[Report] Generative AI Top 150: The World’s Most Used AI Tools (Feb 2024) — from flexos.work by Daan van Rossum
FlexOS.work surveyed Generative AI platforms to reveal which get used most. While ChatGPT reigns supreme, countless AI platforms are used by millions.

As the FlexOS research study “Generative AI at Work” concluded based on a survey amongst knowledge workers, ChatGPT reigns supreme.

2. AI Tool Usage is Way Higher Than People Expect – Beating Netflix, Pinterest, Twitch.
As measured by data analysis platform Similarweb based on global web traffic tracking, the AI tools in this list generate over 3 billion monthly visits.

With 1.67 billion visits, ChatGPT represents over half of this traffic and is already bigger than Netflix, Microsoft, Pinterest, Twitch, and The New York Times.

.


Artificial Intelligence Act: MEPs adopt landmark law — from europarl.europa.eu

  • Safeguards on general purpose artificial intelligence
  • Limits on the use of biometric identification systems by law enforcement
  • Bans on social scoring and AI used to manipulate or exploit user vulnerabilities
  • Right of consumers to launch complaints and receive meaningful explanations


The untargeted scraping of facial images from CCTV footage to create facial recognition databases will be banned © Alexander / Adobe Stock


A New Surge in Power Use Is Threatening U.S. Climate Goals — from nytimes.com by Brad Plumer and Nadja Popovich
A boom in data centers and factories is straining electric grids and propping up fossil fuels.

Something unusual is happening in America. Demand for electricity, which has stayed largely flat for two decades, has begun to surge.

Over the past year, electric utilities have nearly doubled their forecasts of how much additional power they’ll need by 2028 as they confront an unexpected explosion in the number of data centers, an abrupt resurgence in manufacturing driven by new federal laws, and millions of electric vehicles being plugged in.


OpenAI and the Fierce AI Industry Debate Over Open Source — from bloomberg.com by Rachel Metz

The tumult could seem like a distraction from the startup’s seemingly unending march toward AI advancement. But the tension, and the latest debate with Musk, illuminates a central question for OpenAI, along with the tech world at large as it’s increasingly consumed by artificial intelligence: Just how open should an AI company be?

The meaning of the word “open” in “OpenAI” seems to be a particular sticking point for both sides — something that you might think sounds, on the surface, pretty clear. But actual definitions are both complex and controversial.


Researchers develop AI-driven tool for near real-time cancer surveillance — from medicalxpress.com by Mark Alewine; via The Rundown AI
Artificial intelligence has delivered a major win for pathologists and researchers in the fight for improved cancer treatments and diagnoses.

In partnership with the National Cancer Institute, or NCI, researchers from the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Louisiana State University developed a long-sequenced AI transformer capable of processing millions of pathology reports to provide experts researching cancer diagnoses and management with exponentially more accurate information on cancer reporting.


 

Building Better Civil Justice Systems Isn’t Just About The Funding — from lawnext.com by Jess Lu and Mark Chandler

Justice tech — legal tech that helps low-income folks with no or some ability to pay, that assists the lawyers who serve those folks, and that makes the courts more efficient and effective — must contend with a higher hurdle than wooing Silicon Valley VCs: the civil justice system itself.

A checkerboard of technology systems and data infrastructures across thousands of local court jurisdictions makes it nearly impossible to develop tools with the scale needed to be sustainable. Courts are themselves a key part of the access to justice problem: opaque, duplicative and confusing court forms and burdensome filing processes make accessing the civil justice system deeply inefficient for the sophisticated, and an impenetrable maze for the 70+% of civil litigants who don’t have a lawyer.


Speaking of legaltech, also see:


“Noxtua,” Europe’s first sovereign legal AI — from eureporter.co

Noxtua, the first sovereign European legal AI with its proprietary Language Model, allows lawyers in corporations and law firms to benefit securely from the advantages of generative AI. The Berlin-based AI startup Xayn and the largest German business law firm CMS are developing Noxtua as a Legal AI with its own Legal Large Language Model and AI assistant. Lawyers from corporations and law firms can use the Noxtua chat to ask questions about legal documents, analyze them, check them for compliance with company guidelines, (re)formulate texts, and have summaries written. The Legal Copilot, which specializes in legal texts, stands out as an independent and secure alternative from Europe to the existing US offerings.


