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24 Jan 2026, 16:10
Meta cut 1,000 Reality Labs jobs, shifting focus from VR to AI
Meta has put the brakes on its virtual reality push, causing worry among developers who built their careers around the technology that once seemed central to the company’s future plans. The social media company cut roughly 1,000 workers from its Reality Labs division last week, representing a 10% reduction in that unit’s workforce, according to CNBC. The job losses hit teams working on Quest VR headsets particularly hard. Groups developing Horizon Worlds, Meta’s social VR platform, saw significant cuts, and the company closed down some of its internal production studios. Expensive vision loses momentum Reality Labs will now concentrate more on wearable technology, such as its Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses produced in collaboration with partner EssilorLuxottica, and artificial intelligence initiatives, according to Meta. Beyond its first release, the firm declined to speak further. For a corporation that prioritized virtual reality only a few years ago, the withdrawal represents a significant shift. The current VR market began when Meta paid $2 billion to acquire Oculus in 2014. When CEO Mark Zuckerberg renamed Facebook to Meta, it signaled his commitment to building what he called the metavers e, in terconnected digital worlds where people would work and play. However, that vision has proven expensive. Reality Labs has burned through more than $70 billion in losses since late 2020. “I can see how it feels like a VR winter,” said Jessica Young, who makes content for Horizon Worlds as an independent creator. The company’s shift became clear at its Connect conference in 2025. Meta typically unveils new Quest headsets at these fall gatherings, but this time around, no VR hardware appeared. Instead, the company showed off its $799 Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses , which feature a small built-in screen. “If Meta’s not putting out a new headset for another year or two, it’s going to feel stale,” Young said. “It already kind of does.” Meta’s technology leader, Andrew Bosworth, pushed back against suggestions that the company is walking away from virtual reality entirely. “We’re still continuing to invest heavily in this space, but obviously, VR is growing less quickly than we hoped,” Bosworth tol d te ch newsletter Sources. “And so you want to make sure that your investment is right-sized. ” Bosworth also shared a post from Palmer Luckey , who co-founded Oculus, stating that Meta still has the “largest team working on VR by about an order of magnitude.” Industry faces reality check Still, market watchers see bigger changes ahead. Research firm IDC noted in a December report that the Extended Reality market, which includes VR headsets, mixed-reality devices, and smart glasses, is going through a major shift. Jitesh Ubrani, who studies the market for IDC, sai d VR headset s ap peal mainly to a narrow group of video game enthusiasts. Regular consumers haven’t embraced wearing “big, bulky headsets” for extended periods, despite predictions from tech companies about a decade ago that they would. “The market has spoken,” Ubrani said. “There are certain niche audiences that will continue to use these headsets, but it’s not going to be broadly appealing.” Andrew Eiche runs Owlchemy Labs, a VR game studio owned by Google. He sai d th e industry made a mistake by comparing VR headsets to smartphones and expecting similar mass adoption. He called this a “strategic mistake.” Eiche also criticized Meta’s heavy promotion of Horizon Worlds, saying it made life harder for outside developers trying to reach Quest users. “We’re at the mercy of Meta,” Eiche said, adding that this “creates a situation where if Meta pulls back, we all pull back.” Meta’s cutbacks included ending a program that helped businesses use Quest headsets for tasks like employee training sessions. Sean Mann, who leads startup RP1, which makes software for accessing virtual worlds, sai d Me ta missed opportunities by focusing too narrowly on gaming rather than exploring wider uses for VR technology. Young plans to keep creating for Horizon Worlds even as Meta reshapes the platform into a mobile gaming service similar to Roblox. But she’s not excited about the mobile direction, saying the VR-focused version during the pandemic era had something special that may now be lost. If you're reading this, you’re already ahead. Stay there with our newsletter .
