WhatsApp has announced that it is introducing the ability to use the same WhatsApp account on multiple phones.

Message Seamlessly Across All Devices

WhatsApp says that this change gives users globally the ability to message seamlessly across all their devices without signing out, and to pick up their chats where they left off.

Employees Can Use The Same Account

For small businesses, for example, being able to use the same WhatsApp account on multiple phones means that in addition to the business owner, other employees are now able to respond to customers directly from their phones under the same WhatsApp Business account.

Phone As One Of Up To Four Additional Devices

The change means that users can link their phone as one of up to four additional devices, the same as when linking with WhatsApp on web browsers, tablets, and desktops.

When and Who?

The update has already started rolling out to users globally and will be available to everyone in the coming weeks.

Maintains The Same Level Of Privacy And Security

WhatsApp says that the change won’t mean any loss of privacy and security because:

• Each linked phone connects to WhatsApp independently, ensuring that personal messages, media, and calls are end-to-end encrypted.
• If the primary device is inactive for a long period, WhatsApp will automatically log the primary out of all companion devices.

Receive One-Time Code

WhatsApp has also said that it’s introducing an alternative and more accessible way to link to companion devices by allowing users to enter their phone number on WhatsApp Web to receive a one-time code, which can be used on their phone to enable device linking, rather than having to scan a QR code.

Isn’t WhatsApp Going To Block UK Users Anyway?

Whilst this sounds like a potentially useful update, it’s not long since the boss of WhatsApp, Will Cathcart, said he would rather stop users in the UK from using the app than lower its security, as suggested by the UK’s Online Safety Bill. It’s also only a couple of weeks since Cathcart and the head of the Signal app signed an open letter warning of ‘unprecedented threat to safety and security’ of UK citizens if the bill effectively ended end-to-end encryption and allowed the scanning of private messages.

What Does This Mean For Your Business?

For small businesses, allowing multiple employees to connect to the same WhatsApp account with their individual devices could deliver faster and more joined-up communications as they can respond directly to customers. It will also save time and effort by not having to sign out and by being able to quickly pick up their chats where they left off, thereby improving efficiency.

Giving WhatsApp Web users the option to be sent a code rather than always having to scan a QR Code may also simplify matters for many users. Businesses will also be pleased to hear that the new WhatsApp update won’t compromise security and privacy. However, WhatsApp has still not resolved its issue with the UK government over the Online Safety Bill’s potential to damage the privacy and security of the app, and UK businesses are still faced with the prospect that WhatsApp could simply ban them as users if the issue is not resolved soon.

Dutch start-up ‘Oceans of Energy’ has been awarded the contract for installing and operating an offshore solar farm inside the Hollandse Kust Noord offshore wind park by CrossWind, a joint venture between Shell and Eneco.

World First 

Oceans of Energy says it will be the first offshore solar farm in the world to be connected, installed, and operated within a wind farm in high wave conditions.

What Is Offshore Solar? 

Offshore solar refers to the installation of solar panels on floating platforms or structures in bodies of water, such as oceans or lakes.

Solar Farm Between The Offshore Wind Turbines 

The solar panels for the project will be situated in-between the offshore wind turbines, representing an efficient way of sharing the sea space.

CrossWind’s Hollandse Kust Noord project will also use innovative, cutting-edge technologies and engineering solutions to improve the flexibility of offshore wind parks.

Energy Produced On Less Sunny Days Too 

Having an offshore solar within an offshore wind park makes it possible to also produce energy on sunny but less windy days, thereby increasing the utilization of the offshore power grid infrastructure.

The Benefits Of Offshore Solar 

Having solar farms offshore can deliver a range of operational and green benefits, including:

– Increased efficiency: Offshore solar panels can capture more sunlight than onshore panels due to the absence of obstructions such as buildings, trees, or mountains. This results in increased efficiency and higher energy yields.

– Reduced land use: Offshore solar facilities can reduce the need for land-based solar projects, which can have a significant impact on wildlife habitats and local ecosystems.

