Thursday, April 24, 2025

Welcome to TC PM! Today we are looking into Anthropic's new research program on AI "model welfare"; how much AI data centers could cost to build and power in a few years; and Chess.com's member milestone. Checkmate!

TechCrunch Top 3

Image Credits: Alex Wong / Getty Images

😒 Technological welfare: AI research lab Anthropic announced that it has started a research program to investigate, and prepare to navigate, AI "model welfare," or signs of stress an AI model may be feeling. OK. But let's make sure we take care of our fellow human welfare first, am I right?

📸 An accessibility win: TikTok is rolling out support for ALT text for photo posts to make the posts more accessible for users with visual and cognitive impairments. Creators can include ALT text as they are uploading a post or can add it on after it has been published.

🗑️ Less spam, please: Meta is making a concerted effort to snuff out spam content on Facebook. The platform said it's going to lower the reach of accounts that post spammy content and prevent them from monetizing. This is a step toward Mark Zuckerberg's goal of returning to "OG Facebook."

A Message from TechCrunch Events

Grow your brand at TechCrunch All Stage July 15

Exhibit at TC All Stage in Boston. Meet 1,200+ founders and investors across all stages who are actively scouting new solutions. It's your chance to grow brand visibility, spark real leads, and build meaningful connections. Tables are limited — claim yours before they're gone.

Book Now

Afternoon must-reads

Image Credits: Rebecca Bellan

🪧 A parent protest: Parents who lost their children due to online harm, including cyberbullying and sextortion, joined together outside one of Meta's NYC offices today to hold a vigil. The event was to honor their memories while demanding the social media company do more to protect kids.

💻 Pope Francis' funeral: For those unable to make it to Vatican City for Pope Francis' funeral, it will be livestreamed on YouTube through the Vatican News' YouTube channel in six different languages.

♟️ Checkmate: Chess has been played for more than 1,500 years. Chess.com has been around for nearly 20 years and has seen strong momentum as popularity for the game continues to grow. Now Chess.com is celebrating that it has crossed 200 million members.

🎶 AI playlists: Spotify announced today that it expanded the availability of its AI playlists to more than 40 additional markets, including countries in Africa, Asia, and the Caribbean, among others. The feature rolled out in the U.S. late last year and is still in beta.

💸 Costly compute: A new report estimates that it could cost $200 billion to build an AI data center by 2030. Within this estimate, these $200 billion data centers could contain 2 million AI chips and require 9 gigawatts of power to operate, according to the report. Geez.

A Message from Persona

Live discussion: How to protect your business from AI fraud

Generative AI is changing fraud fast. Learn how to protect your business on May 8 with experts from SentiLink and Persona. They'll break down the latest AI-based scams, share case studies, and give you the tools to stay ahead.

Around the web

🤖 AI assistance: There has been an explosion of AI therapy tools and chatbots. But do they actually help? A health correspondent for KQED shared her story on the Close All Tabs podcast about how she found comfort through them during her return to dating after divorce.

💾 Wii website: A security engineer figured out how to turn an old Wii game console he found at a swap shop into a web host. He is now hosting his blog through the console, which includes a set of instructions for those looking to do the same. Neat!

Before you go

Image Credits: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg/Getty Images

😐 Oh, Zuck: The FTC is accusing Meta of antitrust violations, with the threat of spinning out Instagram or WhatsApp looming. We've been digging through the testimony to find out what went on behind the scenes at the company, including the one bit of correspondence, in which Mark Zuckerberg wonders whether it would be worth it to wipe everyone's connections so they could start over.