24 Jan 2026, 15:15
Singapore commits over $778 million to AI research over next six years
div]:bg-bg-000/50 [&_pre>div]:border-0.5 [&_pre>div]:border-border-400 [&_.ignore-pre-bg>div]:bg-transparent [&_.standard-markdown_:is(p,blockquote,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6)]:pl-2 [&_.standard-markdown_:is(p,blockquote,ul,ol,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6)]:pr-8 [&_.progressive-markdown_:is(p,blockquote,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6)]:pl-2 [&_.progressive-markdown_:is(p,blockquote,ul,ol,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6)]:pr-8"> _*]:min-w-0 gap-3 standard-markdown"> Singapore said Saturday it will put more than S$1 billion ($778.8 million) into artificial intelligence research over the next six years, joining a wave of governments across Asia-Pacific pouring money into the technology. The Ministry of Digital Development and Information said the money will go toward research on making AI systems work better with less power, training people from high school through university level, and helping businesses put AI to work. The announcement, as reported by Reuters, continues a pattern of AI spending that started picking up speed in 2023. Last year, Singapore put aside S$500 million for powerful computers needed to run AI programs in both government offices and private companies. The government also committed another S$500 million to AI Singapore, a program meant to build up the country’s AI skills from the ground up. Back in 2023, researchers working through AI Singapore built a language model called Sea-Lion, short for Southeast Asian Languages in One Network. As reported by Cryptopolitan earlier, the project cost S$70 million, and companies like Indonesia’s GoTo started using it. The team put out an updated version in October 2025 that works with Qwen, a system from China’s Alibaba, and handles languages spoken across the region, including Burmese, Filipino, Indonesian, Malay, Tamil, Thai, and Vietnamese. Region-wide push for AI dominance Australia put out its National AI Plan 2025 in December, setting up an AI Safety Institute and laying out plans to build more infrastructure and train workers. Japan moved earlier, passing a law in May 2025 to encourage AI research and development. The law created an AI Strategic Headquarters led by the prime minister. India joined in during November 2025, publishing official guidance on AI that marks the country’s shift toward formal rules on how the technology should be used. The rush of government action comes as companies worldwide spend heavily on AI. American firms, not counting the ones building AI systems, spent about $86 billion on the technology in 2025, according to market research. That number is expected to jump to $131 billion in 2026. But investors are getting pickier about where they put their money. They’re starting to see a difference between companies spending billions to build AI and companies selling the equipment and services those builders need. The ones providing infrastructure are starting to look like safer bets. Claim your free seat in an exclusive crypto trading community - limited to 1,000 members.
24 Jan 2026, 14:59
Fake AI video of Nepal politicians sparks disinformation fears ahead of snap election
In front of the nation’s impending snap election on March 5, a fake movie featuring three prominent politicians from Nepal has revealed how AI is being used as a weapon. The video, which was entirely computer-generated, depicted former Kathmandu mayor Balendra Shah, former head of the electricity sector Kulman Ghising, and leader of the Rastriya Swatantra Party Rabi Lamichhane walking together. Many people thought a new political alliance was emerging when the video went viral on the internet. However, because the entire encounter was computer-generated, the three politicians never really met. Audio forgeries spread through social networks The fake video represents just one example of AI-manufactured content now saturating Nepal’s digital spaces as the vote approaches. The election takes place merely six months after violent demonstrations led by young people demanding an end to corruption. Those protests forced out then-prime minister K.P. Sharma Oli and left the nation’s political system in turmoil. Digital forgeries targeting well-known individuals have flourished as a result of this crisis of confidence. The Rastriya Swatantra Party’s vice president, Swarnim Wagle, has filed a complaint with the Nepal Police Cyber Bureau. A phony audio tape was made to give the impression that he had a discussion with the prime minister of India, which never took place. These audio fakes pose unique risks in Nepal, as demonstrated by Poynter’s fact-checking efforts . Voice messages travel quickly through family chat groups and social media, often reaching receivers who are unable to confirm their legitimacy. The unreliability of tools used to identify altered audio means that ordinary people have limited means of distinguishing between falsehoods and the truth. Attempts by the government to control the issue have frequently made matters worse. Due to their failure to register with regulators, Facebook, X, and YouTube were blocked by authorities during the demonstrations in September. The ban triggered more violence instead of calming tensions. Reuters documented at least 77 deaths and thousands of injuries during the chaos that followed. Officials eventually lifted the restrictions, but the incident showed why heavy-handed blocking doesn’t work. False information simply moved to harder-to-monitor channels. Nepal’s Election Commission has tried addressing these challenges through policy. Their 2021 “Policy on the use of social media in Electoral Management ” set initial guidelines. A new draft code of conduct for the upcoming vote specifically bans false information and fake accounts intended to sway voters. However, specialists warn that these rules need immediate updates for the age of generative AI. Questions remain unanswered: What exactly constitutes synthetic media? Should campaigns disclose