Last Week in AI

Last Week in AI provides weekly digests, summarizing key developments in artificial intelligence. It covers breakthroughs, industry dynamics, regulatory updates, and impacts on society. Themes include advancements in AI technologies, regulatory actions, AI's societal and economic impacts, innovations in AI applications, and the evolving landscape of AI ethics and safety discussions.

Artificial Intelligence Technologies AI Industry and Market Dynamics Regulatory and Ethical Considerations AI Applications and Innovations Economic and Societal Impact of AI

The hottest Substack posts of Last Week in AI

And their main takeaways

Last Week in AI #293 - Apple Intelligence, GitHub's multi-model Copilot, Anthropic's computer-using AI

119 implied HN points • 31 Oct 24
🕹 Technology Artificial Intelligence Software Development Tech news Emerging technologies Computer Science Digital Tools
  1. Apple has introduced new features in its operating systems that can help with writing, image editing, and answering questions through Siri. These features are available in beta on devices like iPhones and Macs.
  2. GitHub Copilot is expanding its capabilities by adding support for AI models from other companies, allowing developers to choose which one works best for them. This can make coding easier for everyone, including beginners.
  3. Anthropic has developed new AI models that can interact with computers like a human. This upgrade allows AI to perform tasks like clicking and typing, which could improve many applications in tech.

Last Week in AI #292 - Meta's AI Artifacts, Perplexity's billions, xAI API launch

238 implied HN points • 22 Oct 24
🕹 Technology AI Machine Learning Research Startups Innovation
  1. Meta's AI research team released eight new tools and models to help advance AI technology. This includes new language models and tools for faster processing.
  2. Perplexity AI is seeking a $9 billion valuation as it continues to grow in the AI search market, despite facing some plagiarism accusations from major media outlets.
  3. Elon Musk's AI startup, xAI, launched an API for its generative AI model Grok, allowing developers to connect it with external tools like databases and search engines.

Last Week in AI #291 - Nobel Prizes, Adobe's Video Model, Tesla's Robots

99 implied HN points • 16 Oct 24
🕹 Technology Artificial Intelligence Software Development Research Innovation Automation
  1. Two scientists won a Nobel Prize in Physics for their important work on artificial intelligence and neural networks, showing how AI is changing technology and society.
  2. Adobe has released a new AI video model that helps users create and edit videos easily, bringing exciting tools to programs like Premiere Pro.
  3. Tesla showcased new robots and vehicles at an event, but some people felt the demonstrations weren't as impressive as expected, leading to a decline in Tesla's stock.

Last Week in AI #290 - OpenAI's massive VC round and DevDay, Flux 1.1, NotebookLM

139 implied HN points • 08 Oct 24
🕹 Technology Artificial Intelligence Software Development Venture Capital Tech news Innovation
  1. OpenAI raised a massive $6.6 billion in funding, making it one of the most valuable tech companies. This will help them expand their research and computing power.
  2. At OpenAI's DevDay, they introduced a new Realtime API for developers, allowing nearly instant AI-generated voice responses for apps. Developers are excited about the new possibilities they can create.
  3. Black Forest Labs released a faster and improved version of their image generation model, Flux 1.1 Pro. This could change the game for how quickly and effectively images are created using AI.

AI News in 2023: a look back

596 implied HN points • 30 Dec 23
🕹 Technology AI Generative AI Regulations
  1. 2023 marked AI 'arriving' with widespread impact and media coverage.
  2. Throughout the year, notable advancements were made in various AI applications and technologies.
  3. Events in the AI industry, like leadership changes and new regulations, showcased evolving trends and challenges.
Get a weekly roundup of the best Substack posts, by hacker news affinity:

Last Week in AI #254: DeepMind's AI cracks geometry problems, Meta commits to open-source AI, China and US firms hold secret AI safety talks, first AI chatbot for presidential candidate, and more!

457 implied HN points • 22 Jan 24
🕹 Technology AI Open Source Safety Tech Companies
  1. DeepMind's AlphaGeometry AI solves complex geometry problems using a unique combination of language model and symbolic engine.
  2. Meta, under Zuckerberg, is focused on developing open-source AGI with the Llama 3 model and increasing compute infrastructure.
  3. US AI companies and Chinese experts engage in secret diplomacy on AI safety, signaling unprecedented collaboration amid technological rivalry.

Last Week in AI #252: DeepMind's real-world robots, NYT sues OpenAI, Baidu's Ernie bot hits 100M users, AI art generator controversy, and more! 🤖📰🚀🎨

377 implied HN points • 08 Jan 24
🕹 Technology AI Lawsuits Chatbots Art Regulation
  1. DeepMind is developing robots for real-world tasks like multitasking in different environments.
  2. The New York Times is suing OpenAI and Microsoft for allegedly using its work to train AI without permission.
  3. Baidu's Ernie bot has over 100 million users, and is primarily used in Chinese but also supports English.

Last Week in AI #255: AI voice scams, flood of bad AI translations, self-rewarding LLMs, FTC probes AI partnerships of tech giants, and more!

139 implied HN points • 29 Jan 24
🕹 Technology AI Machine Translation Language Models Tech Giants
  1. Scammers are using AI to mimic voices and deceive people into giving money, posing serious risks for communication security.
  2. Many sentences on the internet have poor quality translations due to machine translation, especially affecting low-resource languages.
  3. Researchers introduce Self-Rewarding Language Models (SRLMs) as a novel method to improve Large Language Models (LLMs) without human feedback.

