UK competition watchdog launches review of AI market

Ars Technica

The UK competition watchdog is launching a review of the artificial intelligence market, including the models behind popular chatbots such as ChatGPT, as the industry comes increasingly into global regulators’ crosshairs.

Sarah Cardell, chief executive of the UK Competition and Markets Authority, said the watchdog would examine so-called foundation models—such as the software underlying ChatGPT—and “how the markets around those models are developing.”

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WhatsApp now lets you create single-vote polls and forward media with captions

Tech Crunch

WhatsApp is adding a few new updates around polls and sharing on its platform, the company announced on Thursday. Most notably, you can now create single-vote polls and forward media with captions.

You now have the option to create single-vote polls, which means you can run a poll where people are only allowed to vote once. Currently, polls are multiple-choice by default. You can turn off the “allow multiple answers” option when creating a poll. The messaging app now also allows lets users filter messages by polls, just like you can with photos, videos or links. You can do so by pressing “Search” and then “Polls” to find a list of all results.

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Vodafone, CK Hutchison set to unveil UK mobile tie-up soon

Reuters

Vodafone (VOD.L) and CK Hutchison (0001.HK) are close to agreeing a merger of their UK telecoms businesses, two sources said, in an expected 15 billion pounds ($19 billion) deal that would create the country’s biggest mobile operator.

The deal would value the equity of the combined group at about 9 billion pounds, with roughly 6 billion pounds of debt, the Financial Times reported. The valuation is roughly in line with peers.

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Mobile Technology: The Game-changer In The Gaming World

Telemedia Online

Mobile technology has become increasingly essential for our digital lives in recent years. But, its dominance in the gaming world is especially notable. Smartphones and tablets are becoming more common platforms for video games – from downloadable indie titles to console-equivalent RPGs – and the impact of this shift can be seen across the industry as a whole.

In this blog post, we’ll explore how mobile technology has transformed gaming and how it will shape the industry’s future. From increased accessibility to new monetization models, discover how mobile tech is reshaping gaming as we know it!

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Is the world ready for ChatGPT therapists?

Nature

Since 2015, Koko, a mobile mental-health app, has tried to provide crowdsourced support for people in need. Text the app to say that you’re feeling guilty about a work issue, and an empathetic response will come through in a few minutes — clumsy perhaps, but unmistakably human — to suggest some positive coping strategies.

The app might also invite you to respond to another person’s plight while you wait. To help with this task, an assistant called Kokobot can suggest some basic starters, such as “I’ve been there”.

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Mobile Banking Increased Dramatically, but Anti-fraud Protection is Lagging Behind

Finance Magnets

The rise in digitalization is transforming the banking and financial services industry. Every day individuals are turning to mobile banking apps over bricks-and-mortar for more efficiency, speed, and ease in their daily lives, now more than ever. However, despite a dramatic increase in mobile banking, the adoption rates of anti-fraud protection to combat advertising fraud by banking apps have stayed relatively static.

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Chat Commerce Breaks the Mobile Messaging Barrier for Retailers

Total Retail

When was the last time you were without your mobile phone? Do you remember that sense of panic when you realized your work colleagues, friends and family couldn’t contact you? As a society we’re compulsively attached to our phones. Yet every day retail leaders across the U.S. continue to struggle to meet growth targets when the means to reach their target audiences quickly and effectively is being underutilized and sometimes even ignored. Poorly conceived mobile strategies that ignore the power of servicing consumers across the customer journey are cutting off retailers from future growth and leaving money on the table.

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Vodafone and Sumitomo partner for Economy of Things venture

Mobile Marketing Magazine

Vodafone and international trading and business investment company, Sumitomo Corporation, have created a new, standalone business to drive the development of the Economy of Things. Within this global ecosystem, vehicles, devices and machines can interact and transact with each other via a secure digital platform, without human intervention, but with the owner in full control.

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Entering The New Era Of Retail Media: How Brands Are Adapting To The Changing Landscape

Forbes

Retail media advertising spending will reach $160 billion in the U.S. alone by 2027. Combining robust first-party data on shoppers, exclusive inventory, and engaging ad formats, retail media is now the third-largest digital channel in the world—and to put that number into context—it will likely overtake social advertising in the next five years to become the second-largest digital channel behind just paid search.

Today, we speak about the evolving role of retail media with a true expert in the space, Skai’s executive vice-president of strategy, Nich Weinheimer. Skai is a leading omnichannel marketing platform integrated with over 1000 retailers as part of its retail media solution, including Amazon Ads, Walmart Connect, Target/Roundel, and Instacart Ads.

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