TCS Cuts Pay 💸, Blinkit Orders 🔎, WhatsApp Bans 🚨

Catch up on the latest in tech, business and startups - all in 5 minutes. [Newsletter Banner] Daily News Roundup Welcome to today's edition of the NextBigWhat Daily News! Today's top stories include TCS pay cuts, Blinkit's highest order, and WhatsApp account bans. 📰 Help us reach your your friends and colleagues! Share the NextBigWhat newsletter. [Tweet it]( [Whatsapp]( TCS allegedly halts pay for 900 employees and forces relocation of 2000 workers - The IT employees union NITES has filed a complaint against TCS for allegedly forcing around 2000 employees to relocate without proper consultation. - TCS is also accused of stopping the salaries of 900 employees who failed to comply with the company’s transfer policies. - The labour department of Maharashtra has asked TCS to present its stance on the matter in a joint meeting on January 18. Blinkit records highest New Year’s Eve order from Lucknow - Quick-commerce and food delivery companies experienced record high orders on New Year’s Eve, with Blinkit surpassing its total orders from the previous year by 5:15 PM. - Blinkit’s CEO, Albinder Dhindsa, revealed the largest party order, worth ₹33,683, came from Lucknow. - Other companies like Swiggy and Zepto also reported a significant increase in orders, with Zomato delivering nearly as many orders as it did from 2015 to 2020 combined. Transform your 2024 : Build winning habits ! [NBW Newsletter Ad]( 50% Launch Discount ! Win your 2024 🚀 "Show me your habits and I'll show you your future" Reset and Build Better Habits for 2024​! 21-days email based course, No app to download 😎 [Enroll 👊]( Streaming service cancellations rise as Netflix, Amazon, and Disney increase prices - The rate of customers cancelling multiple streaming subscriptions has risen due to price hikes and stricter account sharing policies. - In the US, 6.3% of subscribers cancelled major streaming services in November 2023, up from 5.1% a year earlier. - Some users, known as ‘serial churners’, frequently subscribe and cancel streaming accounts, rather than maintaining continuous subscriptions. AI tools save US sales professionals over two hours daily, says survey - Artificial intelligence (AI) is helping US sales professionals save over two hours daily by automating tasks like scheduling and note-taking. - 31% of sales workers use generative AI tools like ChatGPT for writing sales content and outreach messages. - The extra time saved allows sales teams to focus more on the human aspect of their job, such as connecting with customers and closing deals. Be the smartest thinker in the room with BigIdeas app (delivers bite-sized ideas from world's best podcasts, books.) [App Store]( [Google Play]( OpenAI shifts regulatory responsibility to Irish entity to mitigate EU data privacy risks - OpenAI has transferred services such as ChatGPT for EEA and Swiss residents to its Irish entity, OpenAI Ireland Limited, to reduce regulatory risk in the EU. - The Dublin-based subsidiary will act as the data controller for users in the EEA and Switzerland, where GDPR is in force, starting from February 15, 2024. - OpenAI’s move could potentially slow the pace of GDPR enforcement on the rapidly advancing tech, as the Irish Data Protection Commission may become its lead supervisor. WhatsApp bans 71 lakh accounts in India due to online scams - WhatsApp banned 71 lakh accounts in India in November 2023, largely due to a rise in online scams. - The company also proactively banned 19,54,000 accounts before receiving user reports, and received 8,841 complaint reports in November. - In a separate development, Android users will no longer be able to backup their chats for free, impacting their Google Drive storage limits. ED conducts new raids in mobile app loan case involving Chinese-owned firms - The Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted fresh searches against two companies and individuals linked to them, part of a money laundering investigation against Chinese-owned entities lending money via mobile apps. - The raids targeted Shinebay Technology India Private Limited (STIPL), Mpurse Services Private Limited (MSPL) and others, which were accused of charging exorbitant interest rates and harassing borrowers. - The money laundering case originates from police FIRs in Karnataka and Telangana, with Rs 1.30 crore in cash and incriminating documents seized during the searches. Twitter/X reintroduces headlines in link previews with a new, smaller format - Twitter/X has reintroduced headlines to link previews in a smaller format, replacing the website name which is now moved to a new line. - The change is currently only visible on the web, but is expected to expand to the iOS app soon. - The decision to bring back headlines came after Elon Musk highlighted the issue with removing them from previews in a context-less post. US Department of Justice drops second trial against Sam Bankman-Fried - The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has dropped a second trial against Sam Bankman-Fried, who was previously found guilty of seven charges related to a fraud scheme at crypto exchange FTX. - The dropped charges include conspiracy to bribe foreign officials, bank fraud, operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business, securities fraud, and commodities fraud. - The DOJ cited a strong public interest in a prompt resolution and potential extradition delays in The Bahamas as reasons for dropping the second trial. Microsoft quietly launches Copilot AI assistant app on Android - Microsoft has launched a dedicated app for its Copilot AI assistant on the Play Store, featuring OpenAI’s GPT-4 and DALL-E 3 models. - The app allows users to ask the AI chatbot questions, create images, and write content, with the DALL-E 3 model handling ‘imaginative’ queries. - Originally debuted for desktop computers, the Copilot app is now available for Android users for free, providing an alternative to Bing Chat’s AI plugins. Samsung to unveil Galaxy S24 series on January 17 - Samsung’s Unpacked event, scheduled for January 17, will reveal the new Galaxy S24 mobile flagship. - The S24 series, including S24, S24+ and S24 Ultra, are expected to feature 6.2-, 6.7- and 6.8-inch displays respectively, with the Ultra model boasting a 200-megapixel sensor. - Despite being powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip, leaked prices suggest a lower price point in Europe, potentially benefiting buyers globally. OpenAI employee highlights effective communication as key skill for future tech industry - Logan Kilpatrick, an OpenAI staff member, emphasizes the importance of effective human communication skills over technical skills like prompt engineering. - He suggests that understanding and interacting with Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) may rely more on human-centric abilities. - Kilpatrick’s perspective challenges traditional notions about the technical skills required in the tech industry, underscoring the enduring importance of foundational communication skills. © 2023 Zakti Techmedia Pvt. Ltd. All rights reserved. | [Unsubscribe](