Sarah Perez
Consumer News Editor
The Latest from Sarah Perez
Pinterest says its AI-powered collages are now more engaging than Pins
The newer format allows users to curate content from around the web and from Pinterest combined with images they optionally snap using their phone's camera to express their style, interests or tastes.
Google lays off staff from Flutter, Dart and Python teams weeks before its developer conference
Google told TechCrunch that Flutter will have new updates to share at I/O this year.
LinkedIn is the Twitter/X rival no one is talking about
Since Elon Musk acquired Twitter in the fall of 2022, the market for Twitter alternatives has been saturated with would-be competitors ranging from smaller startups to open source apps to well-funded
Audible to test using Prime Video data for audiobook recommendations as Spotify competition heats up
Amazon has historically operated audiobook marketplace Audible as a separate entity, unconnected to the retailer’s broader goals and ambitions. Today, that’s changing a bit with the launch
Screenshots suggest TikTok is circumventing Apple App Store commissions
The feature may be hidden from most users, either by design or because it's only shown to users in a specific group, like testers or high spenders.
Sam’s Club’s AI-powered exit tech reaches 20% of stores
Sam's Club customers who pay either at a register or through the Scan & Go mobile app can now walk out of the store without having their purchases double-checked.
Epic Games says it will bring Fortnite to iPad after EU dubs iPadOS a ‘gatekeeper’ under DMA
Whether or not Epic Games will be able to bring Fortnite to the iPhone and iPad as planned still remains to be seen.
Twitter co-founder Biz Stone joins board of Mastodon’s new US nonprofit
Biz Stone, a Twitter co-founder, is among those who have joined the board of directors of Mastodon’s new U.S. nonprofit, Mastodon CEO Eugen Rochko announced over the weekend. Mastodon’s se
Photo-sharing community EyeEm will license users’ photos to train AI if they don’t delete them
EyeEm, the Berlin-based photo-sharing community that exited last year to Spanish company Freepik after going bankrupt, is now licensing its users’ photos to train AI models. Earlier this month,
Curio raises funds for Rio, an ‘AI news anchor’ in an app
AI may be inching its way into the newsroom, as outlets like Newsweek, Sports Illustrated, Gizmodo, VentureBeat, CNET and others have experimented with articles written by AI. But while most respectab
Despite complaints, Apple hasn’t yet removed an obviously fake app pretending to be RockAuto
Apple’s App Store isn’t always as trustworthy as the company claims. The latest example comes from RockAuto, an auto parts dealer popular with home mechanics and other DIYers, which is ups
Why Meta is looking to the fediverse as the future for social media
Meta’s move into the open social web, also known as the fediverse, is puzzling. Does the Facebook owner see open protocols as the future? Will it embrace the fediverse only to shut it down, shif
Bluesky backs a project that would let Mastodon apps, like Ivory, work with its network
SkyBridge was among the recipients of a small distribution of $4,800 in grant funding from Bluesky, distributed across projects.
RevenueCat raises $12M Series C as it expands its subscription management to the web
With RevenueCat Billing, essentially a web SDK, developers can accept subscription payments from any website.
Substack rival Ghost confirms it will join the fediverse in 2024
Ghost, an open source rival to Substack’s newsletter platform, has confirmed it will this year officially join the fediverse — or the open social network of interconnected servers that inc
Amazon Music follows Spotify with an AI playlist generator of its own, Maestro
Amazon Music is now testing Maestro, an AI playlist generator, that lets U.S. customers on iOS and Android create playlists using spoken or written prompts.
Open source Substack rival Ghost may join the fediverse
While the launch of a survey isn't necessarily a commitment to federating Ghost, it is another signal pointing to the broader reshaping of the web that's now underway.
Apple pulls a Game Boy emulator for App Store violations, but says game emulators are allowed
iGBA was an ad-supported copy of the open-source project GBA4iOS that offered a Game Boy game emulator for iOS.
Quibi redux? Short drama apps saw record revenue in Q1 2024
This represents an over 8,000% increase from $1.8 million in the first quarter of 2023, when just 21 apps were available.
Lyrak to take on X by combining the best of Twitter with fediverse integration
Lyrak is a new X rival that aims to differentiate itself by focusing on real-time news and monetization options for creators.