While today is one of the biggest travel days of the year, we’re loading you up with a gift bag full of Sweet Reads for the airport, commute, or final moment of peace before the real holiday craziness begins.

Through these, you have some solid conversation starters for all of those awkward moments to come, and to show your family and friends just how smart you’ve gotten on this whole AI thing over the past year!

Let’s dig in.

A holiday bag full of AI conversation starters:

• Did you know?‘Hallucinate’ Is Dictionary.com’s Word of the Year for 2023

• Funny news: ChatGPT user puts AI into negotiations and buys a car for $1

• A thought piece: Could the Universe be a giant quantum computer?

• Well, I agree with Bill on….Bill Gates's 2024 Predictions--and What You Can Learn From Them

• For the employer in the family: How AI Might Impact The Job Market In 2024

• For the bureaucrat in the family: The 3 Most Important AI Policy Milestones of 2023

• Did you hear? Google AI made a new mathematical discovery

• Before you rage too hard on NYE: Airbnb using AI to help clampdown on New Year’s Eve parties

And finally, always a winner….

• Politics at the dinner table: Google will limit election-related queries with generative AI

  🥳 HAPPY HOLIDAYS! 🥳 

We could use a little hand here…..

While most of us are out spreading holiday cheer, it’s good to remind ourselves that it’s also prime time for some folks who have no regard for the nice list. Today, we’re providing a PSA so that we all can have a scam-free season.

Let’s dig in.

Scammers gonna Scam

The holiday season is a time for joy, and giving… and also ugly sweaters, and the occasional awkward family conversation. Unfortunately, it's also a time when scammers are out in full force, looking to take advantage of unsuspecting consumers.

For the 2022 holiday season alone, the FBI reported over $73 Million in losses due to scams. Now, with the advancement of AI tools in 2023, these crooks are more advanced than ever.

Below are a few of the top AI scams to be on the lookout for and how to best avoid falling victim:

“Grandparent scams”

This type of scam has been on a dramatic rise in recent months due to the advancements in voice cloning AI technology. It’s done by scammers who gain access to consumers' personal information (mainly from social media) and create storylines to prey on the fears of grandparents and other loved ones.

For instance, the callers impersonate a grandchild or another close relative in a crisis, asking for immediate money. Sometimes these callers even “spoof” the caller ID to make an incoming call appear to be coming from a trusted source. Check out this clip from 60 Minutes to see just how easy and scary this can be

*What to do:

• Be leary of anybody calling and asking for money. If they are claiming to be a family member, but it sounds off, either hang up or ask them a question that only the real person would know.

• Use call blocking tools to lessen the likelihood of these calls reaching you

Spam

All of us are aware of the classic email spam that junks up our inboxes. Previously, we would lean on grammatical errors, misspellings, or broken English to identify something looking a little fishy. But these days, AI tools like ChatGPT or Bard make it easy to write authentic-sounding and well-written messages.

*What to do:

• These types of emails are done in mass, so the scammers only need a handful of people preoccupied with their holiday checklist to participate to be successful. If anybody is asking you for personal information or money in an email, proceed with extreme caution. Always check who the email is coming from and make sure to not follow any odd-looking websites or links.

Social Media Shopping Scams:

Who hasn’t clicked on a link to a cool product when scrolling through social media? Consumers should be aware of posts on social media sites that appear to offer vouchers or gift cards. Some may appear as holiday promotions or contests. With the ability to use AI to create legitimate looking sites, the consumer can be left unaware that they are providing their personal information to a con artist.

*What to do:

• If you click an ad through a social media platform, do your due diligence to check the legitimacy of the website before providing credit card or personal information.

These are only a few ways in which these fakers are looking to get their hands on your hard-earned holiday money. Hopefully, someday, we’ll be able to rely more on AI to protect us from scams like this, but for today, let’s go old school and use the ole noggin before we go handing out personal information or money to somebody we don’t know.

BTW, If by chance you ever feel that you’ve been affected by a crime on the internet, you can report it to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center

Happy shopping!

source

Sweet Reads

• Treat yo-self with an AI shopper

• Google AI has discovered 2.2m materials unknown to science

• AI model making $11k per month

Improve your Life-Hacks

Turn your still photo into a rambling avatar right from your phone!

D-ID, just launched a mobile app that lets you animate any face right from your phone.

Their platform has been used by studios such as Warner Bros to transform still photos into personalized streaming videos.

Upload an image of yourself or choose your favorite avatar from built-in selections, select any language, and voila, text-to-video animation is now in the palm of your hands.

We could use a little hand here…..

We’re taking a break this week and so should you! As you come out of your turkey coma this morning, feel free to read through some of OpenAI debacle that took place over the last week. We’ve kept it short and sweet

Let’s dig in.

OpenAI drama:

If you’ve been paying attention to any tech news of the week, you’ve at least seen the headlines on the firing of Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, and creator of ChatGPT. Whether or not you care about ole Sammy or not, the story has been pretty crazy! .

If you’re looking for a quick summary with some extra sources so you can get up to speed, we got you covered…

Here’s what’s up!

• OpenAI, the one valued at $80 Billion, is run by a non-profit board 🧐 

• On Friday of last week, this tiny board fired Sam Altman out of nowhere, shocking the tech industry.

  • The Non-profit structure is at the center of the reason why this was even possible at the scale of this company.

• After the firing news, Microsoft’s stock dropped by 1.7% given their $10 Billion investment in the company

• On Monday, Microsoft announced they hired Sam Altman to essentially compete with OpenAI

• As of earlier this week, more than 700 of the 770 total employees signed a letter stating they would quit if Altman wasn’t reinstated by OpenAI and a new board was put in place. This list included one of the board members that fired him!! 🤣 

• As of this past Wednesday, Sam Altman has now returned as the CEO of OpenAI

uhhhhh…..wut?

The two things that stand out to me most in this story are: 

• How fragile the ecosystem was in one of the most valuable companies in the world. This serves as a reminder to me of just how young some of these massive companies are these days.

