Threads has lost half its users, admits Meta boss Mark Zuckerberg

Meta’s “Twitter killer” app Threads has struggled to hold the attention of millions of users despite its record-breaking launch, Mark Zuckerberg has admitted. The app, which lets people post messages, pictures and videos, signed up 150m users in its first few weeks, making it the fastest growing product in history. However, Mr Zuckerberg has said more…

Facebook tops 3 billion users, Threads drops from 49 to 12 million users daily

Mark Zuckerberg’s social media empire has reported a jump in advertising revenues and said that 3 billion people are now regularly checking Facebook. Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and newly launched app Threads, reported an 11pc increase to revenues in the three months ending in June. The company said the number of monthly users…

Apple trainers at auction for $50,000, Musk takes @X account without paying owner

A pair of rare Apple trainers are being sold by auction house Sotheby's for $50,000 (£38,969). The shoes were custom-made for employees only in the 1990s and were a one-time giveaway at a conference. A pair have never been sold to the public before. Featuring a predominately white leather upper, "a standout detail" is the…

ChatGPT founder plans to scan iris of every person in the world

The Silicon Valley entrepreneur behind ChatGPT has unveiled a plan to scan the iris of every person in the world to help distinguish real people from sophisticated machines. Sam Altman, the founder of OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, on Monday launched his project Worldcoin in Britain and 34 other countries. The venture aims to scan billions of…

Shiny snippets: Spotify raises prices, Twitter unveils new logo

Spotify is raising the price of its main monthly subscription for the first time in its 15-year history as it comes under pressure to boost payments to the music industry. The streaming service will charge users £10.99 a month for its premium service, up from the £9.99 it has been since launch. The Swedish company…

iPhone users will soon be able to clone their own voice

Thanks to a new iPhone feature that lets anyone clone their voice with no technical chops and little time required, meeting anxiety may become a thing of the past. Announced back in May and now available as part of the public beta for iOS 17, the "personal voice" tool lets my voice read aloud any text whatsoever…

Jaguar Land Rover confirms UK-based gigafactory

Jaguar Land Rover’s owner has confirmed it will invest £4 billion to build a gigafactory in the UK, in a major boost for the British automotive sector and following months of speculation. Tata Group – the Indian conglomerate who have owned JLR since 2008 – said that its investment in the new 40GWh battery plant…

AI will take our jobs, confirms head of UK’s new AI taskforce

Protecting British jobs will be a challenge as artificial intelligence systems become more advanced, the new head of the government's AI taskforce has told the BBC. Ian Hogarth said it was "inevitable" that more jobs would become increasingly automated. The whole world will have to rethink the way in which people work, he added. "There…

Elon Musk launches ‘pro-humanity’ AI startup, xAI

Elon Musk (above) has launched an artificial intelligence startup that will be “pro-humanity”, as he said the world needed to worry about the prospect of a “terminator future” in order to avoid the most apocalyptic AI scenarios. Musk said xAI would seek to build a system that would be safe because it was “maximally curious”…

Twitter receives backing of Taliban!

Twitter has won the support of a big name backer against fast-growing rival Threads - but it's the Taliban. A leader of the hardline Islamist group, which seized power in Afghanistan in summer 2021, said Elon Musk's platform was a tolerant place that allowed freedom of speech to thrive.Anas Haqqani offered his endorsement in a tweet on…