SAN FRANCISCO: Elon Musk pitched a vision Thursday to Twitter staff of a one-billion-user platform, but was hazy on potential layoffs, free speech limits and what’s next in his chaotic buyout bid.
The Tesla chief talked of letting people say pretty much whatever they want on Twitter while at the same time keeping it a friendly place that users enjoy visiting.
While fielding questions in his first meeting with staffers, the Tesla chief offered no updates on whether he will go through with a proposed $44 billion takeover deal which he himself has called into doubt.
A transcript of the employees-only virtual meeting posted at website Recode indicated Musk professed “love” for Twitter, joking that while some people express themselves with hair styles he does so on the global messaging stage.
Musk said he wants to have “at least a billion people on Twitter” in what would be massive growth for a platform that has about 229 million now.
Musk told Twitter employees he favors moderate political positions, but that users should be able to say outrageous things.
He qualified that by saying that freedom of speech doesn’t mean an intrinsic freedom for comments to reach far and wide.
The Tesla chief has already made comments on how he’d run the platform — including lifting Donald Trump’s ban.
“People should be allowed to say pretty outrageous things that are within the bounds of the law, but then that doesn’t get amplified,” Musk said, according to the transcript.
“We have to strike this balance of allowing people to say what they want to say but also make people comfortable on Twitter, or they simply won’t use it.”
Musk answered a question about possible layoffs by saying the company “needs to get healthy” when it comes to its financial situation.
“Anyone who’s obviously a significant contributor should have nothing to worry about,” Musk told Twitter workers.
He endorsed advertising and subscriptions as ways to make money at Twitter, saying ads should be entertaining as well as legitimate.
Musk talked anew about making money at Twitter by charging to verify identities of those behind accounts, then making verification a factor in which tweets get higher ranking at the platform.
Regarding Twitter’s policy of letting people work from home, Musk said it would be an option only for those proven to be exceptional at their jobs.
“The Musk Twitter all-hands call was the wrong call at the wrong time in our opinion,” Wedbush analyst Dan Ives said in a tweet.
“Lots of answers Musk could not provide given fluid nature of deal.”
Ives added that the virtual exchange spotlighted a contrast between the kind of culture fostered by Musk and the “Twitter DNA.”
Musk touched on his Tesla and SpaceX endeavors during the meeting, talking of sustainable energy and extending the “scope, scale and lifespan of consciousness as we know it.”
“Can we travel to other star systems and see if there are alien civilizations?” he asked rhetorically.
“There might be a whole bunch of long dead, one planet civilizations out there that existed 500 million years ago.”
His comments came a day after a Verge report that SpaceX employees shared a letter internally complaining that Musk’s behavior on Twitter is a distraction and embarrassment to the private space exploration enterprise.
Musk shocked the tech world with an unsolicited buyout bid in April for the platform that is a key exchange for news, entertainment and politics.
The board eventually came around to supporting his $54.20 per share offer, but since then he has cast doubt on the deal by clashing with the firm’s leadership over user numbers.
Musk has kept employees and Wall Street on edge over how the buyout saga will end.
Reports coming out of the meeting evidently left the market unconvinced about the buyout, with Twitter shares slipping more than two percent in mid-day trade far below the purchase price agreed to my Musk.
Tesla shares, meanwhile, ended the formal trading day down more than 8 percent in an apparent sign investors are worried Musk’s focus is not on the electric car maker.
The proposed Twitter sale has stoked protests from critics who warn his stewardship will embolden hate groups and disinformation campaigns.
US securities regulators have also pressed Musk for an explanation of an apparent delay in reporting his Twitter stock buys.
For his part, Musk has repeatedly raised questions about fake accounts on the platform, saying on Twitter he could walk away from the transaction if his concerns were not addressed.
Musk offers billion-user vision but few details to Twitter staff
Musk offers billion-user vision but few details to Twitter staff
Donald Trump joins the TikTok video platform he once sought to ban
- The account, President Donald J. Trump with the address @realdonaldtrump, had more than 450,000 followers by 0800 GMT
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has joined TikTok, the short video social media platform that is owned by China-based tech giant ByteDance and that he tried to ban as president, ahead of the US elections in November.
Politico, which first reported the news, said he posted a launch video on his account on Saturday night. The video showed Trump greeting fans at an Ultimate Fighting Championship fight in Newark, New Jersey.
The account, President Donald J. Trump with the address @realdonaldtrump, had more than 450,000 followers by 0800 GMT.
ByteDance is challenging in courts a US law that came into effect in April requiring it to sell TikTok by next January or face a ban. The White House says it wants to see Chinese-based ownership ended on national security grounds, but not a ban on TikTok.
