Latest news with #BI
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Scale AI just laid off 14% of its workforce: read the full email the interim CEO just sent employees
Scale AI just laid off 14% of its workforce. Questions have swirled about Scale AI's future in the wake of Meta's blockbuster Scale investment. Scale AI remains well-funded and is committed to growth, the company told BI in a statement. Scale AI just laid off approximately 200 full-time employees (14% of its 1,400-person workforce) and 500 contractors, according to the company. This comes after Meta invested $14 billion into Scale AI last month as part of a blockbuster AI deal that included the hiring of Scale's ex-CEO, Alexandr Wang, to lead its new Superintelligence group and the purchase of equity in almost half the data labeling startup. The company is 'restructuring' its GenAI group, according to an email from Scale's interim CEO, Jason Droege, obtained by Business Insider. The GenAI organization is a core part of Scale that manages its work on some of the best-known AI chatbots like xAI's Grok and Google's Gemini. The move was abrupt, one source told BI, with employees shut out of systems and deactivated from Slack even before they woke up. Questions about Scale AI's long-term sustainability have swirled since Meta's investment, with some of Scale's biggest clients like Google abruptly halting projects in the wake of the deal. The company has also faced questions around the security practices of its training documents, as revealed through Business Insider's reporting. Scale remains well-funded and is committed to growth and hiring hundreds more employees in different sectors, the startup told BI. "As a result of this restructuring, some members of this org will be leaving Scale today," the email reads. "To ensure a smooth process and give people the necessary space, please do not come into the office." In addition to Alexandr Wang's departure, several VPs, chiefs of staff, and researchers have left Scale AI following the Meta investment, according to LinkedIn and a source. The company didn't comment on specific employee departures. Laid-off ScaleAI employees will be paid as normal through September 15, and then receive a minimum of four weeks of additional pay if they sign the company's severance agreement, per a separate email to the affected employees obtained by BI. "We're streamlining our data business to help us move faster and deliver even better data solutions to our GenAI customers," Scale AI spokesperson Joe Osborne told BI. "We also plan to make significant investments and hiring across our enterprise and government AI businesses." Here is the full email from Scale AI's CEO Jason Droege to Scale AI's GenAI employees: Hi team, Read the original article on Business Insider Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Business Insider
6 hours ago
- Business
- Business Insider
Psychologists and generational experts say there's more to the 'Gen Z Stare' than meets the eye
It's not polite to stare — especially, as it turns out, if you're Gen Z. Social media users have described the now-viral " Gen Z Stare" as a vacant, wide-eyed expression often accompanied by an awkward silence. Many of the videos say it happens during retail and customer service interactions, or in painful workplace conversations. While some say the look might reflect lagging soft skills and questionable office etiquette among Gen Zers, psychologists and generational experts told BI the phenomenon could have more to do with natural growing pains at a first job and factors unique to Gen Z's upbringing. And, they noted, intergenerational criticism isn't anything new. "Every generation critiques the generation below them," Ellen Hendriksen, a behavioral psychologist and social anxiety specialist, said. "This is nothing new." Many Gen Zers are working their first jobs Meg Jay, a clinical psychologist who has written about twentysomethings, doesn't buy the trope that Gen Z as a whole is awkward or socially inept. She said what people may be seeing with the Gen Z Stare is likely a result of Gen Zers navigating the workplace for the first time. "For most young employees, working with people of other ages and generations is new," she told BI in a statement. "Blank stares you receive from young workers may be more about not knowing what to do and not feeling confident on the job than about their trying to be (passively) aggressively Gen Z." Megan Gerhardt, a professor of leadership at Miami University and founder of said that customer service jobs, where many social media users claim to see Gen Z Stares, are commonly first gigs. Hendriksen, a parent of two Gen Zers, said the cohort might not be as up for acting "fake," which could impact their customer service interactions. "Gen Z might be less willing to do the people-pleasing part, but that means that some of the professionalism has also gotten lost," she said. Growing up online could play a part Many factors could be at play in what Gerhardt calls the emerging "norm shift," including the fact that Gen Z tends to spend more time on screens. "The idea that now that I'm in a face-to-face customer service situation, and I'm supposed to rally an entirely different set of expressions and responses — that might not be something that Gen Z is either used