WhatsApp Usernames, Google Wallet PayPal Changes, and FDA's AI Tool Elsa

WhatsApp Usernames for Enhanced Privacy

• 💬 WhatsApp is developing a usernames feature to allow users to connect without sharing phone numbers, enhancing privacy.
• 🔑 Users will be able to select unique handles, similar to Telegram and Signal, with active development of the interface and rules underway.
• 📲 Upon selection, the username will appear in chats and groups instead of the phone number, with notifications for changes.

Google Wallet PayPal Integration Discontinuation

• 💳 Google Wallet will discontinue its PayPal account integration for US users on June 13th, preventing the use of linked PayPal accounts for payments.
• 🚫 This follows Google's April decision to stop linking PayPal accounts to Google Wallet, though it does not affect German users or US users with a direct PayPal branded debit Mastercard.
• 🤔 The reason for the US-PayPal termination is unclear but coincides with PayPal's recent contactless payment feature launch in Germany.

FDA Implements Generative AI Tool Elsa

• 🤖 The FDA has implemented the generative AI tool Elsa across the agency to assist employees with tasks like clinical reviews and investigations.
• 🔬 Elsa, which completed a successful pilot program, aids in reading, writing, summarizing, label comparisons, and code generation to expedite reviews and identify inspection targets.
• 🔒 The FDA emphasizes Elsa's secure platform within Amazon Web Services GovCloud and plans for ongoing development based on employee usage.

Other Tech Headlines

• 💻 Microsoft will stop prompting Windows users in the European Economic Area to switch to Edge due to the Digital Markets Act, and users will gain the ability to uninstall the Microsoft Store.
• 🎵 TikTok has launched TikTok for Artists, a music insights platform to aid artists in career development by providing data on song and post performance, and follower demographics.
• ⚡ Meta partnered with Constellation Energy to keep an Illinois nuclear reactor running for 20 more years, a move crucial given rising US power needs from AI data centers.
• 🤝 Indeed CEO Chris Haims announced his resignation, with co-founder Hayyuki stepping back into the CEO role.
• 🎬 Google's V3 AI model, capable of generating realistic video clips, has spurred a trend on TikTok where users experiment with genuine and fabricated AI-generated content, highlighting growing deep doubt.