Generative AI in the legal industry: The 3 waves set to change how the business works — from thomsonreuters.com by Tom Shepherd and Stephanie Lomax

Gen AI is game-changing technology, directly impacting the way legal work is done and the current law firm-client business model; and while much remains unsettled, within 10 years, Gen AI is likely to change corporate legal departments and law firms in profound and unique ways

Generative artificial intelligence (Gen AI) isn’t a futuristic technology — it’s here now, and it’s already impacting the legal industry in many ways.


Hmmmm….on this next one…

New legal AI venture promises to show how judges think — from reuters.com by Sara Merken

Feb 29 (Reuters) – A new venture by a legal technology entrepreneur and a former Kirkland & Ellis partner says it can use artificial intelligence to help lawyers understand how individual judges think, allowing them to tailor their arguments and improve their courtroom results.

The Toronto-based legal research startup, Bench IQ, was founded by Jimoh Ovbiagele, the co-founder of now-shuttered legal research company ROSS Intelligence, alongside former ROSS senior software engineer Maxim Isakov and former Kirkland bankruptcy partner Jeffrey Gettleman.


 

Announcing the 2024 GSV 150: The Top Growth Companies in Digital Learning & Workforce Skills — from prnewswire.com with information provided by ASU+GSV Summit

“The world is adapting to seismic shifts from generative AI,” says Luben Pampoulov, Partner at GSV Ventures. “AI co-pilots, AI tutors, AI content generators—AI is ubiquitous, and differentiation is increasingly critical. This is an impressive group of EdTech companies that are leveraging AI and driving positive outcomes for learners and society.”

Workforce Learning comprises 34% of the list, K-12 29%, Higher Education 24%, Adult Consumer Learning 10%, and Early Childhood 3%. Additionally, 21% of the companies stretch across two or more “Pre-K to Gray” categories. A broader move towards profitability is also evident: the collective gross and EBITDA margin score of the 2024 cohort increased 5% compared to 2023.

See the list at https://www.asugsvsummit.com/gsv-150

Selected from 2,000+ companies around the world based on revenue scale, revenue growth, user reach, geographic diversification, and margin profile, this impressive group is reaching an estimated 3 billion people and generating an estimated $23 billion in revenue.

 

My 40 Most-Read Blog Posts This Year Tell A Story Of A Legal Industry Consumed With Generative AI — from lawnext.com by Bob Ambrogi

Look over this list of my blog posts that were most popular this year, and there is no doubt about the topic that most captivated the legal industry. Of my 40 most-read posts of 2023, 30 directly involved generative AI and others implicated it.


What I’m watching for in 2024 — from alexofftherecord.com by Alex Su
My view of the legal ecosystem, and why I’m going to pay close attention to generative AI, new Biglaw offerings, and the rise of “independent” attorneys

Today, instead of sharing my predictions about what’s coming to the legal industry, I’ll share where I think the most action will take place next year. In short, it’s (1) generative AI; (2) Biglaw firms adding low-cost capabilities; and (3) strong bench talent among independent attorneys. Before I get into why, I’ll share some observations on the past, and the trends I’m seeing take place right now.


Navigating Ediscovery and AI in Legal Tech – 2023 Trends — from jdsupra.com

In 2023, the legal landscape has been significantly shaped by two key trends: the rapid evolution of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the advancements in ediscovery. These developments have not only transformed legal processes but also presented new challenges and opportunities for legal professionals. As we delve into this first part of our series, we examine the top blogs that have been at the forefront of these trends. These articles offer a window into the current state of legal tech, providing invaluable insights into how these technological advances are reshaping the practice of law.


