What can AI and big data do for finance? October 23, 2019 | City Talk Larry Cao, CFA, is the author of AI Pioneers in Investment Management from CFA Institute. AlphaGo brought artificial intelligence (AI) out of computer labs and into the living room. From October 2015, when the AlphaGo AI first beat a professional human competitor, to January 2018, several months after it defeated Ke Jie, the top-ranked player in the [...]
Facebook vs. democracy: Let’s get serious about disinformation October 23, 2019 On Monday, Facebook announced new measures to help combat the spread of disinformation in the looming UK General Election. Plans include working with fact checkers, tracking the origin of political ads, and doing more to take down content that breaks Facebook’s rules. Read more: The number of deepfake videos online has almost doubled While positive, [...]
Snap beats expectations as 7m new users sign up October 22, 2019 Snapchat’s parent company Snap beat expectations in the third quarter of the year, as investment in new technology such as augmented reality continued to drive growth. Revenue soared 50 per cent to $446m (£346.2m) and the company’s net loss shrunk from $325.1m in the third quarter of 2018 to $227.3m this year. Read more: Snap [...]
US states join Facebook antitrust probe October 22, 2019 An antitrust investigation into Facebook has been backed by 47 attorneys general from across the US. New York Attorney General Letitia James announced today that more states, districts and territories have joined the probe into the social media giant, focusing on Facebook’s dominance in the industry. Read more: MPs challenge Sir Nick Clegg over Facebook’s [...]
Softbank seizes control of Wework in deal netting Adam Neumann $1.7bn October 22, 2019 Softbank has won approval from Wework’s board to take control of the struggling office space company, in a deal that nets co-founder Adam Neumann $1.7bn (£1.3bn) but severs most of his ties with the firm. Neumann will also step down from Wework’s board, the Wall Street Journal reported. Read more: Wework creates committee to mull [...]
MPs challenge Sir Nick Clegg over Facebook’s political ads rule change October 22, 2019 A top MP has written to Facebook vice president Sir Nick Clegg urging him to explain why the social media platform has overhauled its rules on political advertising. Damian Collins, chair of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) Select Committee, warned the changes would “place a heavy constraint on [Facebook’s] ability to combat disinformation [...]
Brexit can spark a Big Bang for life sciences October 22, 2019 Whether or not Halloween marks a new chapter in the UK’s relationship with the EU, it also marks over 30 years since the “Big Bang” reforms to Canada. And it is this milestone – rather than any Brexit deal – which is more instructive for how the country can make its way [...]
These are the 10 most dangerous celebrities to search for online October 22, 2019 Carrying out an online search for your favourite singer or TV star may seem an innocuous way to while away the time. However, a spot of celebrity stalking could turn out to be dangerous, as cyber criminals lure in unwitting fans with links to malicious websites. Read more: Russian cyber criminals hack Iranian hackers to [...]
Buzzfeed and Gousto investors back London media AI startup October 22, 2019 A London artificial intelligence (AI) startup has today closed a $25m (£19.2m) funding round to help businesses better track their competition. Signal AI’s series C round was led by Redline Ventures, and supported by the venture arm of publishing giant Hearst. Other investors included Gousto backer MMC Ventures, and GMG Ventures which counts the owner [...]
It’s not modern alchemy, carbon capture is a key weapon in the fight against climate change October 22, 2019 While the protesters may have gone for now, the memory of the Extinction Rebellion demonstrations across London lives on. Their presence amid the bracing weather over the past two weeks serves as a fitting testament to the growing public demand that climate change must be addressed. Spurred by public opinion, businesses worldwide are seeking to [...]
