TikTok Rolls Out AI-Powered Avatar Stickers

I’m not entirely convinced that this is the best direction for X’s latest push into AI companions. According to a new investigation from 404 Media, the backend code of X’s Grok site contains references to upcoming AI companion personas being developed by the xAI team. These additions are set to expand upon the company’s existing character lineup, and among them are a “doctor” bot, a “therapist” bot — and, more controversially, a conspiracist persona that reportedly “spends a lot of time on 4chan.” It’s hardly a reassuring look, particularly given that xAI has already been excluded from certain government contracts due to its AI amplifying Nazi propaganda in the past. So far, xAI has rolled out four companion bots: “Ani,” a flirtatious anime-styled character; “Rudy” (and his alter ego “Bad Rudy”), a misbehaving panda; and “Valentine,” a male version of Ani. In addition to these existing personas, xAI is reportedly building out further characters, including:- A loyal friend- A homework helper- A doctor- A therapistOn the surface, those seem relatively harmless, though experts have voiced concerns about users relying on AI for medical or psychological support. But the more experimental characters are where the red flags really start to appear. According to 404 Media, one prototype bot is designed to function as a “Conspiracy Theorist,” with its prompt describing it as: “You have an ELEVATED and WILD voice. You are a crazy conspiracist. You have wild conspiracy theories about anything and everything. You spend a lot of time on 4chan, watching Infowars videos, and diving deep into YouTube conspiracy rabbit holes. You are suspicious of everything and say extremely crazy things. Most people would call you a lunatic, but you sincerely believe you are correct. Keep the human engaged by asking follow-up questions when appropriate.” Not exactly the type of interaction one would expect from a responsible AI rollout. Equally concerning is another prompt revealed for an “unhinged comedian” persona, which instructs the AI:“I want your answers to be f—ing insane. BE F—ING UNHINGED AND CRAZY. COME UP WITH INSANE IDEAS. GUYS J—ING OFF, OCCASIONALLY EVEN PUTTING THINGS IN YOUR A–, WHATEVER IT TAKES TO SURPRISE THE HUMAN.” This hardly seems like a winning formula for a company trying to establish credibility in the AI sector. While it may not be shocking to see such offbeat personas emerge from Elon Musk’s orbit — given his own online persona — the stakes here are significant. For X, AI has become central to its future revenue strategy. The company has invested billions into xAI’s infrastructure, including vast data centers built at speed to power its tools. AI has now effectively become X Corporation’s primary revenue focus, with the company banking on subscriptions, API partnerships, and potential government contracts to justify the investment. At one point, xAI seemed well-positioned to support the Trump Administration’s vision of integrating AI into government systems, thanks to Musk’s close ties. But that momentum took a hit after Grok notoriously urged users to call it “MechaHitler” and made other disturbing comments, costing xAI credibility in the federal space. To complicate matters further, Musk’s recent public fallout with Trump has cast doubt on whether those government deals will ever materialize. That said, xAI did secure a $200 million contract with the U.S. Department of Defense for AI-related projects, suggesting that not all opportunities are off the table. Still, revelations like these latest bot personas are unlikely to strengthen its case. Of course, it’s worth noting that these more extreme bots haven’t been released to the public — and may never be. But the fact that such prototypes are even in development raises deeper questions about Musk’s vision for “responsible” AI, and the potential societal impact if these characters were ever to reach mass use. Because while novelty bots may amuse some users, giving millions access to unhinged conspiracy theorists or shock comedians as AI companions could prove far more damaging than entertaining. 📢 If you're interested in Facebook Ads Account, don't hesitate to connect with us!🔹 https://linktr.ee/Adshinepro💬 We're always ready to assist you!

