Multi-task learning (MTL) aims at achieving a better model by leveraging data and knowledge from multiple tasks. However, MTL does not always work -- sometimes negative transfer occurs between tasks, especially when aggregating loosely related skills, leaving it an open question when MTL works. Previous studies show that MTL performance can be improved by algorithmic tricks. However, what tasks and skills should be included is less well explored. In this work, we conduct a case study in Financial NLP where multiple datasets exist for skills relevant to the domain, such as numeric reasoning and sentiment analysis. Due to the task difficulty and data scarcity in the Financial NLP domain, we explore when aggregating such diverse skills from multiple datasets with MTL can work. Our findings suggest that the key to MTL success lies in skill diversity, relatedness between tasks, and choice of aggregation size and shared capacity. Specifically, MTL works well when tasks are diverse but related, and when the size of the task aggregation and the shared capacity of the model are balanced to avoid overwhelming certain tasks.

In Meta's quarterly earnings call in April, chief executive Mark Zuckerberg was on the defensive. The metaverse, the vision of a globe-spanning virtual reality that he had literally bet his multibillion-dollar empire on creating, had been usurped as the new hot thing by the growing hype around artificial intelligence (AI). Critics had even noticed Meta itself changing its tune, highlighting the difference between a November statement from Zuckerberg, in which he described the project as a "high-priority growth area" and a March note that instead focused on how "advancing AI" was the company's "single largest investment". Not so, said the world's richest millennial. "A narrative has developed that we're somehow moving away from focusing on the metaverse vision, so I just want to say upfront that that's not accurate. "We've been focusing on AI and the metaverse for years now, and we will continue to focus on both … Building the metaverse is a long-term project, but the rationale for it remains the same and we remain committed to it." But more than 18 months after Facebook changed its name to Meta – demonstrating Zuckerberg's firm belief that "the metaverse will be the successor of the mobile internet" – the future he promised seems no closer to existence than it did backthen. Reams of concept art, tech demos and prototype devices have given way to little meaningful progress. The company has even struggled to actually define what it is hoping to build: in a lengthy blogpost published last May, Nick Clegg, the former UK deputy prime minister who is now Meta's president of global affairs, described the ambition only in vague terms, despite elaborating across 8,000 words how it would nonetheless change the world. "The metaverse is a logical evolution.

Meta is not pivoting away from its signature product, the metaverse. Or at least that's what the Meta chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg, is arguing. Despite reports that sales teams at Meta have spent less time pitching the metaverse to advertisers, Zuckerberg claimed on the tech firm's latest quarterly earnings call that it's business as usual over at the company formerly known as Facebook. "A narrative has developed that we're somehow moving away from focusing on the metaverse vision, so I just want to say upfront that that's not accurate," the CEO said. But neither is the virtual reality world the only product Meta has bet its future on, Zuckerberg argued: "We've been focusing on both AI and the metaverse for years now, and we will continue to focus on both."

Qualcomm has agreed to acquire an Israeli fabless chipmaker called Autotalks, and according to TechCrunch, the deal will cost the company around $350 to $400 million. Autotalks creates chips and vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication technologies dedicated towards boosting road safety for both ordinary and driverless vehicles. In its announcement, Qualcomm said that Autotalks' "production-ready, dual mode, standalone safety solutions" will be incorporated into the Snapdragon Digital Chassis, its set of cloud-connected assisted and autonomous driving technologies. Nakul Duggal, senior VP of automotive for Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., said in a statement: "We have been investing in V2X research, development and deployment since 2017 and believe that as the automotive market matures, a standalone V2X safety architecture will be needed for enhanced road user safety, as well as smart transportation system... We share Autotalks' decades-long experience and commitment to build V2X technologies and products with a focus on solving real-world road user safety challenges. We look forward to working together to deliver global V2X solutions that will help accelerate time-to-market and enable mass market adoption of this very important safety technology."

Wow." Phone calls with law professors about regulatory actions don't normally start with unprompted expressions of amazement, but regulatory actions don't normally come like this. Anne Witt, professor of law and member of the EDHEC Augmented Law Institute, had been expecting to have a very different conversation when we spoke last Wednesday. But then, just minutes before we were due to talk, the UK's competition regulator blocked Microsoft's attempted $68.7bn acquisition of megadeveloper Activision Blizzard, the sprawling corporation behind games including Candy Crush Saga, World of Warcraft, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater and, most importantly, Call of Duty. Britain's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is just one of a number of international regulators which was investigating the proposed acquisition. In the US, the Federal Trade Commision (FTC) had already sued to block the takeover in December, with the case due in court later this year. The European Union is investigating, and has given itself a deadline of 22 May to make a decision, while Australia has paused its own investigation while it engages with overseas regulators. One of those regulators had already given the deal a pass. In March, the Japan Fair Trade Commission ruled that it was "unlikely to result in substantially restraining competition", and approved it to go ahead. Japan's justification for allowing the merger was also behind Witt's expectation it would be approved. "For 30 years or so, competition agencies, very much influenced by the US school, have taken the view that'vertical mergers' are rarely dangerous," she explained, once the shock had worn off. "If you have a'horizontal merger' – if Microsoft had bought up a competitor – it is very evident that that will have a direct effect on competition, because it eliminates one player in the market.

