AI News & Launches

Ex-OpenAI board member Helen Toner disclosed reasons for Sam Altman's temporary removal as CEO, citing lies to the board and withholding information, including the release of ChatGPT and the structure of company ownership. Trust issues arose, leading to serious discussions about firing him.

Aksh Garg presents Llama 3-V, an open-source multimodal model comparable to GPT4-V, with a smaller model size and lower cost. Achieving 10-20% higher benchmarks than SOTA Llava, Llama 3-V integrates visual understanding into Llama3 using SigLIP for image embedding and a projection block for textual and visual token alignment.

The discussion focuses on reproducing the GPT-2 (124M) model using llm.c, an efficient C/CUDA code, at a low cost of about $20, providing an in-depth guide for the process.

Andrej Karpathy, AI researcher at OpenAI, shares his latest breakthrough in neural network optimization techniques which has garnered significant interest within the deep learning community.

The Sulfur Transport and Deposition Model (STEM), a leading air quality model initially designed to simulate atmospheric sulfur, continues to evolve and find new applications. It plays a crucial role in advancing the understanding of air composition and its changes, thereby informing environmental science and policymaking. STEM is being updated to interface with modern meteorological and land surface models, enabling refined simulations and supporting emerging topics such as environmental justice.

VIVA is an AI-powered creative visual design platform that enables the creation of stunning visual content with the help of artificial intelligence. It streamlines the design process and empowers users to produce professional-level designs effortlessly.

Tonic.ai provides tools and platforms for software and LLM development with a strong focus on data privacy and security. Their offerings include products like Tonic Structural, Tonic Subset, Tonic NoSQL, and Tonic Textual, tailored for various data management needs.

Squire is a context-aware AI assistant designed to streamline the code review process by writing pull request descriptions, reviewing code, and suggesting code changes. It's trusted by fast-shipping teams to improve code quality and accelerate production.

Frontly.ai is a no-code platform that empowers users to build AI-powered apps, automate tasks, and modernize interfaces with easy-to-use tools like Tables, Charts, and Forms. It offers advanced access controls for data management and fully branded client-facing portals.

Lawformer is an AI-powered platform providing legal professionals with an extensive database of clauses and terms, an AI tool for breaking down complex contracts, a learning platform for developing contract drafting skills, and a customizable library of clauses.

Docu Dig offers an AI-driven smart search platform for efficient, secure content search and insights within your documents. It enhances team productivity through advanced AI technology and context-driven search capabilities for various industries including law, healthcare, and finance.

Tykr is a comprehensive platform that functions as both a stock screener and an educational resource for investors. It provides over 40,000 US and international stocks, 1,500 ETFs, and 1,500 cryptocurrencies for screening. Tykr offers straightforward onboarding and step-by-step investing education, aiming to instill clarity and confidence in personal investing.

StartKit.AI provides a comprehensive boilerplate for launching AI SaaS products quickly, without requiring AI experience. It includes pre-built API routes, authentication, user and API limit management, and integrations for payments and emails.

On August 28, 2023, Janelle Shane reported on how AI image recognition models failed to identify a unique, spotless giraffe born at Brights Zoo. Despite their advancements, models like MMICL and InstructBLIP often provide incorrect or inconsistent descriptions when faced with rare phenomena like the spotless giraffe, showcasing the limitations of AI in handling uncommon visuals.

Red Teaming LLM Applications is a beginner-friendly course offered by Coursera, focusing on identifying and evaluating vulnerabilities in large language model applications. Taught by experts Matteo Dora and Luca Martial from DeepLearning.AI, this course equips learners with red teaming techniques and hands-on experience to improve security and reliability of LLM applications.

Jector.ai offers an AI generation tool tailored for studio directors and product photographers. It simplifies creating professional AI-generated backgrounds, reducing reliance on purchasing props and reshooting products. With over 60,000 generations and 200 customers, Jector.ai stands out for its node-based generation history, multilingual support, and community-driven development.

Apple has reportedly sealed a deal with OpenAI to integrate chatbot features in iOS 18 according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Although Apple is incorporating technologies from OpenAI, they are still in talks with Google for its Gemini as an alternative option. Apple continues to develop its in-house Ajax AI model for internal device tasks, while leveraging OpenAI's capabilities for more complex tasks including text and image analysis. Additionally, upcoming iOS 18 is expected to offer custom emoji and other AI-based features.

Rehance.AI is an AI copilot for SaaS applications aimed at enhancing user productivity by allowing the AI to perform every task that a user can. It offers quick setup, and 100 free requests each month with no credit card required.

Mentimeter introduces the AI Menti Builder, enabling users to generate presentations in seconds. It's designed for any type of group interaction, such as meetings or classes, with a focus on engagement and reducing preparation time. The tool allows for quick creation, customization, and interaction with an interactive draft.

StickerAIArt is a unique platform that allows users to create custom stickers from prompts or photographs with stylistic options ranging from anime to Pixar. Quick generation, artistic flair, ready-to-print capability, and seamless sharing are among its top features.

Streaks 66 - Habit Tracker AI is an app that assists users in establishing new habits over a 66-day period, facilitated by an AI-powered Habit Coach. It provides various difficulty modes, reminders, habit sharing, iCloud sync, and in-app purchases for enhanced features.

