How To Avoid AI’s Potential For Harmful Content

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1. Constitutions To Avoid AI’s Potential For Harmful Content

As AI technologies advance, there's growing concern about their potential to generate harmful content.

Recently, Microsoft-backed OpenAI enhanced its ChatGPT software to interact using voice, images, and text, while Facebook's Meta introduced an AI assistant and celebrity chatbots for WhatsApp and Instagram users. However, the safeguards, or "guardrails," to prevent these AI systems from producing toxic content or misinformation are lagging.

To address this, top AI companies like Anthropic and Google DeepMind are developing "AI constitutions" - foundational values and principles for their models to ensure ethical use.

These constitutions aim to provide clear guidelines, reducing the need for constant human oversight. The challenge of aligning AI behavior with positive values, such as honesty and respect, is pivotal in the development of generative AI. Currently, AI refinement largely depends on reinforcement learning by human feedback (RLHF), where human contractors rate AI-generated responses. However, this method has its limitations and may not always produce accurate results. ARS Technica

2. Finding Your Best AI Partner For Business

AI integration in businesses is more than just adopting the technology; it's about finding the right partner to ensure effective and ethical use. Here's a summary of the article from ZDNet on securing the best AI partner for enterprises:

1. Focus on Your Use Case: Carter Cousineau of Thomson Reuters emphasizes the importance of understanding the specific needs of your business before investing in large language models. It's crucial to have a clear business case and to prioritize data governance. Thomson Reuters collaborates with Microsoft Copilot and stores enterprise information in the Snowflake Data Cloud.

2. Find a Flexible Partner: Tulia Plumettaz of Wayfair discusses the challenges of committing to an AI partner too early or too late. She highlights the importance of understanding data ownership and legality. Wayfair collaborates with Snorkel AI to enhance the online search experience and is exploring applications of conversational AI.

3. Stay Open to Experimentation: Lalo Luna of Heineken advises businesses to embrace not just AI but also traditional machine learning and other data-intensive processes. Heineken uses Stravito's enterprise insights platform, and Luna stresses the importance of upskilling staff and building technological ecosystems that aid decision-making.

In essence, as AI continues to evolve, businesses must be strategic in choosing partners, focusing on specific use cases, flexibility, and a willingness to experiment. ZDNet

3. Yearbook Photos Go Viral

EPIK, an AI-driven photo-editing app, has recently gained immense popularity for its unique feature that allows users to create nostalgic, 90s-inspired "yearbook" photos. Originating from South Korea-based Snow Corporation, a subsidiary of Naver, the app has skyrocketed to the top of the App Store charts.

Users upload a series of selfies, which EPIK then uses to generate retro yearbook photos, showcasing them in various poses and styles.

EPIK's rise in popularity stems from influencers sharing AI-created photos on social media. While the app is free, there's a fee for AI outputs. Its rapid demand has led to service challenges and feature unavailability, echoing the trajectory of other viral AI photo apps, which often struggle with sustained success. TechCrunch

4. Does Your Company Need An AI Boss?

As AI integration in businesses grows, the question of oversight emerges: Should the Chief Information Officer (CIO), Chief Data Officer (CDO), or another executive lead its implementation?

The rapid adoption of AI requires well-structured governance. With the rise of cloud computing, the traditional role of CIOs is evolving. While they often spearhead AI initiatives, the technology's cross-departmental impact necessitates a collaborative approach.

Despite the involvement of various departments in AI discussions, the overarching responsibility typically rests with the CIO due to their holistic view of business operations and technology… but do we need another title? ZDNet

More Notable Headlines

OpenAI is considering the development of its own AI chips due to the global shortage, with CEO Sam Altman emphasizing the importance of acquiring more AI chips amidst rising operational costs and GPU scarcity, potentially following tech giants like Google and Amazon in controlling chip design for strategic advantage.

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