LinkedIn introduces new ID verification feature for Indian users
Professional social networking platform LinkedIn has introduced its identity verification feature for Indian users. “Having an ID verification means that the individual’s government-issued ID is verified by one of LinkedIn’s verification partners,” Ashutosh Gupta, Country Manager at LinkedIn India, said in a blog post. The verification will be carried out by HyperVerge, a third-party company that leverages DigiLocker, a digital wallet for government IDs including Aadhaar. The ID verification is available for users with a valid Aadhaar number and an Indian phone number. LinkedIn, which has more than 100 million users in India, said in the blog post the voluntary verification will help in building trust within the professional community. The social networking platform explains how it works. For example, users can visit the “About this profile” section on their LinkedIn profile and click on ‘Verify with Aadhaar’ to initiate the verification process. They need to enter their Aadhaar number on the Digilocker screen. They will receive an OTP on their registered mobile number and there will be instant verification by Hyperverge using DigiLocker.
77% of Indian shoppers would prefer to shop with a phygital brand
Wunderman Thompson has launched The 7th edition of Commerce & Technology’s Future Shopper report. Covering 18 international markets (including India) and 31,000 consumers, the report offers an unparalleled view into the habits of online shoppers and online shopping behaviour. In the afterglow of a post-pandemic world, the future of retail is steadfastly being shaped by digital, as shoppers envision a future where nearly two-thirds (64%) of their shopping will be online in the next 10 years. Brands are closing the gap on marketplaces with online spend doubling through direct-to-consumer (D2C) channels, from 7% in 2022 to 14% in 2023, and brands should look to review their online sales models, with more than half (58%) of global shoppers saying they like to buy from branded marketplaces. India ranks highest as the percentage of consumers who would be interested in the ability to buy from beyond the grave. With the arrival of AI and the huge amounts of data now collected on individuals ‘post-consumerism’ is a concept that refers to carrying on purchasing from beyond the grave via uploading ‘personalities’ to the cloud or being brought back to life virtually via an avatar. India also tops the list, albeit with a slightly lower percentage than last year, when it comes to digital items being bought. ‘Compressed commerce’, refers to customers often wanting to get through from inspiration to purchase, as quickly as possible, and those businesses, retailers and marketplaces that can do this best, often find themselves winning against their online competition. Indian B2B buyers are those that want “compressed commerce” the most (80%). Thailand (77%) and India (72%) rank highest as the percentage of consumers who have changed shopping habits due to concerns around global warming and the environment. The spread of adoption of voice commerce to buy a product has gone up with China leading the way with 72% of shoppers owning such a device, closely followed by India with the current consumers being in the age group of 25-34 year olds. 77% of Indian shoppers would prefer to shop with a brand / retailer that has both a physical and online store.
WhatsApp rolls out beta update: Windows PC users can now do video calls with 32 participants
WhatsApp is enhancing its video-calling capabilities for Windows PC users with an exciting new update. Previously, video calls with a maximum of eight participants and audio calls with up to 32 individuals were supported on the Windows version. However, with the latest beta version, WhatsApp is expanding the capabilities to include video calls, bringing a new level of dynamism to group conversations. This will make virtual communication more interactive and engaging. WhatsApp beta update unlocks video calling capability with 32 participants for Windows PC users. Initially, only beta users who have installed the latest WhatsApp beta update for Windows, will be able to use this feature.
Meta Quest+ Subscription Service Live
Meta launched Meta Quest+, a subscription-based service for its virtual reality (VR) headsets to shape a nascent but high investment market. Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg said the Meta Quest+ subscription will be available from Monday at $7.99 per month, or $59.99 annually, for its Quest 2, Pro and soon for Quest 3. Apple has entered the market dominated by Meta, showcasing its $3,499 augmented reality headset called the Vision Pro. Still, Apple’s headset is three times the cost of the priciest headset from Meta. Meta in March had cut the prices of its headsets as its bold bets on the metaverse failed to make a big splash. The social media company’s flagship VR headset Meta Quest Pro is currently priced at $999.99, down from its launch price of $1,499.99, and Quest 2 is being sold for $299.99, according to Meta’s website. Termed as the next big thing, the adoption of virtual reality headsets has been limited to the gaming community despite the devices now having more advanced features.
Google, Amazon, YouTube top India brands
Amazon, he said, has emerged as the preferred choice for consumers owing to its ‘extensive and enduring presence across India.’ Over the past six months, 73 per cent consumers from both Tier II and Tier I cities claimed that they shopped at Amazon. has emerged as the most meaningful brand in India, offering strong personal and collective benefits, according to the Meaningful Brands 2023 report by global communications agency Havas. Google’s presence in everyday transactions including financial services like Google Pay has positioned it as a brand that helps individuals achieve their goals and aspirations, the report said. Amazon and YouTube ranked second and third respectively, highlighting their impact on consumers’ lives and their ability to drive interpersonal engagement, it added. The study, which surveyed over 91,000 people across 10 markets and 42 categories, highlights a shift in consumer attitudes towards brand purpose and the increasing desire for personalized experiences. Key findings from the study indicate that 73% of brands could disappear today without consumers caring, demonstrating the need for brands to establish personal connections and relevance. In the Indian market, Havas’ research showed that the most meaningful brands outperform average brands by 39% when delivering personal benefits. Indian consumers believe brands should contribute to their health and well-being, both physically and mentally. The 2023 report focuses on the concept of the ‘Me-conomy,’ emphasizing the importance of brands prioritizing individuals and making a meaningful difference in their lives.