The Metaverse: A new dimension for legal services — from connections.nortonrosefulbright.com by Lena Haffner

Some of the topics mentioned include:

  • Virtual law offices
  • Enhanced client communication
  • Virtual pitches
  • Client education and workshops
  • Virtual asset inspections and tours
  • Enhanced due diligence

The Digital Era: How Technology is Changing the Way We Hire a Lawyer — from medium.com by Hire 4

In the fast-paced world of the digital era, technology is revolutionizing almost every aspect of our lives, and the legal field is no exception. The traditional process to hire a lawyer, once dominated by word-of-mouth referrals and physical law firm visits, is undergoing a transformation. This shift is not just changing how clients find and interact with legal professionals, but also how legal services are delivered and experienced. In this blog, we delve into the ways technology is reshaping the landscape of hiring a lawyer.


Finding The Right Virtual Assistant For Your Legal Practice — from forbes.com by Raquel Gomes

A virtual assistant can perform administrative tasks for a firm, from client communication and appointment scheduling to legal research, contract management and accounting. Delegating these tasks can be an effective way to free up lawyers to do what they do best. Based on my work with virtual assistants, here are some of the potential benefits and also tips on how you can find a VA who best fits the needs of your practice.


Addendum on 1/2/24:

YEAR IN REVIEW: The top legal technology trends of 2023 — from abajournal.com by Nicole Black

The changing mindset of lawyers toward technology
In 2023, there was a noticeable shift in the mindset of legal professionals. While its direct health impacts remain uncertain, the pandemic’s influence in accelerating technology adoption has been undeniable. Lawyers and judges, traditionally viewed as tech-averse, are now embracing tools like Zoom, iPads and smartwatches with surprising enthusiasm.

Post-pandemic, as lawyers returned to offices—often in a hybrid model—they displayed a newfound curiosity about technology. This change in attitude came at an opportune moment, coinciding with the introduction of new generative AI technologies in the legal field even as legal technology funding declined.


Addendum on 1/2/24:

US Supreme Court’s Roberts urges ‘caution’ as AI reshapes legal field — from reuters.com by John Kruzel

WASHINGTON, Dec 31 (Reuters) – Artificial intelligence represents a mixed blessing for the legal field, U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts said in a year-end report published on Sunday, urging “caution and humility” as the evolving technology transforms how judges and lawyers go about their work.

Roberts struck an ambivalent tone in his 13-page report. He said AI had potential to increase access to justice for indigent litigants, revolutionize legal research and assist courts in resolving cases more quickly and cheaply while also pointing to privacy concerns and the current technology’s inability to replicate human discretion.

“I predict that human judges will be around for a while,” Roberts wrote. “But with equal confidence I predict that judicial work – particularly at the trial level – will be significantly affected by AI.”

 
 

The Evolution of Collaboration: Unveiling the EDUCAUSE Corporate Engagement Program — from er.educause.edu

The program is designed to strengthen the collaboration between private industry and higher education institutions—and evolve the higher education technology market. The new program will do so by taking the following actions:

  • Giving higher education professionals better access to corporate thought leaders who can help create change at their institutions
  • Educating corporate partners on the nuances of higher education and the major challenges it faces so that they can help provide meaningful solutions
  • Giving the EDUCAUSE staff and leadership better access to corporate change-makers in order to advocate for change on behalf of our institutional community
  • Providing the institutional community with higher-quality content and services from companies that are deeply invested in the success of higher education
  • Providing the corporate community with custom-built packages that allow more meaningful connections with the institutional community—not only at our in-person events but also through online opportunities year-round

By building better bridges between our corporate and institutional communities, we can help accelerate our shared mission of furthering the promise of higher education.


Speaking of collaborations, also see:

Could the U.S. become an “Apprentice Nation?” — from Michael B. Horn and Ryan Craig

Intermediaries do the heavy lifting for the employers.


Bottom line: As I discussed with Michael later in the show, we already have the varied system that Leonhardt imagines—it’s just that it’s often by chaos and neglect. Just like we didn’t say to 8th graders a century ago, “go find your own high school,” we need to design a post-high school system with clear and well-designed pathways that include:

  1. Apprenticeships outside of the building trades so students can learn a variety of jobs by doing the job.
  2. Short-term certificates that lead to jobs without necessarily having the college degree immediately, but having the option to return for a college degree later on.
  3. Transfer pathways where credits earned in high school really count in college and the move from two-year college to any four-year institution is seamless.

