
Paramount Global's Naveen Chopra joins Roblox as finance head
Paramount Global's finance head Naveen Chopra will leave to take on a similar role at video gaming firm Roblox, the companies said on Monday.
The move comes as Paramount is seeking to close its $8.4 billion merger with Skydance Media, which is pending approval from the U.S. Federal Communications Commission.
Andrew Warren, currently Paramount's strategic advisor to the office of the CEO, will take over as interim CFO, the company said.
Chopra succeeds Michael Guthrie at Roblox, which is experiencing increased engagement on its platform from its vast Gen Z user base.
Guthrie announced last year that he would be stepping down as CFO to pursue personal interests.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


CNA
an hour ago
- CNA
CNA938 Rewind - US-China talks in London
CNA938 Rewind The U.S and China are set to resume trade talks in London on June 9. U.S Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer will meet with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng. It's the second round of such negotiations between the world's two biggest economies. Andrea Heng and Hairianto Diman speak with Chris Humphrey, Executive Director, EU-ASEAN Business Council, on the issues coming out from the meeting.


CNA
an hour ago
- CNA
Kennedy dismisses entire US CDC vaccine panel, replacing all 17 members
WASHINGTON: Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr has fired all members sitting on a US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention panel of vaccine experts and is reconstituting the committee, his department said on Monday (Jun 9). Kennedy removed all 17 members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, the Department of Health and Human Services said in a statement, and is in the process of considering new members to replace them. "Today we are prioritising the restoration of public trust above any specific pro- or anti-vaccine agenda," Kennedy said. "The public must know that unbiased science - evaluated through a transparent process and insulated from conflicts of interest - guides the recommendations of our health agencies." Kennedy claimed that ACIP is rife with conflicts and has never turned down a vaccine, but the decision to approve vaccines rests with the US Food and Drug Administration. ACIP provides guidance to the CDC on which groups of people would most benefit from an already-approved vaccine, and when they should get it. "That's a tragedy," former FDA Chief Scientist Jesse Goodman said of the firings. "This is a highly professional group of scientists and physicians and others ... It's the kind of political meddling that will reduce confidence rather than increase confidence." Shares of vaccine makers Moderna and US-listed shares of BioNTech fell more than 1 per cent, while Pfizer was down marginally in extended trading on Monday. Kennedy, who for many years has questioned the safety and efficacy of vaccines, making claims contrary to scientific evidence, said most ACIP members receive funding from drugmakers. But ACIP members are required to declare any potential or perceived conflicts of interest that arise in the course of ACIP tenure and any relevant business interests, positions of authority or other connections with organisations relevant to the work of the ACIP. ACIP members are required to disclose everything as part of the application process, said one fired member who spoke on condition of anonymity, including investments and all sources of income. Kennedy and HHS provided no specific evidence of industry conflicts of interest among departing ACIP members. The CDC's web page for conflicts of interest, last updated in March, showed that one current member had recused herself from votes on a handful of vaccines because she had worked on clinical trials for their manufacturers. All 17 sitting ACIP members were appointed under former President Joe Biden's administration, including 13 in 2024, HHS said. Not removing them would have prevented President Donald Trump's administration from choosing a majority of the committee until 2028. "This is not a political committee, it's never been partisan," said Dorit Reiss, a vaccine law expert at UC Law San Francisco. "It's an expert committee. Presidents have never been involved in ACIP membership." The decision drew criticism from Democrats in Congress, and one key Republican expressed concern. "Of course, now the fear is that the ACIP will be filled up with people who know nothing about vaccines except suspicion," said Republican US Senator Bill Cassidy in a post on X. "I've just spoken with Secretary Kennedy, and I'll continue to talk with him to ensure this is not the case." Cassidy, a doctor from Louisiana who had expressed wariness about Kennedy's anti-vaccine views before clearing the path for him to become the nation's top health official, said at the time he had received assurances Kennedy would protect existing vaccination programs. ACIP will convene its next meeting Jun 25-27 at CDC headquarters in Atlanta, the department said. Once the FDA approves vaccines for sale to the public, ACIP's role is to review data in a public meeting and vote on vaccine recommendations, which are then sent to the CDC director to sign off. The Affordable Care Act generally requires insurers to cover vaccines that are listed on the CDC vaccine schedules for adults and children. The recommendations also determine which vaccines the CDC's Vaccines for Children program will provide free of charge to those without insurance.


CNA
3 hours ago
- CNA
US State Department cable says agency using AI to help staff job panels
WASHINGTON :The U.S. State Department will use an artificial intelligence chatbot to help it select the people who will perform annual reviews of promotions and moves, according to a cable issued Monday and reviewed by Reuters. The cable said that StateChat, an in-house chatbot which works using technology from Palantir and Microsoft, will be employed to pick foreign service officers for participation on the Foreign Service Selection Boards, the annual evaluation panels which decide whether and how to promote and shuffle around State Department employees. In a statement, a department spokesperson said the evaluations themselves "will not be done by AI." The boards, whose role is governed by the 1980 Foreign Service Act, play a critical role in the State Department's personnel promotion decisions, managing the annual process by which diplomats and others jump from one professional grade to the next. By statute, the boards are meant to include "a substantial number of women and members of minority groups." The State Department has been using StateChat since last year to transcribe notes, draft emails, and analyze diplomatic cables. Last week the agency's acting chief data and AI officer, Amy Ritualo, told a Palantir conference that StateChat had about 40,000 users across her agency. The program's role in the human resources process, however, has not previously been disclosed. Last month the State Department abruptly postponed the boards, and previously selected members received emails saying their services were no longer required. Monday's cable said that StateChat's technology would instead be used to "perform unbiased selection" for the boards based on employees' internally adjudicated skill codes and grades. That list would then be screened - for example for disciplinary and security issues - before being used to create the panels. There was no mention of female or minority representation. President Donald Trump's administration has repeatedly attacked what Republicans refer to as "DEI," a catch-all term covering work protecting civil rights, fighting discrimination, and boosting diversity. The American Foreign Service Association, which represents State Department employees, did not directly comment on the use of AI but said it was seeking clarification from agency leadership about how it intends to comply with its legal obligations around women and minority group representation. Palantir and Microsoft didn't immediately return messages. Although the deployment of AI by officials precedes Trump's reelection in 2024, his administration has aggressively expanded its use since his return to power. Last month Reuters reported that tech tycoon Elon Musk's U.S. DOGE Service was expanding its use of the AI chatbot Grok across the U.S. federal government. In April, Reuters reported that Trump administration officials had told some U.S. government employees that DOGE was using AI to monitor at least one federal agency's communications for hostility to the president.