Welcome to The Hill's Technology newsletter {beacon} Technology Technology   The Big Story  Meta to face trial in FTC antitrust suit  Meta must face trial in an antitrust case brought by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) over its acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp, a judge ruled Wednesday.  © AP Photo/Richard Drew, file  U.S. District Judge James Boasberg denied Meta’s request to drop the FTC’s case, though he did dismiss one portion of the lawsuit, and said he would hold a hearing later this month to discuss a trial date.   “In the end, while the parties’ legal jousting is both impressive and comprehensive, it leaves no clear victor. This case must go to trial. Under the forgiving summary-judgment standard, the FTC has put forward evidence sufficient for a reasonable factfinder to rule in its favor,” Boasberg wrote in his 92-page opinion.   The FTC sued Meta in 2020, alleging the social media giant has illegally maintained a monopoly on personal social networking through its acquisition of Instagram in 2012 and WhatsApp in 2014.     The case has remained in pre-trial proceedings for multiple years. It was initially dismissed in 2021, but the FTC later filed an amended complaint.    Meta, which has denied the FTC’s monopoly allegations, said it would review the opinion when it’s filed.  “We are confident that the evidence at trial will show that the acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp have been good for competition and consumers,” a Meta spokesperson said in a statement.   “More than 10 years after the FTC reviewed and cleared these deals, and despite the overwhelming evidence that our services compete with YouTube, TikTok, X, Apple’s iMessage, and many others, the Commission is wrongly continuing to assert that no deal is ever truly final, and businesses can be punished for innovating.”    The FTC's case against Meta is one of several antitrust lawsuits brought by the commission and the Department of Justice's (DOJ) antitrust division over the past few years.   In 2020, the DOJ sued Google, accusing the tech giant of maintaining an illegal monopoly over online search. The agency brought a second antitrust suit against the company in 2023 over advertising technology.   The FTC also sued Amazon over its alleged anticompetitive practices in the online retail space in 2023, while the Justice Department filed suit against Apple in 2024, accusing the iPhone maker of monopolizing the smartphone market.   The Hill's Zach Schonfeld has more at TheHill.com   Welcome to The Hill’s Technology newsletter, we're Julia Shapero and Miranda Nazzaro — tracking the latest moves from Capitol Hill to Silicon Valley.   Did someone forward you this newsletter? Subscribe here.   Essential Reads  How policy will be impacting the tech sector now and in the future:   Supreme Court weighs Nvidia challenge to securities fraud claims The Supreme Court on Wednesday weighed a bid from chipmaker Nvidia as it attempts to avoid a suit alleging its executives misled investors about the extent its sales depended on volatile cryptocurrency miners. Nvidia asked the Supreme Court to reverse a lower appeals court’s decision that a suit brought by company stockholders met the high legal bar to move forward with securities fraud allegations against the chipmaker. Some …  Full Story   Stephen King addresses ‘rumors’ about Musk insults, X ban Author Stephen King on Wednesday addressed what he said were rumors about him mocking tech billionaire Elon Musk and being removed from the social platform X. “I see there’s a rumor going around that I called the Musk-man Trump’s new first lady.” King said in a post on X. “I didn’t, but only because I didn’t think of it. There’s also a rumor going around that Muskie kicked me off Twitter. Yet here …  Full Story   Warren: Musk, Ramaswamy co-leading government waste office ‘seems REALLY efficient’ Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) joked Thursday about President-elect Trump’s decision to appoint Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy as co-leads of his new government efficiency panel. “The Office of Government Efficiency is off to a great start with split leadership: two people to do the work of one person,” Warren wrote in a post on the social platform X. “Yeah, this seems REALLY efficient.” Trump tapped Musk and Ramaswamy to lead …  Full Story   The Refresh  News we've flagged from the intersection of tech and other topics:   Bluesky reaches 15 million users Bluesky, an X alternative created by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, now has more than 15 million users after adding about a million users in the past week, The Verge reported.   Bitcoin price climbs over $90,000 for first time  Bitcoin crossed $90,000 by Wednesday morning, continuing its days-long rally following President-elect Trump's win, Forbes reported.    On Our Radar  Upcoming news themes and events we're watching: The Center for Democracy & Technology will host their Tech Prom Artist Exhibition on Thursday to showcase a collection of creatives and artwork "exploring the impact of data and algorithm systems."    In Other News  Branch out with other reads on The Hill: Tesla recalls 2,400 Cybertrucks in sixth recall of 2024 Tesla voluntarily recalled 2,431 Cybertruck electric pickup trucks Wednesday due to faulty drive inverters, which increase the risk for driver collision, in its sixth recall effort this year.  Full Story   What is DOGE, the new department Musk and Ramaswamy will lead under the Trump administration? Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy will join forces to lead a newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (or DOGE, for short), President-elect Trump announced. But what will the department do? Full Story   What Others are Reading  Two key stories on The Hill right now: Trump bewilders Senate GOP with Gaetz AG selection President-elect Trump’s decision to tap Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) to become attorney general caught Senate Republicans completely flat-footed, and put … Read more 5 things to know about Pete Hegseth, Trump’s Pentagon nominee President-elect Trump has made an unconventional choice in announcing his intention of nominating Fox News host Pete Hegseth as Secretary of Defense.  … Read more     You're all caught up. See you tomorrow!