  • PSA! it’s always good to keep stories like these in mind before putting too much faith or money into the giants before doing your research.

• How compelled almost all of the employees were in order to bring back their leader. That’s when you know your mission is clear. Let’s just hope that the mission is for good! 🙏 

Two predictions that I’m keeping 👀s on:

• With Altman back at the helm, and a new board being put in place, OpenAI comes back more energized than ever and proves their dominance on the space.

• With only a fraction of Microsft’s investment being paid thus far, they’ll be making sure the new OpenAI board knows to not mess with the giants'. Give this podcast a listen to hear Microsoft’s CEO discuss the matter.

That’s it for this week! We’re looking forward to our normal programming next week. We hope you have a wonderful, and hopefully long weekend! 👋 

We could use a little hand here…..

Your weather is coming in faster and more accurately with AI now.

And UPS jumps further into the AI game to help defend against porch pirates.

Let’s dig in.

Google GraphCast

The weatherman. The only profession it’s acceptable to be consistently wrong and keep your job. But the latest AI technology from Google’s DeepMind lab might be changing this reality.

GraphCast is the AI model for faster and more accurate global weather forecasting. Folks at DeepMind published an article in Science, explaining the capabilities of this new state-of-the-art AI model that’s capable of making medium-range weather forecasts with unprecedented accuracy. GraphCast predicts weather conditions up to 10 days in advance more accurately and much faster than the industry gold-standard weather simulation system.

GraphCast can also offer earlier warnings of extreme weather events. It can predict the tracks of cyclones with great accuracy further into the future, identify atmospheric rivers associated with flood risk, and predict the onset of extreme temperatures.

The difference in using GraphCast for folks who have to predict the weather is way more accuracy and lots of time saved. 10-day forecasts with GraphCast take less than a minute using a single machine while using the conventional approach can take hours of computation in a supercomputer with hundreds of machines.

This is bigger than just the weather though. Pioneering the use of AI in weather forecasting will benefit billions of people in their everyday lives. However, this technology can help scientists understand the broader patterns of our climate and empower the global community to tackle the most important environmental challenges.

source

Porch Pirates

With the holiday seasons approaching, sneaky porch pirates will be keeping a close eye on delivery trucks making their way through neighborhoods to ruin the holidays for some unlucky families. But UPS is adopting new technology, powered by AI, to reduce the number of packages stolen off your front porch.

UPS Captial has launched DeliveryDefense, a new predictive analytics solution that enables merchants to assess the level of delivery risk associated with addresses nationwide, empowering them to make informed decisions before shipping. But what does that mean?

Drawing on extensive data sources, DeliveryDefense empowers merchants to select optimal approaches for seamless and successful deliveries, prioritizing the customer experience. In practice, merchants can leverage alternative delivery options such as nearby UPS store locations or other convenient access points for addresses that have been deemed high risk for theft based on historical data.

The solution delivers a confidence score to merchants who have seamless access through a user-friendly API. A high score would mean shipping options are expected to result in successful deliveries while a low score might encourage merchants to utilize options such as in-store pickup to ensure a secure and successful delivery.

Maybe one day we’ll all get a fighting robot for our porch so we don’t have to make a trip to get our deliveries. 🤷🏻‍♂️

source

Sweet Reads

• AI can help you create a budget and financial goals

• Will AI not need humans soon?

• Youtube previews AI tool that clones famous singers - with their permission

Improve your Life-Hacks

AI calendar management

Crazy calendar got you down? Missing key appointments Well, we got an AI for that.

Reclaimai is here to help. Easily defend your no meeting days. Stay on top of your tasks. Automate rescheduling that meditation block you had on your calendar.

Let AI supercharge your calendar. Give reclaimai a shot and it’s free on Google calendar!

We could use a little hand here…..

Black Friday is only 14 days away and AI is helping both consumers make choices as well as retailers to lure them in. Also, we’ll take a moment to highlight some of the great stuff AI is doing for our loved ones.

Let’s dig in.

Tis the season…. to spend 💰️ 

Delloit is expecting 2023 holiday sales to increase over 2022 by roughly 4% to a total of over $1.5 TRILLION 👀 . With this kind of moola, you can rest assured that companies will be looking to optimize any way they can to get their piece of that pumpkin pie.

Enter AI and all of its superpowers for crunching data and making us all more efficient. While we are still in the very early stages of development, AI is already being used in a variety of ways to make the holiday season easier for consumers, and more profitable for retailers.

Here are a few examples:

• Retail: AI is being used by retailers to predict demand for holiday products, optimize inventory levels, and personalize marketing campaigns. This helps retailers to ensure that they have the right products in stock at the right time and that they are reaching their customers with the most relevant offers. Amazon is notorious for this and obviously doing quite well at it.

• Customer service: AI-powered chatbots are being used by retailers to help customers with their holiday shopping. Chatbots can answer questions about products, help customers find the best deals and even process orders. Walmart is deploying this technology in several ways to free up human representatives to handle more complex issues.

• Logistics: AI is being used by shipping companies to optimize delivery routes and predict shipping times. This helps to ensure that holiday packages are delivered on time, even during the peak season. Does this mean we can’t blame them for when our mom’s present arrives in January anymore? 😬 

• Entertainment: AI is being used to create new and innovative holiday entertainment experiences. Be on the lookout for more interactive games during your mobile shopping experiences. Also, Netflix knows all too well you can’t pass up those Christmas rom-coms when they present them to you at juuuust the right time.

AI deserves some gratitude 🙏 

The intense doomsday scenarios of AI taking over the world are the most common news feed and party conversation topics, but as we’ve reviewed many times, AI is making amazing headway in the healthcare industry as well.

Today, we want to highlight some of the new and ever-changing advancements in the role of AI and robotics in healthcare that are helping to keep us and our loved ones safe and healthy

Below are only a few examples for us to be grateful for:

• Diagnostics: AI-powered algorithms can be used to analyze medical images, such as X-rays and MRI scans, to identify signs of disease that may be difficult for human doctors to see. For example, IBM's Watson for Health is helping doctors review mammograms 30 times faster with 99% accuracy.

