OpenAI CEO Voices Support For More AI Regulation At Historic Congress Hearing

The CEO of OpenAI and a few other leaders from the tech world are expressing their views on the clause related to greater regulation for the AI sector.

Sam Altman agreed that this was the best way to go forward during a recent meeting dubbed as historic that was held this week. The shocking part is how the news is in great contrast to what was put out by some leading tech giants in terms of regulatory intervention.

But the CEO of OpenAI called it out as dangerous and favored how immediate regulation from authorities was necessary as various sectors pick up the pace and adopt the breakthrough technology.

From health and labor to the economy too- he says that AI is providing more support and benefits than before but the dangers are there and that’s why there’s a constant need for monitoring to help ward off the huge negative consequences.

Alongside Altman, other leaders from the tech world including the IBM chief and an NYU professor were seen favoring the idea of greater regulation. They agreed that such technology does come with start warnings regarding such topics as misinformation, manipulative behavior, and increased targeting.

Furthermore, the idea of organization arising at the cabinet level was outlined to help keep up to pace with the developments in the AI world. This should come with added protective measures and safety checks like that seen arising in the FDA.

Such oversight will certainly put out more rules for various risks and that means saying hello to greater regulation that’s applicable for certain cases that provide the most risk for the community.

Altman called for the creation of a new federal agency specifically tasked with issuing licenses for AI technology—licenses he said should be revoked if companies fail to comply with safety standards.

But Altman was definitely put under pressure and questioned about how he felt regarding the development of AI and whether or not it was like the creation of a bomb or a printing press. And he agreed that right now, he’s looking at it from the latter’s aspect.

There are similarly a lot more calls being made from top industry leaders in terms of regulation and how it’s necessary for both small and large entities to come together and solve the matter before it slips away.

For those people who might not be aware, in the past, we’ve seen leading tech firms including Apple and Meta fight for their rights in an active manner to prevent the regulatory intervention from coming forward.

The tech sector has already spent a staggering sum of money on the likes of advertising that helps in fighting various anti-trust measures and bills from Congress as per a report published by the WSJ.

So when you come to think of it, OpenAI isn’t the first firm that’s going to deliver an argument to the US Congress that supports regulation. We saw in the year 2020 how the CEO of Facebook was also in favor of more laws that provide protection to online apps for the sake of civil liabilities that depend on third parties.



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by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

TikTok Prompts Users To Include A Location And Share Experiences In The App To Enhance Business Potential

Popular social media app TikTok is on the verge of enhancing its potential in the business world by motivating users to include a location. Similarly, they want them to share their relevant experiences through various stores on the app.

The news comes after one social media user shared a screengrab to prove how the platform is luring such users by ensuring them greater reach for clips in cases when they do just that.

#TikTok now asks you to add a location to your video if you want to reach more viewers, and they will also ask you to "Write a review" for this location after that pic.twitter.com/6XJ7mJieJL

— Ahmed Ghanem (@ahmedghanem) May 15, 2023

In cases when a location they include happens to be an enterprise, the app would similarly be adding new in-platform prompts so users can include a review too.

This might be another new step taken in the hopes of creating greater discovery potential while Google notes how 40% of the younger lot are making use of both of these apps to look for cafes as compared to Search in places like Google. Clearly, it’s a huge chance for the app to really build up its potential in the business world, when and if this succeeds.

It’s quite clear how the Chinese variant of the platform called Douyin is now getting fame as a leading search engine for places like cafes as well as other places of great interest.

Moreover, since a lot of the Chinese app’s videos get tagged through locations, they’re clearly more categorical into places like cafes, hotels, shopping, tourist spots, and entertainment places. In the same way, businesses can now attract more clients by providing support for Douyin through facts like basic data and coupons and even support for a waitlist too.

As mentioned in the final sentence, this might open a huge range of new business opportunities on the platform and it now appears that the app would be willing to copy all of this and create some great tools for exploring as it turns into a huge consideration for businesses with time.

