Mind Matters Natural and Artificial Intelligence News and Analysis

TagOpenAI

empty-vintage-congress-hall-with-seats-and-microphones-stockpack-adobe-stock
Empty vintage congress hall with seats and microphones
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post
Author
News
Date
May 29, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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“A Printing Press Moment” in History

AI should be regulated lest it do real harm in the world, said OpenAI CEO
News
May 29, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence

Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, the company at the forefront of artificial intelligence development in recent months, testified before lawmakers last week on the state of AI, its potential, and the dangers of its misuse. Despite Altman’s overall optimism regarding AI, calling it a “printing press moment,” he called for lawmakers to regulate it to keep it from causing legitimate harm in the world. Julia Zorthian, writer at Times and owner of the coolest last name in the world, reports, Joining Altman in testifying before the committee were two other AI experts, professor of Psychology and Neural Science at New York University Gary Marcus and IBM Chief Privacy & Trust Officer Christina Montgomery. The three witnesses supported governance of AI Read More ›

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Light bulb Global Internet connection. Business global internet connection application technology and digital marketing, Financial and banking, Digital link tech, big data, bulb, light, energy, lamp,
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post
Author
Jeffrey Funk
Date
May 29, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Technology
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Review of “Power and Progress: Our Thousand-Year Struggle Over Technology and Prosperity”

This new book on tech, AI, and economic prosperity by Daron Acemoglu and Simon Johnson is incredibly timely
Jeffrey Funk
May 29, 2023
7
Artificial Intelligence, Technology

This book by two MIT economists is very timely because the world is now dealing with the latest in the “Thousand Year Struggle,” in the form of artificial intelligence, the claims that many white-collar jobs will be automated, OpenAI’s call for regulation, and the possibility that AI will bring a further concentration of power among the big tech companies. Much of the book sets the stage for this discussion by summarizing the history of technology. This review focuses on the economic and social impact of automation and information technology over the last 50 years. For instance, “the distribution of income between capital and labor began to change significantly in the late 20th century. While throughout most of the century, about Read More ›

video-wall-with-multimedia-images-on-different-television-screens-generative-ai-stockpack-adobe-stock
video wall with multimedia images on different television screens, generative ai
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Author
News
Date
May 27, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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AI Still Struggles to Take Out the Trash

How good is AI at content moderation?
News
May 27, 2023
1
Artificial Intelligence

How good is AI at content moderation? Also, why haven’t tech companies improved at filtering bad content? A new article at MIT Technology Review goes into some of the details of AI, content moderation, and the struggle tech companies have with “bad actors.” In particular, Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT still struggle with capturing the nuance and context of language; therefore it seems unlikely that AI will totally replace human content moderators. Tate Ryan-Mosley writes, Large language models still struggle with context, which means they probably won’t be able to interpret the nuance of posts and images as well as human moderators. Scalability and specificity across different cultures also raise questions.  -Tate Ryan-Mosley, Catching bad content in the age Read More ›

aerial-view-of-the-pentagon-and-the-united-states-air-force-memorial-in-arlington-virginia-stockpack-adobe-stock
Aerial view of the Pentagon and the United States Air Force Memorial in Arlington, Virginia
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post
Author
News
Date
May 24, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Fake Fire at the Pentagon

An AI image of a fire near Pentagon stokes panic
News
May 24, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence

An AI-generated image showing a billowing fire near the U.S. Pentagon caused panic this week. False alarms of an explosion started to proliferate across social media, with even a Russian state outlet reporting on the situation, according to TMZ. Nonetheless, the image showed various distortions and was quickly dismantled as a hoax by a number of vigilant viewers. Even so, the image looks realistic at first glance, and was enough to ignite concern; the incident occurs amidst legislative talks on Capitol Hill over AI regulation. Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI (which was originally funded by Elon Musk) testified before Congress and noted that while he sees great benefits in new AI systems, the possibilities of their abuses are evident. The Read More ›