• Drug discovery: Currently it takes an average of 12 years for a drug to travel from the research lab to the patient. Now, AI is being used to greatly accelerate the drug discovery process. For example, AI-powered algorithms can be used to screen millions of potential drug compounds to identify those that are most likely to be effective against a particular disease.

• Robotic surgery: Robots are being used to perform complex surgeries with greater precision and accuracy than human surgeons can achieve. For example, robotic surgery systems can be used to perform minimally invasive surgery, which can reduce pain and recovery time for patients.

• Robotic rehabilitation: Robots are being used to help patients with physical disabilities regain their mobility and function. For example, robotic exoskeletons can be used to help patients with paralysis walk again.

By making healthcare more efficient, accurate, and personalized, AI and robotics can help people live longer and healthier lives. and for that, we are forever grateful. 😍 

(souce)

Sweet Reads

• 10 tips for safeguarding your business in the AI Era

• Meet the $700 smartphone alternative you wear all day

• Johnny Cash's Taylor Swift Cover Predicts the Boring Future of AI Music

Improve your Life-Hacks

Spreadsheet mastery with AI

SheetAI puts AI 🪄 with Brain 🧠 in your Google Sheets.

Just describe what you want in plain English, and watch the magic happen in your spreadsheet!

We could use a little hand here…..

Google’s DeepMind AI entity is making major advancements in protein 3D structure (we’ll explain below) with AlphaFold. It’s kinda cray.

The Biden administration signed an executive order for “Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Artificial Intelligence. The jury’s still out on whether it’s controversial or the right move.

Let’s dig in.

Google’s DeepMind + AlphaFold Proteins

A quick backstory: DeepMind was an AI startup founded in 2010 in the U.K. by some guys who met at UCL (University College London). One of the founders, Demis Hassabis, said that the startup began working on artificial intelligence technology by teaching it how to play old games from the seventies and eighties.

Major venture capital firms took notice as well as big names like Elon Musk and Peter Thiel, and threw some money at the startup. In 2014, Google said “we’ve seen enough, we’ll take it.” ($400M - $650M are the estimates). Since then they’ve been working on major AI advancements - one of which is called AlphaFold.

Per the website, AlphaFold is an AI system developed by DeepMind that predicts a protein’s 3D structure from its amino acid sequence. This is neat because they make this database (AlphaFold DB) available to the scientific community.

Biology 101 - proteins are the billions of tiny molecular machines that are inside every cell in your body. Interactions of amino acids in a protein cause the protein to “fold.” For decades, scientists tried to find a method to reliably determine a protein’s structure from its sequence of amino acids alone. The problem is they are expensive and time-consuming. This is known scientifically as the “protein folding problem.”

Enter AlphaFold and it’s neat database. Scientists are using this database to solve real-world problems such as breaking down single-use plastics, solving biological puzzles, and finding new drugs to treat liver cancer.

This is the AI we’re here for and why we’re excited to keep following what Google Deepmind can do.

source, source, source

Biden’s Executive Order for AI

On October 30th, the White House issued its first Executive Order for artificial intelligence - its purpose is to “ensure that America leads the way in seizing the promise and managing the risks of AI.”

Critics warn of “stifling red tape” on companies who are building AI solutions. Proponents say it’s much-needed regulation to help keep the American people safe. We encourage reading the White House Fact sheet to form your own opinion. The order has 8 specific sections:

1. New Standards for AI Safety and Security

2. Protecting Americans Privacy

3. Advancing Equity and Civil Rights

4. Standing up for Consumers, Patients, and Students

5. Supporting Workers

6. Promoting Innovation and Competition

7. Advancing American Leadership Abroad

8. Ensuring Responsible and Effective Government Use of AI

The devil’s in the details though. The government wants developers to share their safety test results and “other critical information” with them. It’s a hot one. The long pole of government reach.

The EU is in the final stages of approval for a sweeping law to reign in the harms of AI. Congress is still in the early stages of debating safeguards. The Biden-Harris administration is stepping up to use the levers it can control.

We can debate all day the government’s overreach into our lives but oversight and regulation here is needed and is en route it seems.

source, source

Sweet Reads

• UK’s AI summit ends with limited but meaningful progress

• Scar-Jo sues AI company for using her voice

• Robots learn to do chores by watching YouTube

Improve your Life-Hacks

Landscape design just got easy!

Nintee is your first AI-powered personal growth coach. Turn your life around as you break bad habits and pursue meaningful goals!

Some areas Nintee is offering to be your life coach extraordinaire:

• Wasting time on social media?

• Too much booze lately?

• Got a bad late-night McDonalds habit?

• Not hitting your life goals?

Gain back control and use Nintee to keep you in check and help you reach your ultimate potential!

We could use a little hand here…..

From the feedback around the web, it’s clear that teachers are struggling with how to use, and not get abused by AI. Lot’s happening here!

Also, if you’re planning a banger on your next trip, you may want to find a new place to stay!

Let’s dig in.

How AI is being used in schools across the US

Back in July, we wrote in our industry series about the early uses of AI in the classroom. As with most things in AI, things have progressed quickly since then! 😅 

While there are no schools that are completely replacing teachers with AI, there are schools that are experimenting in different ways. For example, Carnegie Learning has created a tool called MATHia, which uses AI to provide students with individualized math instruction for middle and high school students and teachers. The program is being used in over 1,000 schools in the United States, and it has been shown to improve student achievement in math.

One of the most unique examples of AI “replacing” teachers in schools is a private school in Texas called Alpha. According to the school’s co-founder "We don't have teachers….what we do have is a lot of adults who are in the room engaging with these kids, working as coaches." At Alpha, the kids start day by taking classic school lessons like social studies, and science, but in a highly personalized AI tutor platform. Then, the “coaches” are focused on “Limitless Life Skills” for the remaining 6 hours. We all need life skills, so I’ll be really curious to see how this unfolds! 🤓 

In addition to these programs, there are also a number of great non-profit organizations that offer AI programs for K-12 students.

