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<div type="image" title="Save yourself the trouble of buying physical gold this Diwali, and instead, go digital with Gold ETFs!" height="900" width="1200" msid="114507055" hostid="261" sizebytes="439216" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Save yourself the trouble of buying physical gold this Diwali, and instead, go digital with Gold ETFs!&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> Ah, <keyword id="18712" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Gold" source="Orion">gold</keyword>! The shiny metal that's been making humans lose their minds since time immemorial. And yet, from <keyword id="23657519" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="king-midas" source="keywords">King Midas</keyword> to our neighbourhood aunty and even our moms (and secretly dads), everyone seems to have a super soft spot for the <keyword id="6384667" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bullion" source="Orion">bullion</keyword>. But here's the kicker: right now, gold prices are breaking all records on their upward trajectory! As of today, prices of 24k carat gold have passed the Rs 80,000 mark per 10 grams. And if experts are to be believed, this train isn't stopping anytime soon! So, as shiny as gold might look, adding even a bit of its glitter as we start decking up for the festive season might not be so easy on your pockets. But let's admit it—we love our gold and can't live without it. No wonder India is the second-largest consumer of the yellow metal in the world, only behind China. Such is our fondness for the metal that the <keyword id="20195223" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="world-gold-council" source="keywords">World Gold Council</keyword> had to up our 2024 annual demand forecast to 850 tonnes, up from the previously estimated 750 tonnes. However, our love for gold isn't just about looking fabulously embellished and blinding people with its bling. Indians also see gold as a long-term, trusty investment, supporting our other hard-earned assets, especially when high <keyword id="22195" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Inflation" source="Orion">inflation</keyword> rates pull our returns down. After all, while inflationary pressures generally weaken the purchasing power of our regular paper money, gold is built differently. When the world is buckling to inflation, gold gains value during these times. This is also why it is considered a solid hedge against inflation. With <keyword id="188" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Diwali" source="Orion">Diwali</keyword> and <keyword id="4067" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Dhanteras" source="Orion">Dhanteras</keyword> knocking at our doors, the inflation demon continued to bother India like a guest who refused to leave. Just last month, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) stood at 5.49%, much higher than the anticipated levels. Moreover, the diverging policy stances among central bankers worldwide, growing geopolitical tensions, tough job markets, and extreme weather events are only adding to the uncertainty. In such economically uncertain times, what should your gold strategy be this festive season? To buy or not to buy, that is the question. Well, let’s get to it. <h2><keyword id="20050894" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="gold-etfs" source="keywords">Gold ETFs</keyword> to the rescue</h2>See, buying physical gold jewellery is certainly a flex, but also a financial fuss. First, you pay a heavy amount to buy gold. Not to mention all those extra, hefty jewellery-making charges. And then you pay even more money to keep it safe in a bank locker, lest it get stolen. But what if we tell you that you can own pure 24k gold, minus all these frills? Welcome, Gold ETFs (Exchange Traded Funds). Simply put, gold ETFs are like the cool cousins of your traditional gold investments. Instead of stashing gold bars under your mattress like those maniac millionaires we see in Bollywood films, you can now invest and trade in gold through the stock market. It's basically buying units of an <keyword id="19930506" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="etf" source="keywords">ETF</keyword> on the stock exchange that directly mirror the ongoing domestic prices of gold. Generally, gold ETFs are equivalent to 99.5% pure physical gold bars, and each ETF unit denotes actual, one gram of gold. And let's face it, who would not want that golden glow in their lives? Gold ETFs have witnessed an over seven-fold surge in their AUM (assets under management) in just the last five years. From Rs 5,613.22 crore in September 2019 to Rs 39,823.50 crore in September 2024, gold ETFs seem to be in-thing. Inflows in gold ETFs have shot up by a whopping 2,695% over the last 5 years. In September 2019, gold ETFs had garnered a mere Rs 44.11 crore. Compare that to the inflows worth Rs 1,232.99 crore gold ETFs received last month. Talk about growing, or glowing popularity! In fact, in just 2024, inflows in gold ETFs have surged by nearly 88% since the beginning of this calendar year. From Rs 657.46 crore in January 2024 to Rs 1,232.99 crore in September 2024, good old gold is never out of season. <h2>So, how do these ETFs work? Should I invest in them now?</h2>All you need is a Demat account. Log into your account, choose the gold ETF scheme you want to invest in, and voila! You’re now a bullion-aire! All your gold ETF units will be stored in this account. Then, you can buy and sell gold ETFs just like you buy shares—in real-time. So, if gold prices inch upwards, which is where gold is currently going, the value of your ETF units will also rise in lockstep. Ashwini Kumar, Senior Vice President and Head of Market Data at ICRA Analytics, says that of late, gold ETFs have been increasingly gaining popularity among investors due to the liquidity, safety and transparency they offer. "With the escalating global geopolitical tensions boosting the ‘safe-haven’ appeal of the bullion, investors are preferring to park their funds in gold ETFs as compared to investing in physical gold, as there is no hassle of storing it. The heightened activity in gold ETFs is also driven by the prospects of an imminent further interest rate cut by the <keyword id="20078761" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="u-s-federal-reserve" source="keywords">U.S. Federal Reserve</keyword> in the coming months,” he added. “Investors with a short- to medium-term investment horizon may consider investment through gold ETFs. A buy-on-dips strategy here may help investors capitalise on a temporary correction in prices. Also, given the current market dynamics where equities are showing mixed trends, a modest, 5-10% allocation to gold may serve as a hedge against inflation and market volatility, which may help you balance risks in an optimum manner,” Kumar noted. <h2>Wait, there is no dearth of options</h2>But if ETFs make you go WTF, there’s always digital gold. You can invest in the yellow metal without actually physically holding it for as low as Rs 1. The best part? You can buy or sell this gold 24 X7 seamlessly via multiple apps without having to pay storage costs. On your behalf, your gold is stored in insured vaults by the seller. But remember, digital gold continues to remain unregulated territory in the country, where you venture at your own risk. In 2021, market watchdog SEBI had even asked its members to desist from selling digital gold. Then there are gold mutual funds and the Sarkari SGBs, or sovereign gold bonds. While gold mutual funds invest primarily in gold ETFs, SGBs are issued by the RBI and are also a reliable substitute for holding physical gold. However, with the RBI currently putting brakes on issuing SGBs, investing in them is out of the question. Plus, you should only get your hands on SGBs if you're in for the long haul. Apart from a 2.5% p.a. interest, you don't have any yearly earnings from them. Moreover, no premature redemption is allowed before 5 years, and you'll have to wait a good 8 years to maximise your returns. <h2>Okay, tell me about returns</h2>In contrast, the seventeen gold ETF schemes currently present in the market offer an average one-year return of 29.12%. Stay with it a little longer, and you can end up with returns worth 16.93% and 13.59% over a 3- and 5-year period, respectively. If you look at it, these returns are comparable with the returns delivered by actual, physical gold. Data from Value Research indicates that gold, as a commodity, has delivered returns worth 27.24%, 16.53%, and 14.18% over a 1, 3, and 5-year period, respectively. So, worth investing, right? <h2>What are the risks?</h2>See, markets are as unpredictable as monsoons in Mumbai. One significant market correction can wash away your returns, and one sunny day or an upswing can leave you wallowing in wealth. Since your gold investments are directly linked to these markets, you should steel yourself up for some volatility. Plus, international gold prices are in dollars. So, if our rupee decides to take a nosedive, your returns might look a bit tarnished. Also, know that your ETF might not always perfectly mirror gold prices, which is also known as a tracking error. It's like expecting your Zomato-ordered food to look exactly like the picture on the menu—it's close, but not quite. Then there’s the taxation bit. The budget this year brought down the LTCG (long-term capital gains tax) on gold ETFs from the previous 20% to 12.5% (sans indexation). LTCG is what you pay if you sell your ETF units after 12 months. If you sell your gold ETF units within a year and make handsome returns, the tax you’ll have to pay will be equivalent to your income tax slab rate. <h2>Is gold just for old?</h2>A survey by fintech firm Moneyview thinks otherwise. Per their findings, over 85% of the 3,000 respondents it talked to considered gold to be a valuable asset for wealth preservation, with its intrinsic value and historical performance continuing to drive consumer confidence. Particularly, young investors in the age group of 25–40 years are also investing in gold via both physical and digital ways to build wealth for retirement and other long-term goals. So, young or old, everyone’s going for gold. So, this festive season, with gold prices going north, investing in gold can add that much-needed glitz to your financial attire. But remember, don't go overboard since gold isn't exactly a high-return-yielding asset. But whether you're a seasoned investor looking to diversify or a newbie trying to make their way in the markets, investing in gold offers you a glittering safety cushion. Just remember, while gold can make your portfolio shine, it's your smart investment decisions that truly make you golden. Disclaimer: The content on this website is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as investment advice. We recommend readers consult certified, qualified, and registered advisors for professional and personalised financial advice.

