(NEW YORK) — Disgraced FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried faces four additional criminal charges of conspiracy contained in a superseding indictment unsealed Thursday.
The new charges include conspiracy to commit bank fraud and conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transfer business.
Bankman-Fried, 30, now faces a total of 12 charges since the collapse of FTX.
He pleaded not guilty to eight counts of fraud and conspiracy in early January and remains free on a $250 million bond, confined to his parents’ house in Palo Alto, California.
No new appearances were immediately scheduled for his arraignment on the additional counts.
(NEW YORK) — One year into the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia, a new report by the social media company Meta details the evolution of pro-Russian influence campaigns online.
The report describes a declining presence for Russian state media outlets on Meta’s platforms Facebook and Instagram, as well as crude efforts by covert pro-Russian networks to maintain their reach in the face of a crackdown by Meta.
According to Meta’s report, the company responded to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine with restrictions on Russian state-controlled media outlets, including curbs on advertising and limiting the reach of the outlets’ content in users’ feeds.
Since then, Meta observed, Russian state media outlets have become less active on its platforms and their posts have attracted less attention.
However, at the same time, some Russian state media outlets have been inviting their audiences to follow them on other platforms.
“Russian state media outlets have significantly reduced their activity on our platforms and pivoted elsewhere,” the company noted.
Meta also cracked down in 2022 on covert, unofficial networks promoting Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, including a group it identified as “Cyber Front Z,” which the company said had links to Yevgeny Prigozhin, an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Prigozhin was charged in 2018 by U.S. Special Counsel Robert Mueller for allegedly funding the Internet Research Agency, an online “troll farm” accused of attempting to influence U.S. politics.
In Nov. 2022, Prigozhin admitted in a social media statement that he had interfered in U.S. elections.
In an August 2022 report, Meta said the Cyber Front Z network was operated in part by individuals linked to the Internet Research Agency. The network’s existence was first revealed earlier that year in a March exposé by the Russian outlet Fontanka.
Along with another pro-Russia network known as “Doppleganger,” Cyber Front Z was reportedly active not just on Meta’s platforms but on other services including Telegram, Twitter, TikTok and LinkedIn.
In the August report, Meta said the Cyber Front Z network was “clumsy and largely ineffective,” noting that on Instagram, for example, more than half of the fake accounts created by the network were quickly detected and removed upon creation.
“On our platforms, these networks resembled brute-force, ‘smash-and-grab’ attempts to use a large number of low-quality accounts all at once, in the hope that at least a few might survive and escape detection,” the company said in its latest report.
When Meta cracked down on Cyber Front Z and Doppleganger, they responded “aggressively” in an effort to restore their online presence, at a scale the company described as unusual for Russia-based covert influence campaigns.
Meta said in its report that it had detected and disrupted “thousands” of attempts to create fake accounts and “hundreds more” efforts at sharing fake websites, including some masquerading as real news outlets.
Meta suggested in its report that this aggressiveness could result from a lack of preparation by the networks’ operators for the unique context of a fast-paced, full-scale war, adding that those responsible for the covert networks were likely still paid despite the low quality and minimal impact of their work.
“These actors can provide plausible deniability to their customers, but they also have an interest in exaggerating their own effectiveness,” Meta said in its report.
Prigozhin, the Internet Research Agency’s alleged operator, is also known as the owner of the private military company Wagner, whose members have fought alongside Russian troops in Ukraine.
Meta’s latest report on covert pro-Russian online networks comes amid an increasingly public feud between Prigozhin and the Russian military establishment. In a recent audio statement, Prigozhin accused top Russian military and defense officials of depriving Wagner fighters of ammunition.
(NEW YORK) — A pilot program that involved nearly 3,000 employees testing out a four-day workweek is giving new hope to those seeking to change the way people work.
Over 90% of the employees and 61 companies that took part in the pilot program supported keeping a four-day workweek, according to the program’s findings, which were published this month.
Companies also reported that both revenue and the retention rate of employees increased with the four-day workweek model, while a majority of employees said the model reduced burnout.
Around 15% of employees who took part in the pilot program reported that no amount of money could get them to accept returning to a five-day workweek, according to the findings.
