10 Things in Tech: Twitter 2.0, how to create with AI, and Reddit employees' swag warning
Hello, readers. Nathan Rennolds, an associate editor in London, here.
Twitter's new CEO, Linda Yaccarino, is looking to turn the site into an accurate, real-time source of information — Twitter 2.0.
But the platform has a long way to go before that's possible. Today, we're taking a look at why that is.
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1. Twitter 2.0. Linda Yaccarino wants to turn the platform into a place where you can find accurate, timely information on hot topics with minimum effort. But there are a few major hurdles it needs to overcome to achieve this.
- Twitter's former vice president of product recently told Bloomberg that Musk's plans for the platform — such as defeating bots — "seemed pretty lightly considered," adding that his takeover had "gone pretty poorly."
- Yaccarino wants to change that and transform the platform into "a global town square for communication." But bots are still rife on the site, hijacking key terms to dominate "top" search results.
- If Yaccarino is serious about her aim and it isn't an "empty promise," then the bots need to go for good — and fast.
Read more about Twitter's persistent bot problem here.
In other news:
2. Rich venture capitalists are buying up Nvidia GPUs. The company's GPUs are essential for training the big models behind AI tools like ChatGPT, but they are expensive and in short supply. That gives big tech companies an advantage. Here's why.
3. The 19 executives guiding eBay toward AI, ads, and authentication. eBay pivoted its business plan to focus on specific product categories and lean into AI and authentication. And it's finally starting to pay off. Here are the key figures driving its next phase of growth.
4. How to create with AI. Insider spoke to five people who've used generative AI to make songs, stories, letters, and commercials. Here's how they quickly created their content.
5. Reddit employees were warned not to wear company swag in public. Reddit CEO Steve Huffman has told staff to avoid wearing branded gear amidst a mass revolt by the platform's users. Get the full story.
6. Tesla's charging deals with Ford and GM have rivals panicked. Tesla is slowly opening its charging stations to other automakers' vehicles, with Ford and GM recently saying their cars will be able to use Tesla Superchargers. And it's sent charging rivals scrambling.
7. TikTok is coming for Google search. TikTok is testing a visual-search tool in its shopping tab that could put more pressure on Google. A Bernstein analyst said TikTok may be "the most imminent threat to Google's Search dominance." More here.
8. AI hype could end up like the dot-com bubble. A veteran investor told Bloomberg that the AI boom "smells very much like the dot-com era," saying he believed there was a good chance of the market falling from its current heights. Find out more.
Odds and ends:
9. I road-tripped in Toyota's new electric SUV. Insider's Tim Levin drove the new Toyota bZ4X electric SUV from New York to Washington DC and back. He said the painfully slow charging and short range made the drive take forever. Get the full review here.
10. What happens to your body in Mount Everest's "death zone." Climbers who ascend higher than 26,000 feet on Mount Everest enter the "death zone," where oxygen is so limited that the body's cells start to die and judgment becomes impaired. More here.
Today's team: Nathan Rennolds and Hallam Bullock in London