Coronavirus continues to dominate our headlines this month. With the hysteria surrounding the virus, we have been bombarded with fake news appearing all over our social media feeds – and to be clear, eating raw garlic won’t stop you from catching the virus! In response to this misinformation, the government has set up a specialised cyberteam tasked with cracking down on the spread of fake news. Read the full story on City A.M.

March also marks Women’s History month and ahead of International Women’s Day on 8th March, a few Fireflies attended an event with inspirational female founders in tech. The panel shared their wisdom and you can read more about it here. Whilst we celebrate the great achievements of these women, there is still more to be done when it comes to gender equality in the workplace. The gender pay gap remains a key issue, with the Guardian reporting that the current pay gap is the equivalent of women working for free for two months of the year. At the same time, the Financial Times reported on the lack of female representation in senior roles in journalism, with less than 25% of media outlets having a female editor.

So, what tangible strides are really being made towards achieving equality for women if issues like these are still the current reality? Our own Hollie Abbott suggests that it may be time to call quits on International Women’s Day and focus on gender equality every day. Furthermore, the Financial Times reported on how Facebook is proactively tackling its previously criticised lack of diversity, and women now represent 40% of the board after two new additions.

We have also had some interesting developments on social media this month. At the start of March, WhatsApp joined the dark mode trend giving both iPhone and Android users the option to use the app in a power saving dark theme that also prevents eye fatigue. Meanwhile, LinkedIn announced that it’s experimenting with Snapchat-style stories, in the hopes of engaging younger professionals. The Head of Content Products at LinkedIn, Pete Davies, stated that, “stories offer a lighter, more casual way of interacting in the business-focused world”. In addition, he feels companies will be able to share ‘key moments’ through the new feature. Then there’s Twitter, which revealed it will release ‘fleet’ tweets that will only be available to be viewed for 24 hours. Read more over at The Independent.

And finally, AI is being integrated in all industries, even fashion – how would you like the latest must-have coat by designer, AI? In this Metro article, read about how AI is being used to create clothing and even models and influencers to advertise the clothing. The future of fashion is clearly AI.

Want to stay up to date with the latest tech news? Every morning, the Firefly team creates a roundup of the biggest news stories across the technology space. Sign up to Firewire by emailing hello@fireflycomms.com.