It’s time for Bits & Bytes…

… where we bring you news, innovations, and thought-provoking insights from AI, IT, and beyond. In this week’s newsletter we’re looking at:

• Half of Dell employees are choosing not to return to in-person work
• High schooler fights for stricter deepfake laws
• Illegal streaming operation busted

 

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

 

📰 Dell’s Return-to-Office Ultimatum

Recently, Dell employees overwhelmingly rejected the company’s return-to-office (RTO) directive with 50% of employees saying “no thanks” and staying remote. Dell’s initial push for employees to return to their desks has faced strong opposition, with many workers citing increased productivity, reduced commute times, and a better quality of life as key reasons for preferring remote work. This pushback is a clear signal to corporate leaders: the traditional office environment may no longer be the default expectation for tech employees.

Dell’s leadership is taking a firm stance, removing promotion eligibility for employees who choose to remain remote. Dell might’ve also wanted to consider the fact they shut down numerous offices during COVID so many employees have no office to return to. The tech industry has been at the forefront of the office vs. home work debate for months, often setting trends for other sectors. It will be interesting to see if Dell maintains its strict policy or adapts in response to employee pushback.

TL;DR

• Dell employees reject the return-to-office mandate, favoring remote and hybrid work models.
• Workers highlight productivity, commute reduction, and improved work-life balance as key reasons.
• Dell is staying firm, not giving promotions to those who work from home.

 

 

TECH HEADLINES FROM ACROSS THE WEB

⚖️ More laws for fake images pls

Deepfakes aren’t just affecting celebrities anymore. A high schooler woke up to revealing deepfakes of herself being spread around to her classmates. It took eight months of consistent follow-up for Snapchat to remove the fake images. The mom and high schooler are now fighting for more laws around situations like these. Maybe with these laws in place the images would’ve been taken down in days instead of months and the person who distributed them would receive more consequence than probation.

 

📺 Streaming empire crushed

Five men were convicted for operating Jetflicks, a major illegal streaming service that amassed a larger TV show catalog than Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime combined. The group raked in millions by using high-tech scripts to snatch shows from pirate sites, which they then hosted on Jetflicks servers, and distributed to tens of thousands of subscribers for a monthly fee. Well, at least until the law caught up to them reminding us about protecting intellectual property in the digital age.

 

🤔 ChatGPT flunks fairness test

University of Washington researchers discovered that ChatGPT ranks resumes with disability-related honors and credentials lower than identical resumes without such indicators, reinforcing outdated stereotypes. However, customizing the AI with anti-ableist instructions reduced these biases for most tested disabilities, though not all. This eye-opener highlights the ongoing need to keep a close watch on AI shenanigans, especially when it comes to providing people job opportunities.

 

TECH FOR GOOD

Researchers recently studied African elephants and their trunks to gain insights for improving robotic grips. These robots, inspired by the trunk’s unique structure and movement, are designed to handle tasks that require both strength and delicacy, proving that sometimes the best tech ideas come from Mother Nature herself.

These elephant-inspired robot arms are set to make waves across various fields. In healthcare, they could perform surgeries with precision and minimal invasiveness. In agriculture, they can handle fragile fruits and plants without damage, boosting productivity and reducing waste. This innovation is a reminder that nature can lead to groundbreaking technological advancements, making our world smarter and more efficient.