🌯The Weekend Wrap Up 🌯

🚨 Breaking News 🚨

Google invests $300mn in artificial intelligence start-up Anthropic

(5 min read) (Source: Financial Times)

TLDR: Google has been revealed as the company that invested $300 million in Anthropic, a startup that focuses on developing generative AI programs. Anthropic has created a chatbot called Claude, which will compete with OpenAI's ChatGPT. Anthropic was formed by a group of researchers who left OpenAI due to differences in the company's direction. The investment gives Google a 10% stake in Anthropic and stipulates that the OpenAI competitor will purchase computing resources from Google Cloud.

📰 This Week's Top Stories

New AI classifier for indicating AI-written text

(6 min read) (Source: OpenAI)

TLDR: OpenAI has developed an AI Text Classifier that can (attempt to) determine if a text was written by a human or an AI. However, it's not perfect and has limitations, such as being unreliable on short texts, misidentifying human-written text, struggling with non-English languages, and missing predictable text. The tool can be used to detect plagiarism, AI-powered disinformation, and other misuses. But, beware, the tool can be easily evaded by editing the AI-written text. Schools are grappling with the impact of ChatGPT, with some banning its use, while others are embracing it as a tool to enhance critical thinking skills for both students and teachers. Check out the announcement and discussion on Twitter here.

Introducing ChatGPT Plus 

(2 min read) (Source: OpenAI)

TLDR: ChatGPT Plus is a new monthly subscription plan for $20 that offers subscribers faster response times, priority access to new features and improvements, and general access to ChatGPT. It’s currently only available in the US, but plans to expand to other regions are in place. Free access to ChatGPT will continue to be offered.

ChatGPT was launched as a research preview and has received millions of user feedback, with users finding value in the system for various professional use cases. Future plans for ChatGPT include refining and expanding the offering based on feedback, launching the API waitlist, and exploring options for lower-cost plans, business plans, and data packs. Check out the announcement and discussion on Twitter.

Microsoft boosts Viva Sales with new GPT seller experience 

(5 min read) (Source: Microsoft)

TLDR: Microsoft announced today that it has incorporated AI technology from OpenAI's GPT 3.5 into Viva Sales to enhance the customer service experience. The AI tool creates customized email responses with personalized text, promotions, pricing, and deadlines, which aims to save time for sales teams. According to Microsoft, salespeople spend over 66% of their time on average managing emails, but the new AI feature in Viva Sales should allow them to focus on more important tasks and increase productivity.

The email responses are generated using Microsoft Graph and customer relationship management data from Dynamics 365 and Salesforce. Viva Sales users have the option to generate suggested replies with personal text prompts or from a list of predefined response categories, which can be adjusted to fit their needs.

Microsoft is also integrating AI into its consumer and enterprise products and has introduced Teams Premium, which is built on Microsoft Teams. Teams Premium includes the latest technology such as OpenAI's GPT-3.5 language models, making meetings more intelligent, personalized, and secure. Teams Premium can be used for various types of meetings including one-on-one, large meetings, virtual appointments, and webinars.

China's Baidu to launch ChatGPT-style bot in March - source

(2 min read) (Source: Bloomberg)

TLDR: Baidu, the Chinese tech giant, is diving headfirst into AI with investments in cloud services, chips, and autonomous driving. It recently showcased three AI "creators" that can take on various creative roles. Now, they're set to launch an AI chatbot service in March, taking on OpenAI's ChatGPT. The chatbot will be a standalone app at first, but will eventually be integrated into Baidu's search engine. Unlike other chatbots in China that are more geared towards social interaction, this one will be more like ChatGPT, able to do professional tasks like programming and essay writing. And, instead of just providing links, the chatbot's results will be incorporated into search requests.

Creating a "lie detector" for deepfakes

(10 min read) (Source: cbsnews.com)

TLDR: Microsoft and Adobe have teamed up to tackle the problem of deepfakes, AI-generated videos that threaten privacy, the integrity of news, and the democratic process. Instead of trying to spot fake content, they've created Content Credentials, a tool that verifies the authenticity of images by tracing their origin and edits. 900 companies across the photo and video industry have agreed to display the Content Credentials button. Eric Horvitz, Microsoft's Chief Scientific Officer, believes this has a chance to make a real impact in addressing the challenges of deepfakes.

 📅 Upcoming Events

1. The World AI Cannes Festival (February 9-11, 2023. Cannes, France + Virtual), where decision-makers and AI innovators meet, where the most promising innovations and technologies get into the spotlight, where those who are currently building the world’s most game-changing AI strategies and use-cases will be on stages.

2. The Gen AI Conference (February 14, 2023. San Francisco, CA) hosted by Jasper AI, is the first-ever generative AI conference. Attendees can learn about the many recent developments in the field of AI from experts and network with like-minded individuals in AI, business, and marketing. Online registration will close on February 13th at 11:59 PM Pacific Time.

3. RE•WORK AI Summit West, Deep Learning Summit (February 15-16, 2023. San Francisco, CA), a chance to hear the latest technology advancements, practical examples of how to apply AI to solve challenges in cross-industry settings, business and society, and delve deeper into the work of leading AI experts in a series of presentations, panel discussions, interviews and fireside chats.

4. Data Science Salon Austin (February 21-22, 2023. Austin, TX + Virtual) is a two-day 500-person conference focused on AI and machine learning applications in the enterprise. The intimate event curates data science sessions to bring industry leaders and specialists face-to-face to educate each other on innovative new solutions in artificial intelligence, machine learning, predictive analytics and acceptance around best practices.

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