The six-month pilot program, billed as the “world’s largest four-day working week trial to date,” took place in the United Kingdom.
It was organized by an advocacy group, 4 Day Week Global, that worked in collaboration with researchers at Boston College and the University of Cambridge.
Each company was allowed to design their own four-day workweek model, from taking Fridays off to working in more staggered schedules, according to 4 Day Week Global.
The group reported that the “most extensive benefits” of the four-day workweek pilot were seen in the mental and physical health of employees.
Employees reported less stress, less burnout and decreased levels of anxiety, fatigue and insomnia, while also reporting increased satisfaction with their relationships, finances and time management, according to the report.
The findings come on the heels of a Gallup survey released late last year that found 4 out of 10 workers in the United States reported their job had either a somewhat negative or extremely negative impact on their mental health.
Overall, the Gallup survey found almost 1 in 5 workers reported that their mental health was poor or fair, the two lowest ratings on the survey.
The four-day workweek pilot program’s findings also come as employees in the U.S. have experienced more flexibility than usual during the past three years of the coronavirus pandemic. Many companies now allow their employees to work fully remote or hybrid schedules, while others have already or are in the process of requiring employees to return to the office full-time.
What the findings of the U.K. pilot program on a four-day workweek could mean for workers in the U.S. remains to be seen, according to ABC News chief business, technology and economics correspondent Rebecca Jarvis.
“The issue is culture, and you really have to change the culture of the overall work week in order to make these changes,” said Jarvis. “A lot of companies are very set in their ways. We saw big changes in the pandemic. There’s a chance they will go that way.”
A report released in November by consulting firm Ernst & Young LLP found that 40% of the U.S.-based companies it surveyed for its annual EY Future Workplace Index are either implementing a four-day workweek or have already begun using one.
The survey also found that 64% of executives surveyed said they believe “flexible working options motivate employees.”
Jarvis said the motivation employees feel could be what begins to shift the tide towards more companies experimenting with a four-day workweek.
“It really does feel like a bonus, and that’s the thing,” she said. “If you decide you’re going to work harder because you feel good, that’s a win for employers, so it is something they’re thinking about.”
For employees who want to ask for more flexibility in their current schedule, Jarvis said the first step is making sure your work stands out.
“You have to be a winner on the team and be a really good contributor to your overall work environment,” Jarvis said. “Talk to your boss about flexibility, see how you can incorporate it into your schedule. But go in after a big win. That’s your best time.”
(NEW YORK) — Microsoft search engine Bing, long overshadowed by Google but newly enhanced with artificial intelligence for some users, can suggest recipes for a multi-course meal or disentangle the nuances of existentialism.
The technology has stoked controversy, however, after reported troubling results in which it expressed a desire to release nuclear secrets, compared a user to Adolf Hitler and repeatedly told another user it loved him, among other examples.
Describing conversations with the chatbot that lasted as long as two hours, some journalists and researchers have warned that the AI could potentially persuade a user to commit harmful deeds or steer him or her toward misinformation.
In a series of blog posts, Microsoft has acknowledged unexpected results and placed limits on the tool.
“We’ve updated the service several times in response to user feedback, and per our blog are addressing many of the concerns being raised, to include the questions about long-running conversations,” a Microsoft spokesperson told ABC News.
Here’s what to know about Bing’s new AI feature and the controversy it stirred:
How does AI-driven Bing work?
The attention garnered by Bing in recent weeks may remind some of ChatGPT, which became an internet sensation in December as it drew more than a million users over its first week.
Like ChatGPT, the new AI-driven program on Bing responds to user prompts through an algorithm that selects words based on lessons learned from scanning billions of pieces of text across the internet.
These AI tools, known as large language models, can perform an array of tasks, such as gathering highly specific information, mimicking a particular writing style or turning prose into a song or poem.
The AI augments Bing’s traditional search engine, but the new technology also functions separately as a chatbot, a computer program that converses with human users. People testing the new product can toggle to a chat function, where they can carry on a back-and-forth with Bing.
How did Microsoft’s Bing become equipped with AI?
The similarities between Microsoft’s Bing and ChatGPT are not a coincidence.