– Reduced water consumption: Offshore solar panels require less water for cleaning and maintenance compared to land-based solar farms, which can be beneficial in areas with water scarcity.

– Enhanced energy security: Offshore solar can enhance energy security by diversifying the energy mix and reducing dependence on fossil fuels.

– Lower costs: As technology advances and economies of scale are achieved, the costs of offshore solar are expected to decrease, making it a more viable and cost-effective option for renewable energy generation.

– Reduced transmission losses: Offshore solar facilities located near coastal regions can reduce transmission losses by generating electricity closer to the point of consumption.

Overall, offshore solar has the potential to provide a significant contribution to the renewable energy mix while mitigating the negative impacts associated with land-based solar projects.

A Project With Several ‘Firsts’ 

The CrossWind and Oceans of Energy add offshore solar project is thought to have several ‘firsts,’ including:

– It’s the first wind park in the world with an offshore combination of battery storage and round-trip green hydrogen produced from offshore wind power on a Megawatt scale.

– It is also thought to be the first wind park that has committed to mature and demonstrate offshore wake control technologies like closed-loop active wake steering in combination with the novel active wake mixing to try and increase the efficiency of wind parks.

– A world first for an offshore solar system that’s electrically connected and operated within a wind park in harsh sea/high wave conditions.

Why More Difficult In Harsh Sea Conditions?

High wave conditions can make it more challenging to operate an offshore solar farm because of the risks of structural damage to the structures that support the solar panels, safety concerns (for maintenance and repair workers), reduced efficiency, and increased maintenance costs.

An Important Role In Energy Transition 

Maria Kalogera, Innovations Manager of CrossWind, said about the project, “Offshore floating solar is an exciting area of renewable energy development that is poised to play an important role in the energy transition.” 

Allard van Hoeken, founder and CEO of Oceans of Energy, said, “We will add offshore solar to offshore wind. Our performance and our system will be key to the success of the innovative part of the offshore wind farm.” 

When Will It Be Up And Running? 

The Oceans of Energy offshore solar farm won’t actually be working until 2025, but the wind park will be operational by the end of this year.

What Does This Mean For Your Organisation? 

Although this is joint project with many ‘first offs,’ it could be the shape of things to come. A combination of new technologies has enabled the addition of a solar farm to an existing wind park’s offshore power grid infrastructure, thereby making it more efficient and saving costs, time, and resources. Finding sustainable, green energy sources is now a more pressing concern than ever and this development makes use of two of them most abundant sources in a way that doesn’t have an impact on the land. Although the solar farm side of the project is still some way from being operational, if successful it could provide opportunities in coastal areas around the world giving homes and businesses access to affordable green energy.

Computers, Margaret Thatcher & Ice Cream

On 6^th May 1949, the Electronic Delay Storage Calculator (EDSAC) ran its first set of programs. This historic British computer calculated a table of square numbers and a list of prime numbers. It was developed by Maurice Wilkes with his team at the University of Cambridge Mathematical Laboratory.

The computer was built on the top floor of a building that was once a dissecting room. As one of the research students (John Bennett) at the time recalls, this had an advantage and a disadvantage to it. On the plus side, the building possessed a large lift which was designed to fit 2 cadavers, making it very spacious. However, during summer the researchers would get sickened by the smell formalin vapour because of the heat warming up the formalin saturated floorboards.

EDSAC was largely financed by J. Lyons and Co., a British restaurant, food, and hotel conglomerate. You may remember Lyon’s biscuits. A little-known Margaret Thatcher used to work there as a chemist before she became an MP (she invented ‘soft-scoop’ ice-cream!). The management at Lyons saw the potential of computing in business applications, given the huge administrative overheads businesses like theirs would carry.

One of the key contributions of EDSAC to computing in business was the automation of repetitive and time-consuming tasks like payroll calculations or inventory management. These labour-intensive and time-consuming endeavours were costly and prone to errors.