Simply put: Can investing in gold this festive season add the much-touted Midas touch to your investments?

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Ukraine claims one of its soldiers made the world's longest sniper kill shot.</li><li>The shot was taken 2.36 miles away from its Russian target, according to reports.</li></ul>Ukraine's Special Forces are claiming the world's longest sniper kill, saying that a Ukrainian soldier took out a Russian combatant from 2.36 miles away, <a target="_blank" href="https://interfax.com.ua/news/general/948609.html">according to Interfax-Ukraine</a>.It's not possible to verify the kill from the shared footage.The video shows a grainy outdoor scene, with the targeted area highlighted in a circle, through which two figures can be glimpsed. Three shots then fire, with the two figures dropping down after the second shot. One appears to crawl away.The sniper involved used the Ukraine-made Volodar Obriyu rifle — translating as "Horizon's Lord" — for the shot, according to Interfax, citing Special Forces.The unit did not offer further information, such as the date or location of the shot.There is no universally verified list of longest sniper kills, though there are <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/9-longest-sniper-kills-military-marines-ukraine-army-2023-7">several generally accepted contenders</a>.If confirmed, this latest shot would be roughly 0.2 miles further than the previously claimed record, which was taken by an unnamed Canadian soldier in Iraq in 2017.In 2022, another Ukrainian soldier was credited by the country's armed forces with <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/video-ukraine-claims-worlds-second-longest-sniper-kill-2022-11">the world's second-longest kill</a>, from almost 1.7 miles away from its target.Ukrainian snipers have gained an almost mythical status since Russia's full-scale invasion, with one unit taking on the nickname the "Ghosts of Bakhmut."Their commander, who goes by the call sign "Ghost," says he is responsible for 113 of the group's 558 claimed kills, all in the space of nine months.Business Insider could not independently verify the figures.Although their work is often mythologized by the general public, it's grueling, "Ghost" <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/the-ghosts-bakhmut-elite-sniper-unit-killed-558-russians-2023-9">told Business Insider's Alia Shoaib</a>.A sniper can wait up to 16 hours in one spot waiting for a target — with the crucial shot itself being only a small fraction of the skills needed, he said."It's nothing like American films that romanticize the work of snipers and show it as very glamorous," he said.

A Ukrainian soldier is claiming the world's longest sniper kill, using a gun named 'Horizon's Lord'

