Despite new artificial intelligence platforms flooding app stores every week, one app has succeded in capturing the attention of the public – as well as investors from huge tech companies like Amazon and Nvidia – due to its unique take on conversational AI.

Perplexity AI is an AI-powered search engine that strives to make knowledge as accessible as possible. Sitting somewhere in between AI chatbots and traditional search engines, Perplexity AI responds to user-based queries with succinct, relevant answers, offering more citations and image responses than tools like ChatGPT, and reducing the need to wade through links like you do with Google.

Despite the platform being around since 2022, the AI search engine has been hitting the headlines recently due to its $1 billion evaluation. So for those interested in Perplexity AI’s origin story and use cases, this guide covers everything you need to know about the the search engine-meets-chatbot.

What Is Perplexity AI?

Perplexity AI is an AI-powered conversational search engine that produces concise answers to user-generated queries. The technology utilizes LLMs like GPT-4, Claude, Mistral Large, and its own custom models for natural language processing, and searches the web in real-time to provide users with up-to-date answers.

Perplexity AI is quite literally the lovechild of Google Search and ChatGPT. The app was founded in 2022 by former Google and Open AI employees, who were frustrated by the wasted potential of the LLMs they were developing. The team wanted to make the information these models contain more accessible to the public, helping to “democratize access to knowledge”  as a result.

The team chose the name Perplexity because they want the platform to help users gain accurate and informative answers to questions, even if they’re complex or challenging. Since its launch, the Silicon Valley-based app has evolved significantly and can currently be used for far more than just answering queries. Read on to learn how Perplexity AI can be used to make your life easier.

What Can I Do With Perplexity AI?

Perplexity AI’s focus on precision and depth makes it capable of carrying out a wide variety of tasks. Here are a few common use cases of the platform.

• Access concise information – Perplexity provides users with much more targeted information than search engines, reducing the need to trawl through search results, and making it easier for them to resolve simple queries, faster.
• Carry out in-depth research – Unlike chatbot-generated content, Perplexity AI includes links to sources, making it a more useful and reliable research companion.
• Create and edit code – Perplexity is also capable of generating code snippets and providing coding assistance, making it a useful asset to software engineers and developers.
• Solve maths problems – The search engine can also be used to solve maths problems. However, it isn’t as capable of solving complex problems as chatbots like ChatGPT.
• Summarize PDFs – Users can use Perplexity AI to summarize long or complex PFD documents. You’re also able to enter follow-up prompts to quiz the search engine about this content.
• Translate files – Users can also use the tool to translate languages, both orally via audio files or in written form via plain text or documents like PDFs.
• Organize your library – After you’ve amassed a couple of Threads with Perplexity, you’re able to organize these conversations by project or topic and even invite contributors to chime in.

Perplexity AI answers user-generated queries in a succinct manor, including sources and images alongside text. Source: Tech.co

Is It Worth Paying For Perplexity AI?

Perplexity AI is free to use. However, lots of its advanced features are only accessible if you pay $20 per month, or $200 per year for Perplexity Pro.

If you’re interested in using Perplexity to answer simple inquiries and to conduct desk-based research, its free plan will be more than capable of meeting your needs. It runs on Perplexity’s in-house LLM, Perplexity AI, and gives you five Pro Searches a day which is great if you want to take the occasional deep dive.

The free doesn’t include support from different LLMs, text-to-image options, API access, or file upload options, however. So, if you’re looking to translate or summarise files, experiment with different language models, or generate or modify images, it’ll be worth upgrading to its paid version. Take a look at how Perplexity AI’s plans compare side-by-side below.

Free plan

• Unlimited Quick searches
• 5 Pro Searches each day
• Perplexity AI LLM
• Profile creation
• Personalized answers feature

Premium plan

• 600 Pro searches per day
• GPT-4, Claude-3, Sonar, and more GPT options
• Filed upload options
• Text-to-image support with Playground AI, DALL-E, and more
• $5 per month in API credits

How Does Perplexity AI Compare to ChatGPT?

With Perplexity AI’s founding team including a former OpenAI employee, and the platform’s conversational, prompt-led interface taking clear inspiration from the inaugural chatbot ChatGPT, it’s no surprise comparisons are often drawn between the two tools. However, while the AI platforms share a variety of core capabilities and a similar pricing structure, they excel in very different areas.

Firstly, Perplexity works more like a traditional search engine than a chatbot, and is able to retrieve information from the web in real-time. ChatGPT offers this functionality too, but only to paid users, making Perplexity the platform of choice for users who want to gain a succinct understanding of emerging topics for free.

Perplexity provides more detail than ChatGPT too, and includes citations for all its sources. This makes the AI tool more suitable for academic researchers, and those working in research-heavy professions like data science and marketing.

ChatGPT does have its perks, though. The chatbot is generally more of a jack-of-all-trades than Perplexity. Its content writing, mathematics, and coding capabilities are superior thanks to its enhanced data processing power, and its cleaner user experience will make it the better option for a wider selection of users.

ChatGPT also has a much more conversational tone than Perplexity, and its enhanced natural language processing power makes it better at answering complex, open-ended queries. This makes the chatbot better at creative tasks like content creation and ideation. and more attractive to users who prefer a more interactive dialog.

ChatGPT may still be the most well-known chatbot on the market, but there are tons of worthy competitors that are still worth checking out. Read our guide to the best ChatGPT alternatives to find out how OpenAI’s tool compares to the competition.

As you have probably noticed, AI is everywhere, and it’s not going away anytime soon. This is especially true in the workplace, with a recent LinkedIn study revealing that 44% of business leaders intend to ramp up their use of AI in the next year.

However, learning a new skill can be daunting, especially if you’re not technically minded. The good news? There are lots of resources out there to help you learn AI, and many are free.

One company that is providing an abundance of free AI training right now is commerce giant Amazon. We detail the courses available below that will help you get a leg up in your career

How Does Online AI Training Work?

If you’re not familiar with online courses, then you might be envisioning a huge class Zoom call, where at any moment you could be picked on to explain what generative AI is.

To put your fears at rest, these online courses are usually pre-recorded videos, hosted by an instructor, who talks through the concepts of the module. At the end of a module there is usually a quiz, where you can demonstrate how well you have understood the training.

The good news is that because the sessions are pre-recorded, you’re free to go at your own pace, although we’d recommend sticking to a schedule so you commit to the course. Some courses can be completed in an hour, while others are broken down into separate modules and will take several sessions to complete. Most of the ones we’ve picked from Amazon here are short, with one clocking in at just 13 minutes.

Free Amazon AI Courses

1. Generative AI for Executives

If you’re looking to get started in the world of AI, this course is a great choice, as it will explain the basics of AI and answer those questions that you were too afraid to ask out loud.

The course is split into five mini modules, which cover what generative AI actually is, why now is the best time to embrace it, enterprise use cases, training a workforce to use AI, and why AWS (Amazon Web Services) is the best place to build with AI.

You will notice in a lot of these courses that AWS is front and center, which is probably fair enough considering that Amazon is offering these services for free.

The best thing about this course? It’s only thirteen minutes long, which means you could finish it over breakfast before your coffee has a chance to go cold.

Enroll for Generative AI for Executives

2. Introduction to Machine Learning: Art of the Possible

Got questions about machine learning? Such as, what exactly is machine learning? This is the course you’ll want to take, as it covers all the basics, and beyond.

The four module course takes just thirty minutes to complete, and takes you on a whistle-stop tour of AI, machine learning, the impact machine learning has on businesses, the potential it can have  on underutilized markets, and more.

You’ll also develop an understanding of how machine learning works, as well as the potential problems with the technology.

Enroll in Introduction to Machine Learning: Art of the Possible

3. Amazon CodeWhisperer – Getting Started

If you’re a developer, you might be wondering how using AI can help you improve your skills and save you time. Amazon’s CodeWhisperer, a coding companion powered by AI, could be the answer, and this short course will let you know if it’s right for you.

The course, only thirty minutes long, is intended as an introduction to the platform, and illustrates how to install and configure CodeWhisperer, it’s advantages, how to use it to code, as well as additional resources.

CodeWhisperer is a free tool for individuals with a limited feature set. If you like what you see, you can pay for the professional tier which unlocks more capabilities.

Enroll in Amazon CodeWhisperer –  Getting Started

4. Foundations of Prompt Engineering

To get the most out of an AI model, you need to be familiar with prompts. These are essentially the instructions to the AI for what you want it to achieve. AI is a powerful tool, but a good prompt is essential to get the best results.

This course defines prompt engineering, covers best practice, prompt techniques for specific AI models, and identifying potential prompt misuse.

This seven module course is a little longer than some of the others in this list, coming in at four hours, but it’s packed with essential information, and by the end you’ll be a prompt expert.

Enroll in Foundations of Prompt Engineering

5. Unleashing Innovation: The Generative AI Revolution

This fundamental 90 minute course will cover a lot of ground for AI newbies, as you learn about concepts such as machine learning, traditional and deep learning algorithms, how artificial neural networks work, the practical applications of generative AI, and more.

Of all the courses in this list, this is the best all rounder, for the sheer amount of information you’ll be exposed to, and the new concepts that will be explained. Even if you only have a passing interest in AI, there’s enough here to keep you engaged and build on whatever your current knowledge level is.

If you really get into this one, the course ends with further suggestions for online courses and learning pathways.

Enroll in Unleashing Innovation: The Generative AI Revolution

More AI Training from Amazon

In the list above, we’ve mainly covered Amazon’s more general AI courses that will have a wide appeal, but if you’re looking to hone your skills with a specific Amazon platform, there is a wealth of free training courses available to you, for tools such as:

• Amazon Kendra
• Amazon Bedrock
• Amazon Lex
• Amazon Q
• Amazon Sagemaker

With the Amazon Skill Builder portal, there are also more advanced courses available, for a fee. Some examples include how to built a chatbot that can answer questions, as well as machine learning deployment.

Of course, Amazon isn’t the only option when it comes to free AI courses. We have found plenty from the likes of Harvard, Google and Microsoft.

Seeking funding is a right of passage for many small business owners. While there are endless private and government-backed loans to choose from, if you’re looking to evade strict repayment terms and steep interest rates, it could be worth considering government business grants.

Government business grants are financial awards issued by federal, state, or local authorities. There are thousands of grants up for grabs through government website portals, but since this type of financing is designed to support the public, their eligibility criteria tend to be quite specific.

If you’re interested in pursuing this type of finance, we round up some government grants small businesses can apply for in May, including their specialisms, funding limits, and deadlines. We also offer some advice for writing your application, to make sure your proposal is as competitive as possible.

