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🛑 The Twitter Block, 🚀 Nasdaq Soars on AI, 🚪 Goldman Exit Apple Partnership?

🛑 The Twitter Block, 🚀 Nasdaq Soars on AI, 🚪 Goldman Exit Apple Partnership?

Twitter has initiated a change that restricts access to its platform for unregistered users, obstructing the visibility of tweets, user profiles, and threads.

Kristoffer Lindström
July 03, 2023

Hello! It’s Monday, July 3, and I hope you have had a great weekend!

Here are today’s top headlines:

Twitter Blocks Unregistered Users
Meta's Twitter Rival Spotted
Goldman Exit Apple Partnership?
Apple Cuts Vision Pro Production
Nasdaq Soars on AI, Apple Boom
Indian Startup Funding Plummets
and more…

Read time: 5.1 minutes.

🌐 Tech Companies

Twitter Blocks Unregistered Users (3-minute read) 🔗

Twitter has initiated a change that restricts access to its platform for unregistered users, obstructing the visibility of tweets, user profiles, and threads. This shift is affecting both desktop and mobile web access. The intent behind this modification remains unclear as Twitter has not yet made a public announcement.

Meta's Twitter Rival Briefly Appears (3-minute read) 🔗

Meta's Twitter competitor, Thread, was temporarily spotted on Google Play store by developer Alessandro Paluzzi. The app, which lets users sign in with their Instagram accounts, mirrors many features of Twitter. Although Meta has not announced an official release date, the accidental appearance suggests an imminent launch.

Insight: We see this as a major industry-wide impact, marking Meta's venture into a Twitter-like platform, which could significantly affect the dynamics of social media usage and competition among these tech giants.

YouTube Curbs Ad Blocker Usage (3-minute read) 🔗

YouTube is globally testing an initiative to deter viewers using ad blockers by restricting video playback after three videos. This comes as part of YouTube's efforts to protect creator revenue and promote its ad-free Premium service.

Goldman Eyes Exit from Apple Partnership (3-minute read) 🔗

Goldman Sachs is considering ending its partnership with Apple, potentially transferring its credit card and other associated businesses to American Express, marking a significant retreat from Goldman's consumer lending operations.

🚀 Startup Scene

SF Contests 24/7 Driverless Taxis (4-minute read) 🔗

San Francisco city leaders push back against expanding Waymo and Cruise's driverless taxi operations to 24/7 services, citing numerous traffic and safety concerns.

Reddit Axes Key Third-Party Apps (3-minute read) 🔗

Reddit has shut down major third-party applications like Apollo, Sync, and BaconReader due to protests against the platform's API pricing, sparking widespread user dissatisfaction.

Bluesky Suspends Sign-ups Amid Surging Demand (2-minute read) 🔗

Bluesky, a decentralized social network similar to Twitter, has temporarily paused new user sign-ups to address performance issues following a surge in new users. The increase resulted from Twitter's new daily tweet limits.

🤖 AI & Emerging Tech

GPT-powered Smart Home Platform Unveiled (3-minute read) 🔗

Josh.ai launches JoshGPT, a generative AI-powered smart home automation system, offering nuanced understanding and response capabilities beyond existing smart home assistants. The premium service requires professional installation.

AI Voice Cloning Threatens Actors (5-minute read) 🔗

Actors' voices are being cloned by AI for commercial uses without their consent due to outdated contracts. The situation escalates as AI voice technology becomes more sophisticated and accessible.

Insight: We see this as an industry-wide issue. It questions the ethical use of AI and could reshape copyright laws. Additionally, it suggests a significant shift of revenue from the creative sector to the tech industry.

Apple Cuts Vision Pro Production (10-minute read) 🔗

Due to complexity and manufacturing issues, Apple is significantly reducing its Vision Pro headset production. The tech giant's plans for a more affordable version have also been delayed.

💰´Tech Market Pulse

Nasdaq Soars on AI, Apple Boom (7-minute read) 🔗

Tech stocks just had their best first half in four decades, with the Nasdaq soaring 32%, led by Apple and Nvidia. Apple saw a 50% surge, surpassing a $3 trillion market cap, while Nvidia benefited from the AI boom with a 190% rally. Despite economic uncertainties and a potential recession, tech companies rebounded with increased efficiency and cost-cutting measures.

UK Regulators Question Adobe-Figma Deal (4-minute read) 🔗

Adobe's $20 billion acquisition of Figma raises concerns with UK's Competition and Markets Authority, fearing it might lessen competition and stifle innovation in the design software market.

Insight: This development impacts Adobe and Figma at the company level, as a deeper investigation could potentially derail the acquisition. The global tech industry will closely watch the situation, considering similar antitrust issues affecting large-scale tech mergers and acquisitions.

Visa Buys Fintech Pismo for $1B (10-minute read) 🔗

Visa is acquiring Brazilian fintech startup Pismo for $1 billion, boosting its core banking and issuer processing capabilities. Pismo processes nearly $40 billion in transactions annually and serves clients, including Citi and Itaú.

Insight: We anticipate an industry-wide impact with Visa's latest acquisition as it indicates the growing interest of major players in fintech companies, highlighting the potential for more M&A activity in this space. This also signals a greater convergence between traditional finance and tech-based solutions.

Indian Startup Funding Plummets 68% (10-minute read) 🔗

Indian startups have seen a drastic 68% funding reduction in H1 2023, amassing only $5.46 billion, compared to $17.1 billion in the same period last year. Prominent late-stage investors, like Tiger Global and SoftBank, have significantly pulled back their investments. Consequently, no new unicorns emerged in 2023, contrasting starkly with the creation 18 in H1 2022.

Insight: We observe a market-wide impact as the decreased funding in Indian startups reflects a broader slowdown in investment. This shift has global implications as international investors reassess their strategies and could spur startups to diversify their funding sources.

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