Why Apple’s ‘Crush’ ad is so misleading

Welcome to Week in Review: JS’s newsletter summarizing the week’s biggest news.

This week, Apple unveiled new iPad models at the Let Loose event, including a new 13-inch display for the iPad Air, as well as Tandem OLED and a new M4 chip for the iPad Pro. But the ad for the new iPad Pro caused the biggest stir at the event, and for all the wrong reasons. For Apple completionists, we’ve rounded up all the new announcements, in case you missed them.

In the world of electric vehicles, the controversial Fisker Ocean is facing a new federal safety investigation. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has opened a fourth investigation into the SUV surrounding claims of “inadvertent automatic emergency braking.”

AI deepfakes took center stage at this year’s Met Gala. AI-generated images of Katy Perry and Rihanna, neither of whom attended the event, went viral on X. A good reminder that we can’t believe everything we see online.

It was a big week. Let’s get into it.

News

New updates from OpenAI: On Monday at 10am PT, OpenAI will demonstrate new features for both ChatGPT and GPT-4. CEO Sam Altman denied reports that the company was preparing to announce a competing search engine product ahead of Google’s I/O conference. read more

Say hello to the portal: A new, always-on video portal lets people in New York City and Dublin communicate in real time. Portals.org, the organization behind the project, wants it to encourage people to communicate with each other ‘across boundaries and prejudices’. read more

OpenAI is exploring allowing AI porn: The company has released a new NSFW policy, aimed at starting a conversation about how it might allow explicit images and text in its AI products. But can we trust OpenAI – or any generative AI vendor – to get it right? read more

Agents cannot use Microsoft’s AI tool: Microsoft has reaffirmed its ban on US law enforcement using generative AI for facial recognition through its enterprise-focused tool: Azure OpenAI Service. read more

Dorsey says goodbye to Bluesky: Ex-Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey revealed on X that he is no longer on Bluesky’s board. In a statement, the company thanked Dorsey for his help in financing Bluesky and said they are actively looking to replace his seat. read more

Will Gen Z Switch Tinder for Hinge?: Match Group has released its first quarter earnings report, showing a steady decline in Tinder’s paying user base. But Hinge is on its way to becoming a “$1 billion revenue company,” thanks in part to its a la carte offering for budget-conscious Gen Zers. read more

Spotify paywalls lyrics: The music streamer quietly confirmed that it has started moving its lyrics feature behind a paywall in an attempt to entice more users to migrate to its Premium subscription service, drawing the ire of users. read more

Analysis

Apple’s ‘Crush’ ad is disgusting: Devin Coldewey says Apple’s latest ad, which merges analog creative tools into an iPad Pro, has missed the mark. Apple has since apologized and canceled plans to broadcast it on television. read more

How Newchip’s bankruptcy threatened thousands of startups: Mary Ann Azevedo and Christine Hall report on fallen-from-favor startup accelerator Newchip and the ripple effects on its founders — including those who lost their companies as a result. read more

Is Rabbit’s R1 really that bad?: Much has been said about Rabbit’s ambitious R1 AI assistant, but it doesn’t live up to its promises. Devin argues that even though it probably shipped too early, an experimental device like this is a fun look at a possible future. read more