The Lyons company were so enthusiastic that they would go on to build their own stored-program computer – the Lyons Electronic Office I (LEO  in 1951. Naturally, EDSAC’s introduction was a newsworthy event for the whole country at the time, likely on the same level as AI technologies like ChatGPT today, and just like today, people back then could not help but speculate what the future would hold.

A June 1949 news article from The Star wrote – ‘The “brain” (referring to the computer) may one day come down to our level and help with our income-tax and book-keeping calculations. But this is speculation and there is no sign of it so far.’

What would that person think now?

But computing isn’t the only field EDSAC had a profound impact on. It was also the first computer used to solve a problem in the field of Biology, when it was used to solve a differential equation relating to gene frequencies.

EDSAC was without a doubt a ground-breaking invention, made possible by the financial support of a foresighted company who recognised its potential for business use. This serves as a reminder of the importance of investing in new technologies to stay competitive.

Guardio Labs has warned that a Vietnamese threat actor is behind a ‘malverposting’ campaign which has infected over 500,000 devices worldwide over the last 3 months. ‘Malverposting’ uses promoted social media posts on services like Facebook and Twitter to mass propagate malicious (information stealing) software and other security threats, such as the S1deload Stealer and SYS01stealer. The advice is to exercise caution with promoted social media posts and to keep antivirus, software updates, and patches up to date.

If you are unsure why ChatGPT provided a certain response or want to see how it arrived at a particular conclusion, you can use the “Debug” command. Here’s how:

Using the “Debug” command followed by your question will make ChatGPT provide a detailed explanation of how it arrived at its response, including the data sources it used and the reasoning behind its answer. For example:

– User: Can you tell me about the history of the Eiffel Tower?

– ChatGPT: The Eiffel Tower is a wrought-iron lattice tower on the Champ de Mars in Paris, France. It was named after the engineer Gustave Eiffel, whose company designed and built the tower. Construction of the tower began in 1887 and was completed in 1889, in time for the 1889 Exposition Universelle. It is the tallest structure in Paris and one of the most recognized symbols of France.

– User: Debug my question about the Eiffel Tower.

– ChatGPT: Sure! For your question “Can you tell me about the history of the Eiffel Tower?”, I used information from various sources, including books and websites, to generate a summary of the history of the Eiffel Tower. The keywords I used to understand your question included “Eiffel Tower” and “history.” I also took into account the context of your question, including the fact that you asked about the history of the tower specifically. Based on this information, I provided a brief summary of the history of the Eiffel Tower, including its construction and its significance as a symbol of France.

Cybersecurity researchers at GoDaddy-owned Sucuri have warned that an old plugin called Eval PHP, last updated a decade ago, is being used to hack WordPress websites. The plugin, which creates a backdoor and can mask its activities as cookies has been described as “dangerous.”

The advice is to:

– Keep your website patched and up to date with the latest security releases.

– Protect the admin panel behind 2FA or some another access restriction.

– Regularly backup the website.

– Use a web application firewall to block any bad bots and to virtually patch any known vulnerabilities.

In this insight, we look at what ‘Universal Basic Income’ is, how it relates to the tech industry, its potential benefits and pitfalls, plus what similar ideas are being discussed and explored.

UBI 

Universal Basic Income (UBI) is a policy proposal in which all individuals in a given society receive a regular, unconditional cash transfer from the government, without any means-testing or work requirements. This income is intended to provide a basic level of economic security and enable individuals to meet their basic needs, regardless of their employment status or other sources of income.

The idea of UBI has gained increasing attention in recent years as a potential solution to a range of social and economic problems, including poverty, income inequality, and automation-driven job displacement. Supporters argue that UBI could reduce poverty and inequality, promote entrepreneurship and creativity, and provide a safety-net for those who may be left behind in a rapidly changing economy.

Supporters In The Tech World 

There are some high-profile tech industry supporters of UBI. These include:

– Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, and SpaceX, has in the past been a vocal advocate for UBI, arguing that it is necessary to address the potential job losses caused by automation.