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Kevin Costner's "Horizon" was a bust at the box office, making only $11 million in its first weekend.</li><li>Costner invested over $38 million in the movie and paid for its marketing himself. </li></ul>Kevin Costner is the latest star to be reminded that passion projects don't always yield big box-office returns.The <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/yellowstone-timeline-of-controversy-criticism-conflict-kevin-costner-2023-4">former "Yellowstone" actor</a> quite literally bet the ranch on "Horizon: An American Saga," <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/horizon-an-american-saga-reviews-critics-pan-kevin-costners-movie-2024-5">mortgaging his property in Santa Barbara and investing $38 million of his own money</a> into the three-hour film, which is intended to be the first in a four-part series about Western expansion before and after the Civil War. (Part two is set for release on August 16.)But so far, Costner's gambit on the movie he directed, cowrote, and stars in hasn't paid off: "Horizon: An American Saga" brought in only <a target="_blank" href="https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt17505010/?ref_=bo_se_r_1">$11 million on a $100 million budget in its opening weekend</a>.This isn't the first time Costner has had a passion project go sideways. He produced, starred in, and later <a target="_blank" href="https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1999-sep-15-ca-10491-story.html">took over directing duties</a> in 1995's "Waterworld," an ambitious postapocalyptic blockbuster described as "Mad Max" on water. He sank <a target="_blank" href="https://www.slashfilm.com/1013479/the-wildest-things-that-happened-on-the-set-of-waterworld/">$22 million of his own money</a> into the film, which was then considered one of the most expensive movies ever made. When critics saw it, they also gave it the distinction of being one of the worst movies ever made.<div type="image" title="waterworld" height="525" width="800" msid="111413431" hostid="261"></div>But "Horizon" was supposed to be different. The Oscar-winner had been riding high off the success of his hit TV show, "Yellowstone." Surely its tens of millions of fans would follow Costner to theaters to watch him in another Western, one he directed this time. Right?At least on opening weekend, that's not what happened. Audiences instead spent their cash on sure things, like sequels or stories from existing IP. <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/inside-out-2-box-office-pixar-disney-numbers-analysis-2024-6">"Inside Out 2"</a> led the domestic box office for a third straight weekend and has now <a target="_blank" href="https://www.boxofficemojo.com/release/rl3638199041/?ref_=bo_hm_RECENT_WEEKEND_WIDGET_1">grossed over $1 billion worldwide</a>, making it the first movie to do so since last summer's "Barbie." In second was "A Quiet Place: Day One," a prequel in the popular thriller franchise, which took in an impressive <a target="_blank" href="https://www.boxofficemojo.com/release/rl545096449/?ref_=bo_hm_RECENT_WEEKEND_WIDGET_2">$53 million domestically</a>, making it the biggest opening ever for the franchise.<h2 id="3c63a0fd-c1fa-468e-8f5e-26b555b8e5bf">The "Yellowstone" fans weren't enough</h2><div type="image" title="yellowstone kevin costner" height="932" width="1400" msid="111413434" hostid="261"></div>Though Costner had been crafting a story about the exploration of the American West for decades, it wasn't until he <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/viewers-dont-care-about-kevin-costners-character-john-dutton-yellowstone-2023-9">played John Dutton in "Yellowstone"</a> that "Horizon" finally became a reality. And it was that fandom that Warner Bros. hoped would come to theaters for "Horizon," bringing box-office glory.The Paramount+ series was the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.paramount.com/news/the-audiences-behind-yellowstones-success">most-watched cable series</a> in 2018 and 2019; it went on to score close to <a target="_blank" href="https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/yellowstone-ratings-viewers-peacock-cbs-1235739208/">seven million viewers in its broadcast debut on CBS</a> in the fall of 2023. The conventional thinking among box-office trackers was that "Yellowstone" fans would be the core audience to come out to support "Horizon," hopefully leading to a $15 million to $20 million opening.Despite the film's poor reception from critics at its Cannes Film Festival world premiere and its <a target="_blank" href="https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/horizon_an_american_saga_chapter_1">40% Rotten Tomatoes score,</a> the thinking was that Costner's core audience would come through despite a few bad reviews (the movie has a 71% audience score, after all).And they did — sort of. Warner Bros.' weekly box-office report revealed that the top five theaters that were major earners for "Horizon" were in regions of the country where "Yellowstone" is popular and cowboys still roam: Utah (where the "Horizon" franchise was shot), Texas, Arizona, and Oklahoma.So, while Costner and WB were successful in marketing the movie, it wasn't enough. Though the "Yellowstone" fans are mighty, "Horizon" needed more manpower to compete with established draws like "Inside Out 2" and "A Quiet Place: Day One."<h2 id="dce79d3f-20cd-474c-b2e5-ebeffa730b3b">Costner isn't as prominent in the 3-hour movie as marketing would suggest</h2><div type="image" title="Kevin Costner in a cowboy hat" height="1000" width="1500" msid="111413433" hostid="261"></div>Even though "Horizon" needed more than just "Yellowstone" die-hards to win at the box office, that core audience may not have been entirely satisfied, either.Despite being the face of the franchise and its star, Kevin Costner isn't actually in a lot of "Horizon." In fact, he doesn't show up until an hour into the movie and is rarely seen afterward. As Hayes Ellison, a rustler on the run after killing a man, the movie occasionally checks in on how he's doing, but most of it revolves around Native Americans attacking a settlement called Horizon, the soldiers at a nearby Army post, and a wagon train traveling to Horizon.The movie's lack of Costner is a major flaw. Unlike on TV, where teasing the eventual appearance of a star will draw audiences back for the next episode, it's tougher for movies to take that approach when viewers must wait more than a week — usually months or even years — for the next installment. And even though the next "Horizon" movie comes to theaters in August, who's to say audiences will come back? Especially if they aren't certain their star will be on screen for most of the movie.<h2 id="7319bc12-0cc5-49c7-a51b-26d5858c4fb6">Self-financed auteur projects rarely deliver</h2><div type="image" title="Kevin Costner directing next to a monitor" height="4000" width="6000" msid="111413435" hostid="261"></div>The shaky start for Costner's passion project could go one of two ways. While there are a few times in film history when a director put their own money into a film and reaped huge rewards (see: George Lucas' "Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back," Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ"), most of the time, directors who self-finance never see that money back — just ask <a target="_blank" href="https://www.nytimes.com/1992/03/01/movies/film-welles-s-othello-made-chaos-into-an-art-form.html">Orson Welles</a> or <a target="_blank" href="https://www.vulture.com/article/is-francis-ford-coppola-megalopolis-doomed.html">Francis Ford Coppola</a>.It's too soon to say if that will happen to Costner (<a target="_blank" href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2020/07/28/waterworld-starring-kevin-costner-was-the-biggest-box-office-bomb-that-wasnt/ ">even "Waterworld" broke even</a> — though it took years), but he is on the hook for the film franchise, and he's likely in deeper than the $38 million price tag that's been previously reported.According to <a target="_blank" href="https://variety.com/2024/film/news/kevin-costner-horizon-stakes-box-office-career-1236056644/">Variety</a>, Costner and his investors are paying for the "Horizon" marketing, a spend that's around $30 million. Warner Bros. is only taking 8% of the movie's box office grosses. That means if the movie can rebound, the star will take a substantial share of the grosses. If it doesn't, he'll have to deal with the losses.That could hurt the franchise down the line.Though "Horizon: Chapter 2" is set for an August 16 release and "Chapter 3" has begun principal photography for a May 2024 release, "Chapter 4" is still only in development. Whether Costner will ultimately be able to complete his four-part saga could very well become a saga of its own.

Kevin Costner mortgaged his home and put $38 million of his own money into 'Horizon.' Box-office numbers suggest this was a terrible idea. 

