The sci-fi/thriller fan in me often looks at developments like this and wonders what terrorists are going to do with this technology one day. Seems like a perfect way to destroy underwater cables and oil rigs.
I wonder with all the billions investors are pouring into OpenAI, did they even hire one single competent lawyer? Maybe they sacked them when they got rid of all the ethics people.
Can't innovate or compete on the global stage? Use tariffs and National Security as an excuse.
A new report says many of the world's biggest companies are actively working to undermine democracy.
No shit
It's obvious to some of us, but not to many. Hence why it's so important to keep saying it. Particularly at a UN summit about the future.
It's bizarre that in 2024 the UN permanent security council has two European countries (three if you count Russia as Europe) and zero representation from Africa, India or South America. It seems like a strange relic from the past where France and the British Empire were still world powers.
People often criticize the UN for being a toothless talking shop. While that criticism has plenty of merit, it still has some effectiveness.
In particular, this shows a commitment to the direction of travel of global society in the 21st century. It recognizes the danger of AI and warfare and of warfare spreading to outer space.
I was surprised by how much of it was about rejecting current models of financing and International Development. Again, there is only a weak commitment to concrete action right now, but it indicates where majority thinking is heading.
With the issue of hallucinations. There is no sign of a solution to this problem and it renders much of the potential applications useless. It doesn't matter in art generation, but I would never want to trust it with a life or death decision, or even one that was slightly important.
*So, what exactly is this device? That remains one of the biggest questions. According to The Times, Ive and Altman have discussed how generative AI could revolutionize the way people interact with computers. Their vision is to create a device that can handle complex tasks far beyond the capabilities of traditional software. It’s rumored that last year’s discussions were inspired by touchscreen technology, potentially taking cues from the original iPhone.
I am simultaneously intrigued and mystified. I'm trying to figure out how a combination of a touchscreen and generated AI could be a revolutionary new advanced way to interact with software. I guess we will have to wait and see.
I think renewable energy's decentralized nature is one of its most underappreciated features. You could never imagine a local community building a conventional electricity plant, they are centralized and that is the job of government.
I suspect the future will have much more local decentralized projects of this nature. When you can have robots running factories without the need for humans, why not self-finance and build these at the community level too? It's entirely feasible, and many people will want to do such things. It's initiatives like this that make me doubt the future will be dystopian.
Rough calculations suggest that, on current trends, adding 12 hours of storage to the entire US grid would cost around $500 billion and pay for itself within a few years. By contrast, upgrading the US transmission grid could cost $7 trillion over 20 years.
Counterintuitively, electricity cables under the North Atlantic might be much more economical. It would not have the eminent domain and construction complexities of upgrading the US continental land grid. If this cost estimate is accurate, it may be much cheaper.
Is it really much more secure though? Wouldn't one well-placed underwater bomb knock it out of action for weeks or months?
If security was your top priority, surely decentralized microgrids with widely dispersed battery grid storage would be much more effective?
Chinese companies often get accused of copying Western technology, so it's unusual to hear the CEO of such a major Western company bucking that assumption by calling on Western companies to copy China.
What Jim Farley is saying about cars is equally true about 21st century energy infrastructure. There is no doubt that China is the global leader in innovation there too.
Meanwhile in many Western countries, debate still centers around persuading some people that the energy transition to renewables is real and the age of fossil fuels can't end quickly enough. Hostility to renewables, EVs and the energy transition gives China the edge.
Next up we can expect China to race ahead in robotics.
If you are an optimist or even a glass-half-full kind of person, sometimes it can be hard to miss the good news among all the doom and gloom that social media promotes. The story of our energy transition to renewables is surely good news. Chiefly because it will help us alleviate climate change, but there is another under-reported and under-appreciated aspect of the energy transition.
As energy production becomes decentralized and in the hands of individuals and small communities it smashes the power of centralized top-heavy states, authoritarians, and autocrats.
Some people have nightmare visions of the future where humans are reduced to powerless serfs. However if you can live in a world where you can generate your own energy off-grid, and AI can provide for many of your other needs, perhaps with robotics helping with local and personal food production - then who the hell is going to want to be a serf-slave in some horrible Hollywood sci-fi dystopia that we know from movies?
As sad as this topic is, this is a much better way to go than a prolonged miserable painful death where you suffer the last months of a terminal disease.