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Greetings! Your latest quick tech update is here:
☀️ On this day: On April 9, 2012, Facebook acquired Instagram for approximately $1 billion in cash and stock. This strategic move allowed Facebook to expand its footprint in the photo-sharing and social media landscape.
What’s happening:
😟 Most Americans don’t trust AI — or its creators
🗣️ Amazon unveils fast, lifelike voice AI
🚫 No hires at Shopify without AI check
📦 Apple flies in iPhones to dodge tariffs
🔥 Whistleblower says Meta risked U.S. security for China
+ 📊 Daily poll and results
+ 📈 Trending tools and resources
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Hand-picked news:
😟 Most Americans don’t trust AI — or its creators ↗️LINK
What: A Pew study reveals a growing trust gap between AI experts and the American public. While most experts are optimistic about AI’s future, the majority of Americans feel anxious, powerless, and distrustful of both AI and those regulating it.
Why: Experts believe AI will improve work and life, but the public fears job losses and biased systems. Both groups distrust the government and tech companies to regulate AI responsibly, citing poor tech oversight and lack of understanding.
Impact: Without trust and inclusive design, AI’s advancement risks deepening societal divides. Gen Z, despite high usage, remains skeptical, especially in the absence of clear AI policies at schools and workplaces.
🗣️ Amazon unveils fast, lifelike voice AI ↗️LINK
What: Amazon launched Nova Sonic, a new voice model delivering human-like speech with just 1.09 seconds of latency and a 4.2% word error rate. It also released Nova Reels 1.1, extending video generations to 2 minutes with more control.
Why: Nova Sonic outperforms OpenAI’s voice models, especially in noisy, multi-speaker settings. Nova Reels offers both manual and prompt-based generation, enhancing creative flexibility.
Impact: At 80% less cost than OpenAI's options and with superior performance, Amazon is pushing hard into generative AI. This strengthens its appeal to developers building with tools like Alexa+ and Amazon Bedrock.
🚫 No hires at Shopify without AI check ↗️LINK
What: Shopify CEO Tobi Lutke told employees that no new hires will be approved unless teams prove the work can’t be done by AI. The directive pushes staff to treat AI as a core collaborator before requesting resources.
Why: Lutke wants teams to rethink workflows through the lens of AI, even imagining how autonomous agents could handle tasks. AI will also factor into employee evaluations.
Impact: The move reflects a growing trend—40% of companies globally now use AI. Shopify’s policy may boost efficiency but also raises questions about job security and the evolving role of human workers.
📦 Apple flies in iPhones to dodge tariffs ↗️LINK
What: Apple flew five planes of iPhones from India and China to the U.S. in just three days to avoid steep tariffs set by Trump, which could raise import duties on Chinese products to 104%.
Why: New tariffs starting April 9 will raise import rates to 54% for China and 27% for India. Apple is stockpiling now to delay price hikes, especially ahead of the iPhone 17 launch.
Impact: While iPhones may avoid immediate price increases, other Apple products could be hit harder. AAPL stock has dropped 18% in five days, and further tariff threats are intensifying uncertainty.
🔥 Whistleblower says Meta risked U.S. security for China ↗️LINK
What: Former Facebook employee Sarah Wynn-Williams will testify that Meta secretly collaborated with China, briefing officials on AI and undermining U.S. national security to secure a foothold in China’s market.
Why: She alleges Meta misled the public, Congress, and employees, and helped develop censorship tools and infrastructure that could have exposed U.S. user data—part of an internal effort dubbed “Project Aldrin.”
Impact: The explosive claims add to Meta’s scrutiny in Washington and could fuel calls for regulation or antitrust action. Meta denies wrongdoing, calling the allegations false and outdated.
🧠 Keep your mind sharp with these newsletters!
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The AI Report - AI solutions you can use to work smarter and achieve results. Join & get 200+ AI-powered income ideas!
AI Pulse - Read by MIT, Stanford, and USC students + Apple, OpenAI, and Tesla employees. Join & get free AI notion templates!
Creator Spotlight – Your guide to building an audience with world-class social media and newsletter content. FREE creator deep-dives every Friday.
Dumbify – Your weekly guide to unconventional thinking, unique insights, and ridiculous ideas that show how 'dumb' thinking can lead to better solutions.
MarketingAlec - Join 9,000+ marketers learning the AI tools and prompts that will drive 40% better performance, and 18% better output.
Looking for even more options? Explore our curated section below:
Today’s Poll:
Does AI make you feel more empowered or powerless? |
Vote and find out about the result tomorrow.
Yesterday’s Poll Result:
Do you think Tesla can recover from this brand and tariff pressure?
A) Yes – It’s still a leader in EVs - 48%
B) No – The headwinds are too strong right now - 52% 🏆
Reader’s opinions:
“The primary audience for Tesla are people who care about combating climate change, usually have college degrees and they tend to fall on the political left. Many of them are outraged by Musk's political activities.”
“even if Elon Divests, the brand is toast!!”
AI Engineering Academy (free course): The full program for becoming an AI engineer offers downloadable course certificates.
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