Netflix Investors Underwhelmed By Results
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Netflix earnings beat expectations, but shares slipped. Bloomberg's Lucas Shaw discusses the results and Benchmark Capital Analyst Dan Kurnos explains what concerns are lingering for investors. Shaw and Kurnos join Ed Ludlow on 'Bloomberg Tech.' (Source: Bloomberg)
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TechCrunch
17 minutes ago
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OpenAI launches Study Mode in ChatGPT
OpenAI announced Tuesday the launch of Study Mode, a new feature within ChatGPT that aims to help students develop their own critical thinking skills, rather than simply obtain answers to questions. With Study Mode enabled, ChatGPT will ask users questions to test their understanding, and in some cases, refuse to offer direct answers unless students engage with the material. OpenAI says Study Mode is rolling out to logged in users on ChatGPT's Free, Plus, Pro, and Team plans starting Tuesday. The company expects to roll Study Mode out to its Edu subscribers — which largely consists of young people whose school administrator's have purchased a plan for the entire student body — in the coming weeks. Study Mode is OpenAI's attempt to address the millions of students that use ChatGPT in school. Studies have shown that using ChatGPT can be a helpful tutor for young people, but it also may harm their critical thinking skills. A research paper released in June found that people who use ChatGPT to write essays exhibit lower brain activity during the process compared to those who use Google Search or nothing at all. When ChatGPT first launched in 2022, its widespread use in school settings sparked fear among educators, leading to generative AI bans in many American school districts. By 2023, some of those schools repealed their ChatGPT bans, and teachers around the country came to terms with the fact that ChatGPT would be a part of young people's lives from now on. Now with the launch of Study Mode, OpenAI hopes to improve ChatGPT as a learning tool, and not just an answer engine. Anthropic launched a similar tool for its AI chatbot Claude, called Learning Mode, in April. Of course, there are limitations to how effective Study Mode truly is. Students can easily switch into the regular mode of ChatGPT if they just want an answer to a question. OpenAI's VP of Education, Leah Belsky, told TechCrunch in a briefing that the company is not offering tools for parents or administrators to lock students into Study Mode. However, Belsky said OpenAI may explore administrative or parental controls in the future. That means it will take a committed student to use Study Mode — the kids have to really want to learn, not just finish their assignment. Techcrunch event Tech and VC heavyweights join the Disrupt 2025 agenda Netflix, ElevenLabs, Wayve, Sequoia Capital — just a few of the heavy hitters joining the Disrupt 2025 agenda. They're here to deliver the insights that fuel startup growth and sharpen your edge. Don't miss the 20th anniversary of TechCrunch Disrupt, and a chance to learn from the top voices in tech — grab your ticket now and save up to $675 before prices rise. Tech and VC heavyweights join the Disrupt 2025 agenda Netflix, ElevenLabs, Wayve, Sequoia Capital — just a few of the heavy hitters joining the Disrupt 2025 agenda. They're here to deliver the insights that fuel startup growth and sharpen your edge. Don't miss the 20th anniversary of TechCrunch Disrupt, and a chance to learn from the top voices in tech — grab your ticket now and save up to $675 before prices rise. San Francisco | REGISTER NOW OpenAI says Study Mode is the company's first step to improving learning in ChatGPT, and aims to publish more information in the future about how students use generative AI throughout their education.
TechCrunch
17 minutes ago
- TechCrunch
Spotify hints at a more chatty voice AI interface in the future
Spotify has experimented with various voice interfaces in the past, and more recently, added an AI DJ that introduces tunes the company thinks you'll like and lets you make your own requests. Now, Spotify is teasing that generative AI advances may pave the way for an even more conversational interface with the streaming service in the future, according to comments made during Spotify's second-quarter earnings call with investors on Tuesday. Asked about how AI was affecting its business, Spotify Chief Product and Technology Officer Gustav Söderström noted that consumers today are able to talk to Spotify in plain English to request music, allowing the company to associate which phrases connect with which songs. 'You can think of it as us getting a new dataset,' he said. 'Spotify's got this unique data set from all of its playlists, which was really song-to-song — like which song goes well with another song, kind of the Amazon 'people who bought this also bought that,'' he said. Meanwhile, the voice interface is delivering new insights to the company. 'And that's completely new to us, and it's a very, very valuable data set that we are collecting very quickly,' he added. As a result, the exec says we can expect Spotify's consumer experiences to get 'much more interactive.' 