In this guide: 

• Government Small Business Grants to Apply For in May 2024
• Tips For Perfecting Your Government Grant Application

Government Small Business Grants to Apply For in May 2024

There are thousands of government funds to apply for. If you want to cut through the noise, take a look at some of the most popular options below:

1. Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program
2. Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) program 
3. Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) Federal Contracting program
4. 8(a) Business Development Program 
5. HUBZone Program
6. Small State Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI)
7. U.S. Department of Commerce Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA)

1. Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program

• For: Small businesses interested in carrying out innovation research
• Funding limit: Over $2 million
• Deadline: September 5, January 5, and April 5

The Small Business Innovation Research program was designed by the Small Business Administration to encourage US businesses to engage in Federal research and development. The competitive program is open to select small businesses and specifically encourages participation from women and socially or economically disadvantaged persons.

To be eligible for the SBIR program, your business must be for profit, be over 50% owned by permanent residents of the US, and have fewer than 500 employees. To apply for the grant, you need to register your business with SBIR, if you haven’t already, submit a proposal before one of the program’s tri-annual deadlines, and then respond to feedback and refine your concept if necessary.

Learn more about the SBIR grant, and how to apply here.

2. Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs

• For: Small businesses that have paired up with a research institution
• Funding limit: Over $2 million
• Deadline: September 5, January 5, and April 5

Like the SBIR, the Small Business Technology Transfer program is a government program focused on developing innovative solutions to pressing problems across the US. This type of funding aims to facilitate cooperative research and development efforts research between small business concerns and non-profit US research institutions, with the potential for commercialization of innovative technological solutions.

However, unlike the SBIR, this program requires the small business applicant to be teamed up with a non-profit research institution already, which typically takes the form of a university or Federal Laboratory. The STTR program is also focused on the transfer of technology from the research institution, rather than just the research alone.

Aside from being paired with a research institution, STTR’s eligibility criteria are nearly identical to SBIR’s.

Learn more about the STTR grant, and how to apply here.

3. Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) Federal Contracting Program

• For: Women-owned businesses
• Funding limit: $4 million for service contracts and $6.5 million for manufacturing contracts
• Deadline: Rolling

The Women-Owned Small Business Federal Contracting Program was designed to build a level playing field for female business owners. The contracts are designated for specific industries where female-owned businesses are underrepresented. You can see which industries are eligible for the grant program here.

To be eligible for this program, you need to run a small business, have the business be at least 51% owned and controlled by US women, and have an economically disadvantaged woman manage the day-to-day operations and make long-term decisions.

Learn more about WOSB, and how to apply here.

4. 8(a) Business Development Program

• For: Socially and economically disadvantaged business owners
• Funding limit:$7 million for acquisitions assigned manufacturing NAICS codes and $4.5 million for all other acquisitions
• Deadline: Rolling

The 8(a) program is a nine-year program created by the SBA to financially support firms owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals. It’s designed to span nine years and helps eligible businesses access new business paths from government contracting.

Since the creation of the program in 1970, it has helped disadvantaged businesses gain access to billions of dollars in funding. To be eligible for the government grant, you must run a small business, be at least 51% owned and controlled by US citizens who are socially and economically disadvantaged, have a personal net worth of under $805 thousand, and demonstrate good character.

Learn more about the 8(a) business development program, and how to apply here.

5. HUBZone Program

• For: Small businesses in historically under-utilized business zones
• Funding limit: $3.5 million for products and services, and $5.5 million per contract for manufacturing
• Deadline: Rolling

The HUBZone program is a SBA initiative designed to promote economic development and job growth in historically underutilized business zones (HUBZones). The program does so by offering financial grants to business owners operating within these communities.

To be eligible for this business grant you need to run a small business, have the business be at least 51% owned and controlled by a Community Development Corporation, an agricultural cooperative, an Alaska Native corporation, a Native Hawaiian organization, or an Indian tribe, have its main office located in a HUBZone, and have at least 35% of it employees living in the HUBZone for at least 45 days before applying.

Learn more about the HUBZone program, and how to apply here.

6. Small State Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI)

• For: Small businesses run by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals
• Funding limit: $20 million
• Deadline: Rolling

The Small State Business Credit Initiative is a federal program designed to support entrepreneurship across the US. The grant program is provided by the US Department of the Treasury and was expanded by President Biden’s American Rescue Plan Act in 2021, providing an extra $10 billion in funding to eligible businesses.

In addition to providing capital support to small businesses, SSBCI can also provide technical assistance to eligible businesses through its Technical Assistance (TA) Grant Program. The SSBCI is available to businesses owner-occupied small businesses with 500 employees or less, and is specifically tailored to small businesses owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged (SEDI) owners and very small businesses with less than 10 employees.

Learn more about the SSBCI program, and apply here.

7. U.S. Department of Commerce Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA)

• For: Small businesses run by minorities
• Funding limit: Up to $350,000 for the first 10 months
• Deadline: Rolling

The U.S. Department of Commerce Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) is a Federal grants program designed to promote the growth of minority-owned businesses. The ultimate aim of the program is to provide minority business enterprises (MBEs) with access to funds, contracts, and market opportunities both in the US and globally.

To be eligible for MBDA assistance, a business must be owned or controlled by one or more socially or economically disadvantaged persons. The majority of business owners must also identify as racial minorities.

To apply for an MBDA business grant, you need to register your business with SAM.gov and Grants.gov if you haven’t already, align your proposal with the stated requirements, and submit your application before the deadline.

Learn more about the grant, and how to apply here.

Tips For Perfecting Your Government Grant Application

Government grants offer a golden opportunity to businesses looking to grow or recover their business. However, due to the competitive nature of the financing, you need to ensure your grant proposal is polished and stands out from the crowd.

We understand that writing a grant application might seem like a daunting process, especially if you’re a first-timer. So, to give your proposal the best chance possible of succeeding, take heed of these pointers below.

• Give yourself enough time – You don’t want to be writing a grant application against the clock. Writing a proposal can take much longer than you expect, so to account for unexpected hold-ups we recommend giving yourself at least 45 days to complete your written application.
• Follow the instructions carefully – Don’t go off-piste when writing your application. Make sure you include all the information requested by the agency, and present it in the correct format.
• Be as concise and clear as possible – Ensure your application is written in clear, simple language, and use as many candid examples as possible to paint a clear image for your reader. If you use any graphs or imagery, make sure you label them clearly as well.
• Keep the audience in mind – The likelihood is that the reviewer won’t already be familiar with your business. To make sure you won’t gloss over necessary information write the proposal for an audience that’s hearing about your business for the first time.
• Develop a proofreading strategy – You don’t want to hamper your application’s success with silly mistakes like typos or grammatical errors. So, to ensure your proposal looks polished carefully proofread the application or outsource the service to a professional.

For Dell employees, the back to office tussle continues, as new reports have emerged that the company is taking thorough steps to track staff attendance with a color-coding system.

Sources close to Dell have revealed that the company is now tracking badge use, to manage in-office activity, a practice which has given rise to ‘coffee badging‘, as employees try to circumvent needing to be at their desks most of the week.

It’s the latest in a long line of ‘incentives’ that Dell has tried to get staff back to the office, including reducing the likeliness for remote staff to get a  promotion.

Dell Keeping Tabs on Employees

As reported by The Register, Dell is stepping up its drive to get staff out of their homes and back into the office, in the latest in a long line of attempts to crack down on remote workers.

The latest scheme, according to an insider, is a color coding system which gives employees one of four statuses against their HR record, based on their office attendance. A blue flag means a “consistent onsite presence”, green is “regular onsite presence”, yellow means “some onsite presence”, and red spells “limited onsite presence.”

Presence is to be recorded through use of badge tracking, which will show who has entered the office, and when. It’s the same tactic that Elon Musk used at Tesla in 2022, when the CEO demanded that employees were in the office a minimum of 40 hours a week, or else they’d be fired.

While there’s no sign that Dell will be quite as authoritarian as Musk when it comes to tracking office presence, the new system does imply that the company is losing patience with those who aren’t traveling to the office, and persistent offenders could be slapped with a red flag against their personal record.

Dell’s Return to Office Fight

The move shouldn’t be too surprising to anyone that has been paying attention to Dell’s one-track mind approach to getting employees back to the office at any cost.

Almost a year ago, it began with a mandate that employees who live within an hour of the office would have to make the trip in three times a week.

This was followed up in February of this year, with a new mandate that stated staff must attend the office at least 39 days a quarter, regardless of where they live.

Then a month later came the real kicker for remote employees. Anyone who wanted to progress their career at Dell would need to commit to hybrid working, as an internal memo outlined:

“For remote team members, it is important to understand the trade-offs: Career advancement, including applying to new roles in the company, will require a team member to reclassify as hybrid onsite.”

All this is a far cry from CEO Michael Dell’s thought piece on remote working in 2022, posted on LinkedIn, which is a treasure trove of plaudits about the benefits of remote working, praising it for creating a more inclusive work environment.

“But from my experience, if you are counting on forced hours spent in a traditional office to create collaboration and provide a feeling of belonging within your organization, you’re doing it wrong.” Dell CEO, Michael Dell, 2022

Remote Work Isn’t Dead Yet

Despite Dell’s fierce fight to get staff back in the office, the remote work movement is far from over. There are numerous studies that have outlined the benefits of allowing staff to work outside the office, including our own Impact of Tech on the Workplace Report, where we surveyed business leaders and found that remote working organizations report higher levels of productivity.

Luckily, while there are organizations like Dell and Tesla out there that are fighting tooth and nail to get bums on office seats, there are plenty with more flexible working conditions.

Microsoft, AirBnB, Slack, Spotify and Dropbox are just some companies that allow for remote work, and every month we highlight the best remote job roles available. So, whether you’re an employee at Dell looking for an escape route, or simply someone that wants to ditch the commute, there are lots of options from more forward-thinking companies.

Google announced that it has simplified the 2-step verification process on its popular Workspace collaboration platform, and we’re going to help you figure it out.

In a digital world filled with data breaches and ransomware attacks, shoring up your business’ security protocol is always a good idea. Two-step verification and other advanced measures are often the best place to start, as even these small steps can decrease the chance of an attack substantially.

Now, Google Workspace is making it even easier to establish better security protocol at your business to help you prevent breaches in the future.

Improvements to 2-Step Verification in Google Workspace

Announced in a Google Workspace blog post this week, the platform is now allowing users to more easily step up two factor authentication — known as 2-Step Verification — for all personal and business accounts.

More specifically, you can now add a second step method like Google Authenticator rather than having to input a phone number. You can also use hardware security keys more effectively by registering a FIDO1 credential or setting up one that makes it compatible.

This means that you won’t have to rely on SMS messages to gain access to your account, which is good because the outdated technology is notably unsecure compared to other methods.

Google’s Security Improvements

While the average user doesn’t take online security too seriously, Google is doing its best to make its many digital platforms a bit safer for businesses and individual users alike.

Last year, Google rolled out vast passkey access, allowing users to completely get rid of less-secure passwords in favor of the more effective login methodology.

Even just this week, Google announced a number of threat intelligence offerings with its Gemini Pro platform, which could make cybersecurity infinitely easier for businesses in the future.

