IBM and Meta launch AI alliance

Pivot 5: 5 stories. 5 minutes a day. 5 days a week.

1. IBM and Meta launch AI alliance

IBM and Meta have initiated the AI Alliance, collaborating with over 50 entities like AMD and NASA, to advance open, safe, and responsible AI. This coalition aims to create an open community for AI development, focusing on responsible innovation, scientific rigor, safety, and diversity.

The Alliance addresses AI safety concerns and provides a platform for developing global solutions. It counters recent trends towards closed, proprietary AI development and debates on AI risks, promoting open innovation and developing benchmarks for safe AI behavior.

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2. Microsoft upgrades Copilot with GPT-4, DALL-E 3

Microsoft is upgrading its Copilot service with OpenAI's GPT-4 Turbo and DALL-E 3, marking significant advancements in AI-driven assistance. GPT-4 Turbo enhances language understanding and generation, improving Copilot's efficiency in responding to user queries.

The integration of DALL-E 3 expands Copilot's capabilities in creative and accurate visual outputs. These updates are part of Microsoft's commitment to leveraging cutting-edge AI technology to enhance user experience and productivity, offering more advanced tools for various tasks.

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3. Visual Electric's AI-powered image generator

Visual Electric, backed by Sequoia Capital, has launched a generative AI-based image generation tool specifically for designers. Founded by Colin Dunn, Adam Menges, and Zach Stiggelbout, the platform addresses the linear limitations of existing AI image creation tools by focusing on the non-linear creative process.

It offers a user-friