly been taking swipes at Stripe, first becoming a facilitator, and now becoming a processor. Finix said today it now is directly connected to all major U.S. card networks — American Express, Discover, Mastercard and Visa. Now that Finix no longer relies on a third-party processor, it says it’s able to […]

Finix becomes a payments processor, heating up its competition with Stripe by Mary Ann Azevedo originally published on TechCrunch

How to ask OpenAI for your personal data to be deleted or not used to train its AIs

May 2, 2023

Users of ChatGPT in Europe can now use web forms or other means provided by OpenAI to request deletion of their personal data in order to stop the chatbot processing (and producing) information about them. They can also request an opt-out of having their data used to train its AIs. Why might someone not want […]

How to ask OpenAI for your personal data to be deleted or not used to train its AIs by Natasha Lomas originally published on TechCrunch

Meta rolls out new discovery and personalization controls for Facebook Reels

May 2, 2023

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced today that the company is introducing new features that make it easier for users to discover and personalize Facebook Reels recommendations. The company is launching new personalization controls for Reels that let users customize what they want to see more or less of. Now when you see a Reel, you […]

Meta rolls out new discovery and personalization controls for Facebook Reels by Aisha Malik originally published on TechCrunch