>>White House Tackles Excessive Bank Overdraft Fees
(Washington, DC) -- The White House is tackling hidden junk fees. Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a briefing yesterday that the new rule would banish excessive overdraft fees. The new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau proposal would cut average overdraft fees by over half, saving families an average of 150-dollars a year. The Biden administration is promising not to allow banks to "rip off" Americans, according to Jean-Pierre. She touted Americans' satisfaction with the economy, citing an Axios poll that shows 62-percent of U.S. citizens are optimistic about their finances, and 85-percent believe their financial situation will improve this year.
>>Court Bans Apple Watch Imports In US
(New York, NY) -- Apple Watch imports in the United States are once again technically banned. A filing shows that a federal appeals court has denied Apple's motion to temporarily pause the ban while it appeals a U.S. International Trade Commission ruling. That ruling stopped Apple from importing the Series 9 and Ultra 2 watches because they violate patents registered to a different company. But the tech giant has a workaround: it has approval from U.S. Customs and Border Protection to continue bringing in a redesigned version of the newest Apple Watches from overseas.
>>Former Meta COO Leaving Board
(Menlo Park, CA) -- Former Meta Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg will be leaving the company's board of directors. She posted on Facebook Wednesday that she will not be seeking re-election to the post in May. Sandberg joined Facebook, now Meta, back in 2008 after seven years at Google. >>Airbnb Creating Housing Council (Undated) -- Airbnb is creating a panel to help address the affordable housing crisis. The company announced Wednesday the formation of the Housing Council, which is made up of housing experts and chaired by the former mayor of Baltimore Stephanie Rawlings-Blake. The council will advise Airbnb on how the company can support initiatives that work to increase America's housing supply and drive down prices.
>>Apps For AI Generated Girlfriends Are Increasing
(New York, NY) -- It has been a week since the opening of OpenAI's GPT store and already users are breaking the rules and creating, "companions." A search for "girlfriend" on the new GPT store will populate the site's results bar with at least eight "girlfriend" AI chatbots. The company bans apps dedicated to fostering romantic companionship. In the US, seven of the 30 AI chatbot apps downloaded last year from the Apple or Google store were related to AI friends, girlfriends, or companions, according to data.ai. The proliferation of these apps comes as the US faces an epidemic of loneliness and isolation, with the Surgeon General calling for the need to strengthen social connections, and AI chatbots could be part of the solution.