TikTok has argued that it will not share US user data with the Chinese government and that it has taken substantial measures to protect the privacy of its users.
Trump’s attempt to ban TikTok in 2020 when he was president was blocked by the courts. He said in March that the platform was a national security threat but also that a ban on it would hurt some young people and only strengthen Meta Platforms’ Facebook, which he has strongly criticized.
President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign joined the app in February.
New deal brings full Warner Bros. film catalog to OSN for ‘first time since 2016’
- The multi-year agreement also includes the exclusive rights to first-run Max Originals
- Titles include recent movies such as “Barbie,” “Wonka” and “Dune: Part Two,” plus upcoming Max Original TV shows “Dune: Prophecy” and “The Penguin”
DUBAI: OSN has acquired the rights to all first-run Max Originals and the full Warner Bros. Pictures feature film library.
As part of an exclusive multi-year deal with Warner Bros. Discovery, subscribers to OSN’s traditional TV and streaming services will be able to watch new films after their theatrical and home entertainment release windows.
The titles include recent movies such as “Barbie,” “Wonka” and “Dune: Part Two,” as well as upcoming Max Original TV shows such as “Dune: Prophecy,” a prequel to the recent films, and “The Penguin,” a spin-off from 2022 superhero movie “The Batman.” The agreement also includes new shows such as “Rescue: Hi-surf” and “Emperor of Ocean Park.”
“This deal is significant as it will bring the full Warner Bros. Pictures film catalog and exclusive features to OSN for the first time since 2016, widely expanding our content offering for MENA audiences to bring some of the biggest global titles and latest blockbusters,” Joe Kawkabani, Group CEO at OSN, told Arab News.
The agreement builds upon an existing multi-year deal between OSN and Warner Bros. Discovery, and means OSN is the only company in the region offering HBO content. He said: “By also securing the rights to premiere all new, first-run Max Originals in the region, we have further strengthened our proposition.”
The content included under the deal will “complement our existing catalog of HBO Original content,” in keeping with the company’s “larger content strategy and commitment to bringing the best and most premium content to our customers first,” Kawkabani said.
Digital advertising showcase ‘Ignite the Ads’ attracts professionals from the Kingdom and beyond
- Riyadh’s King Abdullah Financial District Conference Center hosted event
RIYADH: “Ignite the Ads,” a digital advertising event organized by the Digital Content Council and the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology in Saudi Arabia, brought together startups, entrepreneurs and advertising professionals at Riyadh’s King Abdullah Financial District Conference Center from May 28 to 31.
The first two days of the conference were dedicated to businesses and advertising professionals to help them network and collaborate.
The last two days were open to all advertising professionals and focused on brand awareness, product and service education, social media, and word-of-mouth marketing.
Speakers included Lynnwood Bibbens, CEO of airport network ReachTV; Franklin Weil, CEO of e-commerce firm Myntr; Lujaen Alkanhal, head of social media at Saudi agency Extend | The Ad Network; and Ahmad Konash, CEO and co-founder of Saudi creative agency Onsor Mosha.
The conference covered a wide range of topics from female empowerment and advertising to Generation Z, to trust, data and artificial intelligence.
Sessions included “Decoding What Drives Gen Z and Alpha,” “The Power of True Stories in Creating Advertising Ideas,” “Women in Tech: Pioneering an Inclusive and Authentic Digital Frontier,” and “Transforming Perceptions of Branded Content in Saudi Arabia.”
In addition to panel discussions and keynote speeches, the conference featured various areas such as the Billboard Zone, which served as an exhibition place for businesses, and the Growth Zone, where those attending could interact with businesses to learn digital advertising skills.
The conference formed part of Saudi Arabia’s Ignite program that was launched in 2022 to foster digital content creation and production, new investments and support for next-generation connectivity and communications infrastructure.
Haytham Al-Ohali, vice minister at the Saudi Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, said that the Ignite digital content program grew 70 percent year-on-year to SR20 billion in 2023.
Israeli journalist threatened over probe into spy chief’s intimidation of ICC: Report
- Gur Megiddo claimed authorities summoned him to issue a ‘polite threat’ about the consequences of his investigation
- Revelation comes days after story of Mossad’s alleged attempt to pressure former prosecutor to drop ICC case against Israel
LONDON: An Israeli journalist has claimed he was threatened by senior security officials to ensure he dropped his investigation into claims that Mossad had intimidated a former prosecutor of the International Criminal Court.
In an article published on Thursday, Gur Megiddo, an investigative reporter at Haaretz, claimed that Mossad officials, a few years ago, sought to block any reporting on the matter using intimidating tactics.
