🐯 AI of the Tiger

AND: Fear Factor AI

In today’s Tracker:

Sip & Scroll: Two shakes of a duck’s tail and 2 mins

  • 🧪 Research highlights: Americans Ring Alarm Bells on the Future of Artificial Intelligence

  • 🚨 Industry news: Amazon Unwraps New AI-Filled Echo Goodies

  • ⚖️ Policy and regulation: The Great AI Arms Race: China Outpaces US, Google Ex-CEO Waves Red Flag

  • 🌐 AI and society: Deep Learning? Dive Deeper, Says AI Maven

  • 🧰 Tool of the day: Lavo AI: Brain Boosting AI – Get More Done in Less Time

🦅 Americans Ring Alarm Bells on the Future of Artificial Intelligence

Over two-thirds of Americans, according to a Reuters survey, are concerned about the potential adverse effects of artificial intelligence (AI), with 61% viewing it as a threat to civilization.

Mainly concerned were Trump voters and evangelical Christians. Other issues, such as violence and the economy, ranked higher in importance.

Meanwhile, AI industry experts and leaders, such as the CEO of OpenAI, Sam Altman, advocate for regulations and a greater public comprehension of AI's benefits.

Online interviews were conducted with 4,415 US adults, with a margin of error of plus or minus two percentage points.

Read more here.

🤖 Amazon Unwraps New AI-Filled Echo Goodies

In response to the escalating AI race, Amazon has unveiled a range of updated Echo devices with enhanced AI capabilities, identical to OpenAI's ChatGPT.

Using Amazon's internally developed large language models, new features intended to enhance Alexa's conversational abilities and web text summarization.

The newly introduced devices include a redesigned Echo Pop speaker with an improved Wi-Fi range, a quicker Echo Show 5 with clearer sound, a new Echo Show 5 Kids with Amazon's Kids+ subscription, and cheaper Echo Buds without noise cancellation.

Complex queries and conversational duties remain limited despite a 35% increase in the digital assistant's usage and a 40% increase in Alexa-enabled shopping.

As part of its advancements in generative AI, Amazon is tackling issues such as interactions with multiple family members and preventing software from fabricating responses.

🚩 The Great AI Arms Race: China Outpaces US, Google Ex-CEO Waves Red Flag

Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt testified before a US House of Representatives hearing about the dangers posed by China's increased use of artificial intelligence (AI) in warfare, sparking global concern.

A report by Schmidt's Special Competitive Studies Project emphasizes the need for the United States to respond to China's advanced artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities, which are designed to counter traditional American warfare.

There is growing concern that the United States lags behind China in AI investments for defense, as China collaborates extensively with commercial companies.

Despite this, Elon Musk and others have called for a halt to AI development for military use, citing ethical concerns.

In contrast, many US defense officials insist that the nation must develop AI-powered weaponry expeditiously to avoid losing a potential future conflict with China.

The absence of dialogue between the United States and China on military AI exacerbates these concerns, heightening fears of unregulated AI attacks and rapid conflict escalation.

🧠 Deep Learning? Dive Deeper, Says AI Maven

Gary Marcus contends in his essay that deep learning is insufficient to achieve human-like artificial intelligence (AI).

He proposes "hybrid models" that combine the data-driven learning of neural networks with the abstract symbol manipulation capabilities prevalent in logic, mathematics, and computer science.

He critiques an essay by Yann LeCun, the chief AI scientist at Meta, and Jacob Browning, arguing that it provides defective and ambiguous alternatives.

Marcus argues that understanding and incorporating symbolic abstractions in AI may facilitate the creation of AI systems that are secure, trustworthy, interpretable, and may provide insight into the human mind.

⌚ Lavo AI: Brain Boosting AI – Get More Done in Less Time

Lavo AI is an artificial intelligence technology created by Lavo Life Sciences. It is intended to improve attention and productivity by removing distractions and offering users a tailored working environment.

Learn more about the tool here.

-Timnit Gebru, Founder & Executive Director at The Distributed AI Research Institute (DAIR)

We’re seeing a kind of a Wild West situation with AI and regulation right now. The scale at which businesses are adopting AI technologies isn’t matched by clear guidelines to regulate algorithms and help researchers avoid the pitfalls of bias in datasets. We need to advocate for a better system of checks and balances to test AI for bias and fairness and to help businesses determine whether certain use cases are even appropriate for this technology at the moment.

-Paulo Coelho

When we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better too.

The Machine Stops by E.M. Forster is a short story set in a dystopian future where humans reside underground and depend entirely on an all-encompassing machine. When the machine begins to malfunction, one character challenges the repercussions of relying on AI in all facets of life.

Credit: @timsheung

  • 📝 Sheet AI - is an AI tool that helps you automate and streamline your data-intensive tasks in both Google Sheets and Microsoft Excel.

  • 📦GET3D (Nvidia) - is an AI tool that creates high-quality 3D textured shapes using image-based learning.

  • 💻CSM (Common Sense Machines) - is an AI tool that provides APIs, interfaces, and open-source software to translate multi-modal inputs and experiences into a digital simulator for AI training and content creation.

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