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New online superstore surpasses Amazon and Walmart to become most downloaded app in US

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By Michelle Toh, CNN-- ATLANTA — A new online shopping platform linked to one of China's top retailers has quickly become the most downloaded app in the United States, surpassing Amazon and Walmart. Now it's looking to capitalize from an appearance on America's biggest stage. Temu is a Boston-based online retailer that shares the same owner as Chinese social commerce giant Pinduoduo. Temu, which runs an online superstore for virtually everything — from home goods to apparel to electronics — unveiled a commercial during the Super Bowl that encouraged consumers to "shop like a billionaire." The pitch? You don't have to be one. "Through the largest stage possible, we want to share with our consumers that they can shop with a sense of freedom because of the price we offer," a Temu spokesman told CNN in a statement.

The 30-second spot shows the company's proposition to users: Feel like you're splurging by buying lots of stuff cheaply. A woman's swimsuit on Temu costs just $6.50, while a pair of wireless earphones is priced at $8.50. An eyebrow trimmer costs 90 cents. These surprisingly low prices — by Western standards, at least — have drawn comparisons to Shein, the Chinese fast fashion upstart that also offers a wide selection of inexpensive clothing and home goods, and has made significant inroads into markets including the United States. Shein is considered one of Temu's competitors, along with U.S.-based discount retailer Wish and Alibaba's AliExpress, according to Coresight Research.

Climbing the charts

Temu, pronounced "tee-moo," was launched last year by PDD, its U.S.-listed parent company formerly known as Pinduoduo. The company officially changed its name just this month. PDD's subsidiary Pinduoduo is one of China's most popular e-commerce platforms with approximately 900 million users. It made its name with a group-buying business model, allowing people to save money by enlisting friends to buy the same item in bulk. On its website, Temu says it uses its parent company's "vast and deep network ... built over the years to offer a wide range of affordable quality products." Since its rollout in September, the application has been downloaded 24 million times, racking up more than 11 million monthly active users, according to Sensor Tower. In the fourth quarter of last year, U.S. app installations for Temu exceeded those for Amazon, Walmart and Target, according to Abe Yousef, a senior insights analyst at the analytics firm Sensor Tower. "Temu soared to the top of both U.S. app store charts in November, where the app still holds the top position now," he told CNN, referring to iOS and Android mobile app stores.

Yousef said the company had been particularly successful at acquiring new users by offering extremely low prices and in-app flash deals, such as 89% off certain items. The firm is already eyeing new territory. This month, Temu said on Twitter that it plans to expand to Canada.

'Too cheap'? Michael Felice, an associate partner at management consulting firm Kearney, said Temu stood out simply by selling products without high markups. "Temu might be exposing a white space in the market wherein brands have been producing at extreme low cost, and along the value chain there's been so much bloated cost passed on for margin," he told CNN. "That said, American consumers might not even be ready to accept some of these price points ... There's always the question, 'is it too cheap to be good?'" American consumers might not even be ready to accept some of these price points ... There's always the question, 'is it too cheap to be good? –Michael Felice, Kearney

Deborah Weinswig, CEO of Coresight Research, has cautioned that it may be too early to tell whether Temu will be able to maintain those extremely low prices, free shipping and other perks. "Temu aims to continue to experiment in marketing and offerings, which is possible thanks to its resource-rich parent company," she wrote in a report. Its launch, she said, "comes at an opportune moment, as consumers search for value amid still-elevated inflation and a degree of economic uncertainty."

Hezbollah’s Hassan Nasrallah ‘is the voice of Iran, his words have no national scope,’ says leader of Lebanese Forces part

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by arabnews.com - Antoine Azoury -- BEIRUT: Hassan Nasrallah, secretary-general of Hezbollah, inflicts pain on Lebanon and its society when he associates himself with Iran’s regional strategy, says a prominent Christian bloc leader. Samir Geagea, leader of the Christian Lebanese Forces party, told Arab News that Nasrallah “is the voice of Iran. His words have no national scope." He said Lebanon was not currently suffering from a Christian or a sectarian-related problem, but rather from an intense national issue affecting all Lebanese people. “Nonetheless, multiparty (politics) reflects a positive aspect,” he added. Geagea leads one of the two major Christian blocs in the Lebanese parliament, and his party is spearheading the opposition against Hezbollah. Gebran Bassil leads the other bloc — the Free Patriotic Movement.

Geagea said unity at a political level “cannot be achieved in the presence of two parties, the Lebanese Forces and the Free Patriotic Movement, which are not on the same page regarding the simplest issues, whether strategic matters, propositions, or even the political project and its related practices.” He added: “Nevertheless, we are on the same page with other parties, such as the Kataeb Party and the National Liberal Party. “The situation is not easy today, but we always have to be optimistic. The harder it is, the more we have to continue our struggle." The Lebanese Forces party is considered Saudi Arabia’s main ally in Lebanon, and Geagea believes the relationship has deep roots. He said: “After 2005, the March 14 Movement emerged, which included the Lebanese Forces. “This movement had privileged relations with Saudi Arabia and the Gulf countries, enabling the Lebanese Forces to establish relations with Saudi leaders based on the convergence of interests and a shared vision for Lebanon, without forgetting the historical emotional ties between the two peoples. “However, how can they help our country now, at a time when it is plagued by a corrupt political class, where some of its members are fiercely attacking the Gulf?”

Popnews - Lebanese singer Maritta Hallani is Engaged

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by harpersbazaararabia.com -- Laura Kell -- - The 26-year-old Beirut native shared a sweet Instagram photo with her new fiancé in Paris, who popped the question in Paris Wedding bells will soon be ringing for Maritta. The Lebanese singer has revealed she’s now engaged to Anghami Head of Production Kamil Abi Khalil. Yesterday evening the pair shared photos and a video of themselves in Paris, where Kamil got down on one knee and popped the question. “I said YES to the love of my life!” she wrote within the caption.