? Listen to the complete episode here and subscribe to the podcast.

 

 

Channel 1 -- personalized gloabl news network powered by generative AI

From DSC:
Hhhhhmmmmm……not sure yet that this is a good idea. But I doubt there’s any stopping it.

 



How AI ‘sees’ the world – what happened when we trained a deep learning model to identify poverty — from theconversation.com by Ola Hall Hamid Sarmadi Thorsteinn Rögnvaldsson

Recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI) have created a step change in how to measure poverty and other human development indicators. Our team has used a type of AI known as a deep convolutional neural network (DCNN) to study satellite imagery and identify some types of poverty with a level of accuracy close to that of household surveys.


E.U. reaches deal on landmark AI bill, racing ahead of U.S. — from washingtonpost.com by Anthony Faiola, Cat Zakrzewski and Beatriz Ríos (behind paywall)
The regulation paves the way for what could become a global standard to classify risk, enforce transparency and financially penalize tech companies for noncompliance.

European Union officials reached a landmark deal Friday on the world’s most ambitious law to regulate artificial intelligence, paving the way for what could become a global standard to classify risk, enforce transparency and financially penalize tech companies for noncompliance.

Along these lines, also see:


 

 

34 Big Ideas that will change our world in 2024 — from linkedin.com

34 Big Ideas that will change our world in 2024 -- from linkedin.com 

Excerpts:

6. ChatGPT’s hype will fade, as a new generation of tailor-made bots rises up
11. We’ll finally turn the corner on teacher pay in 2024
21. Employers will combat job applicants’ use of AI with…more AI
31. Universities will view the creator economy as a viable career path

 
 

AI Pedagogy Project, metaLAB (at) Harvard
Creative and critical engagement with AI in education. A collection of assignments and materials inspired by the humanities, for educators curious about how AI affects their students and their syllabi

AI Guide
Focused on the essentials and written to be accessible to a newcomer, this interactive guide will give you the background you need to feel more confident with engaging conversations about AI in your classroom.


From #47 of SAIL: Sensemaking AI Learning — by George Siemens

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

Welcome to Sensemaking, AI, and Learning (SAIL), a regular look at how AI is impacting education and learning.

Over the last year, after dozens of conferences, many webinars, panels, workshops, and many (many) conversations with colleagues, it’s starting to feel like higher education, as a system, is in an AI groundhog’s day loop. I haven’t heard anything novel generated by universities. We have a chatbot! Soon it will be a tutor! We have a generative AI faculty council! Here’s our list of links to sites that also have lists! We need AI literacy! My mantra over the last while has been that higher education leadership is failing us on AI in a more dramatic way than it failed us on digitization and online learning. What will your universities be buying from AI vendors in five years because they failed to develop a strategic vision and capabilities today?


AI + the Education System — from drphilippahardman.substack.com Dr. Philippa Hardman
The key to relevance, value & excellence?


The magic school of the future is one that helps students learn to work together and care for each other — from stefanbauschard.substack.com by Stefan Bauschard
AI is going to alter economic and professional structures. Will we alter the educational structures?

(e) What is really required is a significant re-organization of schooling and curriculum. At a meta-level, the school system is focused on developing the type of intelligence I opened with, and the economic value of that is going to rapidly decline.

(f). This is all going to happen very quickly (faster than any previous change in history), and many people aren’t paying attention.  AI is already here.


