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March 14, 2024

6 mins

This Week in AI

Hello Niuralogists!

In the dynamic field of artificial intelligence, this week's edition is dedicated to presenting the latest breakthroughs. Our primary goal is to examine the influence of these advancements on various aspects of our lives, spanning workplaces, businesses, policies, and personal encounters. This edition will delve into recent developments like as the unveiling of Cognition, an advanced AI software agent, and OpenAI's response to Elon Musk's lawsuit.

Cognition Reveals a Cutting-edge AI Software Agent

Cognition AI has recently unveiled Devin, an innovative autonomous AI agent capable of independently generating entire software projects from scratch based on simple text prompts. Devin exhibits remarkable abilities, including planning and executing complex coding tasks with hundreds of steps, learning while coding, identifying and fixing bugs, and engaging in real-time collaboration with users. Demonstrations have showcased Devin's impressive capabilities, building complete websites and apps in under 10 minutes and completing real projects on Upwork autonomously. In a coding benchmark, Devin outperformed expectations by solving 13.86% of real-world GitHub issues end-to-end, surpassing the previous state-of-the-art benchmark of 1.96%. Cognition AI's achievement goes beyond creating a superior coding assistant, as Devin represents a true artificial software engineer. If Devin lives up to its promises, it could signal a groundbreaking future where individuals can effortlessly deploy an AI worker to materialize concepts without coding expertise.

OpenAI Dismisses Elon Musk's Lawsuit 

OpenAI has countered Elon Musk's lawsuit, dismissing his claims as "convoluted—often incoherent." Musk alleges OpenAI breached non-profit commitments, but the organization denies any existing agreement and asserts Musk previously supported a for-profit transition. OpenAI presents emails suggesting Musk's awareness. The response frames Musk's lawsuit as self-serving, aiming to claim credit for OpenAI's successes post-disengagement. The legal clash underscores AI's governance complexities. Meanwhile, Musk's xAI opens its Grok chatbot, possibly in response to OpenAI's emails, creating a dual narrative of retaliation and technology enhancement. The dispute reveals intricate dynamics in the tech industry's AI development landscape.

Source: Getty Images

Improving Peripheral Vision in AI Models

MIT researchers have made strides in enhancing peripheral vision in AI models, a crucial ability for humans that expands the field of vision. Unlike humans, AI lacks peripheral vision, and equipping models with this capability could improve hazard detection and predict human behavior. The researchers created an image dataset to simulate peripheral vision in machine learning models, resulting in improved object detection in the visual periphery. Despite these advancements, the AI models still fall short of human performance, prompting further exploration to identify the missing elements and build models that align more closely with human vision. The implications extend to applications such as driver safety and user interface development.

Apple Prepares for a Significant Advancement in Siri's AI Capabilities

Apple is gearing up for a significant advancement in its AI capabilities, particularly with the Siri assistant. Co-creator Dag Kittlaus hinted at exciting developments in 2024, signaling Apple's intention to compete strongly with AI giants like ChatGPT and Gemini. The tech giant has been discreetly publishing crucial AI research papers and acquiring 21 AI-related startups since 2017. Rumors circulate about the development of an 'AppleGPT' LLM, expected to integrate with Siri at the WWDC 2024 event in June. The introduction of the new M3 chip, labeled the 'world's best consumer laptop for AI,' suggests Apple's success in efficiently running AI models on-device. As competitors raced to seize the ChatGPT hype, Apple has been steadily establishing AI hardware and software foundations across its extensive device ecosystem, positioning itself as a formidable contender in the ongoing race for on-device AI supremacy.

Source: Apple

Former Google Engineer Charged with Stealing Confidential AI Information

A former Google engineer, Linwei Ding, faces federal charges for allegedly stealing more than 500 confidential files related to AI infrastructure while working clandestinely for two Chinese AI startups. Ding, who previously contributed to Google's AI supercomputing systems, is accused of uploading two years' worth of data to his personal Google Cloud account. Operating as the Chief Technology Officer for a Beijing AI startup and founding his own Shanghai-based AI firm, Ding concealed these activities from Google. To further deceive, he had a colleague scan his badge at Google's U.S. office, creating a false impression of his presence while he was actually in China. Google's suspicions led to alerting the FBI, and Ding now faces potential imprisonment of up to 10 years. This incident underscores the alarming threat of insider theft of Google's sensitive AI assets and highlights China's aggressive pursuit of the U.S. AI tech advantage, setting the stage for intensified espionage in the ongoing battle for AI supremacy.

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Q&Ai

What are the reasons for shifting away from anthropomorphic naming conventions in AI?

AI has become a central topic, sparking debates and discussions on its implications. While it drives innovation, optimization, and various positive applications, it also raises concerns about fake information, biased programming, privacy issues, job displacement, and more. Amidst these discussions, one aspect often overlooked is the naming of AI entities. Anthropomorphic conventions, particularly giving AI agents female names, can lead to confirmation bias and reinforce gender stereotypes. This practice might affect how AI is perceived, potentially attributing a "mind of its own." The choice of names for AI should be strategic, avoiding human-like associations to prevent blurring the lines between human and machine, and to ensure consumers view AI as a tool rather than a substitute for humans. Naming conventions, similar to those in pharmaceuticals and URLs, can guide responsible AI branding and contribute to long-term success.

Can AI-Powered Companion Dolls Tackle Loneliness Aging Population?

Hydrol AI, a South Korean startup, has introduced a $1,800 AI-powered companion doll designed to address the issue of loneliness among the rapidly aging population in the country. The AI doll utilizes Language Model Playgrounds (LLMs) to engage in meaningful conversations and offer emotional support to seniors living alone. Packed with features like medication reminders, health coaching, music, and built-in sensors for issue alerts to caregivers, approximately 7,000 units have been deployed by South Korea's local governments. According to the company, these dolls have demonstrated a reduction in depression levels and improved medication adherence among over 9,000 test users. Given South Korea's demographic challenges with declining birth rates and a growing elderly population, the integration of AI companions emerges as a potential solution to combat increasing isolation among seniors.

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