Karen Wazen, Jessica Kahawaty, and other notable individuals wished congratulations within the caption. Maritta is the daughter of Lebanese singer Assi El Hallani and started her music career back in 2016 with the single Yalla Nefrah. The couple has yet to reveal any details regarding their upcoming nuptials. Check back soon for more information. Lead image courtesy of Instagram/@maritta

Could Big Tech be liable for generative AI output? Hypothetically ‘yes,’ says Supreme Court justice

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By Sharon Goldman @sharongoldman -- venturebeat -- In a surprise moment during today’s Supreme Court hearing about a Google case that could impact online free speech, justice Neil M. Gorsuch touched upon potential liability for generative AI output, according to Will Oremus at the Washington Post. In the Gonzalez v. Google case in front of the Court, the family of an American killed in a 2015 ISIS terrorist attack in Paris argued that Google and its subsidiary YouTube did not do enough to remove or stop promoting ISIS terrorist videos seeking to recruit members. According to attorneys representing the family, this violated the Anti-Terrorism Act. In lower court rulings, Google won with the argument that Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act shields it from liability for what its users post on its platform.

Is generative AI protected by Section 230?

According to the Washington Post’s live coverage, search engines historically “have responded to users’ queries with links to third-party websites, making for a relatively clear-cut defense under Section 230 that they should not be held liable for the content of those sites. But as search engines begin answering some questions from users directly, using their own artificial intelligence software, it’s an open question whether they could be sued as the publisher or speaker of what their chatbots say.” In the course of Tuesday’s questioning, Gorsuch used generative AI as a hypothetical example of when a tech platform would not be protected by Section 230. “Artificial intelligence generates poetry,” he said. “It generates polemics today that would be content that goes beyond picking, choosing, analyzing or digesting content. And that is not protected. Let’s assume that’s right. Then the question becomes, what do we do about recommendations?”

Legal battles have been brewing for months

In Lebanese mountains, hatmaker keeps ancient skill alive

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Hrajel (Lebanon) (AFP) - By AFP -- High in Lebanon's rugged mountains, hatmaker Youssef Akiki is among the last artisans practising the thousand-year-old skill of making traditional warm woolen caps once widely worn against the icy winter chill. Akiki believes he may be the last commercial maker of the sheep wool "labbadeh" -- a named derived from the Arabic for felt, or "labd" -- a waterproof and warm cap coloured off-white, grey, brown or black. "The elders of the village make their own labbadehs", said Akiki, who also dresses in the traditional style of baggy trousers.

Akiki, 60, from the snow-covered village of Hrajel, perched more than 1,200 meters (4,000 feet) up in the hills back from Lebanon's Mediterranean coast, said making the hat requires a careful process. Akiki is among the last practising the thousand-year-old skill After drying sheep's wool in the sun, he moulds it with water and Aleppo soap -- which includes olive oil and laurel leaf extracts -- to turn it into felt with his hands. "It helps the wool shrink, so it becomes malleable like dough", he said, showing his hands, rough with years of work. It is a slow process that allows him to fashion "three labbadehs in one day, at most", he said. Though the hats are practical and warm, few people wear them today.

Temu tops Walmart, Amazon on charts

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By Brad Kallet, Editor at LinkedIn News -- There's a new top dog in the online retail marketplace. Temu, which launched last September and sells everything from apparel to electronics, has already skyrocketed to the top of the app store charts in the U.S., according to CNN. The discount online superstore — owned by Chinese company PDD Holdings — had more app downloads than Amazon, Walmart and Target in the fourth quarter of 2022 and has held its ground atop the charts in 2023. However, it remains to be seen whether Temu, which aired a 30-second commercial spot during last week's Super Bowl, will be able to maintain its incredibly low prices for a sustained period of time, said Coresight Research CEO Deborah Weinswig. Temu has more than 11 million monthly active users and has been downloaded 24 million times.

'Point of no return': Lebanese question the value of their currency

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by Nada Homsi Beirut - thenationanlnews.com -- Ziad, a grizzled, cantankerous taxi driver of retirement age, was at the end of his rope on a Wednesday morning as he drove through the Beirut congestion. When he started his day, 73,000 Lebanese pounds made one US dollar. By mid-morning, the currency had devalued by an additional 4,000 pounds to the dollar. Meanwhile, petrol prices had gone up, and some stations stayed closed for the second day in a row, fearing market losses. Legally, consumers must pay for fuel in Lebanese pounds, also called the lira, but importers and petrol station owners must purchase it in dollars. With the lira plummeting against the dollar on a near-daily basis in recent weeks — in comparison to its usual steady but ambling descent — importers and sellers risk losing money. READ MORE Lebanese presidential candidate Michel Moawad on putting ego aside to prevent 'chaos' Lebanese protesters set fires and break windows at Beirut banks In other words, Ziad could not find anywhere to fill his tank. Even if he did, with taxi fares collected in Lebanese pounds that will inevitably devalue tomorrow, he could only afford a partial top up.

Adjusting to the currency's rapid decline has become a matter of routine for Lebanon’s residents, as they navigate the hardships caused by the economy's seemingly endless plunge. The small Mediterranean country — facing one of the worst economic crises in modern history — is on the brink of collapse. The cracks in the state’s facade have become chasms amid political power struggles. Ziad turned on the radio “to check on the exchange rate, God knows where it is now”. In Beirut, the newsreader announced, roads were being blocked by protesters decrying living conditions. In Tripoli, gunmen prowled the streets and fired into the air to force shops to shut as a form of protest against Leba