Some include:

• Code.org is a non-profit organization that offers free computer science and AI education to K-12 students.

• Khan Academy is a well-known non-profit organization that offers free educational resources, including AI courses such as machine learning and computer vision.

• AI4ALL is a US-based nonprofit dedicated to increasing diversity and inclusion in AI education, research, development, and policy.

While it is unlikely that AI will completely replace teachers in the near future, it is clear that AI will play a significant role in education. AI can be used to personalize instruction, provide feedback, and automate tasks, which can free up teachers to focus on more important things, such as building relationships with their students and providing them with emotional support, allowing teachers to work their true magic in shaping our future.

(source, source)

To party 🥳 or not to party 😐️ ?

As of 2022, Airbnb was valued at over $109 billion, which is over 3x that of Hilton 👀 . One of the biggest reasons for Airbnb’s success is that guests get to experience great houses in towns all over the world. But let’s just say, some guests have enjoyed these houses a little too much. House parties have long been a problem for Airbnb and hosts, and have contributed to massive damage and lawsuits for both.

In 2019, Airbnb introduced a global party ban and several restrictions which helped to reduce parties by 55%. But now, they’re looking to tamp down these liabilities even more.

Airbnb is turning to a new AI component that is designed to identify bookings that are at a high risk of being parties. The system considers several factors, including

• length of the stay

• distance between the guest's home and the listing

• time of year

If the AI doesn’t like what it sees, it will automatically block the booking. Of course, the guest will be able to contact customer support about the decision, but the hope is that it takes the guesswork out of the hands of the host.

For instance, a host receives a booking from someone who lives in the same town, for 1 night, on New Year’s Eve…. 👎️ NOT GONNA HAPPEN 👎️ 

If this new system can prevent house parties, not only will Airbnb mitigate their own risks, but hosts and neighbors alike can sleep easier knowing the bachelor party that’s just looking for a “chill weekend with the boys” is for real.

The introduction of this AI system is a significant step forward for Airbnb, and the industry in general. As somebody who lives in a heavy tourist town, I’m all for keeping the party downtown and our neighborhoods quiet.

source

Sweet Reads

• AI Skills can increase salaries up to 40%, study shows

• Biden Moves to Embrace AI as National Security Tool in Executive Order

• NFL Stadiums re-imagined with AI

Improve your Life-Hacks

Let AI write your resume!

Trusted by 3.6 million people!

Are you struggling to find the right words for your resume?

Use kickresume AI resume builder can find them in no time! It’s powered by OpenAI’s GPT-4, the world’s most powerful language model, and it can automatically produce text indistinguishable from human writers. Say goodbye to writer’s block. Generate the first draft of your resume in seconds.

We could use a little hand here…..

Some experts think that the days of search engines returning infinite links could be over and we’ll get the answers needed directly from A.I. Watch out Google…

Are architects the next big industry for A.I. to disrupt?

Let’s dig in.

Generative AI > traditional search?

Experts say the $100 billion search engine industry is up for grabs and Generative AI is raking its increasingly large hand across the table.

It wasn’t in the too-distant past that “google” became a verb. Whatever information we needed. Even completing our sentences - “what if I…” or “do I have…” 😬 

WSJ’s Tech Live conference hosted Michael Wolf, CEO of consulting firm, Active. Wolf states that as of today 13 million people start their search with generative AI and that that number could grow to more than 90 million by 2027. The reason? Generative AI can provide results with far greater precision and customization. And without all the infinite links to choose from.

It begs the question of how this affects the search industry as a whole and the most dominant player specifically. In 2022, 80% of Google’s revenue was from ads. $224.47B to be exact. That’s a lot of keesh. We certainly don’t expect Google to be left out of the AI race. They’re deep in generative AI already. Can all the challengers take some of the market share? We’d be fine with just one of those billions.

Other predictions from Wolf’s presentation:

• Nearly all U.S. households will be able to access the internet through their televisions by 2027.

• Spatial computing - the ability to interact with virtual imagery displayed without obstructing a user’s view of the world - won’t be limited to pricey virtual and augmented reality headsets.

It will be interesting to watch how this changes consumer behavior. Asking AI for restaurant recommendations, then allowing it to make a reservation on your behalf is in our future. Maybe you just shout it from the shower. Who knows!?

Source

Architects the next at risk for AI displacement?

We’ve talked a lot about industry disruption due to AI but one that came on our radar recently was architects. Thomas Lane, an editor at Building out of the UK suggests that AI has the potential to automate up to 37% of the tasks typically carried out by architects and engineers. Makes you a little weary to take the elevator to the top floor right?

Images generated by Midjourney and similar AI systems have firms thinking about how much of this work could be automated. While it’s improbable that AI will fully replace architects in the near future, it does make us wonder if the overall landscape will change dramatically and will there be a need for fewer architects per firm. And how does this change the education system around this profession?

Some broad categories are being discussed that illustrate how AI can complement an architect’s work:

1. Design Options Based on Specific Criteria

   1. AI algorithms can handle vast amounts of data and when equipped with the right tools have the potential to churn out an infinite amount of design choices.

2. Generative Design

   1. AI can rapidly produce visual designs when given specific guidelines. Architects could use tools like Stable Diffusion to rapidly investigate different material choices and spatial designs.

3. Energy Efficiency and Sustainability

   1. AI can help architects design energy-efficient and sustainable buildings by analyzing factors such as climate data, building orientation, materials, and energy consumption patterns.

4. Building Maintenance

   1. AI tools can analyze video feeds and detect weaknesses in areas such as road conditions and the exteriors of buildings to enable early detection of required maintenance.

It seems like there’s a lot of opportunity in this space. We just hope they post a sign that says “Designed by AI” to enter at our own risk.

👀 Check out our Improve Your Life Hacks below to try one of these tools out!

Source

Sweet Reads

• Student + AI reads 2,000 year old scroll burned by Vesuvius

• AI talking to animals?