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, led by Crown Prince Mohammed Salman, is going global.</li><li>The sovereign wealth fund is investing in everything from Uber and Blackstone to Heathrow and LIV Golf.</li></ul>In the months before <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/saudi-arabia-crown-prince-mohammed-bin-salman-mbs-2023-10">Mohammed bin Salman</a> celebrated his 30th birthday nearly a decade ago, the yet-to-be anointed Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia was gifted a vital key to unlocking the kingdom's future: full purview of its Public Investment Fund.Back in 2015, MBS became chairman of the sovereign wealth fund established in 1971 by a former king at a time when it was ready to be transformed. A slow-moving cog of the state no more, PIF was ready to become an investment juggernaut with global presence.It's a task the fast-rising royal hasn't shied away from. PIF, officially led by governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan, has been stepping up its mission to invest in high-profile assets globally in recent years to help fulfill its mission of reducing Saudi Arabia's economic dependence on oil.That mission, a fundamental part of <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/vision-2030-saudi-arabia-plan-future-proof-oil-economy-2023-8">an ambitious program called Vision 2030</a> that MBS is in charge of, depends in part on how successful the PIF is in generating returns from its big bets overseas — and leveraging those bets to build hot new industries at home."MBS' personal ambition is very much to make Saudi Arabia a highly visible and internationally respected post-oil economy," Steffen Hertog, associate professor at the London School of Economics, told Business Insider. "The PIF is by far his most important vehicle in this endeavor."But as PIF spreads its wings, it is becoming increasingly unclear as to just how successful it stands to be beyond the Gulf.<h2 id="ab7cae77-96ba-4c12-be58-1085931cd388">Saudi Arabia goes global</h2><div type="image" title="Prince Mohammed bin Salman in front of a black background." height="320" width="640" msid="112575436" hostid="261" sizebytes="15426"></div>A look at the <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.pif.gov.sa/en/our-investments/our-portfolio/#ourportfolio_e=0">PIF's portfolio</a> presents a show reel of some of the most prolific names in global business.In the tech sector, it has <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-investment-in-uber-brought-saudi-prince-to-silicon-valley-2020-9">pumped $3.5 billion into Uber</a>, poured $45 billion into SoftBank's Vision Fund, taken a 60% stake in <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tesla">Tesla</a> rival Lucid, and become majority owner of augmented reality startup Magic Leap.Beyond that, it has pumped <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/saudi-arabia-public-investment-fund-pif-sports-influence-pga-liv-2023-6">billions of dollars into LIV Golf</a>, led a $415 million takeover of Newcastle United, backed up a Blackstone infrastructure fund with $20 billion and invested in Carnival, the world's biggest cruise operator. In June, PIF expanded its stake in London's Heathrow Airport.Figures published in July by <a target="_blank" href="https://globalswf.com/reports/2024gsr#market-update-1h-2024-1">GlobalSWF</a>, a data firm tracking sovereign-wealth-fund activity, found that PIF deployed more capital in the first half of 2024 than all other state-owned investors, which collectively invested close to $100 billion in the six-month period.According to LSE's Hertog, PIF's attraction to high-profile brands isn't just about making itself more visible to the West. "These for the most part are corporates active in sectors that the PIF and MBS see as key for Saudi Arabia's domestic economic diversification."To make these deals happen, the kingdom has been busy doing a lot of courting.In February, it backed a two-day conference in Miami, where the likes of Blackstone leader Stephen Schwarzman and Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner were <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://fii-institute.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/02.22_FII-PRIORITY-Miami-2nd-Edition-Program.pdf">billed as speakers.</a> In October, the kingdom will be prepared for the global elite to descend on capital city Riyadh for its "<a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/saudi-business-conference-davos-in-desert-costs-15000-attend-2023-9">Davos in the desert</a>" investment conference.<div type="image" title="Prince Mohammed bin Salman in front of a black background." height="320" width="640" msid="112575436" hostid="261" sizebytes="15426"></div>The event, which has previously attracted the likes of JP Morgan and BlackRock CEOs <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jamie-dimon-career">Jamie Dimon</a> and <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blackrock-ceo-larry-fink-net-worth-career-history">Larry Fink</a>, has proven controversial in the past. <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/biden-mbs-responsible-for-jamal-khashoggi-murder-2022-7">MBS's alleged role</a> in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018, which he denies having involvement in, gave some dealmakers pause for thought.That said, the world's corporate elite appear to be looking past the incident as time passes — something the Saudis seem to be aware of. This year's theme, <a target="_blank" href="https://fii-institute.org/conference/fii8/">"Infinite Horizons,"</a> offers a nod to the global scope it has in mind for its future.For global companies, fund managers, and bankers, Saudi Arabia's wealth has been a big draw at a critical time. While other investors have exercised caution in the face of a higher interest rate environment, the kingdom has kept its money flowing.That's partly because the fund has set a target of $2 trillion in assets under management by the end of the decade, and is racing against the clock to meet the deadline for its ambitious Vision 2030 program.Saudi Arabia also finds itself l<a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/saudi-arabia-vs-uae-middle-east-economic-power-supremacy-dubai-2023-9">ocked in a tense rivalry with other economic powerhouses</a> in the region such as the United Arab Emirates, where funds such as Mubadala and <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/satya-nadella-microsoft-ai-kingpin-g42-openai-china-2024-4">G42 have been busy securing their own big international deals</a>. Bragging rights are on the table.<h2 id="daf6e7aa-7788-42a8-84dd-cb066c69057e">Risky high-stakes game</h2><div type="image" title="Prince Mohammed bin Salman in front of a black background." height="320" width="640" msid="112575436" hostid="261" sizebytes="15426"></div>However, while the Saudis prepare to continue flashing their cash abroad, the PIF faces some risks.For one, the fund has had to learn the hard reality of going big, as a number of its high-profile investments overseas have struggled financially. Earlier this month, for instance, <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/middle-east-funds-racing-rescue-investments-saudi-arabia-pif-mubadala-2024-8">PIF had to plug a funding gap for Lucid</a> by pumping in an extra $1.5 billion.The electric vehicle maker first <a target="_blank" href="https://lucidmotors.com/fr-ca/media-room/lucid-motors-executes-us1bn-investment-agreement-public-investment-fund-saudi-arabia">raised more than $1 billion from the Saudis in 2018</a> after <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-blames-saudi-investor-backpedaling-taking-tesla-private-trial-2023-1">PIF's talks with Elon Musk to take Tesla private fell through</a>, but has struggled with a high burn rate and waning demand for EVs.PIF has also had to backstop another company. According to filings released in the UK this month, the fund has put $750 million into Magic Leap since the start of 2023, as it struggling to take its immersive reality headsets mainstream.For Hertog, though companies like Lucid have "fallen on hard times" — and other bets from PIF on the likes of the <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/inside-softbank-vision-funds-awful-year-former-employees-rival-vcs-2022-12">SoftBank Vision Fund</a> have "indeed not done well" — it is still too early to say how the overall performance will turn out. The fund did swing to an annual profit in 2023 following an $11 billion loss the previous year, Bloomberg reported, though many bets are still in their early days."There are inherent risks in investing in new sectors so what matters is not individual failures but the performance of the whole portfolio," Hertog said.PIF's tanglings with political figures are also raising concerns. Donald Trump's son-in-law Kushner, who started private equity firm Affinity Partners in 2021, <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jared-kushner-private-equity-firm-funding-from-saudi-arabia-report-2022-4">received a $2 billion commitment from PIF</a> for its debut fund, with that commitment now facing an investigation by Senate Finance Committee chair Sen. Ron Wyden.<div type="image" title="Prince Mohammed bin Salman in front of a black background." height="320" width="640" msid="112575436" hostid="261" sizebytes="15426"></div>In <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.finance.senate.gov/chairmans-news/wyden-probes-kushner-firm-payments-from-gulf-states-potential-fara-loophole">a letter published in June</a>, the senator raised concerns that PIF and other Middle Eastern funds were "using payments to Affinity executives as a means to influence Kushner and other politically powerful individuals."For Abdullah Alaoudh, a director at the Middle East Democracy Center, it seems clear that buying "a lot of influence" — or "whitewashing" as he puts it — is a key part of the fund's dealmaking overseas. If potential partners can gloss over some of its more controversial activities, such as <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/biden-investigation-us-military-aid-saudi-arabia-massacre-migrants-yemen-2023-9">the Kingdom's war in Yemen</a>, it'll have an easier time seeing deals through.As Hertog notes, it's worth remembering that PIF's main priority remains its domestic portfolio. "While some domestic investments have been pruned, the fund's main ambition is domestic diversification," he said.Still, Saudi Arabia seems intent on making its mark on the global stage through the PIF. The world will be keeping watch.The PIF did not immediately respond to a request for comment from BI.

