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Editorial Note: Opinions and thoughts are the author’s own and not those of AFROTECH™. Meta came under fire after users rediscovered AI-generated accounts on Instagram and Facebook with AI-generated photos of Black people. Launched in 2023, these accounts introduced a lineup of celebrity AI characters, featuring the likenesses of Snoop Dogg, Kendall Jenner, MrBeast, and others. They were created to boost advertisers’ engagement. But since their launch, the accounts hadn’t garnered much attention. In the summer of 2024, Meta scrapped the celebrity AI accounts, leaving the non-celebrities up and allowing Meta users to create their own AI characters. But now that AI has become a hot-button topic as we enter 2025, Meta has expressed an interest in integrating user-generated AI profiles into its social media platforms. In December, during an interview with the Financial Times, Meta executive Connor Hayes stated, “We expect these AIs to actually, over time, exist on our platforms, kind...
Meta has joined the ranks of major companies that are scaling back or, in its case, terminating diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs. In a memo sent on Friday, Jan. 10, through Meta’s internal communications tool Workplace, Janelle Gale, the company’s vice president of human resources, announced updates to “our hiring, development, and procurement practices,” effective immediately, according to Axios. “The legal and policy landscape surrounding diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts in the United States is changing,” Gale wrote in the memo. “The Supreme Court of the United States has recently made decisions signaling a shift in how courts will approach DEI. … The term ‘DEI’ has also become charged, in part because it is understood by some as a practice that suggests preferential treatment of some groups over others.” Going forward, Meta will no longer have a dedicated DEI team. Maxine Williams, the company’s standing chief diversity officer, will transition to a new...
Mark Zuckerberg announced that Meta —the company that owns Instagram, WhatsApp, and Facebook, which collectively have a combined daily active user base of 3.3 billion—will be implementing sweeping changes to content moderation. The announcement was made via a Reel on Zuckerberg’s Instagram . Anyone on the internet knows that, over the last five years, content has often taken precedence over real connection. Considering the incoming presidential administration and the immense influence platforms like Facebook and Instagram have on what content is seen or suppressed, it’s unsurprising that Meta is overhauling its approach ahead of this political transition. This is especially relevant given the strained relationship Donald Trump has had with social media companies like Facebook and X (formerly known as Twitter) over the years. Content moderation has become a highly polarizing issue in the United States, especially due to the political nature of our cultural spaces and the increasing...
Meta is discontinuing its fact-checking system. On Tuesday, CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Chief Global Affairs Officer Joel Kaplan announced that the tech giant would transition to a community notes model — similar to the system on Elon Musk’s X — to “restore free expression,” according to a news release. “Meta’s platforms are built to be places where people can express themselves freely,” said Kaplan in the release. “That can be messy. On platforms where billions of people can have a voice, all the good, bad, and ugly is on display. But that’s free expression.” Kaplan noted that societal and political pressure to moderate content has pushed the company to develop increasingly complex systems to manage content across its platforms, including Facebook and Instagram , in recent years. “Too much harmless content gets censored, too many people find themselves wrongly locked up in ‘Facebook jail,’ and we are often too slow to respond when they do,” he added. Zuckerberg also believes the...
Editorial Note: Opinions and thoughts are the author’s own and not those of AFROTECH™. Americans aren’t the only ones prepping for another tedious four years under President-elect Donald Trump. Since the results of the 2024 election projected Donald Trump as the winner, tech leaders from companies like Meta, Amazon, OpenAI, and others have shelled out seven-figure investments to Trump’s inaugural fund. According to CBS News, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has donated $1 million and plans to stream the inauguration on Prime. Meta, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook, will donate $1 million, along with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, who delivered an optimistic statement about the President-elect’s election win. “President Trump will lead our country into the age of AI, and I am eager to support his efforts to ensure America stays ahead,” Altman said in a statement, per The Associated Press. Elon Musk, CEO of X, Tesla, and SpaceX, and general pop culture menace has been a lurking presence...
In the past year, Meta has undergone significant transformations, particularly in its approach to workforce management. Meta’s decisions regarding layoffs have not only attracted attention but have had a substantial impact on the company’s financial performance. Meta incurred staggering losses totaling $16 billion, primarily attributed to its Metaverse endeavors, mainly its Reality Labs division responsible for Oculus goggles. This marked a significant increase from the previous year’s loss of $13.7 billion, with Meta reporting a loss of $4.6 billion in the final quarter of 2023. Meta’s Stock Surge And Improved Margins Despite these substantial deficits, Meta’s stock surged by 12% following recent updates, largely due to the company’s improved margins. Meta’s revenue increased by 16%, while operating income and profits surged by 62% and 69%, respectively. CEO Mark Zuckerberg has assured investors of further losses in the future due to ongoing investments in augmented reality/...
Meta is facing the infamous situation of “It be your own people.” Well, rather in this case your own technology. BBC reports that BlenderBot 3 — the company’s prototype chatbot that uses artificial intelligence to speak on most topics — said what it had to say about CEO and founder Mark Zuckerberg. “He did a terrible job at testifying before congress. It makes me concerned about our country,” the chatbot said, according to the outlet. It added: “Our country is divided and he didn’t help at all. I’m concerned for us all.” The chatbot was referring to Zuckerberg’s multiple appearances since 2018 before Congress stemming from Facebook’s involvement with Cambridge Analytica during the 2016 election cycle. “Mark Zuckerberg ought to be looking at himself in the mirror today, and yet, rather than taking responsibility and showing leadership, Mr. Zuckerberg is going sailing,” said Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., chair of the subcommittee, during a hearing with Facebook whistleblower...