The Importance of 2-Factor Authentication

If you’re thinking to yourself that you don’t even need to enable two-factor authentication at your business, it’s important to understand how important online security is to the success of any company, and why this security protocol can be a gamechanger.

For starters, research from Ginux has found that “2FA can block 100% of automated bots, 96% of phishing attacks, and 76% of targeted attacks.” That alone should be reason for you to switch over today.

On top of that, security breaches can be brutal for a business’ bottom line, costing the average company around $10 million in lost revenue. And considering the majority of breaches are caused by weak passwords, this kind of improvement can go a long way in shoring up your security.

Apple is finally getting in on the AI action, announcing a new AI chip that will power its new iPad lineup, as well as future devices moving forward.

The creator of the iPhone has been lagging behind the industry when it comes to AI. While Microsoft and Google trade blows with their Copilot and Gemini platforms in hopes of catching up to ChatGPT, Apple has been slow to enter the fray.

While Apple still hasn’t announced an AI chatbot, the M4 launch points to an AI future for the big tech firm that could spread across the company’s many devices.

Apple Announces M4 AI Chip

Less than a year after announcing M3, Apple is officially upgrading its proprietary processing chip. The M4 chip will be launched within the two new iPad Pro devices that were announced at a special Apple event that showcased their improved functionality.

“The new iPad Pro with M4 is a great example of how building best-in-class custom silicon enables breakthrough products… Altogether, this new chip makes iPad Pro the most powerful device of its kind.” – Johny Srouji, Apple’s senior vice president of Hardware Technologies

In addition to the size of the chip enabling an even thinner iPad, the M4 is specifically designed for AI, so it enables a wide range of innovative features that should get Apple in the fight for the groundbreaking technology.

What Can the M4 AI Chip Do?

A fancy new processing chip comes around every year, so what makes the M4 special compared to previous iterations? Well, it’s specifically built for AI, which means that it can enable some unique features that will improve the upcoming iPad devices, as well as other devices that will sport it moving forward.

Faster performance

The biggest improvement that the M4 boasts compared to previous chips? It will work a lot faster. Apple specified that it would offer CPU performance that is approximately 1.5 times faster than the M2, which was featured in the previous iPad Pro.

On top of that, the M4 features a new Neural Engine that is “capable of an astounding 38 trillion operations per second,” making it 11 times faster than the first Neural Engine in the A11 Bionic chip. This means that devices sporting the M4 will be uniquely positioned to perform AI tasks quickly, including Live Captions and Visual Look-Up.

Thinner design

The problem with technology is that all that technology has to fit in a physical piece of hardware. Luckily, the M4 is small enough and efficient enough that the iPad Pro can be one of the thinnest yet, at only 5.3mm for the 11-inch model and 5.1mm for the 13-inch model.

Better display

When you think of AI, you don’t necessarily think of improved display quality. However, with hardware-accelerated ray tracing and mesh shading, the M4 allows these new iPads to be graphically quite impressive, improving the look of shadows, reflections, and all the other small upgrades that can really make a different for your experience.

More green

While you might not necessarily have the environment in mind when purchasing a new tablet, it’s at least reassuring to know that the more power efficient M4 chip does make the new iPad Pro lineup better for the environment. And considering the company’s goal to be carbon neutral by 2030, it better be!

Apple’s AI Future

As we mentioned, this is one of Apple’s first mentions of AI since the ChatGPT boom, and it’s definitely a step in the right direction. After all, on-board AI hardware has been rolling out to phones over the last year, and it’s the first step in making the technology more readily available to users without an internet connection.

Still, Apple has a long way to go. Siri has been in the bin for a while now compared to competitors like Google Assistant, and with no public AI chatbot like Gemini to speak of, Apple seems to be leaving money on the table. Yes, the company is working on an AI model to improve Siri, but that could take more time than Apple has to make an impact.

Obviously, Apple has been fine with being late to the party in the past. After all, the iPhone gets features multiple years after they pop up on Android, and they’ve still been able to secure the majority of market share in the US. But when it comes to AI, being this slow to move is going to get you left behind.

Labor productivity is a key building block of the US economy. It’s also the first thing that business decision makers look towards when determining the long-term health of their own operations and how much to invest in emerging technologies like artificial intelligence.

Here at Tech.co, we’re constantly interested in the ways in which technology itself can help people work better, with workplace productivity high on the list of ways to measure its impact. Instead of waiting for the answers to come to us, we’ve just launched our very first annual report on the topic: it surveys over 1,000 business leaders on the health of their organizations, as well as what factors may have helped them succeed.

You can download Tech.co’s Impact of Technology on the Workplace 2024 Report for free.

Alternatively, we’ve highlighted some of the key workplace productivity statistics below, with a specific eye to emerging trends like AI and other technologies. Read on for a deep dive into just how the right tech can change what productivity at work looks like in your organization.

What Is Productivity in the Workplace?

In a nutshell, productivity refers to the value an organization creates divided by the labor costs required to create it. It’s measured across many industries in the United States, where it has grown at a mere 1.4% rate overall in the years between 2005 and 2023. For the purposes of this survey, productivity was self-defined by our survey respondents, US-based senior leadership professionals with a range of job titles covering managers, directors, and more.

Productivity at Work in 2024: Key Insights

Boosting productivity isn’t about forcing workers to work harder or longer hours. In fact, adding pressure can easily have the opposite effect by creating a more challenging environment. Before we get to the ways that technologies like ChatGPT or collaboration tools can help, we need to take the self-reported temperature of the industry today.

1. Just over half of businesses (56%) report high productivity levels

The good news is that most business leaders stand behind their organization, with a narrow majority, (56%) saying that their business is highly productive. That statistic accounts for two categories of responses, with 40% of repondents reporting “high” productivity, and another 16% saying they had “very high” productivity.

These statistics alone aren’t enough, though. We looked closer at the data to figure out what uses of technology might correlate with high productivity. We started with the splashiest modern technology: AI.

AI Productivity

ChatGPT kicked off widespread cross-industry interest in the workplace benefits of artificial intelligence when it launched in November 2022, and we’ve heard a lot about the technology ever since.

However, one big question still remains. Is AI actually as useful as it claims? After all, tech hype doesn’t always translate to lasting (or even fully positive) change.

2. 72% of respondents who use AI extensively report high organizational productivity, compared to 55% of respondents who use AI to a limited extent

We divided our survey responses into several categories, isolating the business leaders who said they used AI “extensively,” in order to compare them against those who were familar with the technology, but only used it to a limited extent. Of the companies that used AI more, 72% reported high productivity, compared to the still-good 55% of less frequent AI using companies that were highly productive.

Which AI was the most common? ChatGPT, with 65% of businesses saying they used this particular generative chat bot.

Taken together, our report found that the efficiencies offered by AI could even help enable a 4-day workweek at companies – probably our favorite insight from this year’s inaugural report.

The percentages of respondents who reported high organizational productivity, split by their organization’s level of AI use. Image source: Tech.co

Productive Collaboration

The more collaboration tools a business uses, the more productive they are. Granted, that’s based on self-reports, but it remains surprisingly consistent across the total of 1,047 responses that we processed. Our survey found two statistics that indicate the benefits of higher numbers of collaboration tools for organizations that have found they need them.

3. 80% of businesses using 7 collaboration tools reported high organizational productivity

Four out of every five respondents that reports high levels of productivity at their organization said that they used seven different collaboration tools.

Seven was the highest number of tools we asked about, and 80% was the highest concentration of high-performing organizations. The second and third most popular amount of collaboration tools were six tools and five tools, respectively, which further suggests the benefits of working with multiple collaboration tools. When it comes to business collaboration technology, it seems, many cooks don’t spoil the broth.

4. Just 46% of respondents using 1 collaboration tool reported high organizational productivity

Our survey found that high-productivity organizations were also the least likely to use the fewest collaboration tools. Only 46% of these respondents said they used just one such tool, while 36% of them said they used none at all. This inversion of our previous statistic highlights how unlikely a high-performing company is to limit its collaboration software.

Taken together, these two statistics strongly indicate that the biggest tech changes a company can make in 2024 are also the most simple. Invest further in your team collaboration tools is a statistically likely method of getting more value out of the same team.

The percentages of respondents who reported high organizational productivity split by the number of collaboration tools used by their organization. Image source: Tech.co

Collaboration Tools Beat Communication Tools

In fact, collaboration tools even correlate with a higher organizational productivity than communication tools. We asked business leaders about both tools, and of those who said their organization was highly productive, more organizations had collaboration tools than had communication tools.

5. Only 32% of companies using 1 communication tool reported high organizational productivity

As mentioned above, 46% of companies using one collaboration tool reported high organizational productivity. In contrast, just 32% of the same companies said they used one communication tool.

If a successful organization is staying stripped-down, the single collaboration tool appears to promote a more successful team of workers than a single communication tool. Of course, adding more tools helps the most productive companies even more. Nevertheless, business leaders highly value communication tools, as we’ll explore with our next statistic.

Company Performance

Business leaders believe that communication technology will have the greatest impact on their company performance in 2024. Our survey offered a range of technologies to chose from — AI, 5G, virtual and augmented reality, even cyber-attacks — and communication technology rose to the top.

6. 46% of business leaders said communication technology will “highly affect” performance in 2024

That 46% response includes answers in the “high” or “very high” category of response.

In addition, when asked which techology would have the least impact, the respondents reaffirmed the importance of communication tools. Only 11% said they envisioned communication-related technology having a “very low effect” on their operations in 2024.

Click the full chart to see a larger view of all the technologies we asked about, along with how many business leaders felt those technologies would have a major impact on them moving forward.

This graph charts responses to the question: “To what extent will the following tech innovations impact your organization’s performance in 2024?” Image source: Tech.co

The Future of Workplace Productivity

What can we learn from these statistics? First, make sure to focus on the basics when promoting productivity. Make sure your team can collaborate and communicate with themselves, with other teams within your organization, and externally with your clients or customers. In addition, investing in AI can boost productivity. Finally, as our full report found, other key areas that can impact an organization are remote working options, which correlate with higher levels of productivity and easier staff hiring.

Microsoft has invested over $10 billion into OpenAI, but it’s not resting on those laurels: The tech giant is reportedly working on another LLM of its own, internally titled “MAI-1.”

Reports have surfaced that this new model will have around 500 billion parameters, though the exact selling points and general purpose have yet to be settled.

It’s yet another move in the protracted battle for dominance in large language models, the nascent AI field that has yet to establish that it can change the world as much as it keeps saying it can.

What We Know About MAI-1

The model is still being developed and hasn’t been officially announced, so plenty of details remain unclear at this stage. But it’s a big model that can position Microsoft as a competitor with Google and OpenAI — the latter of which owes much of its own early success to Microsoft’s invested billions.

Microsoft has the huge amounts of data needed to training the MAI-1 model.

