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Tiktok Owner Fires Intern Over Incident Linked to AI Project

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ByteDance, the owner of TikTok, has announced the termination of an intern for allegedly “maliciously interfering” with the training of one of its AI projects. However, the company has disputed claims regarding the severity of the damage caused by this incident, stating that reports include “exaggerations and inaccuracies.”

The situation gained traction on social media over the weekend, prompting ByteDance to clarify the details. The firm’s Doubao, a generative AI model similar to ChatGPT, stands as China’s most popular AI chatbot.

Tiktok Owner Fires Intern

In its statement, ByteDance noted, “The individual was an intern with the advertising technology team and has no experience with the AI Lab.” They further mentioned that the intern’s social media profiles and certain media reports contained inaccuracies.

Importantly, the company emphasized that its commercial online operations, including its large language AI models, were not affected by the intern’s actions. ByteDance also refuted claims that the incident resulted in damages exceeding $10 million (£7.7 million) by disrupting an AI project that relies on thousands of powerful graphics processing units (GPUs).

Along with terminating the intern’s employment in August, ByteDance reported that it has notified the intern’s university and relevant industry bodies about the incident.

As a prominent player in the tech industry, ByteDance operates some of the world’s most popular social media applications, including TikTok and its Chinese equivalent, Douyin. The company is recognized as a leader in algorithm development, which significantly enhances user engagement across its platforms.

Like many of its competitors both in China and globally, ByteDance is heavily investing in AI projects. The company utilizes this technology not only for its Doubao chatbot but also for various applications, including a text-to-video tool named Jimeng.

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Welcome back to Week in Review. This time, we’re focusing on the significant layoffs at Meta and their impact across various teams. We’ll also cover the WordPress vs. WP Engine conflict and the debate over whether Cybertrucks are too large for European roads. Let’s dive in.

Meta Layoffs Affect Key Teams

This week, Meta announced layoffs that affected multiple departments. In a statement to Techfullnews, the company confirmed the layoffs, citing the need to reallocate resources. Though Meta didn’t specify how many employees were impacted, reports suggest that teams from Reality Labs, Instagram, and WhatsApp were involved. Meta declined to comment further on which specific areas within these teams were most affected.

As Meta continues to invest in new technologies like augmented reality, while still striving for profitability, these layoffs are part of the company’s efforts to adjust its focus and spending. Reality Labs, responsible for many of Meta’s forward-looking projects, has been particularly resource-intensive, raising questions about how the layoffs will affect its ongoing projects.

Amazon’s Firm Stand on Office Work

In other news, AWS CEO Matt Garman made a strong statement about remote work, telling employees who oppose the company’s new five-day in-office policy that they can seek employment elsewhere. This follows a similar message from Amazon CEO Andy Jassy, who announced that the company would enforce a full return to office by 2025, increasing from the current three-day hybrid model.

Waymo’s Unexpected Customer Situation

Meanwhile, Waymo found itself dealing with an unusual customer issue. Software engineer Sophia Tung received promo codes for free rides after she complained about late-night honking by one of Waymo’s self-driving cars. Realizing there was no spending cap on the codes, she tried to take a 24-hour ride in a Waymo vehicle but managed only 6.5 hours before her trip was cut short.

People are talking a lot about the iPhone 15 getting too hot. Many users say their phones, including different models, are overheating, and measurements with a special camera show temperatures as high as 116F.

All four iPhone 15 models seem to have this problem. Some users even say their phones are so hot that they can’t hold them without a case. Some noticed the issue while charging with a wire.

One person shared that their iPhone 15 Pro Max is almost too hot to touch while fast charging. The left side and part of the back are the hottest, especially around the logic board. After the battery reaches 70%, it cools down a bit, but between 25% and 60%, it’s the hottest.

Others have the same problem even when not charging, like when using the phone for simple tasks like browsing social media.

Normally, iPhones can get a bit hot in the first 24 hours after setting up. This is because there’s a lot happening in the background, like reinstalling apps and organizing things. However, the reports we’re seeing now go beyond this initial setup time.

Some people tested the temperatures with a special camera, and it showed high temperatures. Even with simple tasks, some iPhones are getting too hot, as reported by various users.

It’s worth noting that many reports focus on the iPhone 15 Pro Max, but this might be because more people who ordered quickly chose this flagship model.

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