Last Week in AI #248: ChatGPT's 1st birthday, Amazon's new AI chatbot Q, the energy cost of generative AI, Sam Altman makes statement after return, and more!

178 implied HN points • 04 Dec 23
🕹 Technology AI Chatbots Leadership Changes AI Applications
  1. ChatGPT has made a significant impact in the past year with its interactive and conversational dialogue capabilities
  2. Amazon's new AI chatbot Q for companies has faced reliability issues, including hallucinations and data exposure during its public preview
  3. Generative AI, like image generation, consumes significant energy, equivalent to charging a smartphone, prompting a need to consider the environmental impact of AI technologies

Job Cuts Due to AI: What to Make of Them?

298 implied HN points • 28 Jul 23
🕹 Technology AI Automation Jobs Economy Innovation
  1. Some workers are losing jobs due to advancements in AI technology like ChatGPT.
  2. Predictions vary on the impact of AI on future jobs, with some foreseeing significant automation that could affect millions of jobs globally.
  3. We are still in a transitional phase with AI technology, and the impact on the workforce is heterogeneous, with job cuts stemming from various economic factors.

Last Week in AI #245: OpenAI Dev Day, Gen AI's impact on white-collar jobs, EU's AI Act negotiations stall, Humane's wearable AI assistant, and more!

178 implied HN points • 13 Nov 23
🕹 Technology AI Research Policy Analysis
  1. OpenAI introduced new features like GPT-4 Turbo and custom GPT bots without coding at their developer event.
  2. Generative AI like ChatGPT is impacting freelance jobs, but assisting consultants in productivity and quality.
  3. Negotiations for the EU's AI Act stalled over regulating foundation models, posing a risk to the entire law.

Last Week in AI #256: A truly open LLM, Deepfake scams $34 million, FCC cracks down on AI robocalls, how AI is used in music, and more!

99 implied HN points • 05 Feb 24
🕹 Technology AI Deepfake Music
  1. AI2 released an open LLM called OLMo to assist researchers in training large language models.
  2. A Hong Kong firm lost $34 million in a scam involving a deepfake video call with the company's CFO.
  3. The FCC is taking steps to ban AI-generated robocalls to protect against fake messages like one mimicking President Joe Biden.

Last Week in AI #236: Pentagon's AI fleet against China, Imbue's $200M boost for reasoning AI, AI sex worker ads invade social media, Anthropic's paid plan for Claude, and more!

178 implied HN points • 11 Sep 23
🕹 Technology AI Research Policy Analysis Fun
  1. The Pentagon is investing heavily in AI technology to counter threats from China and other adversaries.
  2. Imbue raised $200 million to develop AI systems that can reason and code, aiming to create practical and safe AI agents.
  3. Ads for AI sex workers are appearing on social media platforms, despite policies against sexualized content, raising questions about platform monitoring and regulation.

Last Week in AI #219: Google's new slate of generative AI products, Meta unveils generative ads, effects of US sanctions on Chineses AI firms, and more!

258 implied HN points • 15 May 23
🕹 Technology AI Generative AI AI Policy
  1. Google introduced a new language model called PaLM 2 with enhanced multilingual and reasoning capabilities, powering over 25 Google products.
  2. Meta announced the AI Sandbox testing platform for generative AI-powered advertising tools to enhance ad creation and targeting.
  3. US sanctions on China have led Chinese AI firms to develop AI systems using less powerful semiconductors to train state-of-the-art models.

Last Week in AI #218: Hinton warns of AI dangers ahead, rapid rise of AI-produced music, AI chatbots can now run locally on old computers, and more!

258 implied HN points • 08 May 23
🕹 Technology AI Music Chatbots Privacy
  1. Geoffrey Hinton leaving Google highlights concerns around generative AI and the need for responsible technological stewardship
  2. The surge in AI-generated music raises questions about artists' rights, cultural appropriation, and the balance between technology and ethics
  3. Development of chatbots like MLC LLM running on various devices shows potential for local AI processing and privacy benefits

Last Week in AI #227: NYC adopts anti-bias AI hiring law, EU and Japan to partner in AI chips and de-risk from China, ChatGPT traffic slows, and more!

198 implied HN points • 10 Jul 23
🕹 Technology Artificial Intelligence Policy Analysis Business
  1. NYC has a new law on anti-bias AI in hiring processes that requires audits and public disclosure
  2. EU and Japan are partnering in AI and chips to reduce reliance on China
  3. ChatGPT, a popular AI chatbot, experienced a significant drop in traffic in June

Last Week in AI #226: OpenAI lawsuits, NASA to explore AI on spaceships, OpenAI vs. Microsoft, generated content flooding the Internet, and more!

178 implied HN points • 03 Jul 23
🕹 Technology AI Robotics Facial Recognition Regulation Social media
  1. OpenAI is facing a class action lawsuit over data usage, highlighting the need for clearer regulations in AI development.
  2. NASA is exploring AI interfaces for spaceships, allowing for natural language interactions and collaborative learning for astronauts.
  3. OpenAI plans to create a 'supersmart personal assistant for work,' potentially entering into competition with Microsoft and its customers.