Tech Roundup: Oculus VR Ads, Spotify Greenroom & More

[A recurring feature on the latest in Science & Technology.]

• Facebook partners with Michigan State University to create a method for reverse-engineering deepfakes by using AI to reveal the machine learning model that created it; to debut podcasts on the social media platform on June 22 and launches a new suite of tools for admininstrators of Facebook Groups, including AI-powered Conflict Alerts that identify "contentious or unhealthy conversations" and even slow down conversations, allowing admins to "limit how often specific group members can comment, and how often comments can be made on certain posts that admins select."
• Google is reportedly developing a conversational AI product, known internally as Tivoli, which aims to teach foreign languages through Google Search, according to The Information.
• Smartphone maker Honor says Google apps will return to its phones, starting with the 50 series, after Huawei sold off the brand at the end of last year to Shenzhen Zhixin New Information Technology Co.; rival smartphone maker OnePlus announces merger with OPPO, with the former becoming an OPPO sub-brand.
• Apple would be prohibited from pre-installing its own apps on Apple devices under proposed antitrust reform legislation introduced in the U.S. last week, requiring the company to offer alternative app options for consumers to download in an attempt to prevent its own apps from gaining an unfair advantage; CEO Tim Cook says allowing apps to be sideloaded on the iPhone would "destroy the security of the iPhone and a lot of the privacy initiatives that we've built into the App Store" and that it's "not in the best interests of the user."

• Facebook announces plans to begin testing advertisements that will appear within the company's Oculus virtual reality headsets; in-headset ads to appear in the shooter game Blaston from Resolution Games, adding "we do not use information processed and stored locally on your headset to target ads."
• IBM unveils the Quantum System One, its first quantum computer physically built outside of the U.S., in Germany in partnership with research institute Fraunhofer.
• Twitter solicits feedback on a new feature that lets users "unmention" themselves as an anti-abuse tool and help users control unwanted attention.
• Collaboration platform Slack debuts a new "Scheduled Send" feature that allows users to schedule messages to send at a later time.
• Music streamer Spotify takes on Clubhouse with Greenroom, a new app that allows Spotify users worldwide to join or host live audio rooms, and turn those conversations into podcasts. (With every tech platform, including Facebook, Twitter, Slack, LinkedIn, Reddit, and Discord, integrating their own social audio products, it won't be surprising if the buzz surrounding Clubhouse dies halfway up the hill it was trying to climb.)
• Amazon Appstore unveils a new program that reduces its share of developer revenue from 30% to 20% for developers earning less than US$ 1 million per year; comes amid Apple's ongoing lawsuit against Epic Games that touches on whether its 30% cut is fair.