📬 Threads Following Feed & Big Tech Earnings

Hey there, welcome to today's update!

Today is Wednesday, July 26. It's that time of the year again - earnings season is upon us, and boy, do we have a lot to talk about. So, without further ado, let's dive right into the top headlines for today:

• Threads Enhance User Experience

• iPhone 15's Rumored Upgrades Unveiled

• ChatGPT App Debuts on Android

• AI Anchor Debuts in India

• Alphabet & Microsoft Earnings

• Snapchat's Decline & Spotify's Podcast Headache

• and more...

READ TIME: 3.2 MINUTES

🌐 Tech Companies

Threads Enhance User Experience (3-minute read)

Threads, Meta's app, now includes a chronological feed of posts, potentially competing with Twitter. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg also unveiled a new translation feature for the platform.

Alphabet Promotes CFO Ruth Porat (2-minute read)

Alphabet's CFO, Ruth Porat has been promoted to President and Chief Investment Officer. She will supervise Alphabet's "Other Bets" investments and liaise closely with regulators and policymakers.

Amazon Lowers iRobot Acquisition Bid (3-minute read)

Amid regulatory hurdles, Amazon lowers its acquisition bid for robotic vacuum maker iRobot by 15%, citing the need to cover iRobot's $200 million operational debt.

iPhone 15's Rumored Upgrades Unveiled (2-minute read)

The iPhone 15 series, according to DSCC's report, is anticipated to offer significant improvements, including larger screens, the A16 Bionic chipset for standard models, and the 3nm A17 Bionic processor for Pro models. An expected price hike accompanies these upgrades.

Instagram Creator Subscriptions Go Global (3-minute read)

Instagram is expanding its creator subscription feature to ten more countries, allowing creators with over 10,000 followers to charge for exclusive content. Pricing tiers range from $0.99 to $99.99 per month.

🚀 Startup Scene

Solink Raises $60M for Expansion (3-minute read)

Cloud-based camera security startup Solink has raised $60 million in a Series C funding round to expand its global customer base and develop new real-time security monitoring and forensic security products.

🤖 AI Corner

ChatGPT App Debuts on Android (2-minute read)

OpenAI's dedicated ChatGPT app has expanded to Android, launching in four countries initially. The move follows observed decreases in web traffic and app installations, marking a potential shift after the app's earlier success on iOS. OpenAI's GPT-4 model also powers Bing's chatbot, with Google and Apple exploring similar tech.

AI Anchor Debuts in India (2-minute read)

AI-generated news anchors have reached India, with "Lisa" now presenting news on local station Odisha TV. Despite minor audio-visual discrepancies, Lisa's serviceable delivery could easily be mistaken for a human, posing potential job security issues for news presenters.

💰´Markets & Money

Dow's 12th Win Pre-Fed Decision (3-minute read)

US stocks saw an upward trajectory on Tuesday, marking Dow's 12th consecutive win. Anticipation for Alphabet and Microsoft's earnings reports and the Federal Reserve's impending interest rate decision fuels investor sentiment. The Conference Board's consumer confidence index achieved a level unseen since July 2021.

Microsoft Profits Up, Azure Slows (3-minute read)

Microsoft reported better-than-expected revenue and earnings in its recent quarter, even as growth for its Azure cloud platform decelerated. Azure's growth fell to 27%, due to customers seeking more efficient cloud spending amidst economic uncertainties. Nevertheless, Office 365 revenue growth and early hardware manufacturing by PC makers contributed to overall revenues of $56.2bn, an 8% increase from last year.

Alphabet Surpasses Revenue Forecasts (3-minute read)

Google parent company, Alphabet, exceeded analysts' revenue predictions for Q2, primarily due to a resilient digital advertising business. The revenue climbed by 7% to $74.6bn, surpassing the projected $72.8bn. Revenues from Google ads, YouTube ads, and Google Cloud surpassed forecasts. With a net profit of $18.4bn, Alphabet well exceeded Wall Street's expectations of $16.9bn.

Spotify's Costly Podcast Backtrack (3-minute read)

Spotify incurred a €302mn loss last quarter due to expenses related to halting aggressive podcasting initiatives and job cuts. Despite an 11% revenue increase to €3.2bn and adding 10mn paying subscribers, the costs from unwinding its podcast push overshadowed these gains. The music streaming giant also announced price increases in several countries.

Snap's Shares Drop Amidst Weak Forecast (4-minute read)

Snap shares fell over 17% due to a weaker-than-expected forecast, despite Q2 results outperforming analysts' estimates. With a 4% decline in sales from last year, the company expects a "negative 5% to flat year-over-year growth" in Q3 sales.

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