Why is Microsoft creating a new model from scratch when it’s already a big investor in OpenAI and in the French startup Mistral? The tech corporation might be hedging its bets, given the regulatory scrutiny its current AI deals are undergoing.

MAI-1’s 500 billion parameters marks a larger amount than many models: Microsoft’s Phi-3 Mini was launched in March and just has 3.8 billion parameters, while Meta’s Llama 2 models has up to 70 billion parameters at last count.

Still, the number puts MAI-1 well below OpenAI’s GPT-4 and its reported one trillion parameters.

The Hunger Games of GenAI Companies

The model is under the auspices of Mustafa Suleyman, who previously served as CEO at AI startup Inflection. That startup sold its IP rights to Microsoft for $650 million a few months ago, in a deal that also saw most of its staff hired on at the tech giant.

However, according to The Information‘s scoop, MAI-1 is reportedly entirely built by Microsoft internally, and not a rebranded Inflection model — even if some training data and technologies may be carried over.

Before Inflection, Suleyman was at Google AI, yet another top AI big-business competitor. The shuffling around of AI workers may be reminicent of “Hunger Games but for GenAI companies,” as one LinkedIn commenter referred to this news.

Where Can I Get Started Learning About LLMs?

It might seem like there’s a new AI bot to learn about every single month. But if you’re a typical office worker in 2024, you’re probably just hoping to learn enough to stay competitive in the modern workforce.

You can start with learning AI prompts. Using the right conversational style can go a long way when requesting simple text responses from any popular generative AI. We’ve rounded up the best time-saving ChatGPT prompts for office workers over here.

If that’s not enough, you should consider taking an online course that can further explain the basics. This doesn’t have to cost you a cent: We’ve put together a look at the best free AI online courses as well.

Working from home is more than just a popular employee perk. Whether you’re pressed for time to run errands or share childcare responsibilities with your spouse, remote work has provided some serious flexibility for employees in the modern era.

Unfortunately, with many businesses issuing return-to-office mandates, devoid of any research to back it up, these kinds of roles have been dwindling across the business landscape. But that doesn’t mean they’re impossible to find.

In this guide, we’ll cover a wide range of roles from businesses like Google, Amazon, and many others, so you can finally enjoy the flexible work arrangements that became so widespread during the pandemic.

Google

For years, the goal of any tech employee was to work for the Google. The company boasts some of the best perks and benefits for employees and the prestige of working at one of the biggest companies in the world is likely not lost on the average applicant.

While Google has been one of the businesses in recent memory that are trying to get the majority of employees back in the office at least some of the time, the company does offer a smattering of positions, approximately 60 as of writing, that will allow you to work from home.

Note that we’ve included the location where the position is based, just in case you need to pop into the office here and there, but these roles are marked as “Remote eligible” on the Google careers website. Here are a few of the roles that you can get started with:

• Lead Group Outbound Product Manager, Google Cloud (Sunnyvale, CA, USA)
• Import Classification Program Manager (Mexico)
• Enterprise Field Sales Representative, Google Cloud (Wisconsin, USA)
• Software Engineer III, AI/ML Machine Learning, Core (India)
• Defensive Cyber Operations Consultant, Mandiant, Public Sector (Georgia, USA)
• Senior Incident Response Consultant (United Kingdom)
• Enterprise Field Sales Representative, Google Cloud (Minnesota, USA)
• Practice Lead, Labor, Public Sector (Reston, VA, USA)
• Senior Intelligence Analyst (Dubai, UAE)

To find more information about these roles, or to find more, check out the Google careers website today.

Microsoft

If you were excited to work at Google, Microsoft is likely on your list as well, with it being considered one of the top firms to work for in the tech industry. In fact, the company is regularly in the running for most valuable company in the world, trading blows with Apple on a regular basis.

From a remote work standpoint, Microsoft has fully embraced the paradigm shift, offering more than a thousand roles in May that allow employees to work from home.

As a company that is heavily invested in the evolution of AI technology — with its own Copilot chatbot making the rounds and a deep partnership with ChatGPT creator OpenAI — many roles are in the software engineering category. But with so many roles available, it’s safe to assume you can find something that fits your needs. Here are some of the roles to choose from:

• Principal Software Engineer (Dublin, Ireland)
• Technical Program Manager (Redmond, WA, USA)
• Solution Area Specialists (Mexico; Columbia)
• Principal Technical Program Manager (Atlanta, GA, USA)
• Principal Front End Design Methodology Engineer (Mountain View, CA, USA)
• Solution Architect (Prague, Czech Republic)
• Logic Design & Verification Engineer (Serbia)
• Customer Security Officer (Multiple locations, USA)
• Senior Economist (Redmond, WA, USA)

To find more remote jobs, check out the Microsoft careers page today.

Shopify

Speaking of powerhouses in their industry, Shopify is one of the best ecommerce website builders you can get your hands on, offering robust tools that can help you build an online store. Like Square, the company also dabbles in POS, offering functionality for restaurants and retail shops.

Shopify is big on remote work, with all the current open positions offering remote work. The company doesn’t even list where the offices are based, as they want employees to feel free to apply to any position.

“Work should be built around mission, not headquarters.” – Harley Finkelstein, president of Shopify

There aren’t a lot of total roles open, though, with Shopify only hiring for around 20 spots as of May 2024. Here are the available roles at Shopify that offer work-from-home options:

• Software Engineer
• Applied Machine Learning Expert
• Data Engineer
• Product Data Analyst
• User Experience Team Member
• Product Manager
• Revenue Marketing Leads
• Sales Development Representative
• Senior Account Executive

Check out more available remote jobs at the Shopify career page to learn more.

HubSpot

While it’s certainly not considered one of the big tech firms, HubSpot is a powerhouse in the CRM industry, offering handy solutions for businesses looking to manage customer relationships. In fact, we found it to be the best CRM for marketing in our in-depth research, but that won’t help you find a remote job.

What will help you is the fact that HubSpot is firmly committed to providing workers with flexible accommodations, offering in-office, hybrid, and remote roles depending on your particular needs. The company even developed a hybrid work report in 2023 to study the importance of the movement for employees and businesses alike.

All this results in a lot of possible roles to choose from, with the HubSpot career page showing nearly 100 open remote work roles available at the company. Here are a few of them to get you started:

• Backend Engineering Lead, Data Warehouse Platform (USA)
• Account Executive – Mid Market, DACH (Germany)
• Employment Counsel (Ireland)
• Endpoint Engineering Manager (USA)
• Marketing Technology Manager, AI (Ontario, Canada)
• Principal Product Designer, Discovery Group (USA)
• Senior Software Engineer, Growth Acquisition Core, Frontend (UK)
• Staff Product Analyst, Analytics Enablement (USA)
• Technical Privacy Specialist (USA)

Find more remote jobs at the HubSpot careers page now.

Square

Square has become a well-known name in the point-of-sale (POS) and ecommerce website builder markets, providing an easy-to-use and affordable means of accepting payments in-person and online. We’ve ever found it to be the best POS system for small businesses, thanks to its free plan that charges nothing but transaction fees.

Square isn’t necessarily a big company, with fewer than 4,000 employees worldwide. Still, the company has continued to support its flexible workforce, offering more than 100 remote roles through offices in Australia, Japan, Ireland, the US, and the UK. That’s nearly half the amount of total open roles, which sits at just over 250 for Square in May 2024.

Here are some of the work-from-home jobs that are currently looking for applicants:

• Customer Success Advocate (Dublin, Ireland)
• Retail Partner Manager (Minneapolis, MN, USA)
• Partner Operations Manager (San Francisco, CA, USA)
• Go To Market (GTM) Lead (Melbourne, Australia)
• Customer Support Specialist (Tokyo, Japan)
• Head of Compliance & MLRO (London, UK)
• Lending Regulatory Counsel (Oakland, CA, USA)
• Credit Risk Specialist (Atlanta, GA, USA)
• Product Manager, Business Identities (New York, NY, USA)

To learn more, check out the Square careers page to find remote jobs.

Are Google’s days numbered? A ChatGPT-powered search engine would certainly speed things up, and a freshly minted domain points to its launch in the near future.

Google has seen unprecedented dominance over the search engine industry for decades, representing more than 91% of the market share in 2024. However, its Gemini chatbot hasn’t been able to keep up with the advancements of ChatGPT, with the latter being notably more popular than the former.

Now, ChatGPT could potentially be launching its own search engine, which might be the catalyst needed to finally unseat Google from the search engine throne.

Could ChatGPT Get a Search Engine?

While the technology has been rolled out to everything from CRMs to social media platforms, a ChatGPT search engine hasn’t popped up on the official update list.

However, one Reddit user spotted SSL certificates for a new domain, “search.chatgpt.com” that makes a pretty steadfast case for the idea of a ChatGPT search engine on the horizon.

Even better, if you type in the URL, you won’t get a 404 error or any of the usual warning message you get when you type in a website that doesn’t exist. Instead, you get a cryptic “Not found.” in the upper left-hand corner. Not to be a conspiracy theorist, but that seems like all the information we need to make a clear deduction: ChatGPT search is coming.

Why Is ChatGPT Launching a Search Engine?

If you’ve utilized any generative AI technology in recent years, you understand how valuable it could be for search. It offers far more complex responses to basic queries, and it’s a lot more conversational in terms of the results it provides.

On top of that, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has been saying he wants to give it a try for at least a few months.

“The intersection of LLMs plus search, I don’t think anyone has cracked the code on yet. I would love to go do that. I think that would be cool.” – Sam Altman on the Lex Fridman Podcast in March 2024

Suffice to say, ChatGPT search engine is a no-brainer for the future of the technology, but the question is: will ChatGPT search be able to compete with Google?

The Downfall of Google?

The idea of Google not being the primary search engine for everyday users may have seemed unfathomable just a few short years ago. But the reality is that Google has been lagging behind OpenAI and Microsoft when it comes to AI, with the latter gaining ground on search with its Copilot-powered Bing search engine.

On top of that, Google has been losing substantial ground on search to the likes of Instagram and TikTok, with Gen Z users opting for social media for their queries, rather than outright search engines.

All that to say, the world’s most popular search engine is ripe for a removal from the top spot, and a ChatGPT search engine could be a means of facilitating the transition of power. But until it’s actually announced, Google isn’t going anywhere.

Claude, the Google and Amazon-backed AI platform, has just taken another step closer to parity with fierce rival ChatGPT, by launching its own iOS app.

Available on iPhone and iPad devices right now, the app promises to deliver the same functionality of the web platform, but on the go.

The app is free to download, but for those looking to use the latest language model, Claude 3 Opus, there is an upgrade path available.

Anthropic Build Claude App for iOS Devices

OpenAi’s ChatGPT was undoubtedly the first AI chatbot to seep into the public consciousness, and since its launch in late 2022, it feels like everyone else has been playing catch up.

