Meta Platforms' (META) Connect 2024 conference is here and investors will be watching CEO Mark Zuckerberg's keynote speech starting at 1 PM ET. He'll ...
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| | Top News  Derick Hudson Meta Platforms' (META) Connect 2024 conference is here and investors will be watching CEO Mark Zuckerberg's keynote speech starting at 1 PM ET. He'll share his vision for AI and the metaverse, as well as the newest product announcements ahead of third-quarter results due next month. Meta has been spending big time on the technologies of the future, with its capex for 2024 likely to hit a record high of $37B-$40B.
Zoom in: Tech fans will be looking for updates to the Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, with a third-generation model that'll include a viewfinder for basic text and images. However, the real focus will be on the new augmented reality glasses dubbed "Orion," which are expected to mate the high-powered AR tech found in the Meta Quest Pro headset with the Wayfarer type of Ray-ban frame. A less-expensive version of the Quest 3 is additionally anticipated, while there might be broader comments on the coming Quest 4 and broader Metaverse.
Meta is also expected to disclose deals it has signed with celebrities Judi Dench, Kristen Bell, and John Cena to give their voice to the company's Llama large-language model. This feature will provide users with the option to select a voice for the tech giant's digital assistant from a list of five celebrities, which also features Awkwafina and Keegan-Michael Key. Note that Meta just confirmed that it would not immediately join the EU's AI agreement.
Outlook: Meta shares have soared close to 60% since the start of the year, and it has been one of the few companies whose billions of dollars poured into AI have resulted in tangible returns. As a result, what Meta might say or showcase can carry weight for the technology industry at large. "Meta Platforms is recommended as a buy due to its AI success, attractive valuation, clean balance sheet, and potential in VR technology," Perseus Perspectives noted in Meta Platforms: Compelling Story With A Reasonable Valuation. | | Energy Eyeing growth in India, Africa and the Middle East, as well as a slower adoption of EVs and greener fuels, OPEC sees global oil demand rising into 2050 and holding a nearly 30% share of the energy mix with other sources. " There is no peak oil demand on the horizon," OPEC commented, and "over the past year, there has been further recognition that the world can only phase in new energy sources at scale when they are genuinely ready." The group expects oil demand to reach 120.1M bbl/day in 2050 compared to 102.2M bbl/day consumed last year. ( 26 comments) | | | | | Outlook Compliance officers, beware. The U.S. Department of Justice has tweaked the guidance that prosecutors use when evaluating a company's compliance program during an investigation to include artificial intelligence risks. Under this, prosecutors would see whether a firm has done a risk assessment of the AI technology it's using and steps taken to mitigate any dangers involved. The updated guidance also looks at how companies are encouraging employees to speak up and report misconduct, and whether they employ practices that suppress whistleblowing. | | Featured  Want to get more from investing efforts? Take our world-class Premium service for a test drive. Sign up now, and you can try all of Premium's powerful tools and resources: - Our proprietary Quant ratings, plus ratings from Wall St. and analysts on Seeking Alpha
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