 

Student Use Cases for AI: Start by Sharing These Guidelines with Your Class — from hbsp.harvard.edu by Ethan Mollick and Lilach Mollick

To help you explore some of the ways students can use this disruptive new technology to improve their learning—while making your job easier and more effective—we’ve written a series of articles that examine the following student use cases:

  1. AI as feedback generator
  2. AI as personal tutor
  3. AI as team coach
  4. AI as learner

Recap: Teaching in the Age of AI (What’s Working, What’s Not) — from celt.olemiss.edu by Derek Bruff, visiting associate director

Earlier this week, CETL and AIG hosted a discussion among UM faculty and other instructors about teaching and AI this fall semester. We wanted to know what was working when it came to policies and assignments that responded to generative AI technologies like ChatGPT, Google Bard, Midjourney, DALL-E, and more. We were also interested in hearing what wasn’t working, as well as questions and concerns that the university community had about teaching and AI.


Teaching: Want your students to be skeptical of ChatGPT? Try this. — from chronicle.com by Beth McMurtrie

Then, in class he put them into groups where they worked together to generate a 500-word essay on “Why I Write” entirely through ChatGPT. Each group had complete freedom in how they chose to use the tool. The key: They were asked to evaluate their essay on how well it offered a personal perspective and demonstrated a critical reading of the piece. Weiss also graded each ChatGPT-written essay and included an explanation of why he came up with that particular grade.

After that, the students were asked to record their observations on the experiment on the discussion board. Then they came together again as a class to discuss the experiment.

Weiss shared some of his students’ comments with me (with their approval). Here are a few:


2023 EDUCAUSE Horizon Action Plan: Generative AI — from library.educause.edu by Jenay Robert and Nicole Muscanell

Asked to describe the state of generative AI that they would like to see in higher education 10 years from now, panelists collaboratively constructed their preferred future.
.

2023-educause-horizon-action-plan-generative-ai


Will Teachers Listen to Feedback From AI? Researchers Are Betting on It — from edsurge.com by Olina Banerji

Julie York, a computer science and media teacher at South Portland High School in Maine, was scouring the internet for discussion tools for her class when she found TeachFX. An AI tool that takes recorded audio from a classroom and turns it into data about who talked and for how long, it seemed like a cool way for York to discuss issues of data privacy, consent and bias with her students. But York soon realized that TeachFX was meant for much more.

York found that TeachFX listened to her very carefully, and generated a detailed feedback report on her specific teaching style. York was hooked, in part because she says her school administration simply doesn’t have the time to observe teachers while tending to several other pressing concerns.

“I rarely ever get feedback on my teaching style. This was giving me 100 percent quantifiable data on how many questions I asked and how often I asked them in a 90-minute class,” York says. “It’s not a rubric. It’s a reflection.”

TeachFX is easy to use, York says. It’s as simple as switching on a recording device.

But TeachFX, she adds, is focused not on her students’ achievements, but instead on her performance as a teacher.


ChatGPT Is Landing Kids in the Principal’s Office, Survey Finds — from the74million.org by Mark Keierleber
While educators worry that students are using generative AI to cheat, a new report finds students are turning to the tool more for personal problems.

Indeed, 58% of students, and 72% of those in special education, said they’ve used generative AI during the 2022-23 academic year, just not primarily for the reasons that teachers fear most. Among youth who completed the nationally representative survey, just 23% said they used it for academic purposes and 19% said they’ve used the tools to help them write and submit a paper. Instead, 29% reported having used it to deal with anxiety or mental health issues, 22% for issues with friends and 16% for family conflicts.

Part of the disconnect dividing teachers and students, researchers found, may come down to gray areas. Just 40% of parents said they or their child were given guidance on ways they can use generative AI without running afoul of school rules. Only 24% of teachers say they’ve been trained on how to respond if they suspect a student used generative AI to cheat.


Embracing weirdness: What it means to use AI as a (writing) tool — from oneusefulthing.org by Ethan Mollick
AI is strange. We need to learn to use it.

But LLMs are not Google replacements, or thesauruses or grammar checkers. Instead, they are capable of so much more weird and useful help.


Diving Deep into AI: Navigating the L&D Landscape — from learningguild.com by Markus Bernhardt

The prospect of AI-powered, tailored, on-demand learning and performance support is exhilarating: It starts with traditional digital learning made into fully adaptive learning experiences, which would adjust to strengths and weaknesses for each individual learner. The possibilities extend all the way through to simulations and augmented reality, an environment to put into practice knowledge and skills, whether as individuals or working in a team simulation. The possibilities are immense.