With Gemini not having been around as long, it has a lot of ground to gain, and the release this week of a dedicated iOS app should help close that gap.

The Claude iOS app comes almost a whole year after ChatGPT launched its own app on the platform.

Features Available on Claude iOS App

As you might expect, the Claude iOS app closely mirrors the website when it comes to functionality, but now you can carry it around in your pocket with the native app, it will more seamlessly integrate with your iPhone or iPad.

For example, web chats will now sync across devices, meaning you can start a conversation on the website, and pick it up on your iPhone or iPad, and vice versa.

The app also makes using photos on your device a lot easier, with integration meaning that you can quickly use Claude with images in your gallery. Similarly, you can upload documents from your phone for a quick summary, or transcription.

Users who sign up for Claude Pro will have access to the subscription service across all their devices.

How to Get the Claude iOS App

If you hate having to wait, then consider this news as Christmas come early, as the announcement from Anthropic about the app was delivered as soon as it hit the app store. You can get it right now!

What’s more, the app is free, meaning that you’ll be able to get started on it straight away without spending a dime. However, for AI aficionados, there is the option to sign up for Claude Pro for $20 a month, which gives you access to a higher performing LLM, Claude 3 Opus.

Android user? You might want to sit tight for now. While the iOS app announcement is great news for Apple owners, it’s all quiet on the Android front. However, you can easily access the web version on Android devices.

If rival ChatGPT’s release schedule is anything to go by, a native Android app will probably come at a later date. It focused on iOS first too, before catering to Android fans.

Another week, another data breach. This time it’s the turn of Dropbox, with the company announcing in a blog post that its systems were accessed in late April.

The breach impacts Dropbox Sign (formerly HelloSign) users, and the data accessed includes emails, usernames and hashed passwords.

Read on to find out more about who has been affected by the breach, and what steps you can take to protect yourself if you’re one of the unlucky ones.

Dropbox Data Breach Details

This week, Dropbox announced via its official blog that it had been victim of a data breach, first discovered on the April 24th, during which a threat actor accessed user records.

Dropbox has confirmed that the attack was isolated to Dropbox Sign users, and that while details such as email addresses and hashed passwords were accessed, the third party did not have access to personal documents or payment data.

Who is Affected by Dropbox Data Breach?

The first thing to note is that the breach only affects Dropbox Sign users – if you’re a Dropbox cloud user, then you’re not affected, that is assuming you’re not also a Dropbox Sign user.

You may have used Dropbox Sign in the past to sign a digital document, but unless you have actually created an account with the service, then the company won’t have your details on its system. For instance, if you used ‘Sign in with Google’, then you’re in the clear. Dropbox itself has acknowledged that the Dropbox Sign infrastructure is separate from its other services, and as such issues are isolated to just Dropbox Sign accounts.

What Data Was Compromised in Dropbox Data Breach?

While no data breach is good, in this scenario, what the third party who infiltrated Dropbox’s systems got away with could have been worse.

The threat actor was able to access usernames, emails, hashed passwords, phone numbers and multi-factor authentication information.

What they didn’t have access to was the contents of customers’ accounts, such as documents, agreements, and most vital of all, payment information.

Dropbox has confirmed that it has automatically reset users’ passwords as a result, and logged them out of devices.

How to Check if You’re Affected by Dropbox Data Breach

If you’re a Dropbox Sign customer, you will be understandably concerned by the news of this breach. If you are a user of other Dropbox services, it’s worth stating again that you are unlikely to be affected.

Dropbox has stated that it is reaching out to customers who have been affected, with advice on how to mitigate the risks of the breach, so if you’re one of them, you should receive a message by the end of the week. If you want to reach out to Dropbox directly about the breach, you can contact them here.

One step you can take is to keep an eye on the excellent website www.haveibeenpwned.com, which can tell you if your personal data has been comprised and made publicly available, simply by entering your password. While we don’t know yet if this Dropbox data has made it onto the web yet, or if the threat actor is currently looking for someone to sell it to, it’s always worth checking haveibeenpwned on a regular basis.

If you were using the same password for Dropbox Sign for other sites and services, you’ll want to change these as quickly as possible, as it could mean that anyone with this information could also access other accounts you own.

Reusing passwords across multiple accounts is considered very poor practice, but juggling multiple passwords makes it an easy trap to fall in to. We suggest using a password manager for peace of mind.

Cover letters are a crucial part of the job search process, but they can be quite the hassle. That’s why we’ve collected some of the best AI cover letter generators to help you make an impact without wasting too much time.

The employment market in the modern era is nothing if not competitive, and finding a way to get the edge on your competition is vital in finding your next job. Luckily, the advances in AI technology have provided some handy tools that can really help you get started on the right foot.

Whether you’re looking for a remote job or an in-person role, these AI cover letter generators will make life easier, so you can apply to a lot of jobs without worrying about your writing skills.

Here are the best AI cover letter generators:

• Kickresume
• Simplified
• Cover Letter Now
• Rytr
• LiveCareer
• ChatGPT

Keep scrolling to learn more about how these platforms work, what unique features they offer, and how much they cost.

Kickresume

Price: $7 per month

As you can likely guess from the name, Kickresume is specifically designed for helping users with resume and cover letter writing. The platform offers a wide range of templates to get you started, allowing you to completely customize the cover letter appearance and included information, from color and font to line spacing and address format.

When it comes to actual writing, Kickresume really takes a crumb and turns it into a loaf. With just the suggestion of a Lead Writer role, it was able to craft an impressively complete and helpful cover letter that hit a lot of important job requirements that I didn’t even mention. Suffice to say, Kickresume is one of the better options on this list.

Unfortunately, while Kickresume is free to get started, you will have to pay if you want to gain access to the AI writing functionality. Prices are pretty competitive, particularly if you’re willing to sign up for a yearly contract.

Simplified

Price: Free

Unlike Kickresume, Simplified isn’t a job assistance service, but rather just a basic content creation platform for marketing teams. Still, with a basic prompt, you’ll be able to get Simplified to craft a well-written cover letter, although we recommend adding a few “main points you are looking to cover” to make sure you hit all the important requirements of the role.

Even better, Simplified is free, as long as you stay under 5000 words, which should be pretty easy for a cover letter. If you want to write a lot of cover letters, or use the AI writer for other tasks, you’ll have to pay $14.40 per month for 100,000 words per month.

Cover Letter Now

Price: $2.45 for 14 days

If you’d like to take a more granular approach to your AI cover letter writing, Cover Letter Now is your best bet. This option will allow you to thoroughly customize every single paragraph of your cover letter, giving you an array of different options for each one, from mission-oriented options to casual approaches.

Unfortunately, Cover Letter Now is not free, forcing users to pay to download the cover letter after it’s been written. Still, the price is quite competitive, allowing you to simply pay $2.45 for access to a limited trial period. If you want full access, you’ll have to pay $7.95 per month.

Rytr

Price: Free

Rytr is another simple content creation platform, rather than one that specifically caters to those looking for a job. Luckily, with its platform, you can change everything from tone to purpose, with Cover Letter being one of the options to choose from. Even better, it gives you up to three options to choose from, so you can pick the one that fits the role right out of the gate.

Arguably the best part of these simple content creation platforms is that they are free, and Rytr is no different. You’ll be able to download your cover letter at no cost, but you will be limited to 10,000 characters per month. If you want to go unlimited, you’ll have to pay $7.50 per month.

LiveCareer

Price: $1.45 for 14 days

LiveCareer is quite similar to Cover Letter Now, allowing you to edit specific sections of your cover letter with a myriad of AI suggestions based on how you want to approach the employment process. You can also adjust the tone of the letter on the fly, to really ensure it’s getting your voice right as accurately as possible.

Like other job-focused AI generators, though, LiveCareer is not free, requiring you to sign up for a paid plan to download your cover letter. Still, at only $1.45 for 14 days, it’s the most affordable non-free option on the list. If you do want access to the full platform, though, you’ll have to pay $7.95 per month.

ChatGPT

Price: Free

Frankly, you can’t go wrong with the classics. Considering most of these platforms are using at least a bit of ChatGPT technology anyway, going right to the source is a good way to get the best of the best. ChatGPT is simple and obviously doesn’t provide all the job-searching features of other options, but with the right AI prompt, you can get even better results from this top tier AI chatbot.

As you likely know, ChatGPT is free to use for the most basic version, but there are more advanced paid plans that can get you a bit more functionality to improve your job search. Check out our ChatGPT pricing guide to learn more.

Finding a Job with AI

Using AI to help you find a job has become quite common in the modern era, with generative AI tools providing the functionality to really make an impact. Cover letters aren’t the only place you can get help either, with AI headshot platforms offering a good way to make the best first impression possible.

If you are currently looking for a job, Tech.co can help. We’ve put together a number of helpful guides that can help you find AI jobs, part time remote jobs and more. Check back for more updates throughout your job search to stay up to date on the latest trends.

If you’re a Windows 11 user and have noticed that your VPN has been acting up over the last few days, then there’s a good chance that Microsoft has inadvertently broken it.

Microsoft acknowledged this week that its April Windows 11 update may stop users’ VPNs from working correctly, and right now, there’s no obvious fix.

Affected users have to wait for a future update to get their VPN functionality back, but are waiting to hear when this will be rolled out.

Windows 11 Update Upsets VPNs

This week, Microsoft released a standard Windows 11 update, with one small blemish – it seems to have stopped some VPNs from working correctly.

In the official update notes on Microsoft’s site, the company acknowledged that with its latest software rollout ‘Windows devices might face VPN connection failures after installing the April 2024 security update’.

Microsoft hasn’t provided a list of those VPNs affected, so before you panic, we’d suggest giving your VPN of choice a whirl and seeing if it works as normal. If it does, then great! If not, then we’ve got some slightly bad news for you…

How Can I Fix the Windows VPN Issue?

If you’re running into issues with your VPN after the Windows 11 April update, the official advice from Microsoft is to use the Windows help function. However, given that Microsoft acknowledges that it is still working on a fix, this is unlikely to resolve the issue.

Another option would be to rollback the update to the previous version of Windows, which you can do by following these steps:

Click the Start menu > Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update > View Update History > Uninstall updates

It’s worth noting though that this generally isn’t recommended, as Windows updates usually carry essential security updates, so rolling back the latest update could leave your device vulnerable.

If you desperately need a VPN and can’t wait for a fix, you might want to consider trying a different VPN – it seems not all providers are impacted, so switching may be the key for now.

Microsoft is working on a solution to the issue, which it will roll out in a future update – fingers crossed it comes quickly.

Learning how to use all the generative AI technology you’ve heard about in the news just got a little easier, with Google announcing a new course that will empower you to take full advantage of the groundbreaking innovation.

If you think AI is everywhere right now, just wait. The technology isn’t going anywhere, with virtually endless possibilities for its impact on work. Subsequently, if you want to ensure you have the skills to stay relevant in this new normal, you’re going to have to learn how to use it.