• Also read: Creators Earning from YouTube Shorts Sees Fivefold Increase Since February

Considering the current talks about a possible ban of the app across America, it might end up being a major sell-off at this point in time. As you know, the app is really making way for the future and has some great hopes that in cases when the ban does not pull through, it would convert the app into an entire search engine for more business potential. And in the end, we’re seeing the likelihood of turning this into a more critical platform for a younger base of individuals.

Meanwhile, experts predict how a long list of firms such as cafes and nightclubs might be an integral part of this shift as the app tries to make more tools and include more prompts that urge people to involve a greater amount of data that’s contextual.

Clearly, it’s quite obvious that this app is taking the next stage where storefront firms might need to consider creating a bigger brand presence to create bigger and better opportunities. For now, it’s not at par with Android maker Google but with time, we do see this as a promising source of potential that might become a huge focus for tomorrow.

H/T: Ahmed Ghanem

Read next: Hyper Casual Games See Dramatic Decline as Hybrid Model Takes Over
by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

Hyper Casual Games See Dramatic Decline as Hybrid Model Takes Over

There was a time when hyper casual games seemed like they were going to be the future of the gaming industry. They were able to cater to a whole new subclass of gamers who weren’t looking for serious games like console gamers and the like. In spite of the fact that this is the case, the release of Apple’s App Tracking Transparency protocol coupled with the seismic shifts caused by the Covid-19 pandemic led to a decline in ad impressions.

According to a new report released by Tenjin, ad impressions in iOS decreased by 20% in 2022, and ad revenues on Android fell by as much as 28% with all things having been considered and taken into account. Such changes were devastating for hyper casual games because of the fact that this is the sort of thing that could potentially end up ruining their ad based business model.

With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that in-app purchases saw a sharp rise in the same period. An increase of about 37% was noted in purchases that were made within apps, and Indian consumers are driving much of this movement.

This is why so many developers are eschewing the hyper casual model in favor of a hybrid model that tries to leverage in-app purchases more than might have been the case otherwise. While the increase that was noted only factored in Android consumers, this still creates an opportunity for developers who are struggling to make ends meet.

It turns out that hyper casual games were only profitable due to the abundance of third party tracking options that did not need consent from users. Apple’s steadfast defense of user privacy which led to third party tracking getting toggled off by default wreaked havoc with the once profitable business model, and it will be interesting to see if the hybrid model makes a difference.

We might notice a shift in the mobile gaming landscape. Hyper casual games will become far less prominent, and higher quality hybrid games will likely take their place.

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by Zia Muhammad via Digital Information World

Creators Earning from YouTube Shorts Sees Fivefold Increase Since February

The rapid rise of TikTok led to many other platforms such as YouTube scrambling to change things up because of the fact that this is the sort of thing that could potentially end up keeping them competitive. YouTube did this by launching its brand new Shorts platform, and they needed to get as many creators onboard as possible in order to make their short form content more viable than might have been the case otherwise.

With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that there has been a massive 485% increase in the number of creators who are earning money from posting YouTube shorts. This data comes from a creator fintech organization named Mediacube which surveyed over 2,600 creators to see if they were utilizing Shorts to the fullest possible extent.


70% of the creators that are working with the company are based in Europe, with 10.5% hailing from Latin America, 4.1% from Canada and the US, and 15% were spread across the MENA and APAC regions with all things having been considered and taken into account. It turns out that most of these creators have already started receiving payments from their Shorts content.

Prior to the monetization program getting rolled out in February, only a select group of creators could draw payments from a fixed $100 million Shorts fund that had a monthly $10,000 cap. YouTube now allows limitless payments to be received, but in spite of the fact that this is the case the average pay-out per thousand views is still markedly lower than for long form content.

However, earnings rates are still increasing. Creators that are represented by Mediacube found their payments rising by 75%, going from a total of $114,000 in February to $198,000 by March. A 75% increase in just the span of a month strongly suggests that Shorts creators are going to rise in prominence over the course of the year. While TikTok is still reigning supreme for short form content, YouTube is doing a decent job of creating a viable product that can compete with the Chinese app.