Microsoft Corp beat Wall Street's quarterly revenue and profit estimates on Tuesday, driven by growth in its cloud computing and Office productivity software businesses, and the company said artificial intelligence products were stimulating sales. The company forecast that revenue in its main segments for the current quarter would match or top Wall Street targets. Shares gained 8.3% in after-market trading following a report by the Redmond, Washington-based technology company that profits were $2.45 a share in the fiscal third quarter, beating Wall Street estimates of $2.23, according to data from Refinitiv and up 10% from the same quarter last year. In regular trading, fears about earnings had sent Microsoft down 2.2%, making it the biggest drag on the S&P 500 on Tuesday ahead of its report. Revenue rose 7% to $52.9bn in the quarter ended March, inching past the average analyst estimate of $51.02bn, according to Refinitiv.

Alphabet stocks rose in after-hours trading on Tuesday after the tech firm beat analyst expectations for first-quarter earnings, marking an unexpectedly bright spot in the otherwise struggling tech sector. The company reported first-quarter revenue of $69.8bn, up 3% year-over-year and above analyst predictions of $68.9bn. Its cloud business reported a profit for the first time since its launch, taking in $191m. Shares were up nearly 3% in after-hours trading, as investors were heartened by Alphabet's announcement of a $70bn stock buyback. In a statement accompanying the report, the company's chief executive, Sundar Pichai, acknowledged the growing momentum of its cloud services and Alphabet is continuing to invest in search capabilities, including in the use of artificial intelligence. "We introduced important product updates anchored in deep computer science and AI," he said.

Perficient, the leading global digital consultancy transforming the world's largest enterprises and biggest brands, announced it will demonstrate its corporate performance management (CPM) and cash flow automation expertise at OneStream Splash taking place from April 17-20 at the Gaylord National Harbor Resort & Convention Center in Washington, D.C. "Digital transformation is pushing the boundaries of what's possible with finance, and Perficient's OneStream expertise can accelerate that digital change" Businesses using disparate systems for their financial close, planning, and reporting processes need to adopt automated and integrated systems or risk falling behind. Perficient helps businesses transform and modernize their CPM processes in the cloud by leveraging the power of the OneStream platform. Building a cash flow model in OneStream consolidates these processes in a single application, allowing businesses to become forward-looking and data-driven while increasing profitability and efficiency. "Digital transformation is pushing the boundaries of what's possible with finance, and Perficient's OneStream expertise can accelerate that digital change," said Joe Klewicki, general manager of CPM, Perficient. "Our approach to finance modernization combines strategy, data, technology, and design to deliver actionable insights that drive businesses forward. We are excited to return to Splash and demonstrate where we have implemented the OneStream platform."

TESSCO, announced that the Company has entered into a definitive merger agreement with entities affiliated with Lee Equity Partners and Twin Point Capital, which also own Alliance Corporation, a value-added distributor of equipment for the wireless industry, and GetWireless, LLC (GetWireless), a value-added distributor of cellular solutions that connect the Internet of Things (IoT). Under the terms of the merger agreement, all outstanding shares of Company common stock will be acquired for $9.00 in cash, resulting in a Company enterprise value of approximately $161.4 million. The merger, which has been unanimously approved by Tessco's board of directors, reflects a premium of approximately 91% to the closing price of the last trading day prior to the date of this announcement and a premium of approximately 97% to Tessco's 30-day volume-weighted average stock price as of April 11, 2023. The merger is expected to close in the third calendar quarter of 2023, subject to the approval of Tessco's shareholders and the satisfaction of customary closing conditions. Following the closing of the transaction, Tessco will maintain its facilities in Hunt Valley and Timonium, Maryland and in Reno, Nevada, as well as broaden its facility footprint, product offering, and value-added capabilities by partnering with Alliance and GetWireless to create a leading value-added telecommunications distributor in North America. AceChatThe World's First Video Based AI Study Bot for STEM "This deal is a win for Tessco shareholders and our customers," said Sandip Mukerjee, Tessco's President and Chief Executive Officer.

You've seen it on TV, you've read about it on news websites. Artificial Intelligence, commonly referred to as AI, is now the hottest industry. Stocks that are involved in this industry are taking off. I originally wrote about a form of artificial intelligence back in October of 2021 in an article called The Future of Artificial Intelligence: Can You Invest In It Now? So you may be wondering what companies are the purest plays.