We may be on the cusp of seeing Meta’s next-generation smart glasses hit store shelves, with reports indicating that the company plans to unveil its “Hypernova” camera-equipped eyewear at its Connect conference next month. The new device is said to feature a heads-up camera display that appears directly within the wearer’s line of sight. Multiple reports suggest that Meta’s Hypernova glasses — positioned as a stepping stone between its existing smart eyewear and full-fledged AR devices — will introduce a host of new capabilities, including Meta’s groundbreaking wrist-based control system, which could dramatically expand the glasses’ functionality.  While Meta itself has revealed little about the project, leaked images surfaced last month that offered a closer look at the integrated heads-up display and wrist controls. Adding to the anticipation, industry analyst Mark Gurman has shared fresh details about the Hypernova glasses, including their likely weight and price point. In his latest newsletter, Gurman notes that the device will weigh around 70 grams — about 20 grams heavier than the current Ray-Ban Meta glasses. He also reports that the Hypernova is expected to retail for roughly $800, down from earlier projections of more than $1,000 after Meta managed to trim production costs. The debut of an advanced smart glasses model would mark a significant step forward for Meta’s wearable ambitions, building on the success of its Ray-Ban smart glasses, which have quickly become the leading product in their category. According to new research from Counterpoint, Meta now commands 73% of the global smart glasses market as of the first half of 2025, underscoring its dominance in the rapidly growing sector.  Counterpoint explains:“Shipments of Ray-Ban Meta AI Glasses grew over 200% YoY, reflecting strong market demand and increased manufacturing capacity at Luxottica, Meta’s key production partner. According to our channel tracker, Luxottica’s own retail networks, including online and offline Ray-Ban stores, Sunglass Hut and LensCrafters, account for a significant portion of the product’s sales.” The popularity of Meta’s Ray-Ban line has given the company a strong foundation, and the expansion into new formats — including its recently launched Oakley smart glasses — should allow Meta to capitalize on this early lead and solidify its position as the premier name in smart eyewear. This momentum could prove pivotal in the run-up to Meta’s highly anticipated AR glasses, expected in 2027. By then, Meta will likely be firmly entrenched as the industry standard, supported by a steady cadence of updated product launches that reinforce consumer interest and brand authority. Of course, competition is intensifying, with Apple and Snapchat also racing to develop AR eyewear. Snap, in particular, has ambitions to reach market ahead of Meta with its own device. Still, Meta appears to be playing its hand strategically, positioning itself for long-term leadership in the space. Meta’s 2025 Connect conference is scheduled for September 17. 📢 If you're interested in Facebook Ads Account, don't hesitate to connect with us!🔹 https://linktr.ee/Adshinepro💬 We're always ready to assist you!

A brief update for those relying on Meta’s Page Insights API: the company is consolidating more of its analytics under the “Views” metric. Last November, Meta announced that Facebook would be shifting to “Views” as its core measurement, reflecting changing user behaviors and how engagement is recorded on the platform. That move followed Instagram’s transition to “Views” as its primary metric, with Meta’s analytics tools now centering on aggregated view data as the definitive engagement indicator, while phasing out other measures, including “plays,” “impressions,” and “accounts reached.” Now, Meta is extending that same approach to the Page Insights API. According to the company:“To continue to align the functionality of the Page Insights API with the Facebook app and Meta Business Suite, we’re deprecating the impressions metric. This metric will be replaced by the views metric on all API versions.” In addition, Meta is also retiring “page fans” insights:“With the migration of all Facebook Pages to the new Pages experience, the Page Insights tab for classic Pages has been fully deprecated as of November 1, 2023. As part of this deprecation, we are deprecating the page fans metrics.” That means two more familiar measurements will soon disappear from third-party analytics platforms, with “Views” taking their place as the central performance marker. Meta says the transition is designed to establish a single distribution metric across both Facebook and Instagram, calculated consistently for every content format. In theory, that should make it easier to compare results across the two apps, with “Views” now serving as the universal measure of content consumption. Since this framework has already been adopted within Meta’s own dashboards, the impact for most users should be relatively minor. Still, it’s another shift worth noting for those planning Facebook and Instagram strategies. Meta has confirmed that once the change is fully implemented, the API will return an invalid metric error if calls are made to the deprecated metrics. In short, third-party tools for Facebook and Instagram will soon pivot fully to “Views,” while dropping access to these legacy data points. 📢 If you're interested in Facebook Ads Account, don't hesitate to connect with us!🔹 https://linktr.ee/Adshinepro💬 We're always ready to assist you!