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by Zia Muhammad via Digital Information World

These Are The Stickiest Social Media Apps in 2023 As Per Sensor Tower Data

In this digital age, we heavily rely on apps for almost everything, whether we’re looking for entertainment, connections, information on anything at all, or even home automation. Nowadays, we have all types of apps available with a wide variety of options to choose from, to aid us in every part of life. How do we know which apps are the best option for us?

The apps that keep users engaged with their splendid software, resources, and variety of functions and features. These types of apps are called sticky apps that the users keep coming back to. To measure the stickiness of any app it is dependent on how frequently the users engage and return to the app and how long they remain active within it.

Hearing this, a lot of apps come to mind but which ones are statistically the most beloved around the globe? App stickiness is important to determine exactly that, the more user engagement, revenue, and retention, the more likely it is for the apps to be the user’s favorite. This measuring of apps helps developers also analyze, improve, and shape their creations to fit better the users' needs and ultimately, help developers and users enjoy better and evolved apps

The Sensor Tower’s Power User data revealed Instagram to be the most sticky of all the apps. This social media app has 44 percent of its users opening the app every day in February 2023. In the second place, TikTok users frequently visit the app bringing it to 33 percent, whereas Facebook is at 31 percent, followed by Snapchat with 28 percent, and last on our list; Twitter with 20 percent.

Instagram being the top choice of users at this time, has reached heights of success that can be attributed to its legacy features, such as the photo and video feed, stories, reels, and messaging. Reels is a new feature introduced by Instagram that gained popularity among its users in merely a short amount of time.

By creating an app that provides a valuable and enjoyable user experience, apps can increase their stickiness and win users over time. This can result in increased user retention, engagement, positive referrals, and ultimately, revenue growth. Instagram and other apps on this list have one thing in common; that is that they focused and improved based on reviews, user experience, and retention rate, and gained millions of satisfied users as well the title of the “stickiest” apps.

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by Ayesha Hasnain via Digital Information World

Apple Faces New Probe From French Regulators Over Manipulative Marketing And Product Obsolesce

Tech giant Apple is being investigated again and this time around, it’s a probe that comes from French regulators.

The leading Cupertino firm is being called out for deceptive marketing techniques that end up manipulating buyers and at the same time, it’s getting called out for product obsolesce as well.

This news was first published by a leading media outlet in France called AFP News which was later verified by sources such as Reuters.

The whole probe began toward the end of last year and now, it has to do with Apple linking the serial number of several repair components to the serial figures seen on Apple devices such as iPads and Macs.

As recently mentioned by the AFP News media outlet, such a probe was first begun after an allegation was made through a firm that is designed to fight against such behavior. Moreover, as a part of this complaint, the firm was seen setting out targets for Apple and its respective policy of repair. It claimed such a firm was trying to link serial numbers of spare components to that seen on smart devices.

The translated version for such complaints had been put up on the website and it was clearly seen outlining some major issues linked to serial numbers of parts.

The issue is really highlighting a practice that people call out as pairing. It allocates serial numbers randomly to certain parts of products like the iPhone and microchips. And that has really affected most parts that are frequently linked to breakdowns.

In the same way, it enables manufacturers to reduce chances for repairs to occur and that’s really the case when you’ve got people that are unapproved to fix such matters.

The complaints were mostly linked to parts of a device that malfunctioned despite being fixed with a part from the firm. Even if it was the right one was selected, it just was not up to the mark and the whole ended up getting defaulted despite being an original.

This might also arise during an update when the part added fails to function with the latest iOS update the user. Therefore, such behavior not only violates the user’s right of carrying out a repair but even the idea of reconditioning for smartphones. And that’s because if a device like that goes back into circulatory motion, it might suffer from some serious malfunctions.

For now, we know that Apple has its own Self Service program where users can repair the device by themselves. It was rolled out at the end of 2022 in France and all users of Apple had to do was put in serial codes for their iPhones that they don’t wish to purchase a new part for. This code needs to match that of the part which was returned so as to attain the credit from Apple for that particular part.

That program has long been praised but we need to understand that although it’s a great initiative, it’s far from perfect and needs plenty of work as shown in May of last year.