to understanding or has learned yet," she said. Gerhardt said it's naive to "underestimate" the impact the COVID-19 shutdowns could have had on young people's development, but Jay said she doesn't buy into the notion that Gen Zers are "damaged or stunted" because of the pandemic. Hendriksen thinks the wordless Gen Z Stare could also be a real-world echo of a now-common digital experience: In a Zoom meeting, one person may say hello, only to have nobody respond because they're all muted. "Meet them where they're at" The three experts told BI that regardless of the root causes behind the stare, it's crucial to equip young people with the communication skills they need to thrive in an in-person, multigenerational workforce. "With respect to the workplace, nearly half of Gen Zers think they don't have the skills that workplaces want—and they're right," Jay said. Universities, she added, generally don't teach students crucial workplace abilities like communication and professionalism. Hendriksen agreed that there's a "skills deficit" for Gen Zers in the customer service and retail space, in part because of the pandemic,but said that the group isn't a monolith. It's normal for norms around professionalism and etiquette to shift, Gerhardt said, but it's more productive to work with young people on striking the right tone than to try to mock them. "If we want to make sure that we don't lose this personal touch, then let's meet them where they're at," she said. "Let's invest in helping them understand why that's important and see what they need to get where their bosses or customers feel like they need to go." Generational critique isn't anything new When any new generation has entered the workforce, they've needed to get up to speed on a set of skills, said Gerhardt. The viral criticism of the so-called Gen Z Stare reminds her of the " millennial pause" phenomenon and feels like the "latest iteration of generational shaming." There's been no dearth of criticism targeting various generations — whether it's that boomers are selfish, or that millennials are snowflakes whose avocado toast addiction is to blame for their finances. Now, it's Gen Z's turn. "Our culture loves to make fun of young adults and how unequipped they supposedly are," Jay said.
Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
'Black Swan' author Nassim Taleb tells BI he agrees with Elon Musk on debt, saying a 'crisis' is looming
"The Black Swan" author Nassim Taleb spoke to BI about tariffs, Elon Musk, dollar woes, and crypto. Taleb raised the prospect of a "debt crisis" fueled by America's runaway deficit spending. He rang the alarm on the national debt and was dismissive of bitcoin even as it hit record highs. Elon Musk is right to worry about America's debt problem — and bitcoin is no more valuable than a flower, author Nassim Nicholas Taleb said in a wide-ranging interview with Business Insider. Taleb popularized the term "Black Swan" to refer to rare, extreme, unexpected events that are seen as less surprising in hindsight. He's a distinguished scientific advisor to Universa Investments, a "Black Swan" hedge fund that manages over $20 billion in client assets and specializes in hedging against "tail risks" — rare and extreme market events. Taleb spoke about Donald Trump's tariff fights, Musk's deficit angst, declining trust in the US dollar, and why he remains deeply skeptical of bitcoin even as it rises to new highs. Debt spiral Taleb told BI there's "plenty of risk" but it's "not necessarily linked to things you read in the paper every day." He singled out the US federal debt, which has more than tripled to around $37 trillion within the past 25 years, and is set to rise further with Trump's "big, beautiful bill" forecast to add another $3 trillion at least over the next decade. The US government paid $881 billion of interest on its debt in fiscal 2024 — more than the $865 billion it spent on Medicare or its $850 billion outlay on defense, per the Congressional Budget Office. "We have enormously burdenous debt," Taleb said. "Elon's quite justified to be upset with the two-party system," he added, nodding to the Tesla CEO and ex-DOGE boss who formed an "America Party" after falling out with Trump over his bill. Concerns about America's debt, and other factors, including Trump's tariffs, have fueled a roughly 10% decline in the dollar against a basket of global currencies this year. Taleb said the dollar "ceased to be the reserve currency" when the US said it would freeze assets with ties to the Russian government following the country's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Many people were "uncomfortable" at what they perceived to be an overreach, Taleb said, adding this prompted several central banks to swap dollars for gold, contributing to a broader de-dollarization trend. Taleb added that Trump was "antagonizing" US trade partners with import taxes. He told BI that he has "nothing against tariffs in principle," but the president's use of them to strike deals is "not very coherent and spooks the rest of the world." Deteriorating trust in the dollar and America is "bad because we have to borrow and we don't want a debt crisis," Taleb said, pointing to soaring interest costs that make the debt a "source of fragility." Crypto critique Taleb has been a vocal critic