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This essay was originally published on November 16, 2019. It was updated and republished on November 11, 2022. Adobe announced Firefly, its generative AI assistant, on March 21, 2023. If you want a clear example of the exponential pace of technological change, most of the capabilities I hypothesized (and many I did not think of) are features of Firefly. Continue Reading →

The next generation of the World Wide Web (web3) is being built on blockchains using tools and technologies similar to the ones that empower cryptocurrency, NFTs, smart contracts, and the world of DeFi. While there is no agreed-upon technical definition for web3, my favorite philosophical definition is: "A decentralized platform that empowers both users and creators to share in the value they create." It's a nice idea, but how would it actually work? Continue Reading →

If you really want to have some fun today, do a quick overview of what's happening in generative AI. Continue Reading →

Hello, AI advocates. Art Fern here with today's featured AI, but first: Are you sick of hearing about ChatGPT? Are you done with stories about Bing's version of the ChatBot coming unhinged? Do you long for the days before conversational AI was all anyone ever talked about? Continue Reading →

The Writers Guild of America (WGA) and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) will begin their contract negotiations on March 20. According to the WGA's Pattern of Demands (unveiled yesterday), the Guild is looking to "regulate use of material produced using artificial intelligence or similar technologies." Continue Reading →

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg says the company (formerly known as Facebook) is jumping into the generative AI game with its own large language model, LLaMA (Large Language Model Meta AI): a state-of-the-art foundational large language model designed to help researchers advance their work in this subfield of AI. Continue Reading →

After dinner last night, three generations of my family were sitting in the living room discussing the possibility of finding a movie we could all watch together. While this passionate debate about which movies won an Oscar and which were just fan favorites was heating up and heading nowhere, I asked ChatGPT to, "list some great movies that would be appropriate for kids 12-14, parents 32-46, and grandparents." In just under 30 seconds, it helped us find our movie. Amazing! Except… we didn't visit any websites to accomplish our search. As someone who writes and publishes 5,000-7,500 original words each week, the ramifications of this new workflow are profound. Continue Reading →

According to The Verge, Elon Musk on Tuesday gathered a group of engineers and advisors asking why his engagement numbers have been tanking. He fired the engineer (one of his top two) who delivered the news that only a tiny fraction of your followers ever see your tweets. The view counter he forced the company to place on every tweet proves it. According to those in the room, Elon was shocked – and really mad. Continue Reading →

Calling it "your copilot for the web," Yusuf Mehdi, Microsoft's Corporate Vice President & Consumer Chief Marketing Officer, announced the incorporation of a combination of OpenAI and Microsoft AI tools into its Bing search engine and Edge browser. Continue Reading →

Microsoft is going to incorporate OpenAI tools into everything they make, leaving Google no choice but to respond. Calling AI "the most profound technology we're working with today," Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google and Alphabet, introduced Bard, which seeks to combine the breadth of the world’s knowledge with the power, intelligence, and creativity of Google's large language models. Bard is Google's answer to ChatGPT. As Yoda would say, "Begun, the AI wars have." Continue Reading →