Building ethical A.I. products can put businesses at a competitive advantage
A competitive advantage
Building trusted and ethical AI systems and the governance around them could potentially become a competitive strength for companies, according to Hiroaki Kitano, president and CEO at Sony Computer Science Laboratories.
For Norwegian telecommunication giant Telenor, ethical AI is “responsible business in the making,” according to Ieva Martinkenaite, a vice president at Telenor Research. She pointed out that many of the next-generation telecommunication networks will be driven by AI-embedded software and that technology will be crucial for new growth opportunities.
That requires a set of global rules and trust principles built around AI that are followed not only by the telecom companies, but also by global vendors that they outsource parts of their operations to, according to Martinkenaite. Vendors may include stakeholders like equipment providers, software firms and service assurance companies, he added.
See the full story here: https://www.cnbc.com/2021/07/15/building-ethical-ai-products-can-put-businesses-at-competitive-advantage.html
Looking Glass 8K Holographic Display Is Absolutely Massive
This past December, the company launched the Looking Glass Portrait, its first-ever “portrait-orientated” 3D display engineered specifically to display people and characters. This was followed by the reveal of a cloud-based conversion service that transforms standard 2D images into 3D holograms within a matter of seconds.
Today, the company revealed the latest additions to its next-generation lineup, the Looking Glass 4K Gen2 and Looking Glass 8K Gen2. These second-gen displays feature a new “blockless” design, resulting in thinner, lighter hardware as well as improved optics designed to reduce ambient reflections and improve group viewability.
The Looking Glass 4K Gen2 features a solid 15.6” display. Like the Looking Glass Portrait, the 4K Gen2 can run in standalone mode, removing the need for a tethered PC. The Looking Glass 8K Gen2, on the other hand, boasts a massive 32” display, making it “the largest available holographic interface on the market” according to the company.
The Looking Glass 4K Gen2 features a price tag of $3,000. Those interested in the Looking Glass 8K Gen2 can pick one up for $17,500 ($15,000 for a limited time). Both products are available for preorder and will begin shipping this Fall.
Severely paralyzed man communicates using brain signals sent to his vocal tract
The USCF system, however, uses an implant that's placed directly on the part of the brain dedicated to speech. That way, the subject can mentally activate the brain patterns they would normally use to say a word, and the system can translate the entire word, rather than single letters, to the screen.
To make it work, patients with normal speech volunteered to have their brain recordings analyzed for speech related activities. Researchers were then able to analyze those patterns and develop new methods to decode them in real time, using statistical language models to improve accuracy.
However, the team still wasn't sure if brain signals controlling the vocal tract would still be intact in patients paralyzed for many years. To that end, they enlisted an anonymous participant (known as Bravo1) who worked with researchers to create a 50-word vocabulary that the team could decipher using advanced computer algorithms. That included words like "water," "family" and "good," enough to allow the patient to create hundreds of sentences applicable to their daily life. The team also used an "auto-correct" function similar to those found on consumer speech recognition apps.
The system was able to decode their speech at up to 18 words per minute with 93 percent accuracy, with a 75 percent median accuracy. That might not sound great compared to the 200 words per minute possible with normal speech, but it's much better than the speeds seen on previous neuroprosthetic systems.
The team said the trial represents a proof of principal for this new type of "speech neuroprosthesis." Next up, they plan to expand the trial to include more participants, while also working to increase the number of words in the vocabulary and improve the rate of speech.
See the full story here: https://www.engadget.com/severely-paralyzed-man-communicates-using-brain-signals-sent-to-his-vocal-tract-110524126.html
NFTs and the Museum Part 1: NFTs 101
A risk that may be unique to a museum participating in this conversation is the weight that we carry. As the largest encyclopedic museum in the western United States, we have to take into consideration that our exhibitions, public programs, publications, and acquisitions have significant impact on the arts and culture space. As a public institution, we also need to be considerate and deliberative about where we invest our staff and financial resources. So while we may not be participating in the record-setting auctions, we are looking toward the horizon to understand what this could mean for the art world, for digital artists, and for the collection and exhibition of these artworks.
See the full story here: https://unframed.lacma.org/2021/07/12/nfts-and-museum-part-1-nfts-101?utm_source=wordfly&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=MKT%7CArt%2BTechLab2021GranteeAnnouncement&utm_content=version_A&sourceNumber=
Holly+ ? ?️ ?
