Fraunhofer’s high-speed logistics robots may steal humanoids’ thunder
... the self-balancing two-wheeled evoBOT can already do up to 60 km/h (37 mph) on its extendable legs, lifting up to 65 kg (143 lb) in its self-locking lifting arms – that's more than three times the lifting work, at up to 10 times the speed. ...
It's relatively compact, lightweight at around 40 kg (88 lb), and efficient, running for up to 8 hours on a battery charge. If there's enough grip, Fraunhofer says it can "comfortably" handle slopes up to a ridiculous 45 degrees, even on uneven ground, and it zips around with surprising agility and speed, like the love child of the TARS robot from Interstellar and a common Segway. If it falls over for some reason, it can quickly and easily get back up. ...
See the full story here: https://newatlas.com/robotics/fraunhofer-evobot-o3dyn/
Alibaba upgrades AI model Tongyi Qianwen, releases industry-specific models
Chinese technology giant Alibaba (9988.HK) said on Tuesday it has updated its artificial intelligence (AI) model Tongyi Qianwen and released a suite of industry-specific AI models amid an intensifying AI race among tech companies. ...
It also said it has launched eight AI models for the entertainment, finance, healthcare and legal industries.
The upgrade comes just six months after the model's initial release, reflecting the pace at which tech companies are racing to control China's nascent and quickly expanding AI market. ...
See the full story here: https://www.reuters.com/technology/alibaba-upgrades-ai-model-tongyi-qianwen-releases-industry-specific-models-2023-10-31/
Artists Lose First Round of Copyright Infringement Case Against AI Art Generators
Among the issues are whether the AI systems they run on actually contain copies of copyrighted images that were used to create infringing works and if the artists can substantiate infringement in the absence of identical material created by the AI tools. Claims against the companies for infringement, right of publicity, unfair competition and breach of contract were dismissed, though they will likely be reasserted. ...
[Stable Diffusion] maintains that training its model does not include wholesale copying of works but rather involves development of parameters — like lines, colors, shades and other attributes associated with subjects and concepts — from those works that collectively define what things look like. The issue, which may decide the case, remains contested. ...
See the full story here: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/artists-copyright-infringement-case-ai-art-generators-1235632929/
Generative AI Is Playing a Surprising Role in Israel-Hamas Disinformation
... Primarily, Mashkoor says, AI-generated disinformation is being used by activists to solicit support—or give the impression of wider support—for a particular side. Examples include an AI-generated billboard in Tel Aviv championing Israel Defense Forces, an Israeli account sharing fake images of people cheering for the IDF, an Israeli influencer using AI to generate condemnations of Hamas, and AI images portrayingvictims of Israel’s bombardment of Gaza.
“In terms of general use that I’ve been seeing online, it’s mostly been to drum up support, which is not among the most malicious ways to utilize AI right now,” she says.
A key factor here is the sheer amount of misinformation circulating, which makes it difficult for AI images to shape conversation. ...
Setting aside the apocalyptic view, it’s easier to study how generative AI has actually slotted into the existing disinformation ecosystem. It is, for example, far more prevalent than it was at the outset of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, argues Hany Farid, a professor at the UC Berkeley School of Information. ...
“For a lot of people, the ability to dismiss inconvenient facts is absolutely playing a role in this conflict,” he says.
Some of the most prominent examples of this are the photos of burned children Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu posted on his X account. After they were published, someone fed the images into the detection tool AI or Not, which the users said determined that they were AI. Farid says his team analyzed the photos and concluded AI wasn't used, but the seed of suspicion had already been planted. Things were further confused when someone used AI to replace the child in one of the images with a puppy. ...
In other words, this distribution follows a historic pattern: Misinformation gets shared on social media, then amplified via algorithms and humans. “In the broader picture, in our ability to reason about a fast-moving highly impactful world, I think this conflict is worse than what we’ve seen in the past,” says Farid. “And I think gen AI is part of that, but it is not exclusively gen AI. That’s too simplistic.”
See the full story here: https://www.wired.com/story/israel-hamas-war-generative-artificial-intelligence-disinformation/
Biden seeks to move quickly on AI safeguards with executive order
... Using the Defense Production Act, the order will require leading AI developers to share safety test results and other information with the government. The National Institute of Standards and Technology is to create standards to ensure AI tools are safe and secure before public release.
The Commerce Department is to issue guidance to label and watermark AI-generated content to help differentiate between authentic interactions and those generated by software. The order also touches on matters of privacy, civil rights, consumer protections, scientific research and worker rights.
An administration official who previewed the order on a Sunday call with reporters said the to-do lists within the order will be implemented and fulfilled over the range of 90 days to 365 days, with the safety and security items facing the earliest deadlines. ...
The issue of AI was seemingly inescapable for Biden. At Camp David one weekend, he relaxed by watching the Tom Cruise film “Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One.” The film’s villain is a sentient and rogue AI known as “the Entity” that sinks a submarine and kills its crew in the movie’s opening minutes.
“If he hadn’t already been concerned about what could go wrong with AI before that movie, he saw plenty more to worry about,” said Reed, who watched the film with the president. ...