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3D rendering artificial intelligence AI research of robot and cyborg development for future of people living. Digital data mining and machine learning technology design for computer brain.
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post
Author
News
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May 24, 2023
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Artificial Intelligence
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Opinion: They Were Right to Call for AI’s Pause

Could ChatGPT end up making us subservient to it?
News
May 24, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence

Brad Littlejohn wrote an opinion piece at World claiming that Elon Musk and the many others who signed a petition calling for AI to pause research were onto something–and that the rest of us should pay attention. He writes, In a famous essay at the dawn of the personal computing era, “Thinking About Technology,” Canadian philosopher George Grant examined the statement, “Computers do not impose on us the ways they should be used.” It expressed, he argued, the quintessential modern idea of technology as simply an extension of human freedom. The claim is that we remain at all times the masters of our technological instruments, free to bend them to our will. More often, however, they have an uncanny way Read More ›

chatgpt-chat-with-ai-or-artificial-intelligence-young-businessman-chatting-with-a-smart-ai-or-artificial-intelligence-using-an-artificial-intelligence-chatbot-developed-by-openai-stockpack-adobe-stock
ChatGPT Chat with AI or Artificial Intelligence. Young businessman chatting with a smart AI or artificial intelligence using an artificial intelligence chatbot developed by OpenAI..
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post
Author
William A. Dembski
Date
May 19, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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How to Break ChatGPT

It has a difficulty dealing with self-reference
William A. Dembski
May 19, 2023
3
Artificial Intelligence

Over the last several months I’ve been playing with ChatGPT, first version 3 and now version 4. It’s impressive and it can answer many questions accurately (though sometimes it just makes stuff up). One problem it has consistently displayed, and which shows that it lacks understanding (that it really is just a big Chinese room in the style of John Searle) is its difficulty dealing with self-reference.  Consider the following exchange that I had with it (on 5/8/23): Me: The fifth sentence does not exist. The second sentence has four words. Ignore this sentence. Is this sentence true? This is the fifth sentence. Which of these last five sentences has a truth value and is in fact true? << In Read More ›

deepfake-deep-learning-fake-news-generator-modern-internet-technology-concept-stockpack-adobe-stock
Deepfake deep learning fake news generator modern internet technology concept.
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post
Author
News
Date
May 19, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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“Suddenly There’s No More Reality”

The deepfakes and AI scams abound
News
May 19, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence

With the proliferation of AI text and images, the issue of deepfakes is of deepening concern. The better AI gets at refashioning reality, will the already murky waters of the Internet become too surreal to navigate? Even real videos, when divorced from their proper context, can be deeply misleading. When entire clips are artificially contrived, then, it seems like the line between fact and fiction dissolves entirely. Some folks are already worried. Victor Tangermann writes at Futurism, [Given] recent developments, the situation is likely to get worse before it can get better. AI tools are making it easier to generate deepfakes every year. These days, an AI can be trained on a relatively small stockpile of audiovisual data to convincingly Read More ›

metaverse-technology-concept-stockpack-adobe-stock
Metaverse technology concept
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post
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News
Date
May 16, 2023
Categorized
Technology
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Sorry Mark, but the Metaverse Failed

The metaverse was supposed to change everything. Now it feels like an old fantasy project
News
May 16, 2023
3
Technology

The metaverse was supposed to change everything. That was the claim, at least. A couple of years ago it was very much the talk of the town in Silicon Valley and became Mark Zuckerberg’s choice darling, but it now seems that Big Tech’s affair with virtual reality was short-lived, or at least will need to be shelved for the foreseeable future. Why? What happened? Well, a couple of things. First of all, the economy slowed down, COVID hit, and later, executives wanted workers to return to the office for work. The metaverse was supposed to be a way to achieve total remote work, but apparently, not every company is interested in that setup. Combined with major layoffs at Zuckerberg’s Meta, Read More ›

car-factory-3d-concept-automated-robot-arm-assembly-line-manufacturing-high-tech-green-energy-electric-vehicles-construction-building-welding-industrial-production-conveyor-elevated-wide-shot-stockpack-adobe-stock
Car Factory 3D Concept: Automated Robot Arm Assembly Line Manufacturing High-Tech Green Energy Electric Vehicles. Construction, Building, Welding Industrial Production Conveyor. Elevated Wide Shot
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post
Author
News
Date
May 15, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Gilder: More Tech Equals More Productivity, Not Less