Luckily, Google — creator of the Gemini chatbot — is now offering a simple course that can help you boost productivity and enhance your work with the technology.

What Is Google AI Essentials?

The course from Google — titled AI Essentials — is designed to give students some hands-on experience with generative AI platforms like ChatGPT, so they can feel comfortable using it in a work setting.

Google notes that, in the course, you will learn vital AI skills, including using the technology to “develop ideas and content, make more informed decisions, and speed up daily work tasks.”

The course is currently available on Coursera and is reportedly less than ten hours, so you can learn how to prep yourself for the future without too much time commitment.

Is Learning How to Use Generative AI Important?

You might be thinking to yourself, “do I really need to learn this?” While AI may seem like it could be just another passing tech fad, the reality is that these kinds of advancements are closer in impact to the invention of the smartphone than a popular TikTok dance.

In fact, according to LinkedIn, there has been 21x increase in roles with the term “AI” in the description. On top of that, Tech.co’s research from the Impact of Technology on the Workplace report found that 56% of individuals that use AI at work actually report higher job satisfaction.

Suffice to say, getting at least moderately acquainted with this technology — particularly if you work in an industry that can be streamlined by it — will be crucial to staying relevant in the workforce for the foreseeable future.

Other AI Tools to Use

If you’re new to the generative AI workflow, there’s a lot you need to catch up on. In fact, there are dozens of extremely helpful AI productivity tools that can make everyday tasks infinitely easier in the long run.

Whether you’re looking for a new headshot or need a quick email written, this platforms are designed to create something out of nothing, based on just a few simple AI prompts. Just input your question, query, or request, and you’ll have content, images, and everything in between at your fingertips.

Tech.co is constantly reviewing and showcasing these kinds of tools, so be sure to check back to learn more about the AI tools you can use once you’ve taken the Google AI Essentials course.

Working a remote or even fully remote job has plenty of benefits, but home workers are also at the biggest risk of predatory privacy violations thanks to a one-two punch of potential problems.

First, they face cybersecurity threats from cyber criminals who might perceive constantly online workers as the weak link in a company’s security. Second, remote workers may need to deal with employers that take a panopticon-style approach towards monitoring their employees’ every online movement, from mouse clicks to webcam snapshots.

Here, we’ll round up the top tools and best practices for staying private and secure online in today’s highly monitored digital age — whether you’re avoiding data-collection overreach from your own employee or just trying to limit the standard over-exposure encouraged by the biggest search engines and social platforms.

1. Separate Personal Devices From Company Ones

Personal devices are for personal use, company devices are for company use, and never the twain shall meet. If your company is pushing for you to use your personal device for company use and potentially even company software, that’s a huge red flag that should push you to consider brushing up on your job interview skills.

Why? Because depending on your state laws, companies might have a ton of freedom to keep an eye on their employees with spyware. This might include an activity timer, screen recording, a live keylogger, or even remote access that allows your employer to fully control your laptop or phone from afar.

One such software, Hubstaff, can be used to send your employer a new screen capture at random times set as frequently as three times every ten minutes, while another option, Teramind, will collect all of your keyboard activity and use it to analyze your online behavior. The only winning move here is not to play.

2. Mouse Jigglers

One common metric that “big brother”-style employee surveillance software tends to track is mouse movement, under the inaccurate reasoning that an employee who is constantly moving their mouse around is a hardworking employee. If you’re a short-burst style worker, you may need a mouse jiggler.

These devices might be a simple software app, but you’re better off with a USB-equipped hardware (Wiebetech is a trusted brand), or a completely undetectable option that avoids connecting to the company device entirely, like the Liberty Mouse Mover.

One software developer even created an impressive DIY version that can switch tabs and press keys.

It’s worth noting that using anything to circumvent your employers’ survelliance can lead to a job loss if discovered. We’d still recommend looking for a new job rather than stick around to deal with an employer that doesn’t understand how to respect its workers.

3. Avoid Email and Social Account Monitoring

Another way that authoritarian survelliance practices are leaking into the workplace amid the rise of global internet connectivity? Email and social account monitoring — even for employees’ personal social media accounts.

Even pre-Covid, big corporations were leaning into this practice, with a 2018 Gartner report finding that 50% of the 239 large corporations polled were “using some type of nontraditional monitoring techniques.”

If your own company is among them, you can separate your personal activity from your work activity by taking a lot of extra care not to use an email address or personal device that’s connected to your work persona. This is a tough route to take, though: You’ll even have to avoid showing your face at all, thanks to facial recognition software like PimEyes.

4. VPNs

Simply explained, a Virtual Private Network will pass all of your internet traffic and data through its own secure servers. This anonymizes your IP address, keeping third-party companies and actors from connecting your activity with your personal identity. It also means that your company won’t see your online activity, as long as they’re only monitoring your internet connection. If they’re monitoring your device, a VPN won’t help.

Some VPNs also add data encryption, and any good option will come with a kill switch, designed to drop all internet connections if it can’t protect your data by funnelling it through its servers. Our top pick is NordVPN, for security, price, and ease of use. We also have a roundup of the best business VPNs, if you’d like a larger selection.

5. Secure Browsers

There are limits to the benefits of a VPN when it comes to privacy: For example, it won’t keep you safe on websites that have unsecured HTTP traffic. To be as private as possible while working online, you’ll need a browser that won’t store your search history.

The Tor browser is one of the most privacy-centric options out there. If you need to go with a mainstream option, consider Firefox. The least private option is, not coincidentally, also the most commonly used browser, Chrome.

As we said earlier though, if you really don’t want your employer knowing what you’re looking at in your lunch hour, use a separate device instead of risking using company-owned devices.

Know Your Rights

You might be shocked to learn that employee monitoring is entirely legal. However, while companies do have a right to do it, there are some caveats, and it’s important to know what exactly your employer is entitled to track.

For example, while most states don’t require consent to monitor employees, four do: Texas, New York, Connecticut and Delaware. If you work in one of these locations, your boss must tell you before they monitor your activity at work. If consent isn’t obtained, it could open up the employer to legal action.

Employers may also be entitled to monitor work devices outside of work hours, so don’t assume that just because it’s 6pm, you can hit up any site you like – there’s every chance your boss could be watching.

Similarly, don’t assume your personal devices are safe either. If you work for a company that lets you use your own devices for work purposes, these are also considered fair game for monitoring.

As you can see, the laws are stacked in the employers’ favor, but being aware of the legal aspect of monitoring, especially in your state, can help you avoid making simple mistakes.

Other Essential Privacy Tools for Remote Workers

It’s not just your boss who might be spying on you – there are plenty of third party threats out there too who would love to get hold of your data. Here’s a few more tools that can keep you safe, and some to help you should your data be compromised.

Antivirus Software

The right antivirus solution will offer a durable shield to ward off ransomware, malware, firewall breaches, and even help to flag phishing scams before you fall for one.

Granted, this is more of a software solution that your business should already be offering across all company devices, rather than one that each individual employee should be paying for themselves. However, perhaps you can suggest a solid option to your employer and have them pick up the check on it.

We’ve researched the top picks and settled on Bitdefender GravityZone Business Security, and you can see our reasoning in our roundup of the best business antivirus software. You can’t go wrong with other options, as well, like Surfshark One or Norton Small Business.

Digital Identity Monitoring

You can’t always prevent your data being leaked, in the event of a breach at a company or software that has previously collected your personal information or login data. But you can make sure that you stay on top of exactly how much of your private data has leaked.

A digital identity monitoring service will scan the darker nooks and crannies of the internet, figuring out what data surrounding your online identity has been compromised or exposed, and letting you know about it.

Armed with this info, you can change passwords or update your PINs to deter future identity thefts. Bitdefender is one brand that offers this service.

Data Broker Removal Tools

If your data has been collected and exposed online, all is not lost: With the right tool, you might be able to claw some of it back. A data broker removal tool will automate the process of interfacing with data brokers — the entities that collect and sell an individual’s data to marketers, insurance companies, or even bad actors set on identity fraud.

You can keep your data from being sold by contacting a data broker, but there are so many of them that the process is opaque for the average person. So, you can pay a data broker removal tool to do it for you.

Tools like DeleteMe or Incogni will limit how often your data is sold online. We found Incogni in particular to be a great option: It’s just $6.49 per month, contacts around 149 data brokers, and takes just 15 minutes for your to set it up. Once it’s active, you’ll be have another layer of protection keeping your data from falling into the hands of a phisher that might attack your company through you.

Encryption Software

Remote workers who deal with any sensitive, locally-store business information should consider encryption software. These tools will protect your data even if a criminal does manage to steal it: It’ll be scrambled into a mess that’s totally unreadable without the encryption key. This is a great option for anyone who handles the company payroll or crunches employee data for quarterly reports.

A few encryption options to consider include IBM Guardium, Microsoft BitLocker, or Apple FileVault. In a world with all the cybersecurity concerns that we’re constantly facing, that extra encryption could make a big difference.

Conclusion: Go Light on Employee Survelliance, Everyone

Finally, for any employers who read this far: Consider relaxing your survelliance activities for remote workers. Studies show that aggressive survelliance technologies deter Millenials and Gen Zers from working at a company. One report found 56% of workers who are digitally monitored at work say they “feel tense or stressed out” while on the job.

At the very least, however, you should protect yourself legally by reading up on your local laws and exercising transparency about exactly what software you’ll be subjecting employees to.

In a win for chatbot nerds, OpenAI’s new memory feature it teased in February is officially available to all ChatGPT Plus users, (as long as they don’t live in Europe or Korea).

The feature lets ChatGPT remember and utilize personalized information shared during conversations, giving the AI chatbot the ability to improve and become more useful over time. The capability is currently the only one of its kind too, giving ChatGPT a leg up over other chatbot competitors like Gemini and Microsoft Copilot.

The AI research lab has given users the option to forget specific interactions too, giving them full control of how the feature works. So, whether you’re excited to use this feature, fear its implications on your privacy, or are somewhere in between, this guide breaks down how you can leverage ChatGPT’s new memory tool, make the chatbot remember selectively, or opt out of the feature altogether.

What Is ChatGPT’s Memory Feature?

In February, AI developer OpenAI announced it was testing a unique feature that enabled ChatGPT to remember conversations to make future chats more useful. But how exactly does this work?

As you chat with ChatGPT, you’ll be able to ask it to remember a specific detail of a conversation or let it pick up the details itself, OpenAI explained in a blog post. This will result in subtle improvements over time and will make the chatbot more capable of delivering responses that are personal to you.

For example, if you’ve previously told ChatGPT you prefer meeting notes to have headlines and bullet points, all meeting recaps will be delivered using this format in the future. Or, if you have a toddler who loves jellyfish, ChatGPT will remember this detail when you ask it to create a card for them for their birthday

Source: OpenAI

Based on feedback from OpenAI’s testing, ChatGPT will also tell users when memories have been updated. Users also have complete control over what ChatGPT remembers and are able to make the chatbot “forget” certain details from conversations. To do so, you simply need to hover over “Memory updated” before reviewing the controls under “Manage memories”.

