social media companies

Meta has blocked Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva's Facebook page and campaign advertising just two weeks before Brazil's election. The restriction, affecting a sitting head of state's official channels at a critical moment in the campaign, is drawing widespread attention and debate about platform power over political speech in Brazil.

The United States has filed to formally intervene in the European Union's regulatory decision concerning Elon Musk's social media platform X, according to the Wall Street Journal. The move escalates a transatlantic dispute over the EU's handling of the platform, which has faced scrutiny under the bloc's content moderation rules. The intervention signals rising tension between Washington and Brussels over digital regulation of American tech companies.

Meta has launched Muse, a new AI agent, according to reports circulating on social media. Details about what Muse does, which platforms it will run on, and how it compares to rival AI assistants have not been confirmed. Observers are watching for an official announcement from the company clarifying the product's capabilities and rollout plans.

OpenAI is paying a broad network of social media influencers to promote ChatGPT and portray the company as beneficial to the world, according to Business Insider reporting on the company's marketing strategy. The effort includes sponsored content and partnerships aimed at shaping public perception of the AI firm as it faces scrutiny over AI's societal impact.

Indonesia's government is pressing Meta to follow through on its child safety commitments while drafting regulations that would impose administrative fines on 'high-risk' platforms that fail to comply. The move signals tighter oversight of social media companies operating in Indonesia and comes amid growing global scrutiny of how platforms protect children online.

The first US trial against TikTok is set to test claims that the platform fueled a teen mental health crisis. The case will examine whether the app's design and algorithms contributed to harm among young users, and its outcome could shape the wave of similar lawsuits and regulatory pressure facing social media companies in the United States.

Australia is moving to restrict social media use, particularly among young people, as part of a broader regulatory crackdown on major platforms. Analysts are now asking whether Apple stands to gain from the shift, as users spend more time on devices and services rather than social networks. The discussion highlights how tighter platform regulation could reshape where attention and advertising money flow.

Meta stock is trading lower today, drawing attention from investors tracking big tech moves. The decline comes as traders reassess sentiment around the social media company's shares, though no single company announcement has been clearly tied to the drop. Market watchers are watching whether the weakness spreads across other mega-cap technology names.

A viral cookie chain has exited a key market and closed all of its stores there. The move signals a pullback for a brand that saw rapid, social-media-driven growth, though the company's stated reasons and which locations are affected remain unspecified in initial reports.