Freedom or control? Life or death? You and AI News #3

In this week’s edition - Ep#3 “Freedom or control? Life or death?”

1. AI Executive Order ⚖️: Paving the Way or Overreach? 🛠️
   Is the rise of regulation a good or a bad thing?

2. A tale of two AIs: healthcare good, media bad?
   Healthcare is a boom area for AI — but it’s all fighting in the media.

3. What’s happening in your backyard?
   A today snapshot of AI in 5 industry verticals. What will it look like in 2024?

AI Executive Order ⚖️: Paving the Way or Overreach? 🛠️

^{Is the rise of regulation a good or a bad thing?}

The recent executive order on AI signed by President Biden has received praise for its comprehensive approach in addressing various priorities in AI. Analysts are split about the need and effectiveness of the EO, with its ambitious goals but with challenges facing its implementation, particularly regarding the clarity of enforcement and the roles of federal agencies.

Additionally, while there's optimism about the order's impact on cybersecurity and governance, there's a simultaneous call for additional congressional action and regulatory measures to complement and strengthen the outlined directives.

Rishi Sunak and Elon Musk talk AI at the UK

Sunak noted the growing anxiety that the public feels around AI taking over jobs, and Musk agreed that regulation needs to be heavy-handed to keep the industry in check.

Beware! Understand the motives behind all commentators!

There is a wide range of commentary that ranges from “More regulation and control because AI is an existential threat” to “Less regulation and more freedom because AI the key to human development and life!”

5 reasons why you should be cautious when reading the commentary on AI regulation.

1. Most governments want to increase their control — but why? And is this a good thing? Does your answer depend on your political stance?

2. Will AI be like nuclear proliferation, with little confidence between nations and require UN oversight? But what is the UN’s agenda?

3. AI companies might be privately continuing AI development while publicy pushing for more regulation for competitive advantage.

4. AI activists include those with a “saviour complex” who compare AI to climate change — and they refuse to debate, and sometimes are not experts in AI at all.

5. The everyday person in the street has no voice in AI governance except via the ballot box in democracies: can we trust governments will “do the right thing” for us? Recent history has not proven this is a given.

What does Biden’s EO mean for you❓💻

Companies will be expected to refocus their strategies on compliance, risk mitigation, innovation, and talent development in response to the executive order's directives. If it achieves large scale commercial adaption, then for the everyman it could it mean more ethical and safer use of AI technologies.

Governments beyond the US appear to be aligned with words, but will they follow through with actions?

Want to read more? News coverage here.

5 key take-aways.

1. Stringent Safety Standards for the public🦺: The Executive Order enforces rigorous safety testing for high-risk AI models before their public release to ensure safety, security, and trustworthiness.

2. Privacy Protection and Legislation 🔏: Prioritizing federal support for privacy-preserving AI techniques, the Order urges Congress to pass bipartisan data privacy laws while emphasizing the development of privacy-preserving technologies.

3. Promoting Equity and Civil Rights👩‍⚖️: The Order aims to prevent discrimination by providing guidance in various sectors such as housing, justice, and healthcare, ensuring AI does not exacerbate biases.

4. Consumer Protection and Worker Support 🦾: Focused on consumer safety and worker support, it advances AI in healthcare and education, advocating for safe and beneficial AI tools.

5. Enhancing Global Leadership and Governmental Use 🌍: Aimed at global leadership in AI, the Order focuses on international collaboration, setting AI standards, and ensuring responsible AI use within the government.

A tale of two AIs: healthcare good, media bad?

^{Healthcare is a boom area for AI — but it’s all fighting in the media.}

AI Evolution: Is AI saving lives 🏥 and curing cancer?😷 

A study presented at the EADV Congress 2023 revealed that the latest AI software for skin cancer detection achieved a 100% sensitivity in identifying melanoma and remarkably high detection rates for skin cancers and pre-cancerous lesions, showcasing significant improvements from earlier versions. 

Read the press release here. 

📰💡 News Media vs. AI Giants: Clash Over Content Control & Revenue Impact!

The News Media Alliance asserts that AI companies like Google and OpenAI predominantly utilize content generated by news publishers to train their generative AI systems, which subsequently compete directly against these same publishers, forming the core argument outlined in their recent report. News Media Alliance is concerned about AI systems like Google Bard and Bing Chat using publishers' content, potentially impacting traffic and revenue, while Google believes online content should be available for AI training, leading to tensions over content usage and control without comprehensive publisher control over their content's AI use.

• Read the news coverage here

What does this mean for you❓💻 This directly affects the way content is used and controlled by AI systems, potentially impacting publishers' revenue streams, content authenticity, and the overall flow of information online. Although News Media Alliance is concerned about publishers' workflow- this should be front of mind for artists, entrepreneurs and business owners alike.

What is happening your backyard?

^{A today snapshot of AI in 5 industry verticals. What will it look like in 2024?}

In previous editions, we’ve highlighted where the money is going in AI. In this edition we want to introduce ten industry verticals and quickly list the latest news on AI from inside that industry. In future editions we want to go deep into each vertical and invite guest writers with expertise in a vertical to give their inside perspective.

This list is unordered.

1. Healthcare

• Brain imaging investment.

• LLMs can identify muscular pain centres.

• Better predictions for cancer survival, depression, and blood clots.

2. Financial Services

• “Two sides of the coin”, speech by Jessica Rusu, FCA Chief Data, Information and Intelligence Officer, at the City and Financial Global AI Regulation Summit 2023.

• 3 Ways that Generative AI can improve financial services (Crush/Romeo fraud, CFO insights, Go to market).

• Customer support, CIO of Encore Bank

  

3. Technology

• Use AI in Seconds (with your data) with Snowflake Cortex.

4. Retail and Consumer Goods

• Amazon Field-Testing Awe-Inspiring Digit Bipedal Robot.

• Matic introduces a cleaning robot.

5. Media

• Elon embeds AI into X with “Grok” — people have fewer reasons to leave X (to go read news sites).