– Mark Zuckerberg, co-founder, and CEO of Facebook, has also expressed support for UBI, calling it a “safety net” that could help support people as the economy evolves.

– Sam Altman, former president of startup accelerator Y Combinator, and now CEO of OpenAI (ChatGPT’s creators), has been a strong advocate for UBI.

– Andrew Yang, former presidential candidate, and entrepreneur, made UBI a central part of his campaign platform, arguing that it was necessary to address the economic challenges posed by automation.

– Chris Hughes, co-founder of Facebook, has also expressed support for UBI, arguing that it could help address inequality and provide a safety net for those who are left behind by technological change.

Tested 

Several countries and cities around the world have implemented (or are testing) variations of UBI, including Finland, Canada, and Stockton, California in the United States.

How Does UBI Relate To The Tech Industry? 

The advancement of AI has the potential to significantly disrupt the labour market, particularly in industries where routine tasks can be automated. This could lead to significant job losses and wage stagnation for workers in these industries. At the same time, AI has the potential to create new industries and job opportunities in areas such as data analysis, software development, and robotics.

A Safety Net 

The potential impact of AI on the labour market has strengthened the argument for universal basic income, particularly in the tech sector. As jobs are increasingly automated, workers may find it difficult to find employment that pays a liveable wage. Universal basic income could provide a safety net for these workers, ensuring that they are able to meet their basic needs while they retrain or search for new job opportunities.

To Encourage Innovation 

Additionally, some advocates of universal basic income argue that it could encourage innovation and entrepreneurship in the tech sector. By providing a basic level of economic security, individuals would be more free to take risks and pursue their passions, without the fear of financial ruin. This could lead to more startups and new technologies being developed, which could in turn create new job opportunities.

Criticism 

While the idea of Universal Basic Income (UBI) has gained support from many, there are also several criticisms of the concept. Here are some of the main ones:

– Cost. One of the most significant criticisms of UBI is its cost. Providing a basic income to all citizens could be extremely expensive, with some estimates suggesting that it could require a significant increase in taxes or cuts to other social programs.

– Work Incentives. Critics argue that UBI could disincentivise work, as people would have less need to seek employment if their basic needs were already met. This could lead to a decrease in overall productivity and economic growth.

– Inflation. Providing a basic income to everyone could increase demand for goods and services, which could lead to inflation and a rise in prices. This could offset the benefits of UBI and reduce its effectiveness.

– Social Stigma. Some critics argue that UBI could create a stigma around receiving government assistance, which could discourage people from seeking employment or pursuing other opportunities.

– Funding Sources. There is also debate around the best way to fund UBI, with some advocating for tax increases on the wealthy, while others argue for a reduction in other social programs. Finding a politically feasible funding source may be a significant challenge.

– Implementation Challenges. Critics also point to potential implementation challenges of UBI, including the need for robust administrative systems to ensure that payments are made efficiently and accurately, plus the potential for fraud or abuse.

These are just a few of the criticisms that have been raised about UBI, as they highlight some of the challenges and complexities involved in implementing such a policy.

Just One Solution 

However, it’s important to note that universal basic income is just one potential solution to the challenges posed by AI and automation in the labour market. Other policy solutions, such as education and training programs, could also play a role in helping workers adapt to changing economic conditions.

Similar Ideas 

There are several similar ideas to Universal Basic Income (UBI) that are being explored by policymakers and academics. Here are some of the most prominent:

– Negative Income Tax (NIT). This is a tax policy proposal that provides cash payments to low-income households that have negative tax liabilities. The amount of the payment is determined by the household’s income, with those earning the least receiving the highest payments.

– Guaranteed Minimum Income (GMI). This is a similar policy to UBI, but it is targeted specifically at individuals and households that fall below a certain income threshold. The payment amount is determined by the individual’s income, with those earning the least receiving the highest payments.

