Good morning. Let’s get up to speed on the tech news. Just a reminder that tomorrow is a public holiday for Anzac Day, so there won’t be a 5 Things. We’ll be back on Friday.
1. Calls for tougher social media penalties
Following X’s refusal to comply with eSafety orders to delete videos of a stabbing in Western Sydney, Alastair MacGibbon, the former eSafety Commissioner of Australia, has called on the government to amend the Online Safety Act. According to The Australian, he wants social media to have the same regulation as traditional media. Meanwhile, the Coalition has flagged that, while it doesn’t want to undermine free speech, it does support age verification rules. “It doesn’t matter who you are, if you operate here, you need to comply with Australian law,” Federal Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said supporting the eSafety Commission’s push to enforce content takedowns on X. The social media site faces penalties of up to $782,500 for not taking the content down.
2. Tesla profits drop 55 per cent year-on-year
From TechCrunch, Tesla held its Q1 earnings call in the early hours of the morning where it was revealed that the company’s profits had tanked by 55 per cent. The company reported an income of $1.2 billion in this quarter, which was a 54 per cent decrease from the income made in the same period the year prior. Tesla noted an increase in challenges, notably the Red Sea conflict and the arson attack on its Berlin factory, along with a growth in competition from other automakers going electric. The automaker is also cutting prices across the board, including in Australia.
3. So the Vision Pro isn’t working out, then
Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has tipped that the production numbers of Apple Vision Pro headset have been cut, with low demand pushing the tech company to reel in its ambitious new device, even though it’s only available in one market. Units have dropped by about 50 per cent, down from as high as 800K to as low as 400K, and the roadmap for the new product category has been adjusted accordingly. Kuo predicts that a new, more affordable headset likely won’t be on the cards until beyond 2025, despite previously being expected for H2 2025.
4. Framework to go beyond laptops
Framework, the laptop company celebrated for its extremely modular designs (which we love), has scooped up $US18 million in a funding round, and said it’ll be pursuing new product categories. “With this new round, we’re continuing to deepen support for our existing customers, scaling the reach of our current products, and extending to additional product categories that let us empower new consumers and businesses. Ultimately, we need for everyone in the world to have the option for a longer-lasting product, no matter the category,” Framework founder Nirav Patel said in a post about the funding.
5. Microsoft shows off another AI model
Microsoft has debuted another AI model, but this time with a focus on being lightweight, per Reuters. It’s a new model tipped towards cost-effective solutions, dubbed Phi-3-mini. “Phi-3 is not slightly cheaper, it’s dramatically cheaper, we’re talking about a 10x cost difference compared to the other models out there with similar capabilities,”Microsoft’s vice president of GenAI research
BONUS ITEM: Oh no Katy what are you DOING.
thx for the delivery @elonmusk #idol pic.twitter.com/nKB8Dqwig4
— KATY PERRY (@katyperry) April 23, 2024
Have a lovely day.
Image: Framework