iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

aaravosss.bsky.social @aaravosss.bsky.social · 24/03/2026

Sarah, Bots aren’t just AI agents gathering information, they’ve long been used, since the ’90s, to inflate vanity metrics and boost investor confidence. We’ve seen this play out repeatedly, including with startups like IRL, that is missing from this discussion, why? techcrunch.com/2023/06/26/i...

techcrunch.com

Unicorn social app IRL to shut down after admitting 95% of its users were fake | TechCrunch

An internal investigation by IRL's board of directors found that 95% of the app's reported 20 million users were "automated or from bots."

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aaravosss.bsky.social @aaravosss.bsky.social · 24/03/2026

Sarah, when will TechCrunch cover Spotify’s major misstep in key markets? They’re pushing speculative vanity metrics tied to these announcements, instead of addressing the real concerning issues, declining retention and rising churn. More ads will not fix this.

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aaravosss.bsky.social @aaravosss.bsky.social · 24/03/2026

Spotify keeps adding features that miss real value. True benefits meet core user needs at scale. People already rely on third-party apps for social music discovery and so many utilities that Spotify doesn’t offer, now Spotify introduces SongDNA, that no one asked for…

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aaravosss.bsky.social @aaravosss.bsky.social · 11/03/2026

Weekly subscriptions grow partly because users don’t expect their charge, creating bias against reviewing them. Why wasn’t this included as a reason for weekly growth, since the 7-day cycle differs from 30–90 day retention patterns? Bad actors love weekly subscriptions, the FTC uncovered this too.

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aaravosss.bsky.social @aaravosss.bsky.social · 11/03/2026

@sarahp.bsky.social Sarah, why does this article focus only on churn from recurring subscriptions instead of churn across the entire App Store? Industry averages show ~72% churn and ~4% D30 retention. Combined with negative sentiment data, these trends are concerning.

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aaravosss.bsky.social @aaravosss.bsky.social · 05/03/2026

They cling to “intervention” access in DMs but refuse to seriously fix proactive safeguards, reporting tools, or real parent empowerment, despite endless scrutiny & proven harm. If safety was the real goal, they’d tackle these first. Instead, it’s a flimsy excuse to prioritize control over privacy!

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aaravosss.bsky.social @aaravosss.bsky.social · 05/03/2026

Internal docs, lawsuits, & state/EU findings expose massive “leakage”: 35%+ pedophilia normalization, minor solicitation, exploitation slipping through. Addictive design exploits teens; poor moderation; they ignore underage reports unless kids self-ID as under 13.

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aaravosss.bsky.social @aaravosss.bsky.social · 05/03/2026

TikTok claims skipping E2EE in DMs keeps kids safe, lets safety teams & police catch grooming/abuse. But their track record? Dismal. Weak parental controls that teens bypass in seconds (unlink accounts, ignore screen-time limits). Years of complaints ignored!

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aaravosss.bsky.social @aaravosss.bsky.social · 05/03/2026

We need more founders like Joe Braidwood, but the reality is demand & incentives are empowering. As long as people want it, funding will appear, as we now know there is a direct correlation between cigarettes/vaping & cancer risk as well as unimaginable profitability. www.yahoo.com/news/article...

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aaravosss.bsky.social @aaravosss.bsky.social · 05/03/2026

@taylorlorenz.bsky.social "Show me the incentive and I'll show you the outcome.” - Charlie Munger Taylor, you’ve brilliantly shined a light on the unfortunate & likely outcome & real objective. I see outstanding journalists like you going far beyond your job & duty. But what about everyone else?!

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aaravosss.bsky.social @aaravosss.bsky.social · 04/03/2026

That’s why you’re at the forefront of this. We need journalism to do what the law sadly can’t, hold them accountable, while we wait and hope for a competitor strong enough to challenge these bad actors and not sell out. When pigs fly, I guess. It’s disheartening.

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aaravosss.bsky.social @aaravosss.bsky.social · 04/03/2026

We have decades showing companies want legislation, it’s already priced in. Can anyone name a major company truly deterred by litigation? Real deterrence would make firms like Google risk-averse, yet we see empowerment and expansion, because it leads to a fine, they have billions…

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aaravosss.bsky.social @aaravosss.bsky.social · 04/03/2026

www.seattletimes.com/business/app... Parents begged for these apps to be removed, yet Silicon Valley praised them until it became bad PR. Why do we keep allowing this to happen? We’re adults, so why are we still turning a blind eye continually?!

seattletimes.com

Apple says its App Store is a safe place, but 1,500 reports of unwanted sexual behavior were found

Reporters sifted through more than 130,000 reviews of six random chat apps and found more than 1,500 reviews that made mention of uncomfortable sexual situations. Apple's practice has been to not moni...

