AI round-up: Week of September 2, 2024
So, we’re getting to that point with OpenAI where we can all see this eventually coming to life in a Netflix series, right? I think the only question left to answer is who plays Sam Altman. (Answer: has to be Michael Cera, right? I will take your nominations though.)
The big 5
1. There’s a lot of ‘stuff’ happening at OpenAI.
Much like the rest of the working world, OpenAI is dealing with a moving target of priorities. You’d think they’d have some AI tools to help them with this. But just consider these two pieces that came out this past week:
OpenAI, haunted by its chaotic past, is still trying to grow up. (New York Times)
Altman's infrastructure plan aims to spend tens of billions in the U.S. (Bloomberg)
2. There are also some ‘big’ things happening at xAI.
Big. As in Colossus-sized.
Yes, according to Elon Musk, the world’s ‘most powerful’ AI training system, Colossus, just went online and is powered by 100,000 of Nvidia’s H100s.
I know I’ve said this a few times, but does anyone else think we should be researching the impact on the environment before we put these types of systems online? You know, because … of this.
3. Speaking of Nvidia. Uh-oh.
They’re starting to look and sound like a real, legit tech company – major declines in stock (to the tune of 9.5%/$279B lost on Tuesday) as well as legal troubles (the dreaded ‘anti-trust’ investigation). Phew, it's a good thing I didn’t invest! (This is what I tell myself to feel better about missing the boat.)
4. Christopher Penn is fresh off surgery.
No, AI didn’t perform it. However, how he used AI in getting to this point is quite fascinating. Check out what he has to say. And if you’re going to MAICON next week, cut him some slack (I personally can’t wait for his presentation, whether he’s 10% or 100%.)
5. The Return of AI Overviews
I’m not sure it ever went away; it just needed a little … refinement. Now, it’s available to all US and UK users, and it’s showing up in 17% of what’s returned.
The article I linked to is important because it does a great job of showing how a publisher (Martha Stewart, in the case of the example) is being beaten by its own content. An article from the site is being used to answer the question in Overviews, while the article itself has fallen to the third page.
WHAT?!?
Learn a little
Speaking of search … here is an article that was shared with me so I’m passing it along to you. It compares SearchGPT to Google. And for the first time, Google may have a real threat to its ‘home page’.
Worth the read.
Did you hear about…
…Dating apps are offering AI wingmen? But can it help you sing ‘You’ve Lost that Loving Feeling’? (Financial Times)
…Alexa leaning on Anthropic for its new Alexa? (Reuters)
…AI will help you hear better? (Digital Trends) I am so glad for this, by the way. I refused to turn on closed captions while watching “Peaky Blinders.”
…the U.S., Britain and the EU sign the first legally binding AI treaty. (Reuters)
…all of the GPTs that violate the terms and conditions of OpenAI’s marketplace? (Gizmodo) Oh well!
…how HR is having to sort through fake, AI-generated resumes? (WSJ)
…OpenAI hitting one million paid users for business versions of ChatGPT? (Bloomberg)
Must read/must discuss:
Last year around this time, I was at a PRSA event talking about Copilot, asking people if they had tried it yet and what they thought. And now it looks like Microsoft is ready to make changes to it, only a few months after Mustafah Sulyeman joined the company as CEO of Microsoft AI.
This isn’t a shock. Copilot has some issues. Suleyman is smart and was always likely to add tremendous value and insight into how it could be improved.
What is a bit of a shock is how used to these kinds of updates – the frequency, the pace and the magnitude – we’ve become. No biggie. Just a new Copilot. Have we hit the tipping point where AI is just simply all around us and it will be as common as an iPhone update?
Until things get all Strawberry up in here … probably.
Thanks for reading!
-Ben
As a reminder, this is a round-up of the biggest stories, often hitting multiple newsletters I receive/review. The sources are many … which I’m happy to read on your behalf. Let me know if there’s one you’d like me to track or have questions about a topic you’re not seeing here.