of bitcoin for years, calling it a "cult," a "tumor," and a "magnet for imbeciles." Speaking as it continued to hit record highs of more than $120,000, Taleb told BI that bitcoin was an "electronic tulip" — a reference to the Dutch Tulip Bubble in the 17th century that saw a speculative frenzy lift the price of tulips to eye-watering levels. Taleb again said that bitcoin "cannot be a currency," highlighting its volatility and crypto fans' desire for it to keep rising, when stability is core to being a reliable medium of exchange. He also questioned how the coin could be widely adopted when many governments would be loath to undermine their currencies by supporting it. Read the original article on Business Insider Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Inside a worsening threat: Russia's one-way attack drones packed with thermobaric bombs
Russia has been packing thermobaric warheads in its Iranian-designed Shahed drones and homemade variants. Ukrainians on the front lines of efforts to protect civilians told BI the threat is getting worse. One soldier said the warheads are getting bigger, while a first responder said they're being used more frequently. Russia is packing its one-way attack drones with thermobaric warheads, and Ukrainians dealing with this deadly challenge say the threat is getting worse. An air defender says the warheads are getting bigger, while a first responder said they're showing up more frequently. Oleksiy, the deputy commander of a Territorial Defense Forces mobile air defense unit operating near Kyiv, told Business Insider that Russia has been equipping its Shahed-style drones with thermobaric warheads for quite some time now. What's changing, though, is the size of the warhead, among other things. He said that the explosive payload has grown from 40 kilograms (90 pounds) to 90 kilograms (nearly 200 pounds). "Accordingly, the destructive force is much greater," he said. Oleksiy shared that his unit, which operates truck-mounted machine guns, has not yet shot down the larger thermobaric drones, but he said they started to appear in Ukrainian military reports at the end of last year. A thermobaric munition, also known as a vacuum bomb, disperses an aerosol cloud of explosive material and then ignites it, causing a large fireball and a devastating blast wave while sucking out the surrounding oxygen. These destructive and controversial weapons cause high-temperature blasts that can run hotter than 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit and last longer than typical explosions. The intense pressure and heat can destroy fortified buildings and cause severe injuries and death, especially in enclosed spaces. A first responder in Ukraine's State Emergency Services, who asked not to be identified for security reasons, explained to BI that the "thermobaric warheads are much more deadly and destructive" than standard explosives. The first responder said they were not aware of larger warheads, but they shared that Russia has been using the drones with thermobaric payloads more frequently than before. They said these weapons can burn "everything" around them. Oleksiy said the thermobaric munitions can destroy everything from small homes to multi-story buildings. BI could not independently verify all of the details of the two Ukrainian accounts. Russia's defense ministry and its embassy in the US did not respond to requests for comment on the allegations. Russia's military has been accused of deploying thermobaric weapons since the early days of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Kyiv and the UK have specifically called out the use of the TOS-1A, an armored multiple rocket launcher that can fire munitions with thermobaric warheads. Britain's defense ministry previously said that the Russian military used this weapon in its wars in Afghanistan and Chechnya. Kateryna Stepanenko, the Russia deputy team lead at the Institute for the Study of War, a US think tank, said that Moscow began to integrate thermobaric warheads into Shahed drones at scale last summer and fall, enabling these weapons to "inflict more damage on buildings." Stepanenko told BI that Russia used Shaheds with thermobaric warheads in an attack on civilian infrastructure in Kharkiv last week and that Russian sourcing suggests Moscow is also using these bombs against Ukrainian military targets along the front lines. While the use of thermobaric warheads is not new, Russia continues to adapt the ways it delivers these strikes, she said. "The integration of thermobaric warheads onto cheaply made drones may allow Russia to increase the number of strikes that previously would've required a larger and more detectable system, such as TOS-1," Stepanenko said, adding that "the Russians are also trying to make these strikes more precise." Earlier this month, the Ukrainian military said that it carried out a long-range attack on a Russian factory making thermobaric warheads for Shahed drones, possibly reflecting Kyiv's efforts to curb this threat. The assessment comes as Russia has stepped up its attacks with the notorious Shahed-136, an Iranian-designed drone that Moscow now mass-produces in its own factories. Shaheds, also known as loitering munitions because they can linger above a target before attacking it, travel at slower speeds than cruise or ballistic missiles. The drones, however, are much cheaper, allowing Russia to use them for large-scale bombardments. In recent weeks, Russia has staged massive attacks against Ukraine with hundreds of missiles and drones, including Shaheds and decoy systems intended to exhaust Kyiv's limited air defense stockpiles. Just on Tuesday, for instance, Ukraine's air force said Russia attacked with nearly 270 Shahed and decoy drones, adding that two-thirds of the munitions were shot down. Read the original article on Business Insider
