What is AI's impact - beyond mere technological innovation - on various aspects of human life, including healthcare, education, and societal dynamics.
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This week, I would like to discuss the actual impact of the impressive new features of Artificial Intelligence solutions that are frequently reported in the news. Every new announcement is a show of strength against competitors or an attempt to gain publicity. However, what do these advancements actually entail? How will they change our interaction with technology and our world? In this newsletter, I will provide an answer to these questions. I will be sharing two articles that highlight impressive achievements. Still, we will also delve into what these advancements really mean.
For this newsletter focused on humans in an artificial world, let's march with a marching band that plays techno without DJ or computers involved. How much more relevant can it be. Here's MEUTE with Anti Loudness
Let's get this party started.
Google DeepMind has recently introduced a new generative model called Genie. This model can create games similar to Super Mario in minutes. Unlike traditional models, Genie does not require game actions to be tied to video frames for training. Instead, it learns from basic inputs such as descriptions, sketches, photos, and videos without detailed instructions, making game creation much easier. Although Genie is relatively slow, it is expected to become faster in the future.
Amazon's AGI team recently announced the development of a new AI model named BASE TTS, which demonstrates remarkable language skills. In an academic paper yet to undergo peer review, the team revealed that the model exhibiting "emergent abilities" - or abilities not part of its training - was not the initial one trained on 100,000 hours of public domain speech data. Instead, a second model, trained on only 10,000 hours of speech data (1/10th of the original data set), showed an unexpected type of language proficiency. This model demonstrated the ability to exhibit abbreviations, punctuation (such as '@'), non-English words (such as 'sshht'), emotional or whispered speech, and even slang. Remarkably, the model developed these abilities independently and was not explicitly asked to do so. This could be because the model had access to less data, forcing it to learn more independently.
AI's deep impact
>> The Healthusiasm Take
Each article highlights the rapid pace of progress in the field of artificial intelligence. Creating games based on drawings and semi-trained AI models that can use language more creatively is now possible. These remarkable achievements would have been impossible to predict just two years ago. However, we must consider how best to interpret its true intent and impact.
In my previous newsletters, I have discussed how Open AI's SORA is not solely aimed at creating videos but instead is a virtual simulator of the real world. This simulator will soon make metaverse worlds appear more realistic, augmented reality more tangible, and the boundaries between the virtual and real world blurred. A much-needed evolution if you are a fan of the XR worlds.
The previous two articles should be about more than just the features as well.
Google's Genie is not only about making video games. Naturally, this can be valuable in bringing to life an image from Egyptian times during classes or educating patients about their illnesses. That's just the basics. The real potential of AI lies in its ability to learn from videos. Consider what this could mean for teaching robots, which is currently done through repetitive remote control commands. If robots can learn from a simple video of people performing a specific action, we could see a significant increase in their use for human tasks.
The Amazon paper suggests that AI can develop more human-like language with less data. The critical question is how quickly AI models can become intelligent.
Some people claim that the most common AI models have an IQ of 155, but this doesn't mean they possess human-level intelligence, also known as Artificial General Intelligence (AGI). Current models cannot think deeply like humans; they are only well-equipped with more knowledge than the average person in specific areas. However, Ben Goertzel, the creator of the Sophia Humanoid robot and founder of SingularityNET, stated at this year's Beneficial AGI Summit in Panama that AGI could be possible by 2027. This isn't, of course, the first time that AGI enthusiasts have made such a claim. What's more interesting is Goertzel's prediction of what will happen next. He believes that once AGI is achieved, it can rapidly evolve into Artificial Superintelligence (ASI). ASI is an AI with the combined knowledge of all human civilisation. Goertzel argues that when AGI can introspect its own mind and think more like a human, it can become more intelligent quicker than most models today, leading to an intelligence explosion.
Access to advanced intelligence will shape our future perspective. This access could lead to a fair distribution of knowledge, manipulation of existing knowledge, or a biased view of what is considered accurate knowledge. If the predictions are correct, we may see such significant developments in superintelligence and its effects on society soon.
The possibilities of implementing these innovations in our healthcare and well-being are vast. People want to safeguard, comprehend, manage, and enhance their health. The Healthusiasm trend is all about this, and it will continue to grow. Robots will assist in reducing workload or performing tasks. Technological advancements will increasingly provide us with the knowledge regarding our health that we have searched for centuries. However, it is still imperative to consider the purpose of technology. How do they genuinely contribute to people's Life Aspirations? This will be one of the main questions in the coming years, and that's exactly what my new book is about.
AI's human impact
>> Life Aspirations
It is intriguing to consider the new AI features as an initial indication of more significant changes to come. However, the speed at which these changes occur may signal a more substantial shock. Humans cannot adapt as quickly as technology changes, which can have undesirable effects. Intelligence is usually welcomed, but it may feel destabilising if machines become more intelligent than humans. Tigers are stronger than humans, but our intelligence still makes us feel safe. We have found a way to overpower tigers, but what if the technology becomes super-intelligent? How safe will we feel then? In the coming years, it will be essential to understand how our Life Aspirations like Safeness (feel safe and protected) will evolve with the ubiquitous presence of increasingly more intelligent machines.
These insights are also part of my Top Trending keynote: Beyond Artificial Abundance.
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-Christophe-
Author & Speaker on health, business & technology.
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