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TikTok is promoting its search function by adding a new condition in its latest monetization program Creator Rewards. According to the new metric, a fraction of creators’ earnings will be dependent on how well their content matches with topics that other TikTok users are searching for on the platform.

 

The metric, called Search Value, is one of the four core elements that TikTok will be using to establish its creators’ payouts. It is similar to how SEO works, particularly in context of its ‘keyword research’ tactic. Keyword research revolves around making content that aligns with what people are looking up on search engines, mainly Google.

 

On TikTok, creators can optimize their content in alignment with frequently searched topics by relying on Creator Search Insights to discover trending searches. According to TikTok, these insights can provide creators with ideas for their content, so they can design their creative strategies that best meet audience’s interests. Mainly, the insights tool provides suggestions for video layouts, based on both personalized and general data.

TikTok Announces New Payout Metric as Part of its Monetization Program: Search Value

Uber’s all-electric luxury rideshare service ‘Comfort Electric’ is coming to New York City for the first time after it was launched in 2022.

 

The Comfort Electric service is an extension of Uber Comfort, and has enabled Uber customers across 41 cities to book rides in premium priced EVs like Tesla, Polestar, and Ford Mustang Mach-E.

 

What prevented Comfort Electric from entering Uber’s biggest market, the NYC until now, has been a cap that was imposed by the city on the number of EV ridehail licenses given out by the Taxi and Limousine Commission. Since the cap has now been lifted, the service is now finally available to NYC customers.

Uber Rolls Out its Premium-Priced Rideshare Service ‘Comfort Electric’ in NYC



Airbnb has announced a new security update regarding the use of indoor and outdoor security cameras, and noise decibel monitors. The most major rule in the update is complete termination of the use of indoor security cameras.

 

Previously, Airbnb allowed hosts to install indoor security cameras in specific “common” areas like hallways, living rooms, and front doors; and disallowed their installation in bedrooms and bathrooms. The rental company additionally demanded transparency by requiring hosts to make the presence of the cameras visible in their listings.

 

Although the rules regarding installation of security cameras were strict enough, there were still instances reported by guests who found hidden cameras within their rentals, leading visitors to scan their rooms for cameras.

 

Airbnb’s security update also requires greater transparency for outdoor security cameras, such as around the disclosure of their use and locations to guests before they book a listing. Hosts are also prohibited from using their outdoor security cameras to monitor any indoor spaces, as well as from using them in certain outdoor areas where privacy may be greatly expected, like outdoor showers or saunas.

Airbnb is Banning Installation of Indoor Security Cameras



In an open letter / blog post, Twitch CEO Dan Clancy has shared the streaming platform’s developmental plans for the year of 2024. From changes to its mobile platform to collaboration tools and more, it seems like the company has some major upgrades in store for its customers.

 

While Twitch has not revealed specific details about the products that it plans to launch, its vice president of community product, Jeremy Forrester, has emphasized three main areas of development. These include sharing of content across other platforms, enabling collaboration between streamers, and upgrades to the mobile version.

Twitch has New Plans for an Improved User Experience in 2024



Ikea’s smart home hub Dirigera is reportedly getting support for the Matter smart home standard in beta. Matter is an open-sourced IP-based connectivity software layer for smart home devices that enables connected devices to communicate locally in a home without a cloud connection. 


Although the news of Matter’s integration was announced at the time of Dirigera’s launch, its rollout got delayed. Matter is now available for the Dirigera hub via the Ikea Home Smart app, which also already supports Apple HomeKit, Amazon Alexa, and Google Home.

 

During Matter’s beta testing for Dirigera, Ikea plans to collect feedback from the beta users so it can further improve the overall experience before launching Matter to all customers on Dirigera.

Ikea Launches Matter in Beta for its Dirigera Smart Home Hub



Microsoft is releasing Copilot for OneDrive in April and has recently revealed in a new blog post how the AI integration will work for its file hosting platform. From finding information to summarizing and extracting it from an extensive range of files, Copilot will basically function as your research assistant bot in OneDrive.

 

The files that Copilot can work with include text documents, presentations, spreadsheets, HTML pages, PDFs, and more. In addition to generating summaries, the bot can also customize them as per the user’s command, such as only adding key points or highlights from a select part.

Copilot for OneDrive can Extract and Summarize Data from a Wide Range of Files



Adobe has launched a new prototype of its generative AI tool ‘Project Music GenAI Control.’ It is currently undergoing development with the help of collaborative efforts by the University of California and the School of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University.

 

The tool, like other generative AI audio tools, is designed to produce audio based on text descriptions. But there is more to it too: the ability to edit the output without having to use a separate editing software – allowing the user enhanced control over their creation. This is something that is either lacking or not sufficiently supported in other tools like Google’s MusicLM or Meta’s AudioCraft.

Get to Know Adobe’s new Prototype Generative AI Tool ‘Project Music GenAI Control’



Microsoft has a new AI venture in development – this time in partnership with French AI startup Mistral. It’s a multiyear partnership worth almost $2.1 billion, where Microsoft is reported to be owning a minor stake in the company.

 

As a result of the collaborative efforts between both the companies, Mistral will be offering development and deployment of its open and commercial language models to users of Microsoft’s AI platform Azure.

Microsoft Discloses News of Investing in a French AI Startup Following its Deal with OpenAI



HMD - Nokia’s parent company, is collaborating with Mattel to launch a Barbie-branded flip phone coming July. There is no information about the device’s pricing and features as of yet, but what is certain is that it is going to be the iconic flip phone from the old days, and not a smartphone.

 

This collaboration is part of HMD’s new project that aims to move away from selling its products under the brand name Nokia, and selling them under its own name instead. As part of this new venture, HMD plans to create multiple partnerships with other companies, and Mattel happens to be the first one.

Nokia’s Parent Company is Launching a New Barbie Flip-Phone this Summer



Google is expanding its existing partnership with Reddit to acquire AI training data from the company that will help it adopt better ways to train AI models.

 

More specifically, as a result of the partnership, Google will be able to access Reddit’s data API that will bring its users real-time content from Reddit’s platform. This will facilitate users of Google’s products in participating in Reddit communities and conversations. In turn, Reddit will have access to Google’s AI-powered service ‘Vertex AI,’ which will help the company enhance its search capabilities.

Reddit is Providing Google with AI Training Data as Part of a New $60 Million Deal



WhatsApp has been working on new text formatting options that it has just launched to all its users on Android, iOS, Web, and Mac.

 

Until now, the formatting options that have been available to WhatsApp users are bold, italic, strikethrough, and monospace. In addition to these, the four newly added ones include bulleted and numbered lists, block quotes, and inline code. These are meant to facilitate improved communication among users by enabling them to organize and emphasize specific information.


WhatsApp is Bringing New Formatting Options that Help with Organizing and Highlighting Text in Messages



Samsung has expanded support for its range of audio technologies Auracast, 360 Audio, and Auto Switch. While these technologies have been accessible on Samsung’s devices, the blog post explains the extent to which they will be supported across the lineup. According to Samsung, the updates will begin to be introduced starting with the Galaxy Buds 2 and Buds FE from the end of February, and then to the Buds 2 Pro.

 

Auracast, an industry-wide and fairly new Bluetooth technology, allows a device to broadcast an audio stream to an unlimited number of endpoints like speakers and headphones. Auracast was first launched to Samsung’s Galaxy Buds 2 Pro earbuds and its latest high-end TVs last year, following the Galaxy S24 series in January.

Samsung Announces an Expanded List of Devices that Support its Different Audio Technologies

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