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| Here's a look at today's tech briefing: - Al Gore and James Bell to retire From Apple's board of directors.
- Discord is cutting 17% of its workforce.
- eBay to pay $3M fine over cyberstalking campaign.
- Apple will require a face scan for Vision Pro online orders.
Beth
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| 1 | | Former U.S. Vice President Al Gore and former Boeing CEO James Bell are retiring next month from Apple's board of directors. Former Aerospace CEO Wanda Austin is set to replace them on the board, pending a shareholder vote. Austin, who holds a Ph.D. in industrial and systems engineering, was also interim president of the University of Southern California. More: - Apple's board policy says that directors cannot seek reelection after reaching the age of 75, a criteria met by Gore and Bell last year.
- Gore has served on the board since 2003, and Bell joined in 2015.
- Gore is a member of the board's people and compensation as well as corporate governance committees, while Bell serves on the audit and finance committee.
- Both have amassed significant wealth through stock awards. Gore holds 468,995 Apple shares worth about $87M, while Bell owns over 38,527 shares valued at more than $7M.
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| 2 | Gaming messaging service Discord is cutting 17% of its workforce, affecting 170 employees, after growing its headcount too quickly in recent years. CEO Jason Citron said the company expanded its workforce fivefold since 2020, leading to additional projects and a drop in efficiency, according to an internal memo obtained by The Verge. More: - Citron said layoffs were largely driven by the need to sharpen focus, improve collaboration, and bring greater "agility" to the organization.
- Affected employees will receive severance packages with five months of salary and benefits, he noted.
- In August, Discord laid off nearly 40 employees, mainly in marketing, design, and entertainment partnerships, as part of a company-wide restructuring.
- Discord, which has raised $1B in funding and holds over $700M in cash, aims to achieve profitability this year, as reported by The Verge.
Zoom out: - Playtika, Unity, Google, and several Amazon divisions, including Twitch and Audible, are among the tech companies that announced layoffs this week.
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| 3 | eBay will pay a $3M penalty stemming from a cyberstalking campaign by former employees against bloggers who had criticized the site, the U.S. attorney's office in Massachusetts said on Thursday. The U.S. Justice Department charged eBay with two counts of interstate stalking, two counts of electronic communications stalking, one count of witness tampering, and one count of obstructing justice. More: - As part of a deferred prosecution agreement, eBay has agreed to pay the maximum fine of $3M for the six felonies.
- The case dates back to 2019, when seven employees, including eBay's former senior director of safety and security Jim Baugh, targeted a Massachusetts couple who wrote an e-commerce newsletter covering eBay in a negative light.
- Baugh and co-conspirators harassed the couple by sending them disturbing items such as a fetal pig, a funeral wreath, live spiders, and cockroaches.
- Citing admissions by eBay, the DOJ reported that three of the former employees traveled to the Steiners' home to surveil them and install a GPS tracker on their car.
- Baugh and five others were convicted and imprisoned, while one other conspirator admitted involvement but awaits sentencing.
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| 4 | | Apple says customers who pre-order its upcoming Vision Pro headset online will need to use Face ID on their iPhone or iPad to make sure the device fits properly. The $3,500 mixed-reality headset launches in the U.S. on Feb. 2, with preorders opening on Jan. 19. More: - To function correctly, the Vision Pro needs a properly sized headband and light seal to keep out surrounding light.
- A feature in the Apple Store app will use the facial scans to determine the correct sizes for customers, according to a code in the app.
- The code implies that customers won't need to visit an Apple store for the correct fit.
- The headset will still be available in-store for demos on the launch date.
Zoom out: - The headset is powered by Apple's M2 chip, used in its computers, and features 256GB of storage.
- It is compatible with productivity and creativity apps, including Microsoft Office and Salesforce Slack.
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| 5 | | Nintendo's "Switch 2" console could launch in September of this year, according to a press release from AI Shark. The timing coincides with previous reports that said the Switch 2 will debut later this year. More: - The press release from AI Shark, formerly GameShark, said it will launch its own latest software in September to "coincide with the Nintendo Switch 2."
- The AI company later backtracked, saying that it was "just guessing" about the Switch 2 release date.
- However, analysts believe Nintendo will launch its Switch successor in the second half of 2024.
- According to an internal email, the next-gen Switch's performance will rival that of the PS4 and Xbox One.
- It may have an LCD screen instead of OLED to bring down costs. Nintendo has reportedly already sent out development kits to partner studios.
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| 6 | | An AI comedy platform has brought back the late stand-up comedian George Carlin through an AI-generated special called "George Carlin: I'm Glad I'm Dead." The digital recreation of Carlin did not receive permission from his family. His daughter, Kelly Carlin, denounced the project, stating that "No machine will ever replace his genius." More: - The one-hour special was produced by Dudesy, a podcast hosted by "Mad TV" alum Will Sasso and podcaster Chad Kultgen that features an AI program, also called Dudesy.
- The AI comedian, which was trained on Carlin's material, addresses topics including U.S. gun culture, transgender issues, Taylor Swift, and the revolutionary potential of AI.
- Shortly after the special debuted online, Carlin's daughter publicly criticized it on X.
- "These AI-generated products are clever attempts at trying to recreate a mind that will never exist again," she wrote. "Let's let the artist's work speak for itself. Humans are so afraid of the void that we can't let what has fallen into it stay there."
- Dudesy's first comedy special, featuring an AI-generated voice of quarterback Tom Brady, was removed due to legal threats from Brady.
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- Tesla plans to halt production at its Berlin factory from Jan. 29 through Feb. 11 due to disruptions in global trade caused by the conflict in the Red Sea.
- A U.S. appeals court upheld two patent decisions favoring Masimo over Apple in a dispute regarding blood oxygen sensors in newer Apple Watch models. Separately, Apple is contesting a U.S. import ban on some Watch models by the International Trade Commission, which is temporarily on hold.
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| | Beth Duckett AI and technology writer | | Beth is a contributing editor and writer of Inside's AI and Tech newsletters. She has written for notable publications like USA Today and the Arizona Business Gazette. During her time as a public policy reporter at The Arizona Republic, she received recognition with a Pulitzer Prize nomination and a First Amendment Award for her collaborative reporting on pension cost increases. Beth also authored a book on the solar photovoltaic industry in 2016. You can reach her at [email protected]. | | This newsletter was edited by Eduardo Garcia |
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