Saudi Arabia is on a high-stakes mission to buy the world 

<ul><li>The company will organised '<keyword id="399907" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="meta" source="Orion">Meta</keyword> Connect' virtual conference on October 11 . </li><li><keyword id="353568" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="zuckerberg" source="Orion">Zuckerberg</keyword> will share share updates on the VR developer ecosystem, the progress building toward the metaverse, and '<keyword id="13207563" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="project-cambria" source="Orion">Project Cambria</keyword>'.</li><li>Internal reports claim there are still several quality issues and those building the virtual reality (VR) social network are barely using it. </li></ul> Meta CEO <keyword id="6354630" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="mark-zuckerberg" source="Orion">Mark Zuckerberg</keyword> is set to announce the company's progress towards building the $10 billion metaverse, as internal reports claim there are still several quality issues and those building the virtual reality (VR) social network at the company are barely using it. The company will organised 'Meta Connect' virtual conference on October 11 for developers, creators, tech enthusiasts and others. Zuckerberg will share share updates on the VR developer ecosystem, the progress building toward the metaverse, and 'Project Cambria', a new high-end VR headset with mixed reality. "If you have a Meta Quest 2 headset, you can register to attend in VR in <keyword id="15203463" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="meta-horizon-worlds" source="Orion">Meta Horizon Worlds</keyword>," said the company. The flagship metaverse event comes as <keyword id="290568" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="vishal-shah" source="Orion">Vishal Shah</keyword>, Meta's VP of Metaverse, apparently told the employees that the metaverse team would remain in a "quality lockdown" for the rest of the year to "ensure that we fix our quality gaps and performance issues before we open up <keyword id="8902" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="horizon" source="Orion">Horizon</keyword> to more users". "Simply put, for an experience to become delightful and retentive, it must first be usable and well crafted," he told them in an internal memo. In August, Zuckerberg was forced to post new screenshots on Facebook and Instagram, showing off a more life-like version of himself, after he faced memes on his poorly-designed metaverse avatar. In the same month, <keyword id="244385" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="vivek-sharma" source="Orion">Vivek Sharma</keyword>, the Indian-origin VP of Meta's Horizon social media virtual reality (VR) platform, departed, at a time when Zuckerberg doubles down on his $10 billion metaverse dream. A Meta spokesperson said the company is "confident that the metaverse is the future of computing and that it should be built around people". SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/apples-own-5g-modem-not-to-arrive-in-new-iphones-till-2025/articleshow/94737503.cms">Apple's own 5G modem not to arrive in new iPhones till 2025</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/global-metaverse-market-likely-to-reach-996-bn-in-2030/articleshow/94737437.cms">Global metaverse market likely to reach $996 bn in 2030</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/middle-east-destinations-see-an-upsurge-amongst-indian-travellers/articleshow/94723228.cms">Middle East destinations see an upsurge, amongst Indian travellers</a>

Zuckerberg sets for 'Meta Connect' amid quality issues with VR project

<ul><li>The return of El Niño later this year could spark downside volatility in the stock market, according to Charles Schwab.</li><li>The firm said extreme weather could exacerbate supply chain disruptions and lead to persistent inflation and a falling stock market.</li><li>The last El Niño event in 2015 coincided with a global stock market sell-off that extended into 2016.</li></ul>Extreme weather events could sabotage the economy and stock market later this year <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/el-nino-on-the-way-could-wipe-out-3-trillion-of-world-economy/articleshow/100392049.cms" target="_blank" rel="noopener">as the world prepares for a possible El Niño event,</a> according to Charles Schwab chief global investment strategist Jeffrey Kleintop.The arrival of El Niño later this year has surged to a 90% probability, according to The World Meteorological Organization, which could lead to shifts in temperatures and global weather patterns. Already, it seems to be having an impact. Heat waves across the globe have led <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/river-rhine-europe-energy-germany-heatwave-climate-water-shipping-coal-2022-7">to low water levels in certain rivers that facilitate the transport of goods via barges,</a> which in some cases could not traverse the drained rivers. In France, th Rhone river has been too hot to cool down the nuclear reactors for Electricite de France, which has led to shutdowns and lower power output. These extreme weather events can have a material impact on the economy and lead to persistent inflation, higher interest rates, and ultimately a lower stock market, according to Kleintop. "If these impacts continue to threaten agriculture, energy, and lives, or worsen — as forecasters expect — the economic impact could be significant for both inflation and economic activity," Kleintop said in <a href="https://www.schwab.com/learn/story/el-nino-could-bring-storms-to-markets" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a Monday note.</a>Higher energy prices could be exacerbated by low water levers in reservoirs due to extreme heat, which would curtail hydropower generation and put an additional strain on power supplies, putting upward price pressure on energy alternatives like coal and natural gas. And if water levels in key rivers are too low to facilitate the transfer of goods, that could lead to heightened freight transportation costs as trucking and rails are forced to pick up the slack.All of this potential inflation in energy and food costs, caused by extreme weather events, could force central banks to keep interest rates higher for longer to combat inflation."High food prices could filter through to wages if they persist, which could sustain core inflation at higher levels, and result in data-driven central banks to keep monetary policy tight," Kleintop said.There are more obvious risks to the economy sparked by extreme weather events, like hurricanes and the losses experienced by the people in the path of the storms and the insurance companies that have exposure to the area. Such exposure has recently forced big insurance companies <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/farmers-insurance-florida-stops-home-auto-insurance-2023-7">to completely exit certain markets in Florida and California.</a>All of these factors sparked by El Niño and the extreme weather could ultimately lead to a lower stock market, as has happened in the past."Market volatility could increase if El Niño impacts accumulate. The last El Niño coincided with the market selling off 13% in 2015 to 2016, although other factors likely contributed to the volatility," Kleintop said.

There are storm clouds on the horizon for the stock market - literally

<ul><li><keyword id="399907" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="meta" source="Orion">Meta</keyword>'s VR social network called '<keyword id="12271123" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="horizon-worlds" source="Orion">Horizon Worlds</keyword>' holds little promise in its current avatar, a report by Verge claims. </li><li><keyword id="290568" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="vishal-shah" source="Orion">Vishal Shah</keyword>, Meta's VP of Metaverse, apparently told the employees that the metaverse team would remain in a "quality lockdown"for the rest of the year.</li><li>Meta was making a plan to "hold managers accountable" for having their teams use Horizon at least once a week.</li></ul> The flagship metaverse product of Meta (formerly Facebook) is reportedly inundated with several quality issues and even those building the virtual reality (VR) social network at the company are barely using it. According to a report in The Verge citing internal memos, Meta's VR social network called 'Horizon <keyword id="566036" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="worlds" source="Orion">Worlds</keyword>' holds little promise in its current avatar. Vishal Shah, Meta's VP of Metaverse, apparently told the employees that the metaverse team would remain in a "quality lockdown" for the rest of the year to "ensure that we fix our quality gaps and performance issues before we open up Horizon to more users". "Simply put, for an experience to become delightful and retentive, it must first be usable and well crafted," he wrote. In August, <keyword id="12741230" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="meta-founder" source="Orion">Meta Founder</keyword> and CEO Mark <keyword id="353568" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="zuckerberg" source="Orion">Zuckerberg</keyword> was forced to post new screenshots on Facebook and Instagram, showing off a more life-like version of himself, after he faced memes on his poorly-designed metaverse avatar. In the same month, <keyword id="244385" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="vivek-sharma" source="Orion">Vivek Sharma</keyword>, the Indian-origin VP of Meta's Horizon social media virtual reality (VR) platform, departed, at a time when Zuckerberg doubles down on his $10 billion metaverse dream. Sharma's team now reports to Shah. Shah wrote in an internal memo that "currently feedback from our creators, users, playtesters, and many of us on the team is that the aggregate weight of papercuts, stability issues, and bugs is making it too hard for our community to experience the magic of Horizon". Horizon Worlds is a social VR experience where you can discover new places with friends, build unique worlds of your own, and form teams to compete in action-packed games. The Horizon Worlds social metaverse platform is currently available only on the company's <keyword id="13626874" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="quest-vr" source="Orion">Quest VR</keyword> headsets. Share further wrote that for "many of us, we don't spend that much time in Horizon and our dogfooding dashboards show this pretty clearly" "Why is that? Why don't we love the product we've built so much that we use it all the time? The simple truth is, if we don't love it, how can we expect our users to love it?" he added. Meta was making a plan to "hold managers accountable" for having their teams use Horizon at least once a week. "Everyone in this organisation should make it their mission to fall in love with Horizon Worlds," read another memo. A Meta spokesperson said the company is "confident that the metaverse is the future of computing and that it should be built around people". Zuckerberg said recently that major updates to Horizon and avatar graphics are coming soon. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/gadgets/news/spotify-kills-11-original-podcasts-lays-off-less-than-5-staffers/articleshow/94696549.cms">Spotify kills 11 original podcasts, lays off less than 5% staffers</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/stock-markets-slide-with-the-rupee-and-weak-asian-markets/articleshow/94696114.cms">Stock markets slide with the Rupee and weak Asian markets</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/nykaa-enters-into-a-jv-with-dubai-based-fashion-retailer-apparel-group/articleshow/94686015.cms">Nykaa enters into a JV with Dubai-based fashion retailer Apparel Group</a>