Thanks to generative AI, such visions are transitioning from fiction to reality.


Video: Unleashing the Power of AI in L&D — from drphilippahardman.substack.com by Dr. Philippa Hardman
An exclusive video walkthrough of my keynote at Sweden’s national L&D conference this week

Highlights

  • The wicked problem of L&D: last year, $371 billion was spent on workplace training globally, but only 12% of employees apply what they learn in the workplace
  • An innovative approach to L&D: when Mastery Learning is used to design & deliver workplace training, the rate of “transfer” (i.e. behaviour change & application) is 67%
  • AI 101: quick summary of classification, generative and interactive AI and its uses in L&D
  • The impact of AI: my initial research shows that AI has the potential to scale Mastery Learning and, in the process:
    • reduce the “time to training design” by 94% > faster
    • reduce the cost of training design by 92% > cheaper
    • increase the quality of learning design & delivery by 96% > better
  • Research also shows that the vast majority of workplaces are using AI only to “oil the machine” rather than innovate and improve our processes & practices
  • Practical tips: how to get started on your AI journey in your company, and a glimpse of what L&D roles might look like in a post-AI world

 

The out-of-this-world project redefining ‘edutainment’ — from inavateonthenet.net by Reece Webb

A new planetarium project in the UK has the potential to revolutionise education and entertainment. Reece Webb reports.

Many integrators will work on a career defining project, and for Amir Khosh, a new, one-of-a-kind planetarium project nestled in the heart of Nottinghamshire, UK, has sat at the centre of his world.

A project more than five years in the making, ST Engineering Antycip will be part of the large-scale developmemt that is the Sherwood Observatory, which aims to drive education enrichment and visitor attraction in marginalised communities.

A new planetarium project in the UK has the potential to revolutionise education and entertainment. Reece Webb reports.


Also from inavateonthenet.net, see:

Digital Projection paints a picture at Vincent meets Rembrandt exhibition

 

Are your students prepared for active learning? You can help them! — from The Educationalist at educationalist.substack.com by Alexandra Mihai

What does active learning require from students?
There is no secret that PBL and all other active learning approaches are much more demanding from students compared to traditional methods, mainly in terms of skills and attitudes towards learning. Here are some of the aspects where students, especially when first faced to active learning, seem to struggle:

  • Formulating own learning goals and following through with independent study. While in traditional teaching the learning goals are given to students, in PBL (or at least in some of its purest variants), they need to come up with their own, for each problem they are solving. This requires understanding the problem well but also a certain frame of mind where one can assess what is necessary to solve it and make a plan of how to go about it (independently and as a group). All these seemingly easy steps are often new to students and something they intrinsically expect from us as educators.

From DSC:
The above excerpt re: formulating one’s own learning goals reminded me of project management and learning how to be a project manager.

It reminded me of a project that I was assigned back at Kraft (actually Kraft General Foods at the time).  It was an online-based directory of everyone in the company at the time. When it was given to me, several questions arose in my mind:
  • Where do I start?
  • How do I even organize this project?
  • What is the list of to-do’s?
  • Who will I need to work with?

Luckily I had a mentor/guide who helped me get going and an excellent contact with the vendor who educated me and helped me get the ball rolling. 

I’ll end with another quote and a brief comment:

Not being afraid of mistakes and learning from them.
The education system, at all stages, still penalises mistakes, often with long term consequences. So it’s no wonder students are afraid of making mistakes…
From DSC:
How true.
 

Building Pre-K Students’ Skills to Codesign the Classroom — from edutopia.org by Sarika S. Gupta
In order to help ensure that young students’ needs are met, it’s important to seek feedback about their learning experiences.