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aaravosss.bsky.social @aaravosss.bsky.social · 04/03/2026

"Show me the incentive and I'll show you the outcome." - Charlie Munger Rebecca, when will we see broader condemnation of the industry’s indifference to risk mitigation & user protection, especially when those goals conflict with vanity metrics & engagement needed to inflate their valuations. 🥺😔

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aaravosss.bsky.social @aaravosss.bsky.social · 04/03/2026

@aishamalik.bsky.social @rebeccabellan.bsky.social @sarahp.bsky.social @seanokane.bsky.social USPTO has denied all of Tesla’s IP tied to “Robotaxi,” & they’re now litigating with a beverage company over it. Why is a soon-to-be trillion-dollar company handling risk mitigation & branding so poorly?

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aaravosss.bsky.social @aaravosss.bsky.social · 04/03/2026

@aishamalik.bsky.social @rebeccabellan.bsky.social @sarahp.bsky.social Fizz the startup that sued Instacart & Partiful for IP infringement is now at risk of losing key IP rights, and it isn’t even the co that owns Fizz the brand. Your article should be updated to reflect that; legal can verify this.

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aaravosss.bsky.social @aaravosss.bsky.social · 04/03/2026

@aishamalik.bsky.social @rebeccabellan.bsky.social Why hasn’t TechCrunch reported on the litigation against OpenAI’s Sora by Overdrive for alleged IP infringement? Overdrive has owned the Sora brand for years, and OpenAI may soon have to rebrand Sora or reach a private settlement for $$$$$$$.

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aaravosss.bsky.social @aaravosss.bsky.social · 04/03/2026

This was inevitable, Aisha. It was not a matter of if only a matter of when. eBay bought Depop for the same reason MyFitnessPal bought Cal AI, if they didn’t, a competitor could inhibit their growth. So the real question: why aren’t we discussing the growth issues behind these apps & brands?

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aaravosss.bsky.social @aaravosss.bsky.social · 04/03/2026

As you noted back in 2025, which showed the ChatGPT’s brand struggling to inhibit the growth of competitors like Google’s Gemini & others. The rise of DeepSeek reinforced this. Ignoring brand affinity will prove to be remarkably risky for OpenAl. A tale as old as time. www.cnn.com/2024/02/29/b...

cnn.com

Bud Light boycott likely cost Anheuser-Busch InBev over $1 billion in lost sales | CNN Business

The world’s largest brewer may have lost as much as $1.4 billion in sales because of the backlash to its brief partnership with a transgender influencer to promote Bud Light beer.

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aaravosss.bsky.social @aaravosss.bsky.social · 04/03/2026

Hi Sarah, great reporting. I’m curious why there hasn’t been coverage of the potential trademark issues here. “XC” and “X Chat” are protected through IP certificates and common law rights, and X AI still doesn’t hold exclusive rights to “X.” Will Musk with Apple’s help illegally remove these apps?

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aaravosss.bsky.social @aaravosss.bsky.social · 22/02/2026

@ironspike.bsky.social “…Good and useful tech doesn't have to beg to be used.” 👏 Technology isn’t begging to be used, companies are. When “success” is measured by growth at all cost and engagement, not health and value added over time, intrusive experiences become the rational & empowered outcome.

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aaravosss.bsky.social @aaravosss.bsky.social · 22/02/2026

While the “surge in adoption” is a good signal, it’s a vain one, I’m concerned as these vanity metrics don't guarantee viability. Google’s brand affinity is giving them a sustainable edge over OpenAI as the market commoditizes. What’s your take on all of this? Why is only product value the focus?

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aaravosss.bsky.social @aaravosss.bsky.social · 22/02/2026

@rebeccabellan.bsky.social Absolutely incredible reporting, Rebecca! I really enjoyed this piece. I’d love to see a deeper dive into the economic viability of the entire consumer market. While the guests are bullish, the data suggests alarming trends compared to the 'vanity metrics' we see.

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