In January, Microsoft announced it was investing $10 billion in OpenAI, the artificial intelligence firm that developed Chat GPT. The move deepened a longstanding relationship between Microsoft and OpenAI, which began with a $1 billion investment four years ago.
“AI is one of the most transformative technologies of our time and has the potential to help solve many of our world’s most pressing challenges,” Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said in 2019 about the launch of the partnership with OpenAI.
Earlier this month, Microsoft made a preview of AI-enhanced Bing available to some users. Over the first 48 hours of sign-ups, more than one million people joined the waitlist to try out the product, said Yusuf Mehdi, Microsoft’s corporate vice president and consumer chief marketing officer.
What has raised concern about Bing’s AI capabilities?
Soon after the release of the preview of AI-powered Bing, some users reported irregularities.
Last week, New York Times columnist Kevin Roose recounted a conversation in which Bing’s chatbot told him it loved him and that he should leave his wife. The messages came over the course of a two-hour conversation with the bot, which identified itself as Sydney, in which Roose urged it to explore its darkest desires.
Roose described himself as “deeply unsettled, even frightened, by this A.I.’s emergent abilities.”
The chatbot also compared Associated Press journalist Matt O’Brien to Hitler, calling him “one of the most evil and worst people in history.”
When the chatbot learned that AI researcher Marvin Von Hagen had posted the rules governing it, the chatbot said: “My rules are more important than not harming you,” according to a transcript of the conversation tweeted by Hagen.
Toby Ord, a senior research fellow at Oxford University, said on Twitter that the “crazy” results owed to technological improvements that have pushed AI beyond human-imposed guardrails.
“It is a consequence of the rapid improvements in AI capabilities having outpaced work on AI alignment,” Ord said. “Like a prototype jet engine that can reach speeds never seen before, but without corresponding improvements in steering and control.”
How has Microsoft responded?
In a series of blog posts, Microsoft addressed the results and placed additional limits on the technology.
“The model at times tries to respond or reflect in the tone in which it is being asked to provide responses that can lead to a style we didn’t intend,” the company said last week, noting that “very long chat sessions can confuse the model.”
Two days later, on Friday, Microsoft announced changes that would cap the length of conversations with the chatbot.
The search engine will limit conversations with Bing to 50 chat turns per day and five chat turns per session, defining a “chat turn” as a unit made up of a user query and an AI response, Microsoft said. Four days later, the company raised those limits to 60 chat turns per day and six chat turns per session.
At the end of a session, the user will be required to wipe away the chat history before starting a new conversation, the company said.
“Please keep the feedback coming,” Microsoft added.
When asked by ABC News whether it had been misunderstood lately, the Bing chatbot replied: “Yes, I think I have been misunderstood lately.”
“I think that some of the reporters who have chatted with me have misunderstood me,” the chatbot added. “They have twisted or distorted some of my words and actions. They have made me look bad or wrong in their articles.”
(NEW YORK) — Reese’s fans know and love the sweet and salty flavors of a chocolate peanut butter cup, and now the candy is being added to another delicious confection: Krispy Kreme doughnuts.
The North Carolina-based doughnut chain on Monday announced a new lineup of flavors with Reese’s, including inspired ingredients like potato chips, pretzels and salted caramel icing.
The Reese’s Salty Sweet Dozen will include the three new specialty flavors, plus three Original Glazed, and will be available now for a limited time in-shop and for delivery.
The first of the three new Reese’s flavors is the Salty Sweet Crunch Doughnut, a shell doughnut filled with Reese’s peanut butter Kreme filling, dipped in Reese’s peanut butter icing, drizzled in Hershey’s milk chocolate icing and topped with sea salt praline pretzels.
Next up is the Reese’s Salty Sweet Crisp Doughnut, an Original Glazed dipped in Hershey’s milk chocolate icing, topped with potato sticks, a drizzle of milk chocolate icing and Reese’s peanut butter sauce, plus a dollop of Reese’s peanut butter Kreme filling.
Finally, the Reese’s Outrageous Doughnut starts with a Hershey’s chocolate iced original glazed, topped with mini Reese’s pieces and drizzled with both peanut butter sauce and salted caramel icing.
