Snap has created a lightweight AI text-to-image model that will run on-device, expected to power some Snapchat mobile features in the months ahead. Using an iPhone 16 Pro Max, the model can produce high-resolution images in approximately 1.4 seconds, running on the phone, which reduces computational costs. Snap says the research model “is the continuation of our long-term investment in cutting edge AI and ML technologies that enable some of today’s most advanced interactive developer and consumer experiences.” Among the Snapchat AI features the new model will enhance are AI Snaps and AI Bitmoji Backgrounds. Continue reading Snap Develops a Lightweight Text-to-Video AI Model In-House

Apple Invites is a new app that helps iPhone users create and share custom invitations, send RSVPs, and add information to calendars. The app also facilitates contributions to shared photo albums and Apple Music playlists. Users can download Apple Invites from the App Store or access it on the web through icloud.com/invites. An iCloud+ premium subscription is necessary to create and send invitations, but anyone can RSVP and share in group activities, regardless of whether they have an Apple account or use iOS or Android. Additionally, the Invites app integrates with Apple Intelligence. Continue reading Apple’s ‘Invites’ App Does More Than Build Custom Invitations

NASCAR has added a new experience that gives spectators a view from race car cockpits with its new “Driver Cam.” Courtesy of TNT Sports and streaming service Max, NASCAR fans were able to see and hear what went on from the driver POV behind the wheel, choosing from among up to 40 vehicles at the 2025 Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, North Carolina this past weekend. Viewers can select and monitor up to four simultaneous feeds with an array of specialized video, audio and graphics features for the duration of the NASCAR Cup Series calendar for 2025, exclusively on Warner Bros. Discovery’s Max. Continue reading NASCAR Rolls Out a Cockpit ‘Driver Cam’ Exclusively on Max

Less than a week after sending tremors through Silicon Valley and across the media landscape with an affordable large language model called DeepSeek-R1, the Chinese AI startup behind that technology has debuted another new product — the multimodal Janus-Pro-7B with an aptitude for image generation. Further mining the vein of efficiency that made R1 impressive to many, Janus-Pro-7B utilizes “a single, unified transformer architecture for processing.” Emphasizing “simplicity, high flexibility and effectiveness,” DeepSeek says Janus Pro is positioned to be a frontrunner among next-generation unified multimodal models. Continue reading DeepSeek Follows Its R1 LLM Debut with Multimodal Janus-Pro

Meta is rolling out personalization updates to its Meta AI personal assistant. At the end of last year, the company introduced a feature that lets Meta AI remember what you’ve shared with it in one-on-one chats on WhatsApp and Messenger so it could produce more relevant responses. That feature will now be available to Meta AI on Facebook, Messenger and WhatsApp for iOS and Android in the U.S. and Canada. “Meta AI will only remember certain things you tell it in 1:1 conversations (not group chats), and you can delete its memories at any time,” explains the company. Continue reading Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp Get Meta AI Memory Boost

Free, ad-supported streaming video service Plex is introducing a new user interface and expanding its social media overlay, adding the ability for users to publicly share their Plex profiles and allow others to read and comment on their movie reviews. By default, all Plex users can be searched out by other Plex users within the app (unless they’ve changed that setting). Now, by opting to make profiles public on watch.plex.tv, they can be shared using the link and will also be searchable on the Web, showing what users have watched and have added to their watchlist, and more. California-based Plex offers ad-supported video-on-demand (AVOD) as well as linear FAST channels. Continue reading Plex Adds Public Profiles and Ways to Share Program Reviews

Meta has begun testing ads on Threads in the U.S. and Japan with a select group of invited brands. The initial image ads will be slotted between pieces of content in the Threads home feed and will be visible to only a small percentage of users. Drawing from Meta’s existing ads systems framework, “the familiar visual feed format will enable advertisers to easily extend existing image ads to Threads with the check of a box,” according to Meta. Emulating Google, the company will provide users with controls to skip or hide ads. Threads advertisers will be afforded control using the Inventory Filter tool Meta has implemented for Facebook and Instagram Feed and Reels. Continue reading Threads Testing Ads with Select Advertisers in U.S. and Japan

