What big tech are doing to master data and control the market
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Hubspot knows more
HubSpot has bought the B2B data provider Clearbit in order to expand its CRM platform with extensive company data. Clearbit, which specializes in data enrichment and analysis, will be integrated with HubSpot's platform to provide customers with better insights. Clearbit's advanced use of LLM technologies for data structuring contributed to the acquisition.
Amazon knows even more
The FTC is suing Amazon over its "Project Nessie" algorithm, which raised prices on certain products where it was safe to do so. This approach earned Amazon 1.4 billion dollars. The algorithm utilized the observation that other retailers often matched Amazon's prices. Amazon argues that the aim of Nessie was to avoid unusually low, unsustainable prices. However, the FTC claims that the project was a great success, contradicting Amazon's account. Nessie has been officially canceled but could be revived according to the FTC.
YouTube notices everything
YouTube is fighting ad blocker usage globally by warning users and restricting video viewing unless ad blockers are disabled. The platform now requires users to either purchase a Premium subscription or allow adverts and has also increased the price of Premium.
Meta wants to know more
Meta offers an ad-free subscription for Facebook and Instagram in the EU, EEA, and Switzerland after data protection laws prohibit user tracking without consent. Users have to choose between paying a subscription or consenting to tracking. Data protectionists criticize this choice as inadequate.
Open Empathic knows a lot
The non-profit organisation LAION, known for its stable diffusion model, is launching Open Empathic to provide developers with emotion recognition AI free of charge. The aim is to give AI systems emotional intelligence using an audio clip database. Despite controversial debates about the science and ethical concerns of emotion recognition, LAION is committed to transparency and community engagement.