See the full story here: https://www.c4isrnet.com/artificial-intelligence/2023/10/30/biden-seeks-to-move-quickly-on-ai-safeguards-with-executive-order/
Deepfake video of Taylor Swift speaking Mandarin sparks discussion over AI in China
... In a video posted on Chinese social media platform Weibo, the 33-year-old singer can be seen flaunting her Mandarin in what looks to be a talk show.
“Recently, I’ve been to many places, like Italy, France and Japan,” Swift said in Mandarin with a slight American twang. ...
The deepfake videos were generated by an AI tool from Chinese start-up HeyGen, reported news outlet The China Project.
The lip movements were synced to make it look like she was speaking in Mandarin, and it sounded like Swift’s voice, making the videos so realistic that it led Chinese netizens to express their amazement at the technology and leave comments such as: “This is awesome.” ...
Its AI-powered video generator allows users to create text-to-speech videos in over 300 voices in more than 40 languages, using over 100 AI avatars with different ethnicities, ages, poses and clothes. ...
See the full story here: https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/deepfake-video-of-taylor-swift-speaking-mandarin-sparks-discussion-over-ai-in-china
Pokémon Go creator John Hanke says it’s not game over for the app
... "I'm most excited about those that don't cut you off from other people," says John.
John says he's taking a particular interest in mixed reality devices, such as Instagram owner Meta's new headsets and Apple's Vision Pro, launching next year.
"Those are the kinds of devices that we're leaning into," he says.
"Because they're devices you can use when you're out for a walk and with your friends, and they don't get in your way".
John predicts that "2024 is going to be a breakthrough year for AR", especially as it converges with artificial intelligence (AI).
He says Niantic is looking to deploy this in Pokémon Go to deepen the interplay between its real and virtual elements. ...
The latest, called Party Play, focuses on something Pokémon Go has always done well - bringing people together.
Trainers, as players call themselves, can team up with three friends and see them on the same screen as they go out completing missions together.
It mirrors the lively community scene that's built up around the game, with events still regularly taking place that bring fans on joint walks around their local areas. ...
See the full story here: https://www.bbc.com/news/newsbeat-67226243
Virtual Influencers: Meet the AI-Generated Figures and Your New Online “Friends”
... Virtual influencers are transforming the way content is created, consumed and marketed online. They represent an electrifying dance between cutting-edge technology and our desire for connection. But, at the same time, they are yet another product being peddled by marketers that want our money. ...
There are three main types of virtual influencers: non-humans, animated humans and life-like CGI humans. Each one provides an innovative way to connect with audiences. ...
While real influencers with millions of followers may demand hundreds of thousands of dollars per post, one 2020 estimatesuggested virtual influencer Lil Miquela charged a more reasonable £6,550 (currently about US$7,965).
Virtual influencers have clear benefits when it comes to online engagement and marketing. They don’t age, they’re free from (real) scandals and they can be programmed to speak any language. ...
One major concern is transparency. Many virtual influencers already present as human-like, and it may become increasingly difficult to distinguish between them and real people. This is particularly problematic in an advertising context. ...
Similarly, TikTok has updated its community guidelines to say: “Synthetic or manipulated media that shows realistic scenes must be clearly disclosed. This can be done through the use of a sticker or caption, such as “synthetic,” ‘fake’, ‘not real’, or ‘altered.’” ...
On one hand, celebrity deepfake porn is on the rise. On the other, celebrities are including “simulation rights” in their contracts so their likeness may be used in the future. Take global football star Lionel Messi, who allowed PepsiCo to use a digital version of him to promote Lay’s potato chips. ...
Sphere: The Future of Immersive Entertainment Wins Prestigious Judges Award for Creativity and Innovation
Sphere, a groundbreaking next-generation entertainment medium in Las Vegas, has been honored with the prestigious Judges Award for Creativity and Innovation at the HPA Awards for 2023. The award recognizes Sphere’s revolutionary technology and visionary design, which have redefined the entertainment experience and storytelling, taking audiences to new heights of immersion and engagement. ...
This year’s esteemed jury, co-chaired by Carolyn Giardina and Joachim Zell, comprised notable members Paul Debevec, Jay Holben, Joanne Kim, and Karen Raz. ...
See the full story here: https://hpaonline.com/sphere-the-future-of-immersive-entertainment-wins-prestigious-judges-award-for-creativity-and-innovation/
What Is Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG)?
... The bad news is that the information used to generate the response is limited to the information used to train the AI, often a generalized LLM. The LLM’s data may be weeks, months, or years out of date and in a corporate AI chatbot may not include specific information about the organization’s products or services. ...
That’s where retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) comes in. RAG provides a way to optimize the output of an LLM with targeted information without modifying the underlying model itself; that targeted information can be more up-to-date than the LLM as well as specific to a particular organization and industry. That means the generative AI system can provide more contextually appropriate answers to prompts as well as base those answers on extremely current data.
RAG first came to the attention of generative AI developers after the publication of “Retrieval-Augmented Generation for Knowledge-Intensive NLP Tasks,” a 2020 paper published by Patrick Lewis and a team at Facebook AI Research. The RAG concept has been embraced by many academic and industry researchers, who see it as a way to significantly improve the value of generative AI systems. ...
See the full story here: https://www.oracle.com/artificial-intelligence/generative-ai/retrieval-augmented-generation-rag/
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