Social platforms Bluesky and X are rolling out new features timed to take advantage over confusion as to the fate of TikTok. Positioning their video feeds with dedicated tabs and optimization for vertical display are among the updates. Meanwhile, Instagram has debuted an editing feature that rivals CapCut, the popular program owned by TikTok parent ByteDance. Bluesky’s newly customizable video feeds let users swipe up or down and also allow curation using hashtags like #BookSky, a challenge to BookTok. A timeline of trending videos prominently placed under its search tab is another Bluesky addition. Continue reading Amidst TikTok Uncertainty, X and Bluesky Add New Features

Mastercard Chief Marketing and Communications Officer Raja Rajamannar is quite clear on his opinion of current marketing practices. “The strategies to get the right consumer insights are totally flawed,” he said. “Every single aspect of marketing has to be reinvented.” In a CES panel on “Revolutionizing Customer Engagement,” Rajamannar and Netflix Vice President of Consumer Products Josh Simon described their partnership efforts to create experiences that engage the fanbase. The discussion, led by influencer.com Chief Executive Ben Jeffries, first focused on why traditional marketing strategies are failing. Continue reading CES: Netflix and Mastercard Partner on ‘Experience’ Marketing

During CES 2025 in Las Vegas this week, Meta Vice President and Chief AI Scientist Yann LeCun had a compelling conversation with Wing Venture Capital Head of Research Rajeev Chand on the latest hot button topics in the rapidly evolving field of artificial intelligence. Some of the conclusions were that AI agents will become ubiquitous — but not for 10 to 15 years, human intelligence means different things to different AI experts, and nuclear power remains the best and safest source for powering AI. And, for those looking for more of LeCun’s tweets, he said he no longer posts on X. Continue reading CES: AI Pioneer Yann LeCun on AI Agents, Human Intelligence

At CES on Monday, Comcast unveiled Universal Ads, an advertising platform aimed at being an “easy button” for small- and medium-sized businesses to buy ad time on traditional TV’s streaming businesses, with the goal of luring them away from social media and digital outlets. In addition to Comcast’s own NBCUniversal, additional partners include DirecTV, Fox Corporation, Paramount, Roku, TelevisaUnivision and Warner Bros. Discovery. CNBC Senior Media & Tech Correspondent Julia Boorstin moderated a panel with Comcast and some major partners who explained why they signed on to the new platform. Continue reading CES: Comcast Debuts Universal Ads, Inks Media Partnerships

Meta is changing its content moderation policies, eliminating third-party fact checking in lieu of a “community notes” model that will be phased in over the coming months, starting in the U.S. The changes were outlined by Joel Kaplan, the company’s new chief global affairs officer, who was promoted following the recent resignation of Nick Clegg, who managed Meta’s public image since 2018 and set up its oversight board. Kaplan says the policy shift “will allow more speech by lifting restrictions on some topics that are part of mainstream discourse and focusing our enforcement on illegal and high-severity violations.” Continue reading Meta Platforms Replaces Fact Checking with Community Notes

In the conference track of CES this year is a lineup of talks and panels on gaming and esports. During the “Generational Shifts: The Evolution of Gaming” panel, moderated by Consumer Technology Association (CTA) Senior Manager of Market Research Steven Hummel, industry executives and thought leaders shared their views on market trends emerging post-pandemic and how those trends are driving gaming across other media. While it is not surprising to hear that the average age of gamers tends to skew younger these days, perhaps the bigger takeaway is that gaming has become the new social media for many. Continue reading CES: Gaming Is the New Social Media for Young Generations

CTA President Kinsey Fabrizio introduced X Corp. CEO Linda Yaccarino and journalist Catherine Herridge for a CES keynote conversation on the social media company established by Elon Musk in 2023. Herridge skipped the pleasantries and went straight to the news that Meta was abandoning third-party fact checking, and replacing it with Community Notes, adopting X’s policy on the topic. “Mark [Zuckerberg], Meta, welcome to the party,” said Yaccarino. “How exciting when you think Community Notes are good for the world. It couldn’t be more validating that Mark and Meta realize this.” Continue reading CES: X Corp. Chief Exec Linda Yaccarino Talks Social Media

Pika Labs has updated its generative video model, Pika 2.0 adding more user control and customizability, the company says. Improvements include better “text alignment,” making it easier to have the AI follow through with intricate prompts. Enhanced motion rendering is said to deliver more “naturalistic movement” and better physics, including greater believability in transformations that tend toward the surreal, which has typically been a challenge for genAI tools. The biggest change may be “Scene Ingredients,” which lets users add their own images when building Pika-generated videos. Continue reading Pika 2.0 Video Generator Adds Character Integration, Objects