Business Insider
11 hours ago
- Politics
- Business Insider
Inside a worsening threat: Russia's one-way-attack drones packed with thermobaric bombs
Russia is packing its deadly one-way attack drones with thermobaric warheads, and Ukrainians dealing with this deadly challenge say the threat is getting worse. An air defender says the warheads are getting bigger, while a first responder said they're showing up more frequently. Oleksiy, the deputy commander of a Territorial Defense Forces mobile air defense unit operating near Kyiv, told Business Insider that Russia has been equipping its Shahed-style drones with thermobaric warheads for quite some time now. What's changing, though, is the size of the warhead, among other things. He said that the explosive payload has grown from 40 kilograms (90 pounds) to 90 kilograms (nearly 200 pounds). "Accordingly, the destructive force is much greater," he said. Oleksiy shared that his unit, which operates truck-mounted machine guns, has not yet shot down the larger thermobaric drones, but he said they started to appear in Ukrainian military reports at the end of last year. A thermobaric munition, also known as a vacuum bomb, disperses an aerosol cloud of explosive material and then ignites it, causing a large fireball and a devastating blast wave while sucking out the surrounding oxygen. These destructive and controversial weapons cause high-temperature blasts that can run hotter than 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit and last longer than typical explosions. The intense pressure and heat can destroy fortified buildings and cause severe injuries and death, especially in enclosed spaces. A first responder in Ukraine's State Emergency Services, who asked not to be identified for security reasons, explained to BI that the "thermobaric warheads are much more deadly and destructive" than standard explosives. The first responder said they were not aware of larger warheads, but they shared that Russia has been using the drones with thermobaric payloads more frequently than before. They said these weapons can burn "everything" around them. Oleksiy said the thermobaric munitions can destroy everything from small homes to multi-story buildings. BI could not independently verify all of the details of the two Ukrainian accounts. Russia's defense ministry and its embassy in the US did not respond to requests for comment on the allegations. Russia's military has been accused of deploying thermobaric weapons since the early days of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Kyiv and the UK have specifically called out the use of the TOS-1A, an armored multiple rocket launcher that can fire munitions with thermobaric warheads. Britain's defense ministry previously said that the Russian military used this weapon in its wars in Afghanistan and Chechnya. Kateryna Stepanenko, the Russia deputy team lead at the Institute for the Study of War, a US think tank, said that Moscow began to integrate thermobaric warheads into Shahed drones at scale last summer and fall, enabling these weapons to "inflict more damage on buildings." Stepanenko told BI that Russia used Shaheds with thermobaric warheads in an attack on civilian infrastructure in Kharkiv last week and that Russian sourcing suggests Moscow is also using these bombs against Ukrainian military targets along the front lines. While the use of thermobaric warheads is not new, Russia continues to adapt the ways it delivers these strikes, she said. "The integration of thermobaric warheads onto cheaply made drones may allow Russia to increase the number of strikes that previously would've required a larger and more detectable system, such as TOS-1," Stepanenko said, adding that "the Russians are also trying to make these strikes more precise." Earlier this month, the Ukrainian military said that it carried out a long-range attack on a Russian factory making thermobaric warheads for Shahed drones, possibly reflecting Kyiv's efforts to curb this threat. The assessment comes as Russia has stepped up its attacks with the notorious Shahed-136, an Iranian-designed drone that Moscow now mass-produces in its own factories. Shaheds, also known as loitering munitions because they can linger above a target before attacking it, travel at slower speeds than cruise or ballistic missiles. The drones, however, are much cheaper, allowing Russia to use them for large-scale bombardments. In recent weeks, Russia has staged massive attacks against Ukraine with hundreds of missiles and drones, including Shaheds and decoy systems intended to exhaust Kyiv's limited air defense stockpiles. Just on Tuesday, for instance, Ukraine's air force said Russia attacked with nearly 270 Shahed and decoy drones, adding that two-thirds of the munitions were shot down.