Meta's metaverse app has several quality issues, admits head

<keyword id="20528925" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Amish-Tripathi" source="keywords">Amish Tripathi</keyword>, the celebrated author behind the best-selling <keyword id="22444346" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Shiva-trilogy" source="keywords">Shiva Trilogy</keyword> and Ram Chandra series, has made headlines once again for his recent acquisition in Mumbai’s elite <keyword id="22444347" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Upper-Worli-district" source="keywords">Upper Worli district</keyword>. The author, known for his retelling of Indian myths, has invested a staggering Rs 13.65 crore in a luxurious apartment located within the prestigious <keyword id="22444348" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="World-One-project" source="keywords">World One project</keyword> by the <keyword id="20178245" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Lodha-Group" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Lodha Group" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Lodha Group">Lodha Group</keyword>. Situated in one of Mumbai's most coveted locales, Tripathi's new abode spans approximately 251 square metres of sheer opulence. Boasting interiors designed by the renowned <keyword id="22444349" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Armani/Casa" source="keywords">Armani/Casa</keyword>, the residence offers a blend of sophistication and comfort. Further, Lodha’s World One project, renowned for its exclusivity and panoramic views of the Arabian Sea, boasts some of the tallest residential buildings in India. <div type="Article" hostid="261" msid="111582880" title="How did Delhi-NCR and Mumbai housing prices surge by nearly 50% in five years?" mstype="2" mssubtype="0"></div>Nestled in the heart of <keyword id="20161525" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="South-Mumbai" source="keywords">South Mumbai</keyword>, Worli boasts a vibrant mix of cultural attractions and recreational avenues. Some notable destinations include the picturesque <keyword id="22444350" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Worli-Sea-Face" source="keywords">Worli Sea Face</keyword>, a favourite among joggers and evening strollers, to the iconic Bandra-Worli Sea Link, which connects the island city to its northern suburbs. Moreover, the area's upscale dining establishments, boutique shops, and cultural venues ensure that residents are never far from the pulse of Mumbai's dynamic lifestyle. Worli in South Mumbai has long also been a magnet for celebrities and prominent personalities seeking luxury and convenience. Known for its stunning sea views and proximity to Mumbai's business districts, Worli counts several Bollywood stars, industrialists, and sports icons among its residents. Notable personalities that reside here include Shahid Kapoor, Rohit Sharma, Yuvraj Singh, <keyword id="6354486" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="virat-kohli" source="Orion">Virat Kohli</keyword>, Anushka Sharma, Riteish Deshmukh and Genelia D'Souza. <div type="Article" hostid="261" msid="111663953" title="Is the cost of rent finally going down in Bengaluru&amp;#39;s IT corridors like Koramangala and Whitefield?" mstype="2" mssubtype="0"></div>Even with 7 million books sold worldwide, Tripathi continues to expand his creative horizons. In collaboration with Immortal Studios, Wakaoo Films, and Casa Media, the author has ventured into film production, aiming to bring his novel Legend of Suheldev: The King Who Saved India to life on screen. His latest documentary, Ram Janmabhoomi: Return of a Splendid Sun, delves into the historical and cultural facets of Ram Janmabhoomi and the life of Lord Ram.

Shiva trilogy author Amish Tripathi buys Mumbai apartment worth Rs 13.65 crores in one of India’s tallest towers

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Last month, the Fed joined a slew of central banks in easing monetary policy.</li><li>That's led the market to assume rates will fall to pre-pandemic lows, BofA's Bernard Mensah says.</li></ul>The Federal Reserve joined other central banks in easing monetary policy last month, but that doesn't mean rates are returning to ultra-low levels see in the years before the pandemic, Bank of America's Bernard Mensah said. Mensah, the bank's head of international operations, pointed to a range of factors that could boost inflation, like shifting supply chains, rising wages, and geopolitical risks."My instinct has been that all of those things add inefficiencies in the system, and as we're moving to a different, perhaps, type of globalization, that we might find that the underlying trend inflation rate is a little bit higher than before," Mensah said in a Wednesday interview with Bloomberg TV.Mensah's comments come amid a flurry of rate cuts from central banks in the US, China, the EU, England, Switzerland, Sweden, Canada and Mexico, among others.Those rate cuts have led the market to expect US interest rates will dip as low as they were before the pandemic, Mensah says."There are bits of the market that do assume that rates will trend back to where we were pre-COVID or soon after that," Mensah said. He adds that the terminal rate may actually be 150 basis points above that.Before the pandemic, in the decade following the Great Financial Crisis, interest rates remained at historical lows. However, as inflation soared, the Fed hiked its benchmark interest rate aggressively, initiating its first move to loosen monetary policy last month with a 50 basis point rate cut. Despite the Fed's apparent confidence that pricing pressures have eased, Mensah says a variety of inflationary risks will keep interest rates higher. "I personally have been worried just about the underlying inflationary pressures that are out there for a bunch of reasons, whether its COVID, whether its supply chain moves," he said.He also pointed to inflationary shocks like the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/port-strike-could-wreck-us-economy-with-price-increases-scarcity-2024-10">US port strike</a>, which started on Tuesday and is expected to continue for weeks.Mensah says the port workers' wage demands, as well as increasing wages for workers around the world, add further inflationary pressure.Finally, he noted geopolitical risks, which he says have weakened the dollar's value as global markets have priced in new developments."I do think the market is trying to be alert to events that are happening on the horizon," Mensah said, adding there's been a dollar weakening versus the euro and British pound in broad foreign exchange markets."You can make some arguments for that. So I think the market is poised for challenges that are ahead," he said.Other analysts have also pointed to inflation risks from geopolitical conflicts.Last month, T. Rowe Price analyst Tomasz Wieladek said that even though trade openness has encouraged inflation stability, ongoing conflicts could mean globalization is at risk in the coming years. That could <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/why-central-banks-will-be-fighting-high-inflation-for-years-2024-9">drive up global inflation</a>, he said.

