Bluesky’s Big Bet + Are Deals Dead in Silicon Valley?

Microsoft can proceed with a $69 billion deal to purchase video game publisher Activision Blizzard—the largest such deal in gaming history. Some members of the gaming community share the FTC’s concerns, while those in favor of the merger say this is an opportunity for Microsoft to improve Activision’s reputation and company culture.

Bob Iger has had a long career—22 years at ABC, then 23 at Disney (after Disney acquired ABC). He started as a bottom-level crew member on television sets and eventually became CEO of Disney for 15 years. He led Disney through momentous changes in technology, global expansion, and its noted acquisitions of Pixar, Marvel, and Lucasfilm. He still looks back at his career in mild disbelief as an incredible, lucky ride of a lifetime.

This book is a retelling of his professional career, with his leadership principles woven in. You’ll learn why being an optimist is good for your career, how to take big risks, why you should always sweat the details, and how to fire someone respectfully.

The US Federal Trade Commission is investigating whether Microsoft, Amazon, and Alphabet's huge investments in AI startups OpenAI and Anthropic violate antitrust laws by stifling competition. The outcome of the probe could have significant consequences for the parties involved, including termination of deals, new mandates for operating standards, and fines.

There’s been a wave of interest in the ability of ChatGPT and other generative AI technologies to transform the way people work. But members of the business community have their eyes on something else: the potential for massive financial returns.

ChatGPT's popularity has ignited intense competition among tech giants to lead the AI chatbot market. Microsoft, Google, Amazon, and Meta are all rapidly developing conversational AI tools and aggressively integrating them into products in hopes of reshaping the search engine, productivity software, and consumer electronics markets.

Following its November 2022 launch, ChatGPT achieved unprecedented viral growth, amassing over 1.7 billion users in its first year. ChatGPT's explosive rise not only reshaped the AI landscape but also set off industrywide transformations, revealing both its potential for catalyzing positive change and the societal risks it embodies.

In a vital update from NPR News Now, correspondents including Korva Coleman, Eleanor Beardsley, Kinnan Abdalhamid, and Bobby Allyn take us through the latest on global and domestic fronts. The battle for peace in the Middle East hits yet another snag, as Korva Coleman delivers a succinct breakdown of the collapsed cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, including the heavy implications and the subsequent surge in hostilities that have disrupted the region's pursuit of tranquility. Eleanor Beardsley delves into the nuances behind the allegations from Israel's Prime Minister's office, while grappling with the sobering reality of increasing casualties in Gaza.

On U.S. soil, Coleman brings the spotlight back home with the account of a tragic shooting of college students in Burlington, shedding light on the victims' Palestinian heritage and underlining the breached sense of security in academic institutions. The episode also covers the involvement of the FBI in a possible hate crime investigation, signifying a rise in concerns about gun violence and its underlying motives. Meanwhile, political ethics take center stage as the case of Congressman George Santos unfolds, examining the balance between allegations of federal corruption and the legal processes within the House of Representatives. Finally, Bobby Allyn explores free speech debates, centering on Montana's legal skirmishes over TikTok bans and data security, which paints a broader picture of the digital landscape and its regulatory challenges. Each segment underscores NPR News Now's commitment to delivering comprehensive, on-the-ground reporting.

In recent months, the White House, Congress, US armed forces, and more than half of US states have banned the Chinese-owned social media app, TikTok, from government-issued devices. There’s broad concern that TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, could share Americans’ personal data with the Chinese government, or push Chinese propaganda and misinformation. Some experts say the US should treat TikTok the way it wants other countries to treat American social media platforms—and use moderate measures to protect national security and citizens’ personal data. But Congress may not heed this advice.

Dive into "The Daily" with Michael Barbaro, Natasha Singer, and Frances Haugen as they tackle the controversial topic of social media's influence on youth, drawing stark comparisons to the legal challenges once aimed at the tobacco industry. This episode examines how state officials are following in the footsteps of those who curbed tobacco's reach—the same tactics now repurposed to protect young minds from the potential psychological harms of platforms like Meta's Instagram. The speakers unpack the cultural and mental health implications, especially surrounding the planned, yet controversial, Instagram for Kids and the damning insights from whistleblower Frances Haugen.

As the conversation unfolds, the speakers probe Meta's intricate design features that may encourage addictive behavior, such as endless scrolling and instantaneous notifications. They delve into the consequences these features have on young users, from fostering an addictive digital environment to exacerbating mental health issues through idealized digital beauty standards. While Meta defends its intentions—touting new user safety measures and disputing the claims against it—the podcast highlights the struggle to regulate the tech giant, touching upon the broader challenges in holding social media platforms accountable and the industry-wide push for change. This episode is a thought-provoking exploration of the high-stakes tug-of-war between technological innovation, commercial success, and the well-being of our most vulnerable users.