How Can I Use ChatGPT’s New Memory Feature?

Since OpenAI has extended this capability to all Plus users outside of Korea and Europe, it’s the perfect time to test it out for yourself. If you’re not a ChatGPT Plus subscriber, that is, paying for the premium service, you’ll need to do that first.

Getting started with the feature is easy, all you need to do is follow the simple steps below:

1. Open ChatGPT
2. Open “Settings”
3. Select “Personalization”
4. Toggle the “Memory” option by moving the slider to the left

Voilà, ChatGPT’s memory feature will now be activated. Now all you need to do is use ChatGPT as you would normally and see the results for yourselves. If there are certain things you’d like to be forgotten from your conversation thread, you simply tell ChatGPT “I would like you to forget this”. You can also delete certain interactions by following the steps below:

1. Open ChatGPT
2. Open “Settings”
3. Select “Personalization”
4. Select “Manage Memory”
5. Choose which interactions you’d like ChatGPT to forget 

ChatGPT Memory Sounds Creepy, Can I Opt Out?

While ChatGPT’s new memory feature represents a breakthrough in the technology and gives OpenAI’s chatbot another competitive advantage over competitors like Gemini and Claude, it won’t be welcomed with open arms by users who are already skeptical about the tool’s data collection practices.

It’s no secret that OpenAI trains ChatGPT by scraping data from various sources on the internet. However, this controversial method has resulted in OpenAI being the subject of numerous lawsuits accusing the research lab of taking information from hundreds of millions of internet users without their consent.

While the chatbot maker has made it very clear that memorized user input won’t be fed back into the system as training data, OpenAI’s track record is enough to ruffle the feathers of privacy advocates and regular users alike. So if the chatbot’s new conversational capability gives you the chills, you can learn how to turn off ChatGPT’s memory feature here.

AI has had an instrumental impact on the workforce, helping us to work faster and smarter than ever before. But aside from benefiting the bottom lines of businesses, the pick up of tools like Gemini and ChatGPT has also brought one of the most desired employee perks even closer to reality – the 4-day workweek.

New research has found that 25% of the Canadian workforce could adopt a 4-day workweek in the next decade, while 90% of workers could see their working hours reduced by 10%, proving that the benefits of AI might extend beyond white-collar workers.

This outcome is dependent on employers prioritizing worker welfare over endless productivity gains, however, which is an assumption that many CEOs — including the founder of business automation software Kognitos — believe might be too optimistic.

AI Could Usher in a 4-Day Work Week For a Quarter of Workers

Do you spend your Fridays wistfully longing for a 4-day workweek? Well, a new report from the Work Time Reduction Centre of Excellence (WTRCoE) and UK research group Autonomy found it may not be too long before this dream becomes a reality, especially if you’re working in Canada.

The report, which correlates Canadian government workforce data with indices used by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), found that a 4-day workweek could become possible for 25% of Canadian workers in the next 10 years thanks to the rising adoption of AI technologies. It found that businesses with higher potential for AI augmentation could roll out the model without taking a hit to productivity, too.

The results of this report chime with the findings of our own Impact of Technology on the Workplace report, which suggests that AI could indeed become the catalyst to make the flexible workplace strategy more commonplace in the near future.

Our report, which includes survey responses from over 1000 US-based business leaders, revealed that 93% of businesses that have fully integrated AI into their processes have already rolled out – or are considering adopting – a 4-day workweek. This is compared to only 41% of businesses that weren’t using AI in their workplace, suggesting that a companies level of AI use is a huge determining factor when it comes to deciding whether to drop a working day.

These findings will undoubtedly be exciting to those who work for organizations with high levels AI literacy. However, with the 4-day workweek’s main critique being that its benefits are reserved for desk-based, high-income workers, what did WTRCoE’s report reveal about AI’s implications for the wider workforce?

AI Revolution Won’t Just Benefit White Collar Workers

According to WTRCoE’s recent report, white-collar workers are more likely to experience a 4-day workweek than those working in industries like hospitality and manufacturing for example. However, this doesn’t mean the benefits of AI won’t be felt far and wide.

Data compiled in the report suggested that 90% of the Canadian workforce could reduce working hours by 10% in the next decade, with an impact being felt across most major industries. It also found that in terms of geography, the provinces of Ontario, British Columbia, Quebec, Alberta, and Nova Scotia have the highest proportion of workers who could work four days.

“In most healthcare sectors and services globally, there is a significant volume of work which is administrative which is about managing the kind of scheduling and the arrangements of care where actually AI tools and technologies could make a real difference.” – Joe O’Connor, CEO of WTRCoE 

CEO of WTRCoE, Joe O’Connor, was keen to debunk myths that the AI revolution won’t benefit employees working in high-pressure industries like healthcare. When speaking to Yahoo Finance Canada he explained that while most people think a 4-day workweek could never be possible for healthcare professionals, AI tools could actually play a major role in streamlining administrative processes like scheduling and appointments, freeing up time as a result.

Could AI Create an Always-On Culture That Makes Us Work More?

The report does contain a pretty major caveat, however. This gradual move to a 4-day work week relies on what O’Connor describes as a “choice” for employers. He tells Yahoo Finance Canada that while the conclusions about productivity gains “hold up pretty clearly” in the data, the results hinge on whether employers choose to utilize this productivity to benefit their bottom line, or to reduce hours worked by employees.

“If it becomes a choice, do we bank all of those productivity gains against the bottom line or against cost savings such as job reductions or do we design a model societally and economically where that benefit is shared and distributed more equitably between corporations and the workforce?” – Joe O’Connor, CEO of WTRCoE 

O’Connor’s anxieties reflect concerns held by business experts, including Binny Gill, founder and CEO of Kognitos, a company that leverages AI to automate business processes. Despite founding the business with the intention to spare up worker time, Gill works weekends, and he tells Business Insider that advancements in AI could lead to us working more by exasperating the “always-on” culture that is already felt across the workforce.

“Humans will do less manual work, but they’ll be on call all the time because the companies are not going to sleep because it’s all about competing with your competition, which is not going to sleep,” he explained, adding “regular companies will use AI just to stay in the race”.

With many business owners under increasing pressure to improve profits in the face of challenging economic headwinds, many experts also fear that the uptick of AI will result in more employers replacing workers with the technology. The truth is the AI revolution will impact every worker differently, but one thing remains certain — the employment landscape a decade from now is guaranteed to look a whole lot different, as AI continues to transform the way we work and live.

The number of businesses offering menopause benefits remains incredibly small. But the list is a lot longer than it was this time last year.

The US economy loses $26.6 billion annually due to employee menopause symptom management according to Mayo Clinic estimates, with $1.8 billion of that down to productivity losses. Offering menopausal benefits can streamline business operation in addition to helping employees’ well-being.

A unique benefits package can help businesses stand out while trying to hire the best and brightest. Some options include pet insurance, four-day work weeks, or paid menstrual leave. Yet, companies are still getting used to the idea of offering menopausal benefits.

Here’s a quick look at which businesses are leading the way.

What Do Menopausal Benefits Cover?

Many companies already offer comprehensive medical benefits on one hand and flexible working arrangements on another. But it’s only by putting together a package of these benefits (and others) that’s designed to address menopausal needs specifically that the company can offer menopausal benefits.

Here’s a list of the types of benefits that a company is likely referring to when it says it supports its employees’ menopausal needs:

• Flexible work arrangements
• Access to hormone therapy
• Menopausal leave
• Access to counseling or wellness coaching
• E-learning and internal events
• Toolkits and conversation guides

According to an analysis reported in January, 15% of employers currently offer or plan to offer menopause benefits in 2024, a big jump up from just 4% the year before.

Companies That Offer Menopausal Benefits in 2024

Hot flashes, joint pain, brain fog, and poor sleep can really hurt someone’s work performance. This is particularly true for those in senior management positions, as are many who are affected by menopause.

1. Microsoft

The biggest brand currently offering menopausal benefits is tech giant Microsoft, which only added them in July of 2023.

Employees around the globe have these benefits today, with Bloomberg reporting that Maven Clinic had logged more than “3,000 provider-member interactions in 58 countries” across the first two months following the launch of the benefit.

2. Adobe

Software company Adobe beat Microsoft to the punch by rolling out its menopausal benefits a year earlier. Listed within the “personal wellbeing” section of a late 2022 announcement, Adobe said it has now added “fertility, family leave and menopause services” for the first time for Adobe team members in Europe.

“Employees, their partners or spouses have complimentary access to Peppy Menopause and Peppy Fertility services including one-to-one access to experts, online resources or moderated group chats.” -Adobe

It’s far from the first time that Europe has adapted employee-friendly benefits earlier than their American cousins: The EU guarantees a minimum of 20 working days of paid vacation, compared to an average of about 11 days in the US.

3. Nvidia

The same service that Adobe relies on, Peppy, supports the Santa Clara, California-based technology corporation Nvidia in the UK with a package that includes menopause-related perks. Peppy has recently rolled out menopausal benefits support for Nvidia in the US as well, covering about 13,000 employees.

According to the company’s website, Nvidia now offers “clinical and emotional support for employees going through any stage of menopause.”

Feedback is positive so far, according to coverage from late last year. The benefit will be up for renewal later this year, and will continue on as long as employees find it worth the investment.

4. Organon

Multinational pharmaceutical company Organon has some skin in the game when it comes to menopausal benefits: The company is itself trying to find solutions to some of the life-impacting side effects of perimenopause and menopause. “Certainly, we should be doing something internally within our policy framework to acknowledge the same,” Organon chief human resources officer Aaron Falcione told HR Brew.

What are they doing specifically? Adding menopausal leave, keeping managers informed about the issue, and implementing a range of practices aimed at destigmatizing the topic, such as giving employees a space to take a quick break during a hot flash or providing a desk fan.

5. Standard Chartered Bank

This British multinational bank revealed a global rollout of these benefits late last year, covering menopause related symptoms for all employees and their partners, with the rollout expected to finish up this month, April 2024.

Here’s what the bank is doing, in addition to offering access to specialized medical practitioners and prescription medication:

“They have introduced toolkits, conversation guides and counselling support, as well as e-learning and internal events. Employees experiencing the menopause are also well supported by flexible working policies and workplace adjustments to help them better manage their symptoms.”

About 7% of the company’s employees are personally impacted by menopause, it says.

6. The NBA

The National Basketball Association isn’t letting anyone dunk on them: They’re offering menupausal benefits, as well “inclusive fertility and family-building benefits,” all made available through Carrot Fertility, a global corporate fertility benefits service.

7. Palantir

The big-data surveillance company Palantir’s data-mining practices might not make headlines for the best reasons, but its employees do have some great perks: The company is also on Carrot Fertility’s client list, with menopausal benefits among those it offers its workers.