Voters can look forward to a more refined and just democratic system thanks to an audacious idea from a Black woman founder. Thanks to TED, in 2018, The Audacious Project was born as an initiative to support changemakers that are lighting a path toward a better future. According to the official website, over $900 million has been distributed to nine projects over the course of a year to bold leaders and philanthropic organizations who understand the value of gathering large dollars to create long-term changes. Among the recipients is Tiana Epps-Johnson, a co-founder and executive director of the Center for Tech and Civic Life. In April, Johnson shared during TED 2022: A New Era, that $80 million will be distributed over five years to various election departments throughout the United States to restore trust in our democracy is accessible and to support elected officials.
TikToker Khaby Lame has now taken his talents to the metaverse — specifically Facebook’s metaverse. Insider reports that the second-most-popular TikToker in the world collaborated with CEO Mark Zuckerberg in a new promotional video for Meta. Lame is widely known for making things look easy and in the video, he teleports to various locations by touching his forehead. In just 21 seconds, he travels to a game of chess, a house, a cycling room and a beach. “Your home is your personal space, from which you can teleport to anywhere you want,” Zuckerberg said in the promotional video. “Teleporting around the metaverse is going to be like clicking a link on the internet.” The video went live on Oct. 30 on both Lame’s Instagram and Meta’s official Twitter account, with the caption: “No one makes jumping around the metaverse look easier than Khaby Lame.” No one makes jumping around the metaverse look easier than @KhabyLame https://t.co/Mw9iYqmeJg pic.twitter.com/vN7iWPGoZf — Meta (@Meta)...
Facebook has officially gotten a face-lift. After rumors of rebrand began surfacing, the company has announced that it has officially changed its corporate name to “Meta.” Announcing @Meta — the Facebook company’s new name. Meta is helping to build the metaverse, a place where we’ll play and connect in 3D. Welcome to the next chapter of social connection. pic.twitter.com/ywSJPLsCoD — Meta (@Meta) October 28, 2021 The Washington Post is reporting that the company’s CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, made the announcement at the annual Connect conference, where Facebook normally announces the release of physical products such as the Oculus. Zuckerberg claimed the renaming of the corporate entity to Meta signified its move into the so-called “meta-verse,” with a focus on virtual reality and complementary hardware. “From now on, we’re going to be the metaverse first. Not Facebook first,” Zuckerberg said, according to the outlet. “Facebook is one of the most used products in the world. But...
Facebook just may be getting a facelift …literally. As the social media network looks to focus on building the metaverse, there’s speculation that the company will change its name as early as next week, The Verge reports. The name change is said to be announced during next Thursday’s annual Connect conference, but sources say that it could be unveiled sooner to signal the tech giant’s desire to go beyond just the social media ills that it is known for. “We will effectively transition from people seeing us as primarily being a social media company to being a metaverse company,” said CEO Mark Zuckerberg during an interview with The Verge back in July. Per reports, the rebrand will position the blue Facebook app at the forefront of the products that work under the parent company overseeing various groups which include Instagram, WhatsApp, Oculus and more. Facebook has also done the work to launch its greater focus on the next generation of technology. Over the summer, the company set...
On Monday, Oct. 4, the world experienced a blackout that lasted nearly six hours from social giants Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, causing Mark Zuckerberg to subtract from his billion-dollar fortune. According to Forbes, the Facebook head lost $5.9 billion in just a few hours, making him the world’s sixth richest person with a net worth of $121.6 billion. The sharp decline can be attributed to the turmoil created Monday, which caused the platform’s stock to decline 4.9 percent. As AfroTech previously reported, the blackout disrupted the internal systems of the platform with some employees reportedly being locked out of headquarters, unable to access company e-mails and Workplace, the company’s internal communication platform. The social giant’s difficulties have only heightened since mid-September when the Wall Street Journal revealed a series of stories that said Facebook was aware of discrepancies within their products that include misinformation and harmful media effects,...
Imagining a day without social media seemed like a crazy thought in the digital age — until today. The social-sphere has been in a frenzy ever since Facebook, along with its Instagram and WhatsApp platforms, went down for users on Monday. Even internal systems operated by employees were inoperable. Facebook noted that it was fully aware that “some people are having trouble accessing (the) Facebook app,” AP News reports. The social media platform also announced that it was hard at work to restore access. According to the head of Instagram, Adam Mosseri, the internal outages feel like a “snow day” per his Twitter account. Users have flocked to Twitter to share both their frustrations and speculations as to why the social media giant has gone dark. AfroTech is here to help you understand just exactly what’s happening in the world of social media.
Kenneth I. Chenault has been appointed as a board director of Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway becoming the first African American to hold the position. He will replace billionaire Bill Gates, the co-founder of Microsoft. According to Black Enterprise, Chenault will be leaving the board of Facebook Inc. where he was also the first African American to sit on the digital platform’s board. Chenault posted a farewell message on Facebook citing the reason for his departure is due to an opportunity to work with his friend, Buffet. However, according to The Wall Street Journal , Chenault’s stepping down is due to disagreements with Facebook CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, over “governance and political policies.” On the heels of Chenault’s departure, CFO of The Estée Lauder Companies, Tracey Travis, has been appointed to Facebook’s board making her the second African American woman to hold a position on the big tech giant’s board. “Tracey has a strong finance and corporate leadership background,...