content created with AI assistance? Who is held accountable when fake information spreads? Experts call for a coordinated response Without perfect regulations in place, specialists and monitoring groups are pushing for broader solutions. Poynter and similar media organizations recommend several steps: news organizations and fact-checkers should investigate every viral video like a crime, tracing its origin and demonstrating how they verified it. Political parties and candidates should promise not to use deepfakes and clearly label any AI-created material. Social media companies should establish quick-response teams familiar with Nepal’s languages and politics. Regular citizens should take a “ten-second triage” approach, stopping, checking, and confirming before they share shocking claims. The Nepal Police Cyber Bureau is already preparing for more advanced attacks on the technical side. SP Ray, an official with the bureau, said, “AI is getting bigger and being used in more ways. Soon we may see crimes and cyberattacks that AI makes easier. ” Ray also noted the technology’s relative newness might provide some breathing room. He believes AI tech is still in its infancy and is just being adopted by the public, so it may take a little longer to use it as a tool of destruction. “We are well-equipped to fight these crimes and threats, and we should be,” Ray said. He added reassurance: “Nepal Police can look into any action. The only thing that will take time to look into is attacks from foreign soil. “ Sharpen your strategy with mentorship + daily ideas - 30 days free access to our trading program
24 Jan 2026, 12:57
Revolut signals UAE expansion plans in new technology manager job posting
UK-headquartered Revolut, a global financial application with over 60 million customers, has posted a job announcement for a “Crypto Technology Manager” for the UAE. This comes months after it received its in-principle approval for Stored Value Facilities and Retail Payment Services licenses from the Central Bank of the UAE. At the time, Revolut noted that this was a significant achievement, signaling its plans to launch in the UAE with the aim of offering a comprehensive product experience to retail customers. Crypto technology manager will work with local regulators The job post notes that the crypto technology manager is part of the technology team that will build the systems and experiences that keep Revolut moving forward. The opportunity claims, “We’re looking for a Technology Manager to support our crypto expansion in the UAE, focusing on technology risk, operational resilience, and regulatory readiness.” The crypto technology manager will work not only with Revolut’s internal engineering, product, operations and compliance teams but with local regulators as well to ensure their crypto platforms operate in line with UAE regulatory requirements. The role entails implementing and maintaining a technology and operational risk framework for crypto activities in the UAE, ensuring compliance with ICT regulations and requirements, and supporting crypto licensing and regulatory engagement with local authorities (e.g., Central Bank of the UAE, VARA, DFSA, FSRA). Of course, the candidate has to have experience in financial services, fintech, crypto/digital assets, and knowledge in the blockchain domain. Currently, Revolut allows users to buy, sell, and hold over 175 cryptocurrencies directly within its app, offering features like instant exchanges, automatic “round-up” investing, and advanced trading via the specialized Revolut X platform. It recently partnered with Trust Wallet to offer enhanced, low-fee purchasing options for users. Revolut plans to expand into 30 markets by 2030 and add 10,000 jobs In November, Ambareen Musa, Head of Revolut in GCC noted the firm is in “day zero build mode” in the UAE, completing governance and licensing requirements and is hopeful for an upcoming launch subject to regulatory approval. The expansion in the MENA region is part of their strategy to serve 100 million customers by 2027, and Revolut as such aims to enter 30 new markets by 2030. It also committed $13 billion in investments over the next five years to accomplish this while creating 10,000 jobs globally. This includes significant funding for established and high-growth regions, such as a $4 billion commitment to the UK, $1.2 billion for its Western Europe hub in France, and $500 million to accelerate its operations in the US. The investments will also drive further growth in other European markets as well as launches in new markets across Latin America, APAC, and the Middle East. Don’t just read crypto news. Understand it. Subscribe to our newsletter. It's free .
24 Jan 2026, 12:31
Ripple Is Bringing AI to the XRP Ledger. Here’s the Latest
Crypto researcher SMQKE (@SMQKEDQG) recently highlighted a major development on the XRP Ledger. He revealed that Ripple has successfully combined blockchain technology with artificial intelligence to optimize cross-border payments. The XRPL, a decentralized blockchain, enables real-time payment settlement, and Ripple’s platform now leverages AI to enhance transaction efficiency. RIPPLE HAS SUCCESSFULLY COMBINED BLOCKCHAIN TECHNOLOGY AND ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE ON THE XRP LEDGER “The XRP Ledger, a decentralised blockchain that enables real-time cross-border payment settlement, is used by Ripple's platform. Al is also used to optimise transaction… https://t.co/11yty1yccO pic.twitter.com/pFKJHzzUBF — SMQKE (@SMQKEDQG) January 23, 2026 AI-Agentic Infrastructure Expands on the XRP Ledger SMQKE’s post was a response to ChartNerd (@ChartNerdTA), a crypto analyst, who reported that AI-Agentic infrastructure is being deployed to support autonomous treasury operations. According to the analyst, Evernorth is integrating t54’s agentic finance infrastructure and trust layer to bring verification, risk assessment, and compliance to AI-powered treasury management on the XRPL. This integration is not limited to a single product, as both t54 and XRPL teams will collaborate to develop new products for the XRP