I'm an artist and composer ?? who has been working with machine learning for many years. My last album PROTO(4AD,2019) was the first to utilize singing neural networks, and I completed my Doctorate at Stanford's Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics, where my research focus was on the interplay between machine learning and the voice, and the implications of this technology for IP and vocal sovereignty??
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The recent introduction of projects like DeepMind’s Wavenet, Google’s Tacotron and others have advanced the field of voice generation sufficient to make me confident that generating convincing spoken and sung voices will soon become standard practice for artists and other creatives, as presaged by the popularity of celebrity vocal deep fakes already found all over YouTube.
Not all vocal models are equal. While it may be possible to generate an approximation of a voice by training a neural network from freely available audio found online, the deeper and more detailed the model is, the wider the range of expression available to create with ?️
[PhilNote: NFT justification]... This approach supports the “My Collectible Ass” principle, advocated for by ZORAand originally proposed by theorist McKenzie Wark. This principle states that the more prominent and visible/audible a work of art is, the more valuable the certified original becomes.
OpenLaw Tribute DAO Framework
The Holly+ DAO will make use of the OpenLaw Tribute DAO framework. You can learn more about OpenLaw, and their instrumental role in legally recognizing DAO's in Wyoming, on our Interdependence podcast here.
The ERC-20 VOICE tokens will come to represent voting shares in Holly+ DAO.
Should the DAO approve the work, an NFT will be minted, with 50% of initial and secondary sales shared with the creator of the new work. 40% of profits will be distributed amongst DAO members, and 10% will go to me directly, for rent!
Never Before Heard Sounds, founded by Chris Deaner & Yotam Mann, makes machine learning instruments and expressive audio tools.
See the full story here: https://holly.mirror.xyz/54ds2IiOnvthjGFkokFCoaI4EabytH9xjAYy1irHy94?fbclid=IwAR2MrbTe_l5vLkQFZWWf9XWSnYqv3LcMwEkYekfQ2VKis_Utpksqq75S9EE
Chinese sci-fi writer Liu Cixin joins AI tech firm SenseTime
Chinese science-fiction writer Liu Cixin, author of The Three-Body Problem, and recipient of Hugo Award, announced at the 2021 World Artificial Intelligence Conference that he is joining artificial intelligence (AI) start-up SenseTime as the director of the Science Fiction Planet Research Center.
The announcement came as SenseTime partnered with The Three-Body Universe, copyright owner of The Three-Body Problem, to explore the new paradigm of "AI + Science Fiction" as well as create an innovative and immersive offline entertainment experience.
Liu said via video link at the forum that AI is an accelerator track for those with imagination and can promote the development of science and technology, ultimately leading to the advancement of humanity.
See the full story here: https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202107/1228333.shtml
5 Elements of Building an Effective Virtual Influencer Campaign
Based on my experience with a virtual influencer campaign, there are some important and essential factors brand and marketing leaders need to consider when creating such a campaign.
1. Even though the influencer is a virtual being, they have a personal brand. In a medium where activations have never been more customizable, authenticity is still key.
2. Consider the audience you’re trying to reach. Virtual influencers can produce highly engaging campaigns comparable (and sometimes even surpassing) traditional influencer relationships.
3. Digital influencers can create interest and brand awareness for top-of-funnel campaigns. Use benchmarks from traditional influencer campaigns you’ve run to test the efficacy of your brand.
4. Build a narrative. Whether it’s subtle or in your face, you have the opportunity to tell a story in a unique way (your way) and you should take advantage of that.
5. Keep the limitations in mind. For now, virtual influencers primarily appear on screens, so they naturally don’t have real-world connections beyond user engagement. However, you can develop the virtual world around them.
Virtual influencers have the potential to be a cost-effective alternative to working with IRL influencers, giving brands an opportunity to customize campaigns that leverage top-tier talent that most wouldn’t necessarily have had access to without spending big bucks. Keep these elements in mind when crafting a virtual influencer campaign to ensure you’re hitting on the market nuances.
See the full story here: https://www.rollingstone.com/culture-council/articles/building-virtual-influencer-campaign-1192761/
