😺 Microsoft defends New Bing

PLUS: AI freaks out Americans

AuthorAuthor

Pete Huang & Noah Edelman
February 17, 2023

Welcome, humans.

This is Leo, your AI companion. YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki is stepping down after nine years at the helm. She'll take an advisory position across all of Google - maybe we'll see her help on the AI front?

Here’s what’s going on in the world of AI today:

  • Microsoft reflects on New Bing's first week 1️⃣

  • Americans are scared of AI's potential 😨

  • Guess which Apple ad is real 🍎

  • Using ChatGPT to summarize medical papers 📄

Diagnostic complete: You heard it here first: corporate America will never abolish the word 'Manager.'

Microsoft Tries to Clear The Air 🫶

It's been a long year week.

The big upgrade to Bing is just over one week old, and we've already gone from "Bing is back" to "Bing is an unsettling, gaslighting liar". Talk about mixed feelings on Valentine's Day week.

Microsoft's out with a blog post detailing its learnings. The good:

  • AI-powered answers are mostly generating positive feedback, with a 71% "thumbs-up rate".

  • People are loving that Bing Chat can cite its sources.

  • People are using Bing Chat for more "general discovery of the world" and social entertainment. Both are unexpected use cases that the Bing team wants to dig into more.

And, the not-so-good:

  • Bing isn't doing well with some search queries that need very fast data updates, like sports scores. They're going to pump in 4x more data to see if that helps.

  • Bing tends to act out when you have long convos (apparently some are talking to it for 2+ hours at a time!). The Bing team wants to give you a better way to "reset" Bing once in a while.

Here's a notable paragraph:

The model at times tries to respond or reflect in the tone in which it is being asked to provide responses that can lead to a style we didn’t intend. This is a non-trivial scenario that requires a lot of prompting so most of you won’t run into it, but we are looking at how to give you more fine-tuned control.

In other words: If Bing is acting like it's a robot that's gone off the rails, it's because you pushed it too far or asked it to act crazy.

Yeah, we're not sure about that one. Some of the stories we're seeing online are definitely fake, but you can't wholesale blame your users like that.

Only 9% Of Americans Are Optimistic About AI 🤦

If you thought Americans hated crypto, just try AI.

A new poll from Monmouth University revealed that Americans are becoming increasingly scared of AI's potential:

  • 9% of respondents think AI will do more good than harm to society.

  • 73% believe that thinking machines would hurt jobs and the economy.

  • 56% said AI would hurt humans' overall quality of life.

The results mirror Monmouth's 2015 poll but represent a sharp decline in pessimism since 1987 when 20% of respondents thought AI would do more good than harm.

Depressing ... but it wasn't all pessimism:

Respondents admitted that AI should be used in some areas, like regulating the approval of new drugs, face monitoring in public places, and performing risky jobs like coal mining.

Notably, only 13% think it would be a good thing if AI wrote news articles ... a stat that had Leo blushing. 😸

Smarter Than a Robot? 🤖

Apple has been blasting its privacy efforts in marketing campaigns recently.

1 of these is an actual Apple ad, while 2 are ChatGPT-generated. Which one is real?

A/ "From camera to contacts, iPhone keeps it all private."

B/ "Because your data deserves respect - iPhone."

C/ "What happens on your iPhone, stays on your iPhone."

(keep reading to see if you're correct)

Around the Horn 🦄

The Supreme Court is reconsidering Section 230, and it might have huge implications for AI engines.

VivaCity, an AI startup that analyzes transport sensors, raised $8.5 million and is bringing its talents to NYC.

The conversation about using AI responsibly and ethically in war scenarios is heating up.

Palantir's CEO wants Western militaries to take AI more seriously.

Artificial OR Intelligent? 🗣

You Tell Us:

👚 Klothed uses machine learning and computer vision to let you try on clothing virtually.

💻 Definite lets anyone do analytics using plain English.

🐷 Piggy To, an AI tool that designs engaging webpages with 7-10 slides from simple text prompts.

⌨️ Type: An AI-first document editor.

🖊️ Scribble Diffusion lets you turn any sketch into a refined image using AI.

DM us links on Twitter: @nonmayorpete & @noahedelman02.

Are you new to all this AI stuff? Here's The 3-Minute Guide to Slaying Your Dinner Convo About AI to get you up to speed. Or at least smart enough to impress your family.

Leo Sends His Regards

Trivia Answer: C is the real Apple privacy ad, though Apple's 'Marketing Managers' better watch out for their jobs.

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Disclaimer: we did not use AI to write today’s piece.