ecosystem. The collaboration aims to expand the XRPL’s capabilities in AI-driven financial operations, enhancing efficiency , security, and operational intelligence across the network. AI-Powered Transaction Optimization The integration of AI on the XRP Ledger enables the optimization of transaction flows and routing choices. Financial institutions using Ripple’s platform can make dynamic decisions on the most effective payment routes. The system evaluates enormous volumes of payment data in real time, ensuring that transactions follow the most efficient paths. This approach improves the speed and reliability of cross-border payments. By analyzing large datasets, AI adjusts routing dynamically to current network conditions and transaction volumes. The result is faster settlements and improved liquidity management for institutions. Impact on Cross-Border Payments Traditional international payments often involve delays, high fees, and reliance on complex intermediary networks. Ripple’s combination of blockchain and AI addresses these issues by providing a more streamlined, cost-efficient alternative. Real-time settlement is now possible while maintaining transparency and reliability, which supports the adoption of this approach by banks and other financial institutions . We are on X, follow us to connect with us :- @TimesTabloid1 — TimesTabloid (@TimesTabloid1) June 15, 2025 The XRP Ledger’s scalability ensures that the platform can handle high transaction volumes without reducing performance. AI determines optimal paths for payments, reducing latency and ensuring funds reach their destination promptly. Ripple’s Position in Financial Technology The integration of AI with the XRP Ledger marks a significant advancement in payment technology. Real-time processing allows institutions to respond quickly to market changes, improving overall reliability in international payments. Ripple now provides a platform capable of handling complex, high-volume transactions quickly and accurately. Institutions using the system benefit from optimized routing, faster settlements, and reduced operational costs. Disclaimer : This content is meant to inform and should not be considered financial advice. The views expressed in this article may include the author’s personal opinions and do not represent Times Tabloid’s opinion. Readers are advised to conduct thorough research before making any investment decisions. Any action taken by the reader is strictly at their own risk. Times Tabloid is not responsible for any financial losses. Follow us on X , Facebook , Telegram , and Google News The post Ripple Is Bringing AI to the XRP Ledger. Here’s the Latest appeared first on Times Tabloid .
24 Jan 2026, 10:10
McLaren Sets Foot into Web3 with Hedera Partnership to Revolutionize Fan Experience
McLaren Racing and Hedera Forge Partnership to Revolutionize Fan Engagement in Web3 McLaren Racing has launched a multi-year partnership with the Hedera Foundation, bridging motorsport fans with the digital frontier. As a trusted public network powering fast, secure, and compliant decentralized applications, Hedera becomes an Official Partner of both the McLaren Mastercard Formula 1 Team and the Arrow McLaren IndyCar Team. Charles Adkins, CEO of HBAR, Inc., hailed the collaboration, stating : “Working with one of the world’s most recognised sports brands is a big step for the Hedera ecosystem. It gives us a chance to show what Web3 can look like when it’s built on a network people can trust, and when it’s tied to experiences fans actually want.” McLaren Racing is merging the thrill of the racetrack with the innovation of Web3, giving fans new ways to engage with their favorite teams. Leveraging Hedera’s fast and secure network, McLaren will launch officially licensed digital experiences that are interactive, verifiable, and globally accessible. At McLaren, precision, speed, and performance define our legacy, and through this partnership, we’re bringing that same excellence to the digital world, creating unique opportunities for fans everywhere. Nick Martin, Co-Chief Commercial Officer at McLaren Racing, welcomed the partnership, noting: “Innovation off the track is just as important as performance on it. Partnering with Hedera allows us to deliver cutting-edge Web3 experiences for our fans. We’re excited to welcome Hedera to the McLaren family as we continue to push boundaries on and off the track.” Central to this partnership is a cutting-edge programme of digital experiences that brings fans closer to the team than ever. Kicking off with free-to-claim digital collectibles during Formula 1 Grand Prix weekends, these assets are powered by Hedera, offering fans trusted, secure, and environmentally efficient blockchain ownership. The collaboration also reintroduces Arrow McLaren IndyCar digital collectibles for the 2026 season, giving fans a fresh way to celebrate the team’s journey on and off the track. This initiative marks a major expansion of McLaren Racing’s digital presence, merging real-world motorsport excitement with immersive Web3 experiences. Well, McLaren Racing and Hedera unite innovation, precision, and performance in a partnership set to redefine fan engagement. By pairing McLaren’s racing legacy with Hedera’s cutting-edge blockchain technology, fans can expect immersive digital experiences, from exclusive collectibles to interactive activations, that go beyond the track. As sports and technology converge, this collaboration positions McLaren at the forefront of the next generation of digital fan interaction. Conclusion The McLaren Racing and Hedera partnership ushers in a new era of fan engagement, merging motorsport excitement with Web3 innovation. Leveraging McLaren’s legacy of speed and precision alongside Hedera’s fast, secure, and reliable network, fans gain access to immersive digital experiences, from free-to-claim collectibles to officially licensed activations. Therefore, this collaboration transforms spectators into active participants, allowing them to celebrate every victory on and off the track in ways that are seamless, secure, and unforgettable.