• NYC announces first-of-its-kind AI action plan

Improve your Life-Hacks

Speaking of being your own Architect…

Remember when Apple’s campaign “yep, there’s an app for that"? Well these days, “there’s AI for that!”

Check out ArchitectGPT and dive into the future of architectural brilliance and bespoke interior design. Unleash your imagination, and let ArchitectGPT craft it into reality. Dream it. Design it. Live it. 🏡✨

We could use a little hand here…..

Last week we discussed the potential for AI to have emotions, and now it feels just a little closer with new features that allow AI to see, hear, and speak. Yeah, we get it, kind of a creepy message to get in October on Friday the 13th….

Let’s dig in.

ChatGPT can now see, hear, and speak

OpenAI, the maker of the popular ChatGPT, recently announced two new features that will give the chatbot the ability to "see, hear, and speak." The features are brand new and only available to paying customers for now, but it brings us one step closer to that personal assistant that we’ve all been asking for.

The first new feature is the ability to analyze and respond to images that you upload into the chatbot. Use cases for this could range from taking a picture of a lawnmower part and getting instructions on how to install it to getting a recipe based on a picture of what’s in your fridge. That sounds pretty cool to me!

Now onto the more impressive (and crazy) second new feature; the ability to hold voice conversations. We’ve all had interactions with Siri or Alexa in which we ask it to do something for us, and then we get back a single response that’s a word-for-word reading from a website. In this situation though, you can have a full-blown open-ended conversation. According to reviews thus far, the voice talking back sounds pretty real as well.

For example, a user could ask ChatGPT to “emulate a therapist and discuss some of the stress I’m experiencing at work” or “I need to prep for a speech, and would like feedback on what I have so far” These are just a couple of examples, but this feature could be used for a variety of purposes, such as customer service, education, or simply a sounding board.

Don’t worry, we’re not telling you to wear ChatGPT on your face, but these features could prove quite helpful and practical in your day-to-day activities.

OpenAI's announcement of these new features for ChatGPT is an exciting development for the field of artificial intelligence. The ultimate goal, according to some experts, is to create AI that is capable of processing information in all the same ways humans can. We’re still a ways off from that, but progress is no doubt moving fast.

Be on the lookout for these features to become more available over the next couple of months, and please let us know your feedback when you get your first interaction!

source

AI in Transportation

We talk a lot about AI in the sense of chatbots, but the use of AI in terms of how we get around our cities safely and efficiently is going to see huge transformations over the coming years. From self-driving cars to smart traffic lights, AI is making transportation more efficient, safer, and sustainable.

Here are some of the coolest ways AI is being used in transportation today:

• Self-driving cars: AI is at the heart of self-driving cars. These systems rely mostly on computer vision, and allow cars to perceive their surroundings, make decisions, and navigate without human input. Companies like Google, Waymo, Tesla, and Baidu have already deployed autonomous vehicle systems. If you want to try one out, order a Waymo instead of Uber next time you're in San Francisco or Pheonix, and please let us know how it goes!

• Traffic management: AI-powered traffic management systems can monitor traffic patterns and predict future congestion. This information can be used to adjust traffic signals, reroute traffic, and provide drivers with real-time updates. Think of it as Waze, but also telling the traffic lights what to do.

• Predictive maintenance: AI is being used to predict when vehicles and other transportation infrastructure need maintenance, which in turn extends the life of these machines. AI-powered predictive maintenance systems can analyze sensor data from vehicles and infrastructure to identify potential problems.

• Fleet management: AI-powered fleet management systems can optimize routes, track vehicle performance, and manage driver schedules. This can help to reduce costs and improve customer service.

• Safety: AI-powered safety systems can detect and warn drivers of hazards, such as pedestrians, other vehicles, and road conditions. AI can also be used to develop safer transportation infrastructure.

These are just a few examples of how AI is and will be affecting your daily commute, and we won’t even get into flying cars today. These improvements will of course take time, but given the increase in congestion and crazy drivers out there, some of them can’t come soon enough. Stay tuned!

Sweet Reads

• Google launches AI to predict flooding in the US

• Saudi - China collaboration in AI creates concerns for the US

• “AI Obama” and fake newscasters

Improve your Life-Hacks

Put your face on it!

Improving your life with Reface is probably a stretch but it having fun is not.

Swap your face on photos and videos to create headshots - or just put your face on Barbie like this guy…

• Try on different hairstyles

• Add trending filters to your photos (we like 90’s yearbook)

• Childify yourself 🥹

We could use a little hand here…..

Have you ever wondered whether or not artificial intelligence will have emotions? Of course you have. It’s why we’re all paranoid about AI. Well, there’s a new kind of AI in town. Plus a powerful CEO says future generations will only work 3.5 days a week due to AI automation. Sign us up, bro.

Let’s dig in.

Affective Computing - The Emotional Side of AI

Emotional intelligence (EQ) has been a hot topic over the last couple of decades, often overtaking the spotlight from its predecessor, IQ. It’s been said that those with high IQ often lack the balance of EQ to become effective leaders and so it’s all the rage to identify as a high emotional intelligence leader. And there’s data to back it up - high EQ leaders tend to build better teams, foster deeper trust, and drive better performance.

MIT’s media lab is breaking new ground on “Affective Computing.” While they have a diverse set of motivations and projects, the one that stands out for us is enabling “robots and computers to respond intelligently to natural human emotional feedback.”

Affective computing is the study and development of systems and devices that can recognize, interpret, process, and simulate human effects. Basically teaching computers to have empathy. There’s a plethora of workforce applications here:

• Mood Metrics: Continuous mood-assessment tools that not only offer real-time feedback but also shape organizational strategies.

• Empathetic Virtual Companions: Chatbots that don’t just respond but feel and adapt, enhancing human-AI interactions.

• Customer Emotion Trackers: Innovations that provide companies with deeper insights by gauging real emotional reactions to their offerings.

• Emotionally Intelligent Training: Simulations that arm professionals in the area of emotional agility.