Rates won't fall back to pre-pandemic levels as geopolitical conflict and supply chain issues create problems for world economies, BofA exec says

<ul class="summary-list"><li>A nonprofit advocacy group says a researcher's avatar was raped in the <keyword id="11121339" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="metaverse" source="Orion">metaverse</keyword>.</li><li>Other <keyword id="12416504" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="meta" source="Orion">Meta</keyword> users have also said they were sexually harassed or abused in the metaverse.</li></ul>A researcher entered the metaverse wanting to study users' behavior on Meta's social-networking platform Horizon World. But within an hour after she donned her Oculus virtual-reality headset, she says, her avatar was raped in the virtual space."<a href="https://www.sumofus.org/images/Metaverse_report_May_2022.pdf">Metaverse: another cesspool of toxic content</a>," a new report published by the nonprofit advocacy group SumOfUs on Tuesday, details the researcher's violent encounter in Meta's Horizon World.According to SumOfUs' account, users invited the researcher to a private party on Horizon World earlier this month. Users in the same room then asked her to disable a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/meta-metaverse-virtual-groping-personal-boundary-safety-bubble-horizons-venues-2022-2">setting</a> that prevented others from getting within 4 feet of her.The report linked to a <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1558CIk75YtKrfNvJvQWkReG6VmxPpa81/view">video</a> that the group says shows what happened to the researcher's avatar from her perspective. In the video, a male avatar is seen getting very close to her, while another male avatar stands nearby, watching. A bottle of what appears to be alcohol is then passed between the two avatars, per the 28-second video. Two male voices are heard making lewd comments in the video.In a part of the video SumOfUs opted not to share but describe, the researcher "was led into a private room at a party where she was raped by a user who kept telling her to turn around so he could do it from behind while users outside the window could see — all while another user in the room watched and passed around a vodka bottle," per the report.Even though it happened in virtual reality, the incident left the researcher "disoriented," she said in the report. The researcher noted her controller vibrated when the male avatars touched her, resulting in a physical sensation that was a result of what she was experiencing online."One part of my brain was like WTF is happening, the other part was like this isn't a real body, and another part was like, this is important research," she said in the report.SumOfUs researchers also reported experiencing homophobic and racial slurs in Horizon World and said they witnessed gun violence on the platform.Meta <a href="https://about.fb.com/news/2021/12/horizon-worlds-open-in-us-and-canada/">launched</a> <keyword id="13626890" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="horizon-worlds" source="Orion">Horizon Worlds</keyword> in December to users 18 and up in the US and Canada. By February, there were at least 300,000 users on the platform, <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2022/2/17/22939297/meta-social-vr-platform-horizon-300000-users">according</a> to The Verge.Four other users also recently said their avatars were sexually assaulted or harassed in Horizon World and other Meta VR platforms, according to the SumOfUs report.In November, a beta tester reported that her <a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/2021/12/16/1042516/the-metaverse-has-a-groping-problem/">avatar had been groped</a> in Horizon Worlds.At the time, a Meta representative, Kristina Milian, told <a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/2021/12/16/1042516/the-metaverse-has-a-groping-problem/">MIT Technology Review</a> that users should have "a positive experience with safety tools that are easy to find — and it's never a user's fault if they don't use all the features we offer." She continued: "We will continue to improve our UI and to better understand how people use our tools so that users are able to report things easily and reliably. Our goal is to make Horizon Worlds safe, and we are committed to doing that work."But the next month, a metaverse researcher named Nina Jane Patel <a href="https://ninajanepatel.medium.com/fiction-vs-non-fiction-d824c6edfbe2">said</a> in a post on Medium that within 60 seconds after she joined Horizon Worlds, three to four male-looking avatars gang-raped her avatar.That same month, The New York Times <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/30/technology/metaverse-harassment-assaults.html">reported</a> that a female player's avatar was groped on a Meta-owned shooter game. Separately, a player on the sports game Echo VR <a href="https://www.cnet.com/tech/gaming/features/as-facebook-plans-the-metaverse-it-struggles-to-combat-harassment-in-vr/">said</a> a male player told her he had recorded her voice so he could "jerk off" to her cursing.SumOfUs and Meta didn't immediately respond to Insider's requests for comments. In response to the SumOfUs report, a Meta representative <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-10857551/Woman-21-virtually-RAPED-stranger-Metas-metaverse-app-report-claims.html?ns_mchannel=rss&amp;ns_campaign=1490&amp;ito=1490">told the Daily Mail</a> it didn't recommend "turning off the safety feature with people you do not know."<h2>At least 2 major metaverse investors expressed concern over emerging details of harassment and abuse on its metaverse platforms</h2><div type="image" title="Metaverse" height="2092" width="2789" msid="91884169" hostid="261"></div>Meta has staked its future on building its immersive metaverse virtual reality. It plowed $10 billion into designing the metaverse. CEO Mark Zuckerberg is playing the long game with his investment, recently saying the project could continue to lose money for three to five years, Insider <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/zuckerberg-metaverse-will-lose-significant-money-3-5-years-2022-5">reported</a>.At least two major Meta investors, however, were alarmed by emerging details of harassment and abuse on its metaverse platforms.In December, the investors Arjuna Capital and Storebrand Asset Management, together with SumOfUs and several other advocacy organizations, co-filed a <a href="https://d18rn0p25nwr6d.cloudfront.net/CIK-0001326801/22a38320-0a0a-4f62-935d-41ab580273de.pdf">motion</a> demanding that Meta publish a report examining any harms users could face on its metaverse platforms, they <a href="https://arjuna-capital.com/archive/2021/12/13/press-release-meta-platforms-facebook-needs-third-party-assessment-of-metaverse-user-risks-and-advisory-shareholder-vote">said</a> in a press release."Investors need to understand the scope of these potential harms, and weigh in on whether or not this is a good idea before we throw good money after bad," Arjuna Capital's managing partner Natasha Lamb said in the release.At Meta's Wednesday <a href="https://d18rn0p25nwr6d.cloudfront.net/CIK-0001326801/22a38320-0a0a-4f62-935d-41ab580273de.pdf">shareholder</a> meeting, a proposal was introduced to complete a third-party assessment of "potential psychological and civil and human rights harms to users that may be caused by the use and abuse of the platform" and "whether harms can be mitigated or avoided, or are unavoidable risks inherent in the technology."However, the proposal <a href="https://www.cnet.com/news/social-media/peter-thiel-departs-meta-board-shareholder-proposals-voted-down/">was voted down</a>.Earlier this month, Nick Clegg, the president for global affairs at Meta Platforms, said in a <a href="https://nickclegg.medium.com/making-the-metaverse-what-it-is-how-it-will-be-built-and-why-it-matters-3710f7570b04">blog post</a> that "the rules and safety features of the metaverse — regardless of the floor — will not be identical to the ones currently in place for social media" and "nor should they be."But, he continued: "In the physical world, as well as the internet, people shout and swear and do all kinds of unpleasant things that aren't prohibited by law, and they harass and attack people in ways that are. The metaverse will be no different. People who want to misuse technologies will always find ways to do it."

