This week in AI [ OCT 13 2024 ]

Top Headlines

AI Chip Wars Heat Up: The US government is reportedly considering restricting the sale of AI chips from companies like Nvidia and AMD to certain Persian Gulf countries, including the UAE and Saudi Arabia, due to national security concerns. These potential restrictions would follow similar measures imposed on exports to China in 2022.

NYT Escalates Legal Battle Against AI: The New York Times has issued a cease and desist letter to AI search engine startup Perplexity, demanding it stop using NYT content for AI training and summaries without a license. This follows the NYT's ongoing lawsuit against OpenAI and Microsoft over similar copyright concerns. The outcome of these cases could significantly impact the relationship between news publishers and AI companies.

Nobel Laureate Expresses AI Regrets: Geoffrey Hinton, who recently won the Nobel Prize in Physics for his pioneering work on neural networks, has publicly voiced concerns about the potential misuse of AI and admitted to "regretting" parts of his life's work.

Business and Innovation

AMD-Powered Cloud Service Challenges Nvidia: TensorWave, a Las Vegas-based startup, has launched a cloud service using AMD's MI300X chips, offering a competitive alternative to Nvidia's dominant GPUs in the AI hardware market. TensorWave claims competitive pricing and strong performance for running large AI models.

SAP Embraces Open-Source AI for Business Automation: SAP's Joule AI copilot is expanding its capabilities with the integration of open-source large language models (LLMs) like Meta's Llama 3.1. This move aims to provide greater flexibility, customization, and scalability for businesses using Joule to automate tasks.

HubSpot and Agent AI Offer AI-Powered Company Research: A new AI tool from HubSpot and Agent AI promises to automate company research, providing in-depth business intelligence on any company within minutes. The tool analyzes data from various sources to generate reports on workforce demographics, funding information, web traffic trends, competitor analysis, and more.

New AI Tools and Resources

Google Launches AI Shopping Experience: Google has introduced an AI-powered shopping feed that personalizes product recommendations based on users' search and YouTube history. It also features an AI summary tool that provides insights and tips from product reviews.

Adobe Unveils AI Sound Effects Generator: At its MAX conference, Adobe showcased "Project Super Sonic," an experimental AI tool that can create custom sound effects for videos using text prompts, object recognition, and voice imitation.

Google Vids Simplifies Video Creation: Google Vids is a new AI-powered tool that combines video recording, writing, editing, and production features in one platform. Users can describe their video concept, customize outlines, and edit drafts using built-in tools.

Meta Develops "Thinking" LLMs: Meta researchers have introduced a new method called Thought Preference Optimization (TPO), which trains large language models to generate internal "thoughts" before responding to user instructions. While not yet perfect, this approach demonstrates the potential of AI to engage in more human-like thought processes for a wider range of tasks beyond just reasoning and math.

AI Safety and Ethics

Anthropic Updates Responsible Scaling Policy: Anthropic has released a major update to its Responsible Scaling Policy for advanced AI systems, introducing new safeguards and governance measures. The policy defines "Capability" and "Required" Thresholds to trigger enhanced safety protocols when AI models reach certain risk levels, particularly those related to bioweapons and autonomous AI research. Anthropic aims for its approach to become an industry standard and contribute to shaping future AI regulation.

The AI landscape continues to evolve rapidly, with new technologies, applications, and ethical considerations emerging constantly. Businesses and individuals should stay informed about these developments and explore opportunities to leverage AI for innovation and efficiency. It's crucial to approach AI advancements with a critical eye, considering both the potential benefits and risks.