While the workforce and consumer advancements could be vast, it’s not without its viable concerns. Monitoring emotions may feel invasive and lead to ethical concerns. Plus misinterpreting emotions could lead to some really interesting HR discussions. (“I haven’t even had my coffee yet!”)

This one feels like an area of development to keep a close eye on, similar to Artificial General Intelligence.

(Source, Source)

The 3 ½ Day Work Week?

McKinsey recently released a report on the economic potential of generative AI and the dollar amounts are quite staggering - like trillions. Citing that their latest research estimates that generative AI’s impact on productivity could add $2.6 trillion to $4.6 trillion annually. That’s a lot of dough.

Part of the research in the 68-page report states that employees could scale back on their working hours thanks to technology being used to automate some of their activities. Generative AI and other emerging technologies have the potential to automate the tasks which take up 60% to 70% of employee’s time at the moment.

Jamie Dimon is the well-known, often controversial, CEO of America’s biggest bank JP Morgan. He states thousands of people at the bank are already using generative AI technologies. Activities such as catching costly errors, making trades on customer’s behalf, and market research, which are traditionally completed by a human, are transferring over to AI.

But he says people should take a deep breath. (easy to say when you’re a billionaire, Jamie.) He also made some other wild predictions that our children will live to 100 and not have cancer because of AI technology and that they’ll probably only be working three-and-a-half days a week. The last two can’t come soon enough.

Yes, employees could scale back their work due to technology replacing the monotonous tasks but those of us who don’t have billions of dollars in our own banks fear that our entire jobs could be replaced. We think his comments are a little “ivory-towerish” but regardless there’s truth to the matter. AI automation is coming fast.

Best sharpen up your AI skillz.

Source

Sweet Reads

• AI cooks a steak in 3 minutes 

• Generative AI Is the Newest Tool in the Dictator's Handbook

• Robots learn to do chores by watching YouTube

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Landscape design just got easy!

Neighborbrite is your newest buddy when it comes to landscape design. With this simple (and free) app, all you have to do is:

• Take a picture of the area you want to redesign

• Choose between themes such as cottage, desert, modern, etc.

• Get inspiration in seconds
  

Check out Neighborbrite and let us know how it goes!

We could use a little hand here…..

You’re favorite late-night and daytime shows are coming back. The writer’s strike is over and turns out, AI played a big part in why we were left hanging on recipes for our “perfect summer party.”

Also, how many times can you say CIA AI?

Today’s lineup:

• AI terms within the writer’s strike (pending) agreement

• The CIA is building its own AI. Why?

Let’s dig in.

Human writers unite!

Who doesn’t like to wind down to some late-night shows, tune in during the day for some hot gossip, or get a mulled wine recipe from a previous American Idol contestant? At the very least, it’s some much needed entertainment.

If you’re like me, you’ve been missing some of this programming since the writer’s strike began in May. The good news is that as of this week, it looks like this strike is finally coming to an end. Aside from some of the more “normal” asks from the writers union (better pay, benefits, etc.), there is a major emphasis on protections for these workers regarding the use of AI. The key AI highlights of the deal are:

• AI cannot write or rewrite literary material. This means that studios cannot use AI to generate scripts or rewrite existing scripts without the involvement of human writers.

• Writers can choose to use AI if a studio approves of its use, but a writer cannot be required to do so. This gives writers control over whether or not they want to use AI in their work.

• However, the agreement does not prohibit studios from training AI on writers' work. This means that studios can still use AI to generate ideas, learn about writing styles, and develop new tools to assist writers.

Overall, the agreement aims to strike a balance between protecting writers' jobs and creative control while also allowing studios to explore the potential benefits of AI.

While it is not clear how easily the agreement can be translated to other industries, there is reason to speculate that these terms could lead to larger implications and precedents. For example, unions in other industries, such as manufacturing and retail, could use the writer’s agreement as a template to negotiate their own protections against AI.

For now, I’m choosing to focus on the short-term win of having back some guilty programming pleasures. Rest assured though, the protections we’re provided in the workplace will become a hot topic as advancements in AI continue to automate the world around us.

CIA AI you say? 👀 

The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) has confirmed they are building their own version of ChatGPT AI to be utilized across the US intelligence community. This is being called a “logical technological step” in streamlining information across 18 different agencies ranging from the CIA, NSA, FBI, and several military offices, but as you can imagine, there are much deeper implications at play within this move. Let’s review some of their main use cases :

• The same as a ton of other folks…to sift through massive amounts of data, but this is some powerful and sensitive data. Since 1947, the CIA has been collecting a vast amount of data from a variety of sources, including human intelligence, signals intelligence (monitoring communication signals from foreign agencies), and open-source intelligence (publicly available information). Now, with the help of AI, the CIA will be able to analyze this data more quickly and efficiently and identify patterns and connections that would be difficult or even impossible to find manually.

• To develop new intelligence gathering and analysis techniques. AI can be used to develop new ways to collect and analyze intelligence, such as by using natural language processing to extract insights from social media posts, or by using machine learning to identify patterns in satellite imagery. For instance, this could be used for tracking terrorist networks and to detect cyberattacks.

• To stay ahead of adversaries and maintain its intelligence advantage. China and other countries are investing heavily in AI for intelligence purposes, and the CIA’s AI Director is calling the new tech our biggest threat.

As you can imagine, the general public perception of the CIA building its own AI is mixed. There are concerns about the potential for misuse, but there is also recognition that AI is a necessary tool for the CIA to maintain its intelligence advantage and to protect national security. Regardless, this will be a story we should all want to keep an eye on moving forward.

Sweet Reads

• AI is already taking over grocery stores

• Fighting forest fires with AI

• Can the UN become the global monitor for AI?

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Chat with a PDF. No joke.

We’re totally in the future now. Because you can chat with a…document. That’s right folks. PDF.ai allows you to upload any PDF and have a conversation with the document. Ask any question you like. PDF.ai brings your documents to life. Applications here are really endless - books, legal documents, employee handbooks, user manuals. Now go impress your new boss about how much you know from the employee handbook on day 1.

We could use a little hand here…..