'You can already write to Spotify, talk to Spotify. You're just going to see that expand,' Söderström said. Plus, AI technology would allow Spotify to do more than just predict what someone might want to listen to, whether music, podcasts, or audiobooks, as it does today. Instead of only making predictions, it would be able to 'reason' over the user's listening history and what they said to the AI DJ. The reference to reasoning suggests that Spotify is looking toward AI reasoning models that can perform more complex tasks across multiple steps. Techcrunch event Tech and VC heavyweights join the Disrupt 2025 agenda Netflix, ElevenLabs, Wayve, Sequoia Capital — just a few of the heavy hitters joining the Disrupt 2025 agenda. They're here to deliver the insights that fuel startup growth and sharpen your edge. Don't miss the 20th anniversary of TechCrunch Disrupt, and a chance to learn from the top voices in tech — grab your ticket now and save up to $675 before prices rise. Tech and VC heavyweights join the Disrupt 2025 agenda Netflix, ElevenLabs, Wayve, Sequoia Capital — just a few of the heavy hitters joining the Disrupt 2025 agenda. They're here to deliver the insights that fuel startup growth and sharpen your edge. Don't miss the 20th anniversary of TechCrunch Disrupt, and a chance to learn from the top voices in tech — grab your ticket now and save up to $675 before prices rise. San Francisco | REGISTER NOW The voice data in question comes from Spotify's AI DJ feature. In May 2025, Spotify introduced a way for Premium subscribers to make voice requests to the English-language AI DJ by pressing a button in the app. This lets users change the music, the genre, or the mood of a playlist using a voice command. Consumer features aren't the only way Spotify is leveraging AI. During the call, the exec also mentioned that Spotify is using generative AI internally to more rapidly prototype products and create efficiencies in other areas of its business, like finance. In the quarter, Spotify hit 276 million paying subscribers, up 12% year-over-year, and 696 million monthly active users, but swung to a loss after missing revenue targets. The stock fell 10% on weak guidance and Spotify CEO Daniel Ek's comments about his unhappiness with the company's ads business.
Business Wire
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Sandbox VR, the World's Leader in Virtual Reality Gaming Is Now Open at Westfield London
LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Sandbox VR, the world's leader in virtual reality experiences, opened at Westfield London on . Located in White City in the heart of West London, Sandbox VR will bring an exciting new dimension to the capital's competitive socialising scene as part of the groundbreaking TOCA Social venue. During a visit to Sandbox VR, groups of up to 6 players are immersed into an interactive virtual experience for 30 minutes. VR headsets, haptic vests and motion trackers transport players to futuristic worlds where every sight and sound, feeling and movement is experienced, just like in the real world. Body tracking technology allows players to interact within the space and each other, either on the same team or competing against each other in a truly thrilling social adventure. The venue features multiple VR arenas and gaming experiences for visitors to choose from, including surviving zombie apocalypses, embarking on sci-fi adventures, fantasy quests, and much more. The exclusive virtual worlds created by Sandbox VR also include Squid Game Virtuals, made in partnership with Netflix, where customers are thrown into the world of Netflix's most-watched show to compete in games including Red Light, Green Light. After their experience, guests can explore the wider TOCA Social venue with its interactive football experiences, dedicated Fan Zone for sports viewing, and extensive food and drink offerings. The collaboration brings together the world's most advanced virtual reality technology with innovative football gaming and dining experiences. Powered by a new generation of Hollywood motion capture cameras and technology, and featuring games specially designed for the most social enjoyment, the unique experience offered at Sandbox VR is the ideal option for those looking to add more fun to a night with friends, a weekend activity with the family or a corporate team building day. Sandbox VR's Westfield London opening comes amidst huge success for the company in its UK locations and represents an exciting new collaboration bringing cutting-edge VR experiences to one of Europe's largest entertainment destinations. Andy Scanlon, Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer of Sandbox VR UK & Ireland says: "We are excited to bring the future of entertainment with our groundbreaking virtual reality experiences to TOCA Social's biggest venue yet, Westfield White City. This is the start of an exciting collaboration and we look forward to immersing guests in a whole new world of interactive entertainment like never before." Sandbox VR will be located within the 30,000 square foot TOCA Social venue at Westfield London, easily accessible via Shepherd's Bush and Wood Lane stations. ABOUT SANDBOX VR Sandbox VR is the world's premier destination for premium, location-based virtual reality games. The company has created the world's most immersive full-body VR platform and boasts exclusive games, including original and branded experiences, such as Squid Game Virtuals, created in collaboration with Netflix. Now operating in more than 60 locations and attracting over 100k players monthly, Sandbox VR is rapidly growing its global footprint with thriving corporate-owned locations and a robust franchising program. The company has been recognized as one of Fast Company's 2024 Most Innovative Companies and is the 129th fastest growing company in America on the 2024 Inc. 5000 list. Sandbox VR is headquartered in San Francisco, California with offices in Hong Kong and Vancouver. The company's latest round raised over $37 million from investors including Andreessen Horowitz, Alibaba Entrepreneurs Fund, Gobi Partners, and Craft. Individual investors include Justin Timberlake, Katy Perry, Kevin