This comes in the wake of a report by The Guardian earlier this week that Mossad’s former head Yossi Cohen had tried to intimidate then-ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda. Cohen had allegedly attempted to stop Bensouda from investigating Israel for war crimes and crimes against humanity in the occupied Palestinian territories.
That investigation, launched in 2021, culminated last week in Bensouda’s successor, Karim Khan, announcing he was seeking an arrest warrant for Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the country’s conduct in its war on Gaza.
“At the beginning of 2022, I attempted to contact the former prosecutor through a third party who knew her,” Megiddo wrote.
“Bensouda never responded to the approach, but days after the attempt, when I wanted to publish the story, my phone rang and on the other end of the line was the voice of a senior security official. ‘Can you come to see me tomorrow?’ he asked.”
The journalist claimed that during the meeting with two officials, he was told to drop the case or face the “consequences” of his actions.
“It was a polite conversation, a polite threat,” Megiddo wrote. “The tone was calm, the content much less so. I was explained that if I publish the story, I would suffer the consequences and get to know the interrogation rooms of the Israeli security authorities from the inside.
“In the end, it was made clear to me that even sharing the information ‘with my friends abroad,’ referring to foreign media outlets, would lead to the same results,” he added.
Megiddo’s revelations appear to confirm The Guardian’s report, which was part of a wider investigation. This was conducted by the outlet with the Israeli-based magazines +972 and Local Call on Israel’s use of its intelligence agencies to allegedly surveil, hack, pressure, smear, and threaten senior staff at the ICC to derail its inquiries relating to Palestine.
He explained that after the meeting, he “took the threats very seriously” and decided to publish a redacted version of the story he was working on, reporting only on Cohen’s trips to the Congo.
He left out the part about the agency’s effort to persuade Congo’s president, Joseph Kabila, to assist with efforts to pressure Bensouda and disrupt the proceedings in The Hague.
The revelations come amid a backdrop of declining media freedom in Israel. The +972 magazine and the Movement for Freedom of Information in Israel reported that in 2023, the military censor barred the publication of 613 articles — a record annual number since +972 began collecting data in 2011.
Earlier in May, authorities shut down the offices of Qatar’s media outlet Al Jazeera after passing a highly controversial law granting Israel the power to temporarily close foreign media outlets if deemed a threat to security.
Last week, equipment belonging to The Associated Press was briefly seized, prompting an intervention by the US government.
Google launches Gemini Advanced & Gemini mobile app in Arabic
- Android users can download a dedicated Gemini app while iOS users can access it through the Google app
- ‘We’re excited to see how people will utilize generative AI to enhance their productivity and creativity,’ says Google’s regional marketing chief
DUBAI: Google has added Arabic support to the mobile app for Gemini, its multimodal artificial intelligence model. Users worldwide can access it for free through a dedicated app for Android devices, or from within the Google app on iOS.
An Arabic version of its latest conversational AI model, Gemini Advanced, is also now available through the app to subscribers with a Google One AI Premium plan.
“Businesses now have access to our latest Gemini model (Gemini Advanced) in Arabic to help increase their efficiency in complex and collaborative tasks,” Najeeb Jarrar, Google’s regional marketing director for the Middle East and North Africa region, told Arab News.
“With access to Gemini on mobile, we’re excited to see how people will utilize generative AI to enhance their productivity and creativity.”
The app also provides access to Gemini 1.0 Pro, a different AI model, for free, and to Gemini 1.5 Pro with a Google One AI Premium plan. The 1.5 Pro model is more capable at complex tasks such as coding, logical reasoning, following detailed and specific instructions, and collaborating on creative projects, Google said.
Users can access other Google apps and services from within the Gemini app through the use of extensions launched this year. The services provided by these extensions include access to real-time flight and hotel booking information, location-based information from Google Maps, and summaries of content from Google Docs or Gmail.
The Arabic version of Gemini, then called Bard, was launched in July last year. Google described Bard as an “AI experiment,” not a chatbot, and Jarrar said it would allow the company to explore a “new paradigm in computing.”
He told Arab News at the time: “We’re learning together how large language models can be helpful, and how to minimize poor experiences.”
Now, the Arabic capabilities have been added to the Gemini mobile app and Gemini Advanced. The AI is able to understand questions in more than 16 Arabic dialects and provide responses in modern, standard Arabic.
Google announced several new developments in its AI projects during its developer conference Google I/O 2024 this month. Arabic support for these new features is expected to be added soon.
“As we’re seeing more interest from the region, we’re committed to bringing more features in Arabic later this year,” Jarrar added.