AI is here to stay and it’s being adopted across various industries faster than you can count a mess of pigs. (It’s a “mess” right?) Speaking of pigs, we’ve got AI pig monitoring, dental visits get a makeover, and an AI scam we all need to watch out for.

Let’s dig in.

The AI Dentist

It’s probably a long time before you have a WALL-E look-a-like dentist. However, AI has the potential to revolutionize how dentists do their work behind the scenes to provide patients with better care and diagnosis.

Boston based VideaHealth has ambitions to not only help dentists identify those pesky cavities more efficiently but also be able to point out risks for non-oral health issues. VideaHealth’s CEO told CBS News that he wants to be the first AI company in the world to diagnose or analyze a billion people globally. 🤓

The AI tech behind VideaHealth analyzes anonymized dental X-ray images and identifies patients for potential treatment based on their screenings. Given the AI tool incorporates a database of millions of images that have been annotated by dentists, it enables faster more accurate diagnosis and ultimately enhances the quality of dental care.

VideaHealth’s CEO notes additional benefits as:

• Accelerating the diagnostic abilities of a new or recent graduate in a dental practice or an older dentist who might be susceptible to mistakes by the human eye as eyesight worsens.

• Removing bias against patients based on race, health, or socioeconomic status.

Our layman’s take: Dentists will use AI algorithms to make faster and more accurate diagnoses of patient care that is needed. It will also enable dentists to spot signs of potential risks for non-oral diseases more effectively.

AI in Farming?

Just when you think AI applications can’t get any weirder, insert AI cameras monitoring pigs. These new cameras detect different pigs in a certain pen and monitor their activity, feeding habits, and even weight! (keep those cameras out of my kitchen, please. But you know it’s coming, right?) This allows farmers to provide individual care and also take a pig to market at the correct weight.

And what about robot-milking cows am I right? True story. The robot can autonomously hook itself up to a cow’s udders and simultaneously track how much milk it produces along with important health metrics. The data this AI application intakes can help farmers adjust a cow’s diet to ensure optimal nutritional intake. And delicious milk for growing kiddos and baby calves of course. 🙂 

Weeds in the grass and garden are a weekend warrior’s nightmare. But doubly miserable for farmers. New spraying technology allows a machine to roll through a field and identify what is a weed a what is a crop - weeds get herbicides, crops don’t - we eat organic food. Win-win.

Our layman’s take: AI is going to optimize every facet of life. Farming and agriculture will not be left out. We will be able to depend on AI-type solutions for healthier food production and long-term, hopefully, lower food costs through efficiencies with AI.

Source

Bonus reading: AI startup speeds up the creation of climate-resistant crops

Voice-Cloning Scam

As we’ve discussed before, there are going to be a lot of bad actors that use AI to harm people. And recently some folks in San Antonio, TX were unfortunately targets of a “voice-cloning” scam used by AI technology to convince susceptible targets to wire money to what they thought was a family member in need.

How this works is these evil idiots find some video of you talking on social media. They only need a few seconds of the video. They then clone your voice to an algorithm that’s programmed to be able to respond to inquiries and ultimately have a conversation with whoever is on the other end of the line.

One man thought his grandson was calling to let him know he’d been in a car wreck, had injured a pregnant woman, and was in jail. The man went to the bank to wire money to an “attorney.” Luckily the teller at the bank smelled a scam and she encouraged him to call his grandson to double check. But others have not been so lucky and these scammers are stealing thousands of dollars from innocent people.

So how do you plan ahead to avoid being a victim?

1. As much as we all might love a good social media post, it could be time to cool it down. Especially videos with your voice until there’s a better solution to stop scammers.

2. Have a safe word or code word with all your friends and family

3. Spread the word about these possible scammers. Educate people to do the same with their families.

Source

Sweet Reads

• Here are the AI celebrities you can date right now

• Google and Dept of Defense are developing AI-powered microscopes for spotting cancer

• Your Alexa is about to have generative AI

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Finally, drop your album!

Musicfy is an AI voice and music tool that lets you easily create music using your own voice. It converts your vocals into an AI model that sounds just like you singing, allowing you to add your voice to any song. Pretty amazing!!

We could use a little hand here…..

Over the past few months, sites like ChatGPT have seen a decrease in users, calling into question why consumer interest is down. Experts say that this is just the beginning, and there will become a larger focus on user-friendly applications. What we do know, is this is NOT A FAD, so read up!

In Today’s lineup:

• Deeper concerns around misinformation and the elections

• What is AI Anxious and are you feeling it?

Let’s dig in.

AI and Election Concerns

Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock, you’re well aware that election season is upon us. But if the last election cycle stressed you out, then you may want to find your happy place before diving deep into the newest tactics. From the jockeying in debates to the strategic release of fake photos, we are only seeing the tip of the iceberg on what will become the new political strategies of the 2024 elections.

Two months ago, Eric Schmidt, the former CEO of Google, warned that the 2024 elections could be chaotic, due to social media's inability to stop the spread of false information created by AI. Schmidt is worried that this new technology could be used to spread unprecedented levels of misinformation, making it difficult to distinguish between truth and lies.

Essentially, what he’s saying is that the technology to regulate the spread of misinformation is far behind our ability to create the content in the first place. There is even legislation that’s been introduced in the House that would require candidates to label campaign advertisements created with AI. I know you’ll be shocked to hear this, but even that has not been agreed on.

While all of these tech companies look to make things safer, more transparent, and blah blah blah…. in the meantime, be vigilant and use your noggin! If something seems totally ridiculous, it might be! Remember what we were taught as children… “don’t believe everything you hear” That couldn’t be truer today.

Read more here

Talkin bout feelings!

A recent study by LinkedIn of almost 30,000 professionals dug into both their sentiments around AI and their actual knowledge on the topic. Some of the opposing findings show:

• 84% of US LinkedIn members are in jobs where generative AI could be used to automate at least a quarter of repetitive tasks and increase productivity.

• 45% of global professionals believe AI will make their jobs easier

BUUUUUT

• Half of professionals globally are worried they should know more about AI than they do.