– Conditional Cash Transfers (CCT). This is a policy in which cash payments are made to individuals or households on the condition that they meet certain criteria, such as sending their children to school or attending job training programs. The aim of CCT is to incentivize behaviour that leads to long-term economic mobility.

– Basic Capital Income (BCI). This is a policy proposal that would provide a one-time payment to all citizens when they reach adulthood, which they could use to invest in education, training, or entrepreneurship. The goal of BCI is to help individuals build wealth and increase their economic security over the long term.

What Does This Mean For Your Business? 

UBI is a policy proposal that has gained increasing attention in recent years as a potential solution to a range of social and economic problems, including poverty, income inequality, and automation-driven job displacement. The tech industry has shown support for UBI, with high-profile figures such as Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg advocating it. The potential impact of AI on the labour market has strengthened the argument for universal basic income, particularly in the tech sector. While UBI has its critics, it is important to note that it is just one potential solution to the challenges posed by AI and automation in the labour market. Other policy solutions, such as education and training programs, could also play a role in helping workers adapt to changing economic conditions. There are several similar ideas to UBI that are being explored by policymakers and academics, including Negative Income Tax (NIT) and Guaranteed Minimum Income (GMI). It is important for UK businesses to stay informed about these policies and to consider the potential impacts they could have on the labour market and the wider economy.

Following Twitter’s announcement two months ago that it will be charging a minimum of $42,000 per month to enterprise users of its API, Microsoft is dropping Twitter from its advertising platform.

What Is The Microsoft Advertising Platform? 

The Microsoft Advertising Platform is a digital advertising platform that enables businesses to create and run advertising campaigns on various online channels, including Bing search engine, Microsoft Advertising network, LinkedIn, and other partner sites, such as Twitter (up until now).

With the Microsoft Advertising Platform, businesses can target their audience using various options such as location, age, gender, interests, and more. They can create different types of ads such as text ads, shopping ads, and display ads, plus set their bidding strategy to compete for ad placement on relevant search results pages or partner sites.

The platform also provides performance metrics and analytics to help businesses measure the effectiveness of their campaigns and make data-driven decisions to optimise their advertising efforts. It also offers tools for audience segmentation, ad optimisation, and retargeting.

What Did Twitter Say About Charging? 

On Feb 2, Twitter announced “Starting February 9, we will no longer support free access to the Twitter API, both v2 and v1.1. A paid basic tier will be available instead.” 

Following some to-ing and fro-ing on the decision and a delay over a major twitter outage, Twitter is reported to be putting its formerly free API behind a paywall by offering three levels of Enterprise Packages to its developer platform. The price of the packages have been reported as:

– The cheapest package – access to 50 million tweets per month for $42,000 a month.

– Access to 100 million tweets per month for $125,000

– Access to 200 million tweets per month for $210,000.

– In February, Twitter began charging for the data it collects from “hundreds of millions” of users, with a basic plan starting at $100 a month.

What Is The Value To Enterprises of the Twitter API? 

The Twitter API is a set of programming tools and protocols that enable developers to access and interact with Twitter’s platform and data. The API allows developers to build applications that can read and write tweets, access user profiles and follower lists, and perform other tasks related to Twitter’s functionality.

The Twitter API can provide significant value to developers and businesses in a number of ways, including:

– Data Access. The API allows developers to access Twitter’s vast data set, including tweets, user profiles and trends, which can be used to build new applications, perform research, and gain insights into user behaviour and preferences. Twitter says, “Twitter data are among the world’s most powerful datasets.” 

– Social Media Management. Twitter’s API can be used to manage social media accounts, including scheduling tweets, monitoring mentions, and responding to messages.

– Marketing. The API can be used to create targeted marketing campaigns, track engagement and sentiment, and measure the success of campaigns.

– Customer Service. Twitter’s API can be used to provide customer support and respond to inquiries and feedback from customers.

Outprices Almost Everyone + Limited Dataset 

Critics have argued that even the cheapest plan looks like it will outprice most current users.