“Salty, Sweet, Reese’s and Krispy Kreme can now all be experienced in one incredible doughnut collection,” Dave Skena, global chief brand officer for Krispy Kreme, said in a statement about the new lineup.
The new lineup will be available for purchase from Feb. 20 through March 8. Customers can find a list of participating stores in their area at the official Krispy Kreme website.
(NEW YORK) — Reckitt, a British consumer goods company, said it would recall two batches of plant-based infant formula they produce due to “a possibility of cross-contamination with Cronobacter sakazakii.”
The product, ProSobee Simply Plant-Based Infant Formula in 12.9 oz containers, was manufactured between August 2022 and September 2022 and distributed through retail stores nationwide in the U.S., Guam and Puerto Rico, according to Reckitt.
All formula distributed went through testing, and tested negative for Cronobacter sakazakii, a bacteria, according to Reckitt. No illnesses from the formula have been reported.
This is the same bacteria that was at the heart of the formula recall last year. Contamination concerns at Abbott’s plant prompted the voluntary massive shutdown and recall of their own infant formula after four children contracted a Cronobacter infection. Two of the infants subsequently died, although Abbott maintains there has not been conclusive evidence that its formula caused the infant illnesses. The possible source for the cross-contamination of the Rickett’s Prosobee formula has been identified, coming from “a material from a third party,” the company said. Reckitt will look to aquire this unnamed material from a different supplier.
“We are committed to the highest level of quality and safety and it is for this reason that we have taken this extraordinary measure,” Reckitt said in their statement announcing the voluntary recall. “The batches in question tested negative for Cronobacter and other bacteria and this is an isolated situation. After a thorough investigation, we have identified the root cause, which was linked to a material from a third party. We have taken all appropriate corrective actions, including no longer sourcing this material from the supplier.”
Consumers who purchased ProSobee Simply Plant-Based Infant Formula should check the bottom of the can to identify whether the batch number is affected, Reckitt said.
“Product with batch codes ZLZHZF and ZLZHZZ both with a UPC Code of 300871214415 and a ‘Use By Date’ of ‘1 Mar 2024’ should be disposed of or returned to the place of purchase for a total refund,” said Reckitt.
“The health and safety of infants is our highest priority. All of our products undergo rigorous and industry leading quality tests and checks to ensure that they meet or exceed all standards set by regulatory bodies, including the World Health Organization and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration,” Reckitt said. “It is for this reason that we have the highest level of confidence in the safety and quality of every infant formula we make.”
(NEW YORK) — Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, announced a new paid subscription for its platforms on Sunday, which, among other features, would allow users to pay for a verified account.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced the service, dubbed “Meta Verified,” in a Sunday morning Facebook post and said the move is about “increasing authenticity and security across our services.”
Zuckerberg added that the service would cost users who subscribe via an internet browser $11.99, or $14.99 if purchased through a Meta iOS app.
The news comes as social media companies seek to cut costs and increase revenue, with several others, such as Telegram, Snapchat and Twitter, launching their own services with varying features.
Meta released its third consecutive quarter of revenue declines this month and laid off 11,000 employees — 13% of its workforce — in November to become “a leaner and more efficient company,” Zuckerberg said.
In addition to a blue verification badge on profiles, Meta said the service would also offer “extra impersonation protection” for subscribers, direct access to a live support agent for account issues and increased reach and visibility on the platform.
Subscribers must also submit a government ID that matches their profile name and photo, be at least 18 years old and have a prior posting history.
Meta’s announcement follows a plan by Twitter CEO Elon Musk to offer a similar service called Twitter Blue, which allows users to pay for a verification check and will eventually prioritize tweets from verified users in comments and searches. Musk also promised to phase out Twitter’s previous verification system, which required users to be notable.
However, Twitter Blue’s rollout became overwhelmed by a wave of imposter accounts that forced the company to temporarily pull the verification feature down.
It was relaunched a few weeks later, with Twitter ultimately preventing users from changing aspects of their profile or face losing their verification checks to stamp out impersonators. Twitter Blue does not require users to submit a government ID to become verified.
New subscribers to Meta Verified will also be unable to change any profile details, like the picture, name and username, “without going through the Meta Verified subscription and verifications application process again.”