• 39% are feeling overwhelmed by the amount of change AI may bring to their jobs in the future.

• Nearly 40% of global professionals have admitted to pretending they know more about AI to seem ‘in the know’ in front of teammates.

How should you prepare yourself?

1. Realize YOU ARE NOT ALONE!!! We started this newsletter for the very reason to help break down AI into its basic form so that we (us included) don’t get left behind! We’re in this together!

   ^{(Speaking of which…. Don’t forget to use the POLL at the} 👇️ ^{to let us know how we can help you better!)}

2. Start by learning the absolute basics. I promise if you can grasp stuff like algorithms and machine learning, a lot more things will begin to click

3. People skills are at a premium. Don’t forget that you are a human being and you didn’t get this far without being pretty damn good. Problem-solving, strategic thinking, and time management should become top priorities.

And if you can’t get behind these three steps, our old friend Stuart Smalley would say “You need a checkup from the neck up.”

Sweet Reads

• Pulitzer Prize-winning author sues maker of ChatGPT

• More companies commit to the White House AI Safety Accord

• Why AI Is Next Flashpoint in US-China Tech Rivalry

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You know you’ve always wanted your own AI assistant

So you say you want an AI assistant right? Well here’s your chance to build your own using GPT technology. Develop a personalized AI chatbot assistant, either private or public, that seamlessly connects to all your data and integrations.

We could use a little hand here…..

It didn’t take long for Hollywood to capitalize on the fear of robots taking over the world. And since they couldn’t get Denzel, they opted for his son.

And the Department of Energy is funding AI and machine learning research towards unlocking Fusion Energy. Yeah, we didn’t know what it meant either but it’s actually pretty wild.

Today’s lineup:

• The Creator Movie

• DOE and their $29M donation for Fusion Energy research

• ChatGPT heads to the classroom

Let’s dig in.

The Creator

Early on in the trailers for Hollywood’s latest “AI takes over the world” movie The Creator, the fear-mongering is aplenty - “We shouldn’t have let the AI out” - “The AI that was created to protect us dropped a bomb on Los Angeles” - “The AI is developing a super-weapon.”

But the timing of this movie? It was cast back in 2020 during the pandemic - so the writing, planning, and funding all happened either prior to or at that same time. But the release? Right on time to capitalize on the heat surrounding AI. Is Hollywood the AI sleeper using AI to predict when to release the latest AI movie about the AI that will kill us all? (sorry about all the AI)

The setting is a post-apocalyptic reality caused by the ruckus and irresponsible use of AI that was originally introduced for the protection of humankind. And guess what else? There are two opposing sides - one that supports and believes in the use of AI and one that opposes of course. Sound familiar?

The timing of the release is no accident and frankly, we’re excited to watch. But remember. It’s a movie. It’s fake. Don’t let the hype steer you into a world of fear.

Fusion Energy you say?

The Department of Energy announced $29M in funding research for machine learning and artificial intelligence for Fusion Energy Sciences. Yeah, we had the same question - what’s Fusion Energy? This Princeton physicist gives you the quick and dirty explanation but essentially it is the same source of energy the sun and certain types of stars provide.

Eloquently stated from the Fusion Energy Sciences (FES) homepage - “The pursuit of fusion energy embraces the challenge of bringing the energy-producing power of a star to earth for the benefit of humankind.” Hell yea.

Ok, so scientists are trying to replicate this type of energy down here on Earth. The outcome is sustainable energy for millions with literally zero carbon emissions to the atmosphere. So where does AI and machine learning fit into all of this?

Well, if you’re a Fusion Energy fanatic, you can read the 91-page report detailing the application process and guidelines for being a part of this research program. But to summarize from our reading - “Within fusion energy research, AI/ML impacts key research problems from applications requiring rapid processing of fusion data.” Basically, AI provides a unique way to rapidly process and access data to further advance this research.

We like this because it shows that our friends in the government are looking for ways to use AI for good and not just how to establish control over it. Go AI and go Science!

ChatGPT is going to school!

If your kids are worried about making new friends at school this year, not to fear, ChatGPT is here. (so cheesy right?)

Yes, you heard that correctly. Many school districts are reversing their ban on ChatGPT and coming to the conclusion that AI can be helpful and it might actually be prudent to let students learn how to use these tools the right way.

OpenAI (ChatGPT creator) released a guide for teachers to help them navigate a new normal and provide best practices such as prompts and ways to use ChatGPT with students.

Examples that have surfaced are:

• Students use ChatGPT as a debate partner

• Teachers use ChatGPT to build lesson plans and determine if it’s a challenging enough curriculum

• Have students critique the chatbot's answer

Cheating and plagiarism still remain a concern, but seeing large districts in NY and L.A. is a sign that further adoption and ban reversals are coming.

Students. Hot tip. Remove the first line “As an AI, I..” before turning in your assignment. You’re welcome.

Sweet Reads

• Google teaches commands to Robo-Dog

• The AI revolution will be urban

• This New Jersey city is using AI to help stop mass shootings

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Log meals just by taking a picture!

365 is a huge improvement to the meal tracking of yesteryear. With this simple app, you can connect with your coach or doctor to upload your existing meal plan or build a new one in less than 3 minutes. All you need to do from there is take pictures of your food and let AI do the rest. There’s even syncing with your smartwatch! Super power your calorie counting!

We could use a little hand here…..

Cops and AI - What could go wrong?

Final Thoughts

Sweet Reads

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Can we be transparent?

Privacy please!

Final Thoughts

Sweet Reads

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We could use a little hand here…..

Welcome back friends and new AI enthusiasts to ChildsPlayAI, a weekly newsletter where we break down what’s happening in AI, in language you can understand.

For today, we’ll be showing even the faint of heart how to use AI, as well as diving into how the government wants to get its share.

Let’s dig in!

Just try it!

Who should regulate AI? And how?

Sweet Reads

Improve your Life-Hacks

Financial Services

Media

Final Thoughts

Sweet Reads

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We could use a little hand here…..