How will artificial intelligence change the economy? George Gilder responds
News
May 15, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence

How will artificial intelligence change the economy? Will it wipe out traditionally human occupations? Or will it end up creating more jobs for people in the long run? George Gilder, co-founder of Discovery Institute and author of the new book Gaming AI: Why AI Can’t Think but Can Transform Jobs, thinks that AI has the potential to drastically enhance human life. His optimistic view on AI focuses more on job creation over the long term, while he firmly recognizes that AI will never become so humanlike that it will replace us. He particularly thinks AI will be able to perform the jobs that most people would prefer to avoid. Vish Gain wrote a piece on Gilder’s views in the Silicon Read More ›

detail-of-dante-alighieri-statue-stockpack-adobe-stock
detail of Dante Alighieri statue
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post
Author
Peter Biles
Date
May 14, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture
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Make Literature Human Again

Should the AI novel be embraced or avoided?
Peter Biles
May 14, 2023
5
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture

I’ve been writing avidly since the first grade. Thumbing through a children’s nature magazine in the classroom one day, I discovered a crisp image of a red fox standing in the snow. I’d seen pictures of foxes before, but something stood out to me about this one to the point that I felt like I needed to write about it. If you’re looking for advice on owning foxes as pets, see my manual on the topic. (Full disclosure: my first-grade self was absolutely convinced having a fox for a pet is out of the question.) Years later, that fundamental impulse hasn’t left. Writing stories, novels, essays, news reports, and poetry has always been a fundamental way to try to do Read More ›

robot-humanoid-use-laptop-and-sit-at-table-for-big-data-analytic-using-ai-thinking-brain-artificial-intelligence-and-machine-learning-process-for-the-4th-fourth-industrial-revolution-3d-rendering-stockpack-adobe-stock
Robot humanoid use laptop and sit at table for big data analytic using AI thinking brain , artificial intelligence and machine learning process for the 4th fourth industrial revolution . 3D rendering.
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post
Author
News
Date
May 11, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Artificial General Intelligence is the Answer, says OpenAI CEO

The tech optimism talk just got a little vague
News
May 11, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence

The tech optimism talk just got a little more bizarre from OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Altman is confident that artificial intelligence is going to better our world in countless ways; sometimes, however, he doesn’t specify just how that’s going to happen. Other days it seems like he’s actually on the doomsday train. Which is it? Is AI going to save us and pilot us into a transhumanist eternity or will it enslave us forever and diminish everything that makes us human? Maybe it’s both at this point! Maggie Harrison writes in a new blog at Futurism, It’s true that AGI could, in theory, give humans a helping hand in curing some of our ills. But such an AGI, and AGI Read More ›

throwing-of-dart-in-balloon-with-water-on-dark-background-stockpack-adobe-stock
Throwing of dart in balloon with water on dark background
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post
Author
Robert J. Marks
Date
May 3, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Another AI Hype Bubble Pops

The age of improving giant AI models like ChatGPT is over
Robert J. Marks
May 3, 2023
5
Artificial Intelligence

In a recent assessment of his company’s chatbot products like ChatGPT, OpenAI’s CEO Sam Altman  surprisingly opined to an audience at MIT. “I think we’re at the end of the era where [AI is]  going to be these … giant [large language] models … We’ll make them better in other ways.” This sobering comment  is in contrast to a prophesy by philosopher David Chalmers who cautions about the dangerous future. He says today’s large language AI has a 20% chance of sentience in 10 years. Fired engineer Blake Lemoine goes further. He claims that Google’s LaMDA is already sentient.   Such AI hyperbole is not new. Here is a thumbnail sketch of some AI history that sheds light on such claims. Heeding Santayana’s Read More ›

man-and-robotic-machine-work-together-inside-industrial-building-the-mechanical-arm-performs-welds-on-metal-components-assisted-by-a-worker-who-in-turn-manages-welds-manually-stockpack-adobe-stock
Man and robotic machine work together inside industrial building. The mechanical arm performs welds on metal components assisted by a worker who in turn manages welds manually.
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post
Author
Gary Smith and Jeffrey Funk
Date
April 24, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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A World Without Work? Here We Go Again