VIEW CHILDREN AS ACTIVE LEADERS IN THEIR LEARNING
I was co-teaching in an inclusive preschool classroom 20 years ago when I led my first professional development workshop (the project approach). The aim was to show teachers that children could co-construct their learning experiences when they were invited to do so. Two groundbreaking Reggio Emilia books came to mind—Shoe and Meter and Everything Has a Shadow Except Ants. These inspirational books were part of a series published in collaboration with the Italian Ministry of Education called “The Unheard Voice of Children.”

The series recognized children as active leaders of their learning and endeavored to document the process of learning through children’s learning experiences.

Learners need: More voice. More choice. More control. -- this image was created by Daniel Christian

Let Kids Make Decisions — from edutopia.org by Sean Cassel
An overreliance on rules can backfire. Instead, teachers can focus on providing students with choices and teaching good decision-making skills.

I’ve deeply thought about that last part over the course of my career: Let kids make decisions. Twenty years later, I am a high school administrator tasked with enforcing rules every day. Let me be clear: Schools need rules to function, but they don’t have to be the focus. My school focuses on allowing students to make choices: It is a centerpiece of how we operate. And although kids don’t always make the right choices, often enough they do. An overreliance on rules, in either a classroom or an entire school, can limit the ability of students to grow and develop their decision-making skills.

Using Free Edtech Tools to Get to Know Your New Middle and High School Students — from edutopia.org by Matthew X. Joseph
Older students can use these tools to introduce themselves to their teachers and each other—even before school starts.

From DSC:
Some nice ideas and tools listed here to start developing relationships even before the first day of school.

An Intentional Approach to Improving Your Teaching Practice — from edutopia.org by Marcus Luther
By selecting one area for growth, collecting resources, and connecting with others, teachers can make meaningful improvements in the classroom.

Last summer, my focus was improving the level of inquiry in my classroom. I describe my process below, which transfers to any area or topic on which you might hope to focus your own professional learning.

Setting Up Libraries to Be the Best Space in School — from edutopia.org by Paige Tutt
We took a peek inside school libraries across America to see how librarians are reframing the space to support students’ social, emotional, and creative growth—while still prioritizing excellent reads.

The recently renovated library—now known as the Learning Commons—is a bright, spacious multipurpose hub within the school. There are bistro tables where kids can work together; comfortable and flexible seating; a makerspace where students can explore activities like sewing and jewelry making; an audio recording and production studio; and a video production studio where kids can create TikToks or YouTube videos using their phones or school-issued laptops. It’s a far cry from the space it used to be—an attendance sheet from 2008 tracked just 21 students signing into the library one day.

 


How to spot deepfakes created by AI image generatorsCan you trust your eyes | The deepfake election — from axios.com by various; via Tom Barrett

As the 2024 campaign season begins, AI image generators have advanced from novelties to powerful tools able to generate photorealistic images, while comprehensive regulation lags behind.

Why it matters: As more fake images appear in political ads, the onus will be on the public to spot phony content.

Go deeper: Can you tell the difference between real and AI-generated images? Take our quiz:


4 Charts That Show Why AI Progress Is Unlikely to Slow Down — from time.com; with thanks to Donald Clark out on LinkedIn for this resource


The state of AI in 2023: Generative AI’s breakout year — from McKinsey.com

Table of Contents

  1. It’s early days still, but use of gen AI is already widespread
  2. Leading companies are already ahead with gen AI
  3. AI-related talent needs shift, and AI’s workforce effects are expected to be substantial
  4. With all eyes on gen AI, AI adoption and impact remain steady
  5. About the research

Top 10 Chief AI Officers — from aimagazine.com

The Chief AI Officer is a relatively new job role, yet becoming increasingly more important as businesses invest further into AI.

Now more than ever, the workplace must prepare for AI and the immense opportunities, as well as challenges, that this type of evolving technology can provide. This job position sees the employee responsible for guiding companies through complex AI tools, algorithms and development. All of this works to ensure that the company stays ahead of the curve and capitalises on digital growth and transformation.


NVIDIA-related items

SIGGRAPH Special Address: NVIDIA CEO Brings Generative AI to LA Show — from blogs.nvidia.com by Brian Caulfield
Speaking to thousands of developers and graphics pros, Jensen Huang announces updated GH200 Grace Hopper Superchip, NVIDIA AI Workbench, updates NVIDIA Omniverse with generative AI.