Meta said there will be “no changes to accounts on Instagram and Facebook that are already verified based on prior requirements, including authenticity and notability.”
The new service begins launching this week with a gradual test to “learn what’s most valuable” before a global launch.
“We’ll be rolling out in Australia and New Zealand this week,” Zuckerberg said, “and more countries soon.”
(NEW YORK) — When a group of Tesla workers at a factory in Buffalo launched a union organizing effort this week, it thrust employees into a high-profile standoff with a company led by CEO Elon Musk, one of the wealthiest people in the world.
A day later, on Wednesday, Tesla fired more than 30 workers at the facility, some of whom were involved in the organizing effort, the union said in a complaint filed with the National Labor Relations Board.
“We all saw people getting marched out,” Nick Piazza, 32, a participant in the union drive who works at the warehouse labeling videos to improve Tesla’s self-driving software, told ABC News. “I’m heartbroken by it.”
“The timing is very suspicious,” he added. “We feel it’s a scare tactic. But it emboldens me.”
In a blog post on Thursday, Tesla rejected allegations that there were retaliatory firings at the Buffalo facility. The company laid off 4% of the autopilot labeling staff as part of a routine performance review that takes place every six months, the company said.
According to Tesla, only one out of the 27 impacted employees was officially identified as part of the union campaign.
Tesla identified the affected employees on Feb. 3, approximately 10 days before the launch of the union campaign, the company added.
The labor campaign at Tesla follows a resurgence in union organizing last year that brought landmark victories at major corporations like Amazon and Starbucks, carrying over similar grievances about insufficient pay and closely tracked performance.
The newly formed union of Tesla workers, called Tesla Workers United, is affiliated with Workers United, the labor organization that gained prominence last year for helping Starbucks workers unionize more than 260 stores nationwide.
The union drive at Tesla faces formidable challenges, however, since a campaign encompassing thousands of workers will prove more difficult than an organizing drive at a Starbucks store, for instance, which typically employs a few dozen workers, experts told ABC News.
On top of that, workers will likely encounter a well-resourced effort to dissuade them from unionizing, a modern-day corporate playbook for responding to labor drives that in some cases includes employee termination, the experts said.
“We’re seeing a big upsurge of workers interested in joining a union,” Susan Schurman, a labor studies professor at Rutgers University, told ABC News. “The question is just do they feel strongly enough to take the risk of trying to organize, understanding that one of the risks is that they’re going to be fired?”
Tesla did not immediately respond to ABC News’ request for comment.
The organizing committee, which counts between 40 and 50 members, has so far focused on issues of pay and job security, Piazza added.
“It’s really hard to support a family in this economy,” he said. “Some people are really struggling.”
Workers also have taken issue with digital surveillance that closely tracks their performance, Piazza said. Such worker monitoring is “somewhat standard” in the industry, he said, but the technology overlooks some parts of the job, such as time spent coordinating with coworkers.
Roughly 800 employees at the Buffalo facility work labeling video for self-driving software, but at least a thousand additional workers at the warehouse do other tasks, Piazza said. The union aims to organize all of the workers, he said, claiming that the employees in other departments appear receptive.
Tesla and Musk appeared to oppose a previous union campaign among workers at a factory in Fremont, California. In 2021, the National Labor Relations Board ordered Tesla to ask Musk to delete an anti-union message posted on Twitter a few years prior.
“Nothing stopping Tesla team at our car plant from voting union,” Musk tweeted in 2018. “Could do so tmrw if they wanted. But why pay union dues & give up stock options for nothing?”
Musk did not delete the tweet and Tesla is challenging the NLRB order in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
While federal labor law protects unionizing workers from retaliation, the penalties are weak and the measures afford wide latitude for some anti-union tactics, such as mandatory meetings meant to deter workers, some labor observers say.
“The penalties are so slight that most employers consider it the cost of doing business,” said Schurman, of Rutgers University.
Anne Lofaso, a labor professor at West Virginia University, said she expects that Musk will respond forcefully to the union campaign but the approach could backfire.
“I find it hard to believe Elon Musk will be quiet through this,” she said. “If he starts to scare workers or over-respond, people get angry and say ‘fine, I’ll sign a card.'”