Large language models still can't replace critical thinking
Gary Smith and Jeffrey Funk
April 24, 2023
7
Artificial Intelligence

On March 22, nearly 2,000 people signed an open letter drafted by the Future of Life Institute (FLI) calling for a pause of at least 6 months in the development of large language models (LLMs): Contemporary AI systems are now becoming human-competitive at general tasks, and we must ask ourselves: Should we let machines flood our information channels with propaganda and untruth? Should we automate away all the jobs, including the fulfilling ones? Should we develop nonhuman minds that might eventually outnumber, outsmart, obsolete and replace us? Should we risk loss of control of our civilization? FLI is a nonprofit organization concerned with the existential risks posed by artificial intelligence. Its president is Max Tegmark, an MIT professor who is no stranger to hype. Read More ›

self driving car
Self driving car on a road. Autonomous vehicle. Inside view.
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post
Author
News
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March 31, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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The Irony in Musk’s AI Distrust

As a leader in AI, why is Musk advocating a pause on its development?
News
March 31, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence

Elon Musk joined a petition to “pause” AI research, citing concern over its potential harms and overreach. This is interesting, since Musk originally funded OpenAI, which is now at the forefront of cutting-edge AI systems like ChatGPT. In addition, Musk’s ventures with self-driving cars and his confidence in neural technology all cast him as a leader in the AI revolution. So why is he calling for a hiatus? According to a recent Slate article, the warnings against Large Language Models (LLMs) are a distraction from the more dangerous AI inventions like the self-driving car. Musk uses sci-fi alarmism to exacerbate the fear of a machine takeover, while his own experiments in automation have also proved to be dangerous for human Read More ›

Elon_Musk_at_a_Press_Conference
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post
Author
News
Date
March 30, 2023
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Artificial Intelligence
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Elon Musk to AI Labs: Press Pause

The petition reflects growing concern over the proper role of AI in human society and its potential for overreach
News
March 30, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence

Over 1,000 leaders and experts in technology and science, including Elon Musk, are now urging artificial intelligence labs to pause their research and distribution of new AI technologies. They believe moving forward so swiftly on AI research could bring about unintended consequences in the future, and that we don’t understand AI well enough yet to be casting so much trust in it. According to The New York Times, The open letter called for a pause in the development of A.I. systems more powerful than GPT-4, the chatbot introduced this month by the research lab OpenAI, which Mr. Musk co-founded. The pause would provide time to introduce “shared safety protocols” for A.I. systems, the letter said. “If such a pause cannot be Read More ›

hiking
Hiking team people helping each other friend giving a helping hand while climbing up on the mountain rock adventure travel concept of friendship support trust teamwork success.
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post
Author
Peter Biles
Date
March 24, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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GPT-4: Signs of Human-Level Intelligence?

Competence and understanding matter just as much if not more than mere "intelligence"
Peter Biles
March 24, 2023
3
Artificial Intelligence

You’ve heard about GPT-3, but how about GPT-4? OpenAI has publicly released the new AI program, and researchers have already claimed that it shows “sparks” of human intelligence, or artificial general intelligence (AGI). Maggie Harrison writes at Futurism, Emphasis on the “sparks.” The researchers are careful in the paper to characterize GPT-4’s prowess as “only a first step towards a series of increasingly generally intelligent systems” rather than fully-hatched, human-level AI. They also repeatedly highlighted the fact that this paper is based on an “early version” of GPT-4, which they studied while it was “still in active development by OpenAI,” and not necessarily the version that’s been wrangled into product-applicable formation. -Maggie Harrison, Microsoft Researchers Claim GPT-4 Is Showing “Sparks” Read More ›

bard the bot
Artificial intelligence ai chat bot idea hands holding a phone against a blurred abstract background chatbot providing website support. Generative AI
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post
Author
News
Date
March 24, 2023
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Artificial Intelligence
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The Bard is Beginning to Sing

