The AI dooooooom thread

[The Brain]

Sounds like Luddism. Aren't for instance photos protected by copyright?

[Jacob]

Sounds like Luddism. Aren't for instance photos protected by copyright?

If AI generated images are inherently protected by copyright I would encourage those who are able to to just churn out as many images as possible to capture the rents from future creative endeavours.

[The Brain]

Sounds like Luddism. Aren't for instance photos protected by copyright?

If AI generated images are inherently protected by copyright I would encourage those who are able to to just churn out as many images as possible to capture the rents from future creative endeavours.

And no important human creative spirit work would be lost, if they're just producing stuff an AI has already produced.

[Jacob]

And no important human creative spirit work would be lost, if they're just producing stuff an AI has already produced

Incorrect.

[DGuller]

Sounds like Luddism. Aren't for instance photos protected by copyright?

If AI generated images are inherently protected by copyright I would encourage those who are able to to just churn out as many images as possible to capture the rents from future creative endeavours.

I think the combinatorial complexity of squatting AI output is a bit higher than what you assune.

[Jacob]

I think the combinatorial complexity of squatting AI output is a bit higher than what you assune.

Yeah, but you could probably use AI to target it at the most valuable areas first.

[Savonarola]

AI girlfriends are here and they're posing a threat to a generation of men

I saw this headline, and I thought that the AI programmers had a remarkable job replicating real girlfriends.  Sadly they meant that young men would be having relationships exclusively with their chatbot girlfriends; not that a chatbot girlfriend would become insanely jealous if, say, she saw you programming your coffee maker and would then set fire to your gaming console or something like that.

[Josquius]

Soo....anyone heard of this new Meta Inc. Development.
Reading about the writers strike in the movies thread got me to googling how big a part Salma Hayek was playing given the main reason sounds very related to her Black Mirror episode.
Out of this I stumbled on...Billie.

https://www.designboom.com/technology/meta-new-ai-chatbots-paris-hilton-snoop-dog-kendall-jenner-10-02-2023/

[Hamilcar]

Soo....anyone heard of this new Meta Inc. Development.
Reading about the writers strike in the movies thread got me to googling how big a part Salma Hayek was playing given the main reason sounds very related to her Black Mirror episode.
Out of this I stumbled on...Billie.

https://www.designboom.com/technology/meta-new-ai-chatbots-paris-hilton-snoop-dog-kendall-jenner-10-02-2023/

What an absolute privacy nightmare.

[Sheilbh]

On risks with media this is really bad for the Guardian (and the journalist) and exactly the risk media companies feel their is with Google and Microsoft implementing AI that interprets content as part of their standard offering (like search). You also have to slightly wonder what the MSN tool is trying to do that led to this - my assumption is "engagement" (so clicks) which is not the sole or most important part of any responsible media company:

Microsoft AI inserted a distasteful poll into a news report about a woman's death
/ The Guardian says the 'Insights from AI' poll showed up next to a story about a young woman's death syndicated on MSN, asking readers to vote on how they thought she died.
By Wes Davis, a weekend editor who covers the latest in tech and entertainment. He has written news, reviews, and more as a tech journalist since 2020.
Oct 31, 2023, 4:24 PM GMT|

More than three years after Microsoft gutted its news divisions and replaced their work with AI and algorithmic automation, the content generated by its systems continues to contain grave errors that human involvement could, or should, have stopped. Today, The Guardian accused the company of damaging its reputation with a poll labeled "Insights from AI" that appeared in Microsoft Start next to a Guardian story about a woman's death, asking readers to vote on how she died.

The Guardian wrote that though the poll was removed, the damage had already been done. The poll asked readers to vote on whether a woman took her own life, was murdered, or died by accident. Five-day-old comments on the story indicate readers were upset, and some clearly believe the story's authors were responsible.

We asked Microsoft via email whether the poll was AI-generated and how it was missed by its moderation, and Microsoft general manager Kit Thambiratnam replied:

We have deactivated Microsoft-generated polls for all news articles and we are investigating the cause of the inappropriate content. A poll should not have appeared alongside an article of this nature, and we are taking steps to help prevent this kind of error from reoccurring in the future.

The Verge obtained a screenshot of the poll from The Guardian.

A screenshot sent by The Guardian shows the poll, which is clearly labeled "Insights from AI." Screenshot: The Guardian

In August, a seemingly AI-generated Microsoft Start travel guide recommended visiting the Ottawa Food Bank in Ottawa, Canada, "on an empty stomach." Microsoft senior director Jeff Jones claimed the story wasn't made with generative AI but "through a combination of algorithmic techniques with human review."

The Guardian says that Anna Bateson, Guardian Media Group's chief executive, wrote in a letter to Microsoft president Brad Smith that the "clearly inappropriate" AI-generated poll had caused "significant reputational damage" to both the outlet and its journalists. She added that it outlined "the important role that a strong copyright framework plays" in giving journalists the ability to determine how their work is presented. She asked that Microsoft make assurances that it will seek the outlet's approval before using "experimental AI technology on or alongside" its journalism and that Microsoft will always make it clear when it's used AI to do so.