Big tech companies want AI regulation—but on their own terms
OpenAI Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman surprised everyone last month when he warned Congress of the dangers posed by artificial intelligence. Suddenly, it looked like tech companies had learned from the problems of social media and wanted to roll out AI differently. Even more remarkably: They wanted politicians’ help. But a week later, Altman told a different story to reporters in London. The head of ChatGPT’s creator said that he would try to comply with European Union rules but if that proved too difficult, his company would “cease operating” within the bloc. The remark prompted Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton to accuse Altman of “attempting blackmail.” Altman clarified his comments the next day, and when the CEO and commissioner met in person last week, they agreed that they were aligned on regulation. AI development is blazing ahead. The sector raised over $1 billion in venture capital funding in the first four months of this year alone. Big tech companies say they want regulation. The reality is more complicated. In the US, Google, Microsoft, IBM and OpenAI have asked lawmakers to oversee AI, which they say is necessary to guarantee safety and competitiveness with China. Meanwhile, in the EU, where politicians recently voted to approve draft legislation that would put guardrails on generative AI, lobbyists for these same companies are fighting measures that they believe would needlessly constrict tech’s hottest new sector. Tech companies know they cannot ignore the EU, especially as its social media and data protection rules have become global standards. The European Union’s AI Act, which could be in place in the next two to three years, will be the first attempt by a western government to regulate artificial intelligence, and it is backed by serious penalties. If companies violate the act, the bloc could impose fines worth 6% of a company’s annual turnover and keep products from operating in the EU, which is estimated to represent between 20% and 25% of a global AI market that’s projected to be worth more than $1.3 trillion within 10 years. Most of the draft focused on rules for “high-risk” cases. Companies that release AI systems to predict crime or sort job applications, for instance, would be restricted to only using high-quality data and required to produce risk assessments. Beyond that, the draft mandated transparency around deepfakes and chatbots: People would have to be informed when they were talking to an AI system, and generated or manipulated content would need to be flagged. The text made no mention of generative AI, an umbrella category of machine-learning algorithms capable of creating new images, video, text and code, that had yet to blow up. Big tech welcomed this approach. They also tried to soften the edges. While the draft said developers would be responsible for how their systems were used, companies and their trade groups argued that users should also be liable. Microsoft contended in a position paper that because generative AI’s potential makes it impossible for companies “to anticipate the full range of deployment scenarios and their associated risks,” it is especially crucial to “focus in on the actual use of the AI system by the deployer.”It looked as if Big Tech would get what it wanted — at one point countries even considered excluding general-purpose AI from the text entirely — until the spring of 2022, when politicians began to worry that that they had underestimated its risks. Largely at the urging of France, EU member states began to consider regulating all general-purpose AI, regardless of use case. “Ultimately, what we are asking of generative AI models is a bit of transparency,” Dragos Tudorache, one of the two lead authors of the AI Act explained. If there is a danger in having “exposed the algorithms to bad things, then there has to be an effort on the side of the developers to provide safeguards for that.” While Meta, Apple and Amazon have largely stayed quiet, other key developers are pushing back. In comments to lawmakers, Google said the parliament’s controls would effectively treat general-purpose AI as high-risk when it isn’t. Companies also protested that the new rules could interfere with existing ones, and several said they’ve already implemented their own controls. “The mere possibility of reputational damage alone is already enough incentive for companies to massively invest in the safety of users,” said Boniface de Champris from industry group CCIA.
Tier-2 city consumers spend 16% of income shopping online
Indians from Tier-II cities and beyond spend an average of 2 hours and 25 minutes a week shopping online, spending about 16% of their income on e-commerce purchases, according to a study by CyberMedia Research (CMR), a technology market research and advisory firm. Tier-II cities, such as Guwahati, Coimbatore and Lucknow, lead in terms of time spent shopping online. Amongst Tier-I cities, Bengaluru leads with 4 hours and 2 minutes a week shopping online. A staggering 86% of consumers rely on influencers’ or publishers’ reviews to make their purchase decisions. Notably, males appear to follow influencers more diligently (90%) than females (80%). Amazon, he said, has emerged as the preferred choice for consumers owing to its ‘extensive and enduring presence across India.’ Over the past six months, 73% consumers from both Tier II and Tier I cities claimed that they shopped at Amazon.