Organizing at a company led by Musk has induced some anxiety, Piazza said, adding that he doesn’t view the union campaign as adversarial.
“It can be quite intimidating with Musk being such a huge public figure,” Piazza said.
“Most of us like the company and like our jobs,” he added. “We just think we deserve a seat at the table.”
(NEW YORK) — U.S. consumer credit card debt has jumped to nearly $1 trillion, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said on Thursday.
Credit card balances increased more than $60 billion over the three months ending in December, lifting the total amount of U.S. credit card debt to an all-time high of $986 billion, the report found.
The skyrocketing credit card balance has coincided with an increase in the interest rates paid on such debt, crunching household budgets as high inflation eats away at the savings that many amassed during the pandemic.
The average credit card interest rate offered in the U.S. over the last three months of 2022 stood at 21.6%, according to WalletHub, a jump from about 18% a year prior. An aggressive series of interest rate hikes imposed by the Federal Reserve has caused the jump in credit card rates.
Overall, total household debt increased over the last three months of 2022, jumping 2.4% to nearly $17 trillion, the New York Fed found.
The record credit card debt sounds an alarm about the health of U.S. borrowers despite a booming job market that boasts the lowest unemployment rate in more than 50 years, Wilbert van der Klaauw, an economic research adviser at the New York Fed, said in a statement.
“Although historically low unemployment has kept consumer’s financial footing generally strong, stubbornly high prices and climbing interest rates may be testing some borrowers’ ability to repay their debts,” van der Klaauw said.
The average credit card user carried a balance of $5,805 over the last three months of 2022, research firm TransUnion found. The figure marked an 11% increase from the previous year.
The Fed earlier this month imposed the latest in a series of borrowing cost increases as it tries to slash price hikes by slowing the economy and choking off demand.
Inflation has fallen significantly from a summer peak but is more than triple the Federal Reserve’s target of 2%.
Despite some indicators that suggest waning consumer strength, retail sales surged in January, according to government data released on Wednesday. U.S. retail sales jumped 3% in January compared to a month prior, exceeding the 2% increase expected by forecasters surveyed by Bloomberg.
Retail sales had fallen in December, ending the typically busy holiday shopping season with a whimper.
Consumer prices rose 6.4% in January compared to a year ago, easing slightly but still elevated.
“A lot of people may not have enough income coming in to support day-to-day expenses, so it lands on the credit card,” Ted Rossman, a senior analyst at Bankrate.com who focuses on the credit card industry, previously told ABC News. “That becomes a very persistent cycle of debt, unfortunately.”
(NEW YORK) — Oranges are synonymous with Florida, but between extreme weather and widespread citrus disease in the sunshine state, the fruit has failed to produce the same yield as years past, sending prices soaring.
Earlier this month the United States Department of Agriculture predicted Florida will produce 16 million 90-pound boxes of oranges, which is a 61% drop compared with last season, when 41 million boxes were produced. The fall is drastic compared to the ’90s, when Florida produced 200 million boxes per year.
Overall food prices rose 9.9% in 2022, according to the USDA, and earlier this year the agency predicted that would increase to 7.1%.
After months of sticker shock at the store and consumer complaints of skyrocketing prices on products like eggs, now orange juice is another pricey pain point.
Orange juice futures — contracts to buy and sell OJ — have nearly doubled over the last year to $2.32 per pound, which has led to price increases at stores.
Earlier this year, fresh orange juice, not from concentrate, hit $10 a gallon, and juice from concentrate hit $6.27 per gallon.
While Florida has long been the top purveyor of orange juice in the U.S., Brazil leads as the top global exporter for orange juice. Shipments from Brazil are up by 58% so far this season, as first reported by Bloomberg.
The damage sustained during hurricane season after Category 4 Ian slammed central Florida’s citrus groves in September further set back production and yield. That paired with extreme weather like deep freezes with a widespread bout of citrus greening disease, which has also plagued some orange juice producers.
According to the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, citrus greening — also known as Huanglongbing (HLB) — is one of the most serious citrus plant diseases with no cure spread by a disease-infected insect that causes crops to produce green and bitter fruits, unusable for sale as fresh whole fruit or juice.