8. Abercrombie & Fitch

The clothing retailer Abercrombie & Fitch offers its menopause benefits through Carrot Fertility as well. As with the NBA and Palantir, little information has been provided beyond this, but it’s good to know the brand is on the cutting edge of modern company benefits culture as well as turn-of-the-century fashion styles.

Will Companies Continue Centering Employees Needs?

Menopausal benefits are just one example of an employee-forward approach that many companies are using to keep their workplace healthy and happy, while luring in top talent as well.

But it’s worth noting that virtually every company out there is beholden to its bottom line. As much as a healthy workplace aids that bottom line in the long term, the great benefits that shape that health can go on the chopping block when the quarterly need for short-term profit emerges.

A true commitment to employees’ needs will emerge from workers and the general public continuing to highlight the need for better parity in the workplace, whether that looks like menopausal benefits, menstrual leave, fully remote work, or any other flexible option.

What’s cooler than a tax refund? $1 billion in tax refunds. That’s how much the IRS has sitting around in unclaimed refunds from the 2020 tax year. Better, you might actually be able to get a part of it.

However, there’s a tight deadline before it’s all gone forever: The IRS will only hold onto that big pot of money until May 17.

According to the IRS themselves, the average median refund for 2020 comes out to an impressive $932. And since everyone’s owed their refund, that’s essentially money that the IRS is legally taking out of the pockets of the average person who didn’t file for their refund back in 2021. No, I don’t know why we run our country this way, either.

You may have already filed your taxes for this year. Here’s how to file your 2020 taxes and get your chunk of that $1 billion.

Here’s Why the Refund Deadline Is May 17, 2024

Typically, the IRS gives US taxpayers a three-year window to file and claim any tax refunds they’re owed. After that deadline, the unclaimed funds become the property of the US Treasury.

The deadline usually falls in April — for instance, 2023 tax returns were supposed to be filed on April 15 this year, so April 15, 2027 will be the final deadline for recovering refunds from this year. But back in 2020, the Covid pandemic had just settled in, and amid all that disruption, the IRS pushed back the deadline to file to May 17.

So, May 17, 2024 is the final deadline to recover that $1 billion in refunds that has been sitting around for three years.

940,000 People Never Claimed Their 2020 Return

According to its own press release, the IRS “estimates the midpoint for the individual refund amounts for 2020 to be $932 — that is, half of the refunds are more than $932 and half are less.”

However, this estimate does not include the Recovery Rebate Credit or other similar credits, even though they may be available (at least, up until May 17). In other words, you might be able to receive even more money.

IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel had a few guesses as to why so many refunds remain unclaimed:

“People faced extremely unusual situations during the pandemic, which may have led some people to forget about a potential refund on their 2020 tax returns. People may have just overlooked these, including students, part-time workers and others. Some people may not realize they may be owed a refund.”

There’s one final catch that might help to explain why so much money is sitting around unclaimed: The IRS always reserves the right to garnish your refund in order to cover your outstanding debts. And since that garnishment can be as large as the entire refund, it’s plausable that plenty of taxpayers are simply avoiding a lot of paperwork that wouldn’t result in them receiving a penny.

Refunds might also be held back by the IRS for those who still need to file their 2021 and 2022 returns as well. Still, as long as you don’t have IRS or state tax debt, you might have a lot of money coming your way.

How Do I File a 2020 Tax Return in 2024?

The official IRS website hosts all the tax forms you need to file – and that includes previous years, like 2020. Just head over to IRS.gov and look for tax year 2020 forms 1040 and 1040-SR, which are the relevant forms needed for the refunds mentioned above.

There’s also a toll-free number to call, for those who prefering speaking over the phone: 800-TAX-FORM (that’s 800-829-3676).

However, you’ll need more than the forms themselves: You’ll need to have personal tax documents. You have three options for getting them. We’ve listed them here, starting with the best option:

• Get your transcript online. The IRS has an online portal that lets anyone access their personal tax records, including your payment history and how much you owe. It’s the fastest way to get the data you need.
• Request copies from your employers or your bank. They’ll likely have sent your tax info already back at the start of 2021, but if you’ve misplaced the documents, you can just get in touch with them to ask for another copy of forms W-2, 1098, 1099 or 5498.
• Get your transcript by mail. You can also file form 4506-T to get the right transcript by mail. You may have access to more information this way, but the process will get you weeks, so you might not get everything finished by that May 17 deadline.

What’s the Average Refund Size in Your State?

The IRS was kind enough to release a full list that breaks down the median refund across all 50 US states and the District of Columbia, along with the total number of people who have yet to file their 2020 taxes.

Check out your own state here:

• Alabama: 15,200 people with median refunds of $926 each
• Alaska: 3,700 people with median refunds of $931
• Arizona: 25,400 people with median refunds of $871
• Arkansas: 8,700 people with median refunds of $923
• California: 88,200 people with median refunds of $835
• Colorado: 18,500 people with median refunds of $894
• Connecticut: 9,800 people with median refunds of $978
• Delaware: 3,600 people with median refunds of $945
• District of Columbia: 2,900 people with median refunds of $968
• Florida: 53,200 people with median refunds of $891
• Georgia: 36,400 people with median refunds of $900
• Hawaii: 5,200 people with median refunds of $979
• Idaho: 4,500 people with median refunds of $761
• Illinois: 36,200 people with median refunds of $956
• Indiana: 19,200 people with median refunds of $922
• Iowa: 9,600 people with median refunds of $953
• Kansas: 8,700 people with median refunds of $900
• Kentucky: 10,600 people with median refunds of $920
• Louisiana: 15,100 people with median refunds of $957
• Maine: 3,800 people with median refunds of $923
• Maryland: 22,200 people with median refunds of $991
• Massachusetts: 21,800 people with median refunds of $975
• Michigan: 34,900 people with median refunds of $976
• Minnesota: 13,500 people with median refunds of $818
• Mississippi: 8,100 people with median refunds of $861
• Missouri: 19,500 people with median refunds of $893
• Montana: 3,400 people with median refunds of $851
• Nebraska: 4,700 people with median refunds of $901
• Nevada: 10,200 people with median refunds of $890
• New Hampshire: 4,200 people with median refunds of $982
• New Jersey: 24,400 people with median refunds of $920
• New Mexico: 6,500 people with median refunds of $868
• New York: 51,400 people with median refunds of $1,029
• North Carolina: 27,500 people with median refunds of $895
• North Dakota: 2,200 people with median refunds of $953
• Ohio: 31,400 people with median refunds of $909
• Oklahoma: 14,300 people with median refunds of $902
• Oregon: 15,300 people with median refunds of $847
• Pennsylvania: 38,600 people with median refunds of $1,031
• Rhode Island: 2,600 people with median refunds of $986
• South Carolina: 11,900 people with median refunds of $840
• South Dakota: 2,200 people with median refunds of $892
• Tennessee: 16,800 people with median refunds of $909
• Texas: 93,400 people with median refunds of $960
• Utah: 7,800 people with median refunds of $836
• Vermont: 1,700 people with median refunds of $911
• Virginia: 25,900 people with median refunds of $914
• Washington: 26,200 people with median refunds of $976
• West Virginia: 3,800 people with median refunds of $950
• Wisconsin: 11,800 people with median refunds of $837
• Wyoming: 2,100 people with median refunds of $961

It’s no surprise that the most populated states, like Texas and California, have the most taxpayers who have yet to get around to their 2020 filing.

Interestingly, the median tax refund owed by people from just two states were able to crack four digits, however: New York, with a $1,029 median, and Pennsylvania, with the highest median, $1,031.

OpenAI’s massively popular AI bot, ChatGPT, has faced plenty of legal concerns. Now, a new privacy complaint is resurfacing a big one: ChatGPT tends to make up information and present it as if it’s true.

The privacy rights group noyb is behind the complaint, which centers on an unnamed public figure who asked ChatGPT about the date of his birthday and received incorrect answers in response.

For years, ChatGPT and similar generative AI tools have failed to stop their habit of lying during simple conversations. With this new complaint, they risk legal consequences for perpetuating inaccurate personal data.

What’s ChatGPT Being Called Out For?

The term “AI hallucination” refers to any incorrect or misleading result that AI models might generate. Since they’re all large language models, they’re trained on huge amounts of data, which they can then replicate or rearrange in seemingly authentic ways. But the models often prioritize verisimilitude over facts.

In one of the most infamous examples, Google’s chatbot Bard gave a false answer during its own Feburary 2023 launch announcement when it inaccurately claimed that the James Webb Space Telescope had captured the first pictures of a planet outside our solar system.

Those hallucinations can be as simple as ChatGPT refusing to admit that it doesn’t know a public figure’s birthday, and it’s a big problem for a tool that is billed as a way to handle simple tasks. The new complaint hopes to draw legal action against the company to address the problem.

“It’s clear that companies are currently unable to make chatbots like ChatGPT comply with EU law, when processing data about individuals. If a system cannot produce accurate and transparent results, it cannot be used to generate data about individuals. The technology has to follow the legal requirements, not the other way around.” ~ Maartje de Graaf, noyb data protection lawyer.

Why the New Privacy Complaint Matters

The noyb project — whose name, I’m delighted to tell you, stands for “none of your business” — is a nonprofit group dedicated to addressing “commercial privacy issues on a European level, i.e. privacy violations of your digital rights as a private citizen by companies and corporations,” according to its website.

Due to the launch of the EU’s GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) in 2018, watchdogs like noyb can highlight the biggest privacy violations that may be impacting people across Europe.

GDPR compliance failures can result in fines as high as 4% of global annual turnover, so they’re nothing to sneeze at. The right GDPR ruling can set a precident for how all generative AI bots are handled, not just the standard-bearing ChatGPT.

Should AI and Other New Tech Be More Closely Regulated?

Granted, there are plenty of other stories that have more obvious negative impacts than getting a birthday wrong. For example, some unscrupulus ebook writers have been AI-generating entire guides to mushroom foraging that might wind up poisoning anyone who takes them as the truth.

But the new complaint has one benefit over other, more shocking problems with AI: It makes clear that OpenAI’s ChatGPT is the party worth targeting, rather than ebook hustlers. The complaint aims to bring ChatGPT’s penchant for mistruths in the light, specificially so that legal standards can be set.

Are regulations good for the tech world? A certain anti-regulation ethos has been a big part of Silicon Valley’s ethos for over a half-century, thanks to the many libertarians, techno-rationalists, and “move fast and break things” proponents in its ranks.

Ultimately, your answer will likely depend on how comfortable you are with everything that today’s data-hungry tech corporations are getting up to. Some people prefer to move slow and fix things.

When it comes to big AI companies, however, they’re still moving too fast: Soon after that Google Bard launch failure, reports surfaced claiming that Google had overruled a risk assessment that had caught the AI tool lying.