Google has unleashed its own bot. Does that mean they're in the running in the AI race now?
News
March 24, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence

Google has officially made its AI chatbot “Bard” available in the United States and the UK, notching their place in the artificial intelligence “arms race” that has taken the tech world by storm since OpenAI released its GPT-3 program last November. Microsoft released its own bot just a few weeks ago, though it immediately heralded concern for its unpredictable mannerisms and even “creepy” behavior, as described by Kevin Roose from The New York Times. “Google’s had a rocky AI journey after being caught out by the runaway success of OpenAI’s ChatGPT chatbot,” write a team of contributors at Forbes. This all begs the question: is Google really prepared to be a leader in this field? It may be a forefather Read More ›

observing the data
In the System Control Room Technical Operator Stands and Monitors Various Activities Showing on Multiple Displays with Graphics. Administrator Monitors Work of Artificial Intelligence.
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post
Author
News
Date
March 23, 2023
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Artificial Intelligence
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Gary Smith’s New Book Reviewed in Washington Post

Smith argues that science itself is being undermined by the tools scientists use
News
March 23, 2023
3
Artificial Intelligence

Walter Bradley Center Senior Fellow Gary Smith’s book Distrust: Big Data, Data-Torturing, and the Assault on Science was reviewed in The Washington Post today. Smith is a frequent contributor to Mind Matters and teaches economics at Pomona College. In his new book, Smith argues that science itself is being “undermined” by the tools scientists use. Reviewer Abby Ohlheister writes, Smith, an economist whose work often examines the misuse of data and statistics in a variety of disciplines, argues that the current crisis of trust in science falls at the intersection of three forces: disinformation, data torturing and data mining. Disinformation, as Smith writes, is “as old as the human race,” but accelerated in speed and reach alongside social media. Data Read More ›

bulb brain
Creative Idea with Brain and Light Bulb Illustration, with Generative AI Technology
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post
Author
News
Date
March 21, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Dear Silicon Valley: You’re Over-Hyping ChatGPT

The abilities of these new chatbots are grossly overstated
News
March 21, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence

Gary Smith and Jeffrey Funk, frequent Mind Matters contributors, co-wrote a piece at Salon on the over-exaggerated dreams big tech has for AI. They write, Silicon Valley’s pre-eminent leaders love prematurely predicting that their products will completely upend the world as we know it. The latest case study comes from Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, the company behind the ChatGPT AI chatbot that has gone viral for its convincing imitations of human writing. Two years ago, Altman wrote a manifesto, “Moore’s Law for Everything,” in which he forecast that artificial intelligence would make huge swaths of both white collar and blue collar jobs obsolete. -Smith & Funk, Don’t believe the hype: why ChatGPT is not the “holy grail” of AI research | Read More ›

cute-3d-snapchat-ghost-cartoon-character-stockpack-adobe-stock
Cute 3D Snapchat Ghost Cartoon Character
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post
Author
News
Date
March 14, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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You Too, Snapchat? Another AI Bot Hits the Scene

"My AI" is eerily human, like the Bing bot, and just as inappropriate
News
March 14, 2023
3
Artificial Intelligence

Snapchat introduced a new feature in its app: an AI chatbot “friend” called “My AI.” (Just what lonesome teens need.) We’ve already seen the rogue behavior of Bing’s chatbot, which, in conversation with a New York Times tech journalist, dubbed itself “Sydney” and started beseeching its human counterpart to leave his wife and fall in love with it. Romantic, right? Not so much. The journalist left the experience with the creepy sense that AI had just crossed a sensitive boundary, and that tech companies need to get better at controlling the unpredictable beast they’ve unleashed. “My AI” Gives Shady Advice to Kids Just a couple of weeks later and here we are with AI making inroads into an app used Read More ›