Also, whereas Twitter’s free API access gave researchers access to 1 percent of all tweets, under the new pricing plans, caps will mean that users of the paid for API will only have access to 0.3 per cent of Tweets.

Critics have also pointed out what a steep increase this appears to be – $500,000 per year for a smaller amount of data, and that it’s not clear which users the packages are aimed at (since they may be unaffordable to most).

Musk Hits Back – Says Will Sue 

Following Microsoft’s announcement that it is dropping Twitter from its advertising platform, Twitter’s head Elon Musk hit back by threatening to sue Microsoft alleging that it has “trained illegally using Twitter data.” 

What Does This Mean For Your Business? 

Microsoft dropping Twitter from its advertising platform will be an inconvenient blow for ad buyers who will not be able to access their Twitter accounts through Microsoft’s social management tool. The huge charging hike (from zero to $500,000 per year) for those wanting to use Twitter’s API (with less data to work with) looks likely to price even larger enterprises, as Microsoft has demonstrated, out of the market and could force them to seek other ways to assemble their targeting data. This is likely to be potentially risky and costly for them too since, as Twitter boss Elon Musk once pointed out, Twitter is the “the de facto town square” and the data accessed by enterprises through the API still has some real value.

For Twitter, this latest attempt at finding a fast way to generate another much-needed revenue source may have back-fired and Musk’s growing frustration appears evident in his threat to sue Microsoft. It follows some other major companies (e.g. Apple) recently halting advertising on the platform over moderation concerns and, in a recent TV interview, Musk said that he could be willing to sell the company if the right person came along. The Twitter/Musk saga therefore looks likely to carry on into the near future.

A report in the Financial Times (drawing upon an internal Google Presentation) claims that Google plans to use AI to generate new advertisements, drawing upon those already created by humans.

Creates The Ads For You 

The use of generative AI will mean that advertisers will only need to supply a small amount of creative content as the basis for adverts ( e.g. key points in text, details of the target market and goals, images, and videos) and AI will be able to construct the various finished adverts as necessary. It was reported that Google Ads ran a test of using AI to create ads early this month.

Google already uses AI in its advertising in a lesser capacity to create simple prompts to encourage users to make purchases.

Performance Max 

It’s been reported that the generative AI will be part of ‘Performance Max’, Google’s new goal-based, conversion-boosting campaign type that allows advertisers to access all their Google Ads inventory from a single campaign. Google says Performance Max “combines Google’s automation technologies across bidding, budget optimization, audiences, creatives, attribution, and more.” 

Concerns  

It was reported that at the presentation, concerns were expressed about how Google would address known issues in generative AI such as disinformation, phishing attempts, and cybercrime. The point was also reportedly made that AI is simply optimised for converting new customers and doesn’t have an understanding of truth.

Google responded by saying that ‘guardrails’ would be put in place to address those issues on rollout.

Bard And More

Last month, Google began the rollout of its generative AI chatbot answer to OpenAI’s ChatGPT ‘Google Bard.’ Google is also planning a new AI-powered search engine and is bringing generative AI to its Workspace suite in Google Docs and Gmail.

What Does This Mean For Your Business? 

For advertisers, being able to use generative AI to construct multiple ads targeting different audiences quickly and intelligently with different goals from just a small amount of creative content could bring several benefits. As well as saving time and money, this increased automation and sophistication could also result in higher conversion rates, more effective marketing, greater ROI and profitability and a possible competitive edge.

It may also help businesses to discover new opportunities and ad strategies. On the flip side, despite Google’s apparent assurances that ‘guardrails’ will be in place, there are still concerns that generative AI could work with falsehoods or disinformation and that there may be some issues with the process (it’s very early days), which could reflect badly on advertisers. That said, if it’s as impressive as other generative AI experiences (e.g. ChatGPT), then it’s an exciting and welcome prospect. If the results are good and it’s popular, it could also serve Google well at a time when ad spending is in a bit of slump.