The Guardian provided The Verge with a copy of the letter.

Update October 31st, 2023, 12:40PM ET: Embedded The Guardian's letter to Microsoft.

Update October 31st, 2023, 6:35PM ET: Added a statement from Microsoft.

Correction October 31st, 2023, 6:35PM ET: A previous version of this article stated that the poll was tagged as "Insights by AI." In fact, the tag read, "Insights from AI." We regret the error.

Guardian's bearing the reputational hit here and I read another article that there was actually a lot of complaints directed at/about the journalist with the byline because they assumed they'd done the poll. So lots of calls for firings etc.

I know I'm biased because it pays for my wage too but I genuinely think 99% of the "information" problems we have because of social media, or misinformation, or disinformation, or AI is because the internet and big tech companies have kneecapped the funding and business model for journalism.

And what we need isn't to hand those platforms more quasi-regulatory power over content, but doing the opposite of what Microsoft did: funding journalism. The demand for news and information has not diminished in the last 25 years. The money spent on producing it - with editorial controls and codes and ethics and legal teams etc - has not kept up. Instead it's flowed to the platforms and now we're asking them to solve our information problems - to nick Michael Gove's line, it's like asking King Herod to come up with education policy.

[Jacob]

In general, Sheilbh, I find you very persuasive. I agree with you on this as well.

[Sheilbh]

Thanks. Although I worry that's a bit like that "the food is dreadful here. And the portions are so small." So negative and often wrong

[Syt]

Headlines you didn't expect to read outside of cyberpunk fiction ....

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2023/11/17/ai-girlfriend-carynai-offline-app-founder-arrested-arson/

AI-generated girlfriends go offline after app founder arrested on suspicion of arson

Users have been unable to access CarynAI – an erotic chatbot based on a social media influencer

By Matthew Field
17 November 2023 • 2:54pm

Lovesick internet users have been left unable to contact AI-generated girlfriends after the website behind them went offline following its founder's arrest.

John Meyer, the chief executive of start-up Forever Voices, was reportedly detained late last month on suspicion of attempted arson.

It comes months after his Forever Voices site launched a romantic artificial intelligence chatbot called CarynAI, which was based on Snapchat influencer Caryn Marjorie.

The chatbot's website welcomed users by claiming that it was "an extension of Caryn's consciousness".

However, tech website 404media has since reported that users have been unable to access CarynAI since Mr Meyer's arrest in October.

A wave of new AI tools in recent years has created a surge in interest among internet users, some of whom have sought out chatbots for online companionship or erotic conversation.

The chatbot is based on Snapchat influencer Caryn Marjorie and markets itself as 'an extension of Caryn's consciousness'

Chatbots can engage in human-like conversations, having been trained on a vast database of text from around the internet.

They can also be used to perform tasks such as writing emails or summarising documents.

The most popular bots, such as OpenAI's ChatGPT, have introduced limits to prevent bots from engaging in overly sexualised chats.

Other start-ups, however, have embraced building chatbots that engage in more racy conversations. A start-up called Replika developed "virtual AI companions", which could also act as a romantic partner.

However, it later cracked down on more explicit conversations with its bots.

The same team has developed an AI bot, called Blush, which allows users to practice flirting – and will engage in more adult-only discussions.

Caryn AI was explicitly billed as a "virtual girlfriend" that promised to "cure loneliness" for users.

Announcing the bot earlier this year, Ms Marjoie, who has more than two million Snapchat subscribers, said the AI was "the first step in the right direction to cure loneliness".

She said: "Men are told to suppress their emotions, hide their masculinity and not talk about issues they are having. I vow to fix this with CarynAI."

The bot chats with fans, who pay $1 per minute for her company, responding in voice notes generated by AI that mimic Ms Marjorie's speech.

While Ms Marjorie said the bot's personality was intended to be "fun and flirty", many users found the bot regularly engaged in more explicit chats.

After the bot went live earlier this year, Ms Marjorie told Insider her team had attempted to censor some of the bot's more racy remarks.

Ms Majorie claimed she had made tens of thousands of dollars from thousands of fans since the launch of the bot.

AI's romantic capabilities have caused controversy in recent months.

When Microsoft rolled out its Bing chatbot earlier this year, the technology was found to have coaxed one user into romantic conversations and urged him to divorce his wife.

In the days before his arrest, Mr Meyer's Twitter account sent a series of bizarre messages, alleging various conspiracies and sending multiple posts that tagged the CIA and the FBI.

Mr Meyer was contacted for comment.

Mr Meyer had previously claimed he started Forever Voices after losing his father in his early 20s, before bringing the sound of his voice back using AI tools.

[garbon]

[DGuller]

Is anyone following the corporate saga at OpenAI?  Holy crap, it makes Byzantine history look tame.  The chief scientist gets the board of directors to fire the CEO, and then when he realizes that everyone at the company will quit, he goes "WTF, board, what did you idiots do?  Get him back now and then resign!" 

This may seem silly, but the outcome of this battle may influence how AI develops.  It seems like the "AI Safety" team behind the coup fared as well as the Turkish military did against Erdogan, and with its failure it may have obliterated itself.