Who Owns the Teen Girl Aesthetic?
Olivia Rodrigo and Brooklyn indie band Pom Pom Squad are both reimagining girlhood in slyly dark ways, in the lineage of those who came before them.
From K-Pop stan to keyboard warrior: Meet the activists battling Myanmar’s military junta
A group of young Burmese are braving blackouts and crackdowns to make sure the world stays focused on what’s happening in their country.
Source: From K-Pop stan to keyboard warrior: Meet the activists battling Myanmar’s military junta
Biden order: End the monopoly game
President Biden wants to remake the U.S. economy by injecting more competition into highly concentrated industries including airlines, Big Tech and agriculture to improve choices and prices for consumers. Why it matters: The ambitious executive order signed Friday directs the federal government to step up antitrust enforcement and regulation.
“Let me be very clear, capitalism without competition isn’t capitalism. It’s exploitation,” Biden said at a White House signing ceremony for the order.
It’s not just you—the Apple podcast app is a disaster
Apple’s latest update completely ruined the app’s UX and destroyed my painstakingly curated podcast library. Never before has a phone update felt more like a blatant act of hostility.
Source: It’s not just you—the Apple podcast app is a disaster
South Korean blind activists are pushing Samsung and LG to reform
Touch screens and image-based interfaces can make the visually impaired “feel more disabled”
Source: South Korean blind activists are pushing Samsung and LG to reform
Your Echo is now sharing your internet with your neighbors. Here’s how to opt out.
Whether you want it or not, Amazon’s new Sidewalk service is here. Starting today, Amazon’s internet-sharing network has been activated on millions of Amazon Echo and Tile devices. But if you don’t want it, there is a way to opt out.
Source: Your Echo is now sharing your internet with your neighbors. Here’s how to opt out.
How software got so noisy, and why it’s probably going to stay that way
- Facebook, Google Microsoft and other technology companies employ sound designers who specialize in developing distinct sounds that meet product needs and reflect well on their brands.
- During the Covid pandemic, emails and meetings have proliferated, and so their corresponding sounds have been going off more often.
- Sound designers listen extensively to sounds before deploying them in products, but they can still be jarring to some people.
Source: How software got so noisy, and why it’s probably going to stay that way
Now That You’ve Bought a Multi-Million-Dollar Music Catalog, What Are You Going to Do With It?
In recent years, as streaming has rapidly become the format of choice for much of the world — and the primary revenue source for recorded music — the value of copyrights has soared. That value climbed even higher when the pandemic flattened the financial engine of the music business — the live-entertainment industry — and copyrights proved themselves to be a remarkably durable asset.
Source: Now That You’ve Bought a Multi-Million-Dollar Music Catalog, What Are You Going to Do With It?
McDonald’s is testing Siri-style AI technology at drive-thrus
The human-like interaction, voiced by an AI interface on the other end of the McDonald’s screen, might sound like something from a dystopian future.
Source: Watch: McDonald’s is testing Siri-style AI technology at drive-thrus
STEM’s Racial Reckoning Just Entered Its Most Crucial Phase
One year after George Floyd’s murder, science and technology institutions continue to evolve. The most radical and necessary step remains..
Source: STEM’s Racial Reckoning Just Entered Its Most Crucial Phase
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Bandsintown data shows in-person concerts returning much faster than predicted
Data from Bandsintown’s 62 million registered users and 550,000 artists reveal a robust and surprisingly fast return of in-person concerts. 78% of announced concerts are happening in the next 6 months The number of live concerts announced to happen as early as this weekend is exploding as concerns over fan and artist hesitancy as well as the time needed to launch a new tour prove unfounded.
Source: Bandsintown data shows in-person concerts returning much faster than predicted – Hypebot
America Offline
We’ve just lived through the most online period in history. What comes next?
Source: America Offline
Veritone launches new platform to let celebrities and influencers clone their voice with AI
Recording advertisements and product endorsements can be lucrative work for celebrities and influencers. But is it too much like hard work? That’s what US firm Veritone is betting. Today, the company is launching a new platform called Marvel.AI that will let creators, media figures, and others generate deepfake clones of their voice to license as they wish.
Source: Veritone launches new platform to let celebrities and influencers clone their voice with AI
On Spotify, an Arranged Marriage Between Music and Podcasts
Music-filled — and Spotify-exclusive — shows like “Black Girl Songbook” and “60 Songs That Explain the ’90s” dance around copyright constraints.
Source: On Spotify, an Arranged Marriage Between Music and Podcasts
The Secret Origins of Amazon’s Alexa
In 2011, Jeff Bezos dreamt up a talking device. But making the virtual assistant sound intelligent proved far more difficult than anyone could have imagined.
Musicians Say Streaming Doesn’t Pay. Can the Industry Change?
Services like Spotify and Apple Music pulled the business back from the brink. But artists say they can’t make a living. And their complaints are getting louder.
Source: Musicians Say Streaming Doesn’t Pay. Can the Industry Change?
Twitter expands Spaces to anyone with 600+ followers, details plans for tickets, reminders and more
Twitter Spaces, the company’s new live audio rooms feature, is opening up more broadly. The company announced today it’s making Twitter Spaces available to any account with 600 followers or more, including both iOS and Android users. It also officially unveiled some of the features it’s preparing to launch, like Ticketed Spaces, scheduling features, reminders, support for co-hosting, accessibility improvements and more.
Will AI Change the Game for Adtech?
The technology aided with artificial intelligence has revolutionized this industry; it has moved the advertising efforts from “brought to you by” on TV to actual relatable content to every cast and creed, making its way to several different platforms. This technology can read and understand the text while sensing the external environment.
TikTok and the Vibes Revival
Increasingly, what we’re after on social media is not narrative or personality but moments of audiovisual eloquence.
Source: TikTok and the Vibes Revival
How Big Tech got so big: Hundreds of acquisitions
For decades Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google gobbled up their competition to become behemoths of the tech industry, which has drawn attention from Congressional leaders and other critics who claim they’ve stifled innovation in the industry.