Justine Bateman — the actor, filmmaker and author who is adviser on AI to SAG-AFTRA, the motion picture performers' union — told Axios' Ina Fried that AI is "not about solving problems for people. It's about money. It's about greed."
Driving the news: Speaking at Axios' AI+ Summit in San Francisco, Bateman drew a clear line on the use of generative AI in Hollywood, where SAG-AFTRA has been on strike since July, in part over disputes over AI-related rights.
Two new generative AI filters will make it easy for Instagram users to easily separate elements of images and perform other advanced edits, Ahmad Al-Dahle, vice president of generative AI at Meta, told Axios' Ina Fried on stage at the inaugural AI+ conference in San Francisco on Wednesday.
Why it matters: In the heated AI image-generation battle, Meta has some catching up to do with Adobe, OpenAI, and Midjourney, but Al-Dahle stressed that Meta has been in the AI space longer than most and they've learned to "iterate very quickly."
America's seniors continue to be a key driver of consumer spending.
Why it matters: Their spending power may play an important role in the resiliency of the economy, as Gen X, millennials and younger consumers slow down.
David Fischer, former chief revenue officer at Facebook, has been named a partner with 01 Advisors, a venture capital firm co-founded in 2019 by former Twitter CEO Dick Costolo and former Twitter COO Adam Bain.
Driving the news: 01 Advisors also announced Tuesday that it has raised $395 million for its third fund, which is a step up from the $325 million it raised for Fund II.
By many indicators, the American consumer is thriving. A new data point, however, offers a warning sign.
What's new: Delinquency rates for nearly all loans have been rising from the rock-bottom levels seen during the pandemic, according to data from the New York Fed released Tuesday.
Central bankers on both sides of the Atlantic are paying attention to the ways generative artificial intelligence may create hidden new risks to the global financial system.
Why it matters: As banks, hedge funds and other major institutions explore using AI in their trading strategies, it could fuel rapid flows of capital and create hidden risks of financial crisis. That, at least, is the fear of some who study financial risk.
In a significant milestone, Bloomberg Media now has over 500,000 subscribers, the firm's chief digital officer Julia Beizer told Axios.
Why it matters: Most U.S. national news outlets are eyeing politics or consumer topics, like wellness, to fuel subscription growth. Bloomberg is leaning into niche professional audiences and international users.
Walmart stores nationwide will lower the lights, turn off the radio and change their TV walls to a static image for daily "sensory-friendly hours," the retailer announced Tuesday.
Why it matters: Walmart's hours, which start Friday, appear to be the biggest shopping program yet for people with sensory processing issues, which include autism, ADHD and PTSD.
Why it matters: Fain went from little-known rabble rouser to corporate conqueror in less than a year at the helm of an organization just recovering from a moral crisis involving funds embezzlement.
Evidence is piling upthat electric vehicles are driven much less than gas-powered models, which could sap the tech's power against climate change if the trend continues.
Driving the news: A new peer-reviewed paper analyzed odometer readings of used cars listed from 2016 to 2022.
Foreign investment into China turned negative for the first time on record in the third quarter.
Why it matters: The outflow of foreign direct investment, or FDI, is a reflection of the sharp deterioration in China's economic prospects. The world's second-largest economy continues to struggle with a sluggish COVID recovery, a deterioration in consumer and business confidence, and ongoing de-coupling and de-globalization trends.
The big picture: Veteran journalist Bryan West, a two-time Emmy Award-winning TV producer and "passionate Swiftie," was the "standout choice from a pool of hundreds of applicants" in the nationwide job search that went viral when it was announced earlier this year, per the outlets.
What happened: The co-working space operator failed to make required interest payments to bondholders last month, but then negotiated a pair of extensions that pushed the deadline to today.
The new Bed Bath & Beyond, formerly Overstock, said Monday that CEO Jonathan Johnson was immediately stepping down and the online retailer would search for a permanent replacement.
Driving the news: The news of Johnson's exit came days after activist hedge fund JAT Capital, which has a 9.6% stake in the company, called for his removal in a letter to the board and said his performance was poor.