A researcher's avatar was sexually assaulted on a metaverse platform owned by Meta, making her the latest victim of sexual abuse on Meta's platforms, watchdog says

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Stocks, bonds, and real estate are all bubbles waiting to burst, Jim Rogers says.</li><li>George Soros' former business partner believes the debt-laden US economy is headed for disaster.</li></ul>Stocks, bonds, and real estate are all bubbles destined to burst, and America is barreling toward economic catastrophe, Jim Rogers has warned.The legendary investor and travel author, 81, is best known for cofounding the Quantum Fund and Soros Fund Management with George Soros. He rang the alarm on US debt, said he's betting on the dollar and sees value in commodities, and <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/jim-rogers-stock-market-outlook-crash-dollar-crypto-bitcoin-debt-2023-5?utm_medium=ingest&amp;utm_source=markets">once again</a> predicted the worst bear market of his life in a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wux2L8p2hzI" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Wealthion interview</a> released this week.<h2>Here are Rogers' 9 best quotes, lightly edited for length and clarity:</h2>1. "I'm not bearish on the US, I just am not invested there and I am waiting to sell it short. I expect things to go bad in the US before long, but not today — which probably means they will go wrong today because my timing is usually so bad." 2. "The US economy has had the longest period of expansion without a recession in recorded history, and it's coming to an end. You see inflation going higher, interest rates going higher, some stocks go up every day, some bubble stocks. You see all the classic signs that this is nearing the end. I have a huge amount of cash but I'm not selling short yet because bubbles — especially the end of a bubble — can go on for longer than any rational person expects, and that seems to be what's happening now."3. "The American economy has been expanding, the government has printed huge amounts of money, has borrowed huge amounts of money, and spent huge amounts of money. If you give me $1 trillion, I'll show you a good time. They're showing us a good time at the moment. But I am worried, and you should be worried too."4. "I know we're going to have huge problems again. I would expect the next bear market would be the worst in my lifetime. Since 2009, the debt everywhere has skyrocketed so the next time we have a problem, it's got to be huge, probably the worst in my lifetime. I hope I'm smart enough to survive it."5. "I have a lot of dollars because when there's been turmoil throughout history, people look for a safe haven, and people think the US dollar is a safe haven — it's not, but they think it is."6. "If you look around the world, stocks are near their all-time highs in most countries, bonds have been in a bubble, property in many countries is and has been a bubble. The only assets I know that are still historically cheap are commodities."7. "When things go wrong, all of us peasants want to have some gold in the closet. We want some silver under the bed. I'm an old peasant, I know how us peasants think."8. "If you want to be successful, just stay with what you know. Don't listen to internet, TV, don't listen to other people. Everybody knows a lot about something, whether it's fashion or sports or cars, so if you stay with what you know, you're far ahead of everybody else. And wait for opportunities — if your friends say that's boring, be boring. Do not be afraid of being boring if you want to be a successful investor."9. "I was held hostage for eight days by a sheriff in the Congo once. It was very civilized, we went home to his house for dinner, we went to the nightclubs together, we did all kind of stuff. So if you're going to get held hostage, try the Congo."

Stocks, bonds, and real estate are all bubbles set to pop - and a harsh recession is on the horizon, elite investor Jim Rogers says

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="11894021" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="apple" source="Orion">Apple</keyword> attacked <keyword id="11892960" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="facebook" source="Orion">Facebook</keyword> parent company <keyword id="12416504" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="meta" source="Orion">Meta</keyword> this week.</li><li>The two tech giants are fighting over who treats developers worse.</li></ul>Apple and Facebook parent company Meta are fighting once again.After Meta recently <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/meta-metaverse-charges-creators-47-percent-sales-fee-cut-zuckerberg-2022-4">announced intentions to take a nearly 50% cut from some developers</a> selling digital goods on its "<keyword id="11121339" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="metaverse" source="Orion">metaverse</keyword>" platform, <keyword id="13626890" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="horizon-worlds" source="Orion">Horizon Worlds</keyword>, <a href="https://www.marketwatch.com/story/facebook-parent-meta-set-to-take-nearly-50-cut-from-virtual-sales-within-its-metaverse-11649885375">Apple told MarketWatch the move</a> "lays bare Meta's hypocrisy."Apple and Meta have been arguing about the cut taken from digital platforms for months — part of a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/mark-zuckerberg-tim-cook-feud-history-facebook-apple-2020-9">years-long feud between Apple CEO Tim Cook and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg</a>.On its <keyword id="11945761" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="app-store" source="Orion">App Store</keyword>, Apple takes a 30% cut from sales. That includes sales within apps, which impacts Meta's bottom line across the family of apps it operates (Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp).Meta has repeatedly pushed back on this policy, and even <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/facebook-helping-fortnite-epic-games-take-on-apple-ongoing-lawsuit-2020-12">supported a lawsuit from "Fortnite" maker Epic Games</a> against Apple that sought to end it. Zuckerberg himself <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/pranavdixit/zuckerberg-apple-monopoly">reportedly said</a> the policy, "allows Apple to charge monopoly rents" on app maker revenues. Now, Meta is imposing its own fees on the sales of digital goods on its platform — as much as 47.5% in some cases — and Apple is calling it out."Meta has repeatedly taken aim at Apple for charging developers a 30% commission for in-app purchases in the App Store," <a href="https://www.marketwatch.com/story/facebook-parent-meta-set-to-take-nearly-50-cut-from-virtual-sales-within-its-metaverse-11649885375">Apple representative Fred Sainz told MarketWatch</a>. "Meta seeks to charge those same creators significantly more than any other platform."Notably, Meta is charging separate fees for revenue generated on its virtual reality headset, the <keyword id="13626889" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="meta-quest" source="Orion">Meta Quest</keyword>, and within its metaverse platform, Horizon Worlds.<div type="image" title="oculus quest 2 meta" height="878" width="1678" msid="90868052" hostid="261"></div>The only creators who will face a 47.5% fee are creators who sell digital goods within Horizon Worlds on the Meta Quest platform. That's because Meta charges a 30% sales fee for goods sold on the Meta Quest store and, out of the remaining proceeds, the creator pays another 25% fee for goods sold through Horizon Worlds.Meta representative Kamran Mumtaz told Insider the company charges a 30% fee on its virtual reality Quest storefront because it needs to "offset the cost of our Quest devices at retail" — Meta is making up for the headset's price by charging developers a fee for the goods they sell.The Meta Quest headset has a suggested retail price of $299."Our approach is to grow the market for VR by shipping affordable devices, and this revenue is critical to maintaining an accessible headset retail price," Mumtaz said. Meta CTO Andrew "Boz" Bosworth echoed that sentiment in a series of tweets."Apple takes 30% of software and a significant margin on their devices," <a href="https://twitter.com/boztank/status/1514666410043064322">he said this week</a>. "They've capitalized on their market power to favor their own business interests, which comes at great expense to developers."At the heart of the argument is a disagreement that Apple's Cook and Meta's Zuckerberg have repeatedly clashed on over the years: Cook <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/apple-tim-cook-facebook-mark-zuckerberg-sun-valley-meeting-2021-4">disagrees with the foundational business model of Meta</a>, which trades free access to popular services like Facebook and Instagram for user data that's used to sell targeted advertising. Got a tip? Contact Insider senior correspondent Ben Gilbert via email (<a href="mailto:bgilbert@insider.com">bgilbert@insider.com</a>), or Twitter DM (<a href="https://twitter.com/RealBenGilbert">@realbengilbert</a>). We can keep sources anonymous. Use a non-work device to reach out. PR pitches by email only, please.

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