ChatGPTnotepad.com is an online tool designed to save running notes alongside ChatGPT conversations. It offers a simple and intuitive interface for users to jot down thoughts, ideas, and information without having to switch between different applications or tabs.

Ex-OpenAI board members Helen Toner and Tasha McCauley argue against self-governance for AI firms, stressing the need for regulation to align market forces with the public good. They reflect on their tenure at OpenAI and how it failed to self-govern despite its mission to benefit 'all of humanity.'

Transcription Stream offers a self-hosted transcription and diarization service called Transcription Stream Community Edition, which functions completely offline. It features drag-and-drop functionality, a web interface for file management, summary generation with Ollama and Mistral, and full-text search capabilities with Meilisearch.

The article by Ravi Sawhney on LSE Business Review discusses the impact of generative AI on enhancing workplace productivity. OpenAI's GPT-4o, capable of voice and vision tasks, is poised to transform the knowledge sector. The discussion covers the potential productivity gains, the management of trust issues, and the breakthroughs in multi-agent workflows, which could mimic entire knowledge teams and provide sophisticated problem-solving capabilities.

Codesolvent Blog's latest post details integrating AI CodeGen with low-code application development methods using Solvent-Lowcodr and Vuetify Component Library, which is the first of a series showcasing this acceleration in web app development.

Comigo is an innovative app designed to provide always-on support for individuals with ADHD. It integrates therapy with productivity tools, tailored to each user's needs for enhanced symptom management and personal development. The app offers 24/7 access to CBT, DBT, and ACT therapies, executive function coaching, and intelligent task planning without session limits.

HyperCrawl is the first web crawler tailored for LLM and RAG applications, slashing 95% of retrieval time and increasing efficiency. Designed for ML engineers, it offers asynchronous I/O, concurrency management, efficient resource handling, visited URL tracking, and nested event loop support. Available for free, HyperCrawl is part of HyperLLM's mission to build the future of fast LLMs.

Forloop.ai offers a no-code platform for web scraping and data automation, allowing teams to collect, prepare, and automate data processes quickly without coding. Find documentation, blog posts, and free trials at the website.

Google's AI search has had a notable week, with comical and at times inaccurate search outputs shared in a Twitter thread by @JeremiahDJohns. Examples included dubious replies to queries such as 'smoking while pregnant' and 'how long can I stare at the sun', highlighting several humorous or concerning search results.

UDM14.com is a simple shortcut for accessing AI-free Google searches. Tedium's initiative offers users several AI-less search alternatives such as 'TenBlueLinks' and 'FrogFind', promoting a traditional search experience without AI influence.

A Hacker News discussion focuses on users sharing their custom prompts for fine-tuning the ChatGPT's behavior to better suit their needs. Contributors offer a diverse array of instructions, from demanding terseness and avoiding ethical lectures, to playful requests of referring to PowerShell as 'StupidShell'. The lively conversation is an example of how people are personalizing AI interactions.

Google is actively correcting errors in its AI Overview tool for search, which has been suggesting absurd responses like putting glue on pizzas. Despite a year of beta testing and a proclaimed billion queries, recent cost-cutting optimizations may have been premature. The tech giant identifies these issues primarily with uncommon queries and claims improvements are underway.

Mistral-finetune is a GitHub repository showcasing a lightweight codebase for memory-efficient finetuning of Mistral's models using LoRA. Ideal for A100 or H100 GPUs and optimized for multi-GPU-single-node setups, it offers practical instruction for installation, model download, and setup. The repo includes an Apache 2.0 license, 548 stars, and 37 forks.

Alchemyze is an AI-powered investment platform offering hedge fund quality insights and comprehensive stock analysis. It provides features like stock grading, advanced insights, and custom portfolios to transform investment strategies with technology.

Signal President Meredith Whittaker discusses concerns over power concentration in social media platforms, repercussions of Europe's AI dependency on US tech giants, and frivolity in AI-driven media representations. She also criticizes Telegram's security under Pavel Durov, comments on legislative tech regulation efforts, and announces a six-month stay in Europe.

Darryl Kelly shared a heartwarming experience of exploring his own 'Day One Journal' with his family, using OpenAI's GPT-4o. The use of AI provided meaningful insights and facilitated a deep and memorable interaction with his children.

Google's AI Overviews, an AI-driven summary feature, is under fire after multiple instances of generating inaccurate responses, such as suggesting glue on pizza and spreading misinformation about President Obama. Despite Google's claim of these incidents being rare, ongoing user reports are raising concerns about the potential spread of misinformation and the reliability of AI technologies. This criticism is notably highlighted by Perplexity AI's CEO, who publicly mocked the malfunctions.

Google AI mistakenly suggested that adding glue to pizza sauce could prevent cheese from sliding off, prompting Senior Correspondent Katie Notopoulos to create such a pizza and test the absurd claim. Despite the nonsensical advice, the experiment highlighted concerns about AI-powered search reliability and the potential impact on user trust.

A comprehensive playbook on 'How to win at Enterprise AI' by Sangeet Paul Choudary outlines strategies to succeed with AI adoption within enterprises. It discusses the shift from human-performed services to tasks absorbed by software, the potential of generative AI, and the evolution towards Service-as-a-Software. The playbook is structured across various parts detailing the logic, opportunities, and enterprise context leading to a future of software-dominant workflows. It emphasizes performance over promise, the economics of AI, workflow capture, and the significance of both micro and macro understanding of AI integration in business operations.