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by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

Invaluable Tips To Optimize Your E-commerce Business Operations

In recent years, the increasing number of physical shopping outlets transposing their sales to an online context has exponentially increased. Today, seemingly infinite e-commerce businesses provide innumerable goods and services to a worldwide customer base. With such an expanse of competition providing every conceivable product and service, it can be challenging for an e-commerce startup to increase website visibility and attract potential customers. However, there are several effective means of increasing online traffic and sales including implementing a proper SEO strategy, POS payments optimization, and reducing website response time. This article will give a brief overview of several tips for e-commerce startups seeking some fundamental strategies.

Focus on SEO and implement a solid strategy

Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of maximizing website traffic quantitatively and qualitatively, ensuring the site appears higher in particular search engine results. Although SEO is complex to work with in greater depth, it is relatively easy to understand and apply. In simple terms, SEO involves the implementation of keywords - searchable words or phrases relevant to your e-commerce business. On-page SEO for e-commerce platforms is ultimately about ensuring your specific keywords appear in the correct places and that search engines understand the content of your page. Furthermore, optimizing your product pages and enabling products to be indexed will enhance SEO success rates. Overall, on-page SEO is vital for e-commerce businesses to appear in other Search Engine Results Page (SERP) features to attract the most appropriate customers and potentially increase sales.

Make use of a POS system

Point of sale systems (POS) are widely used by most major e-commerce businesses. Primarily used to efficiently process transactions, the advancement of technology has resulted in POS systems that combine software and hardware to operate multiple operations within your business. This can include monitoring inventory, assessing purchasing trends, tracking pricing accuracies, and obtaining valuable marketing data. POS can track what products might benefit from increased promotion and order more stock at the optimal time. In addition, it can automatically move stock between different locations, such as from warehouse to customer. Moreover, POS systems are evolving to become more interactive, where clients can place orders, make service reservations, and pay bills online. Lastly, POS software can organize company invoices and tax returns to streamline and digitize substantial paperwork backlogs.

Reduce website response time

It is intuitive for any prospective e-commerce startup to construct a website that customers can easily navigate without lag. A website response time refers to the speed at which a server can respond to a request - optimized websites facilitate a response time range of between 200 milliseconds and 1 second. However, e-commerce businesses frequently utilize large video files or high-resolution images that can slow browser efficiency. Ultimately, for increased visitor satisfaction, any response time exceeding 1 second is highly problematic and must be reduced. Without a streamlined, navigable platform that responds to requests quickly, the chances of customers leaving the site before completing a purchase are significantly higher. A superior operating system that can accommodate sophisticated content without increasing the response time is ultimately worth the investment.

Do not underestimate the mobile experience

Mobile-first design is becoming essential for e-commerce startups to remain competitive and relevant in the smartphone era. This is largely attributable to the ubiquity of smartphones that has now surpassed laptops and tablets as the primary means of accessing online content. Mobile-first design is the process of optimizing an e-commerce (or any other) website for mobile devices that improves and enhances the user experience and results in better engagement rates through streamlined usability. Optimizing your website for handheld devices can improve customer satisfaction and sales, promote higher search engine rankings, increase traffic, is cost-effective and will keep your business competitive with the latest trends.

Provide quality content

Quality e-commerce content is critical to attracting customers and building trust. Successful brands create superlative content to present information through many channels and mediums. The connection between e-commerce and online material is not to be underestimated - appealing to customers with great products and consistently engaging can be achieved through strong content that encompasses both text and images. It is vital to provide comprehensive, authoritative material that is also accessible and concisely describes why a particular product or service is the solution to their specific problem or requirement. Providing content that is conducive to providing a positive connection between customers and your brand can result in higher brand awareness, increased sales, build trust and encourage client loyalty, promote more organic website traffic, and provide stronger engagement with (and understanding of) customers.

Final thoughts

Establishing a successful e-commerce startup can be a formidable and challenging undertaking. However, this article has provided a set of fundamentals to follow that will assist you to initiate your venture. Ultimately, it is highly recommended in this exceptionally competitive online climate to remain adaptable and creative to stay current with myriad trends that will govern the future direction of e-commerce.

by Web Desk via Digital Information World