The hottest commodity in AI right now isn’t ChatGPT — it’s the $40,000 chip that has sparked a frenzied spending spree — from businessinsider.com by Hasan Chowdhury

NVIDIA Releases Major Omniverse Upgrade with Generative AI and OpenUSD — from enterpriseai.news

Nvidia teams up with Hugging Face to offer cloud-based AI training — from techcrunch.com by Kyle Wiggers

Nvidia reveals new A.I. chip, says costs of running LLMs will ‘drop significantly’ — from cnbc.com by Kif Leswing

KEY POINTS

  • Nvidia announced a new chip designed to run artificial intelligence models on Tuesday .
  • Nvidia’s GH200 has the same GPU as the H100, Nvidia’s current highest-end AI chip, but pairs it with 141 gigabytes of cutting-edge memory, as well as a 72-core ARM central processor.
  • “This processor is designed for the scale-out of the world’s data centers,” Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said Tuesday.

Nvidia Has A Monopoly On AI Chips … And It’s Only Growing — from theneurondaily.com by The Neuron

In layman’s terms: Nvidia is on fire, and they’re only turning up the heat.


AI-Powered War Machines: The Future of Warfare Is Here — from readwrite.com by Deanna Ritchie

The advancement of robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) has paved the way for a new era in warfare. Gone are the days of manned ships and traditional naval operations. Instead, the US Navy’s Task Force 59 is at the forefront of integrating AI and robotics into naval operations. With a fleet of autonomous robot ships, the Navy aims to revolutionize the way wars are fought at sea.

From DSC:
Crap. Ouch. Some things don’t seem to ever change. Few are surprised by this development…but still, this is a mess.


Sam Altman is already nervous about what AI might do in elections — from qz.com by Faustine Ngila; via Sam DeBrule
The OpenAI chief warned about the power of AI-generated media to potentially influence the vote

Altman, who has become the face of the recent hype cycle in AI development, feels that humans could be persuaded politically through conversations with chatbots or fooled by AI-generated media.


Your guide to AI: August 2023 — from nathanbenaich.substack.com by Nathan Benaich

Welcome to the latest issue of your guide to AI, an editorialized newsletter covering key developments in AI policy, research, industry, and startups. This special summer edition (while we’re producing the State of AI Report 2023!) covers our 7th annual Research and Applied AI Summit that we held in London on 23 June.

Below are some of our key takeaways from the event and all the talk videos can be found on the RAAIS YouTube channel here. If this piques your interest to join next year’s event, drop your details here.


Why generative AI is a game-changer for customer service workflows — from venturebeat.com via Superhuman

Gen AI, however, eliminates the lengthy search. It can parse a natural language query, synthesize the necessary information and serve up the answers the agent is looking for in a neatly summarized response, slashing call times dramatically.

BUT ALSO

Sam Altman: “AI Will Replace Customer Service Jobs First” — from theneurondaily.com

Excerpt:

Not only do its AI voices sound exactly like a human, but they can sound exactly like YOU.  All it takes is 6 (six!) seconds of your voice, and voila: it can replicate you saying any sentence in any tone, be it happy, sad, or angry.

The use cases are endless, but here are two immediate ones:

  1. Hyperpersonalized content.
    Imagine your favorite Netflix show but with every person hearing a slightly different script.
  2. Customer support agents. 
    We’re talking about ones that are actually helpful, a far cry from the norm!


AI has a Usability Problem — from news.theaiexchange.com
Why ChatGPT usage may actually be declining; using AI to become a spreadsheet pro

If you’re reading this and are using ChatGPT on a daily basis, congrats – you’re likely in the top couple of %.

For everyone else – AI still has a major usability problem.

From DSC:
Agreed.



From the ‘godfathers of AI’ to newer people in the field: Here are 16 people you should know — and what they say about the possibilities and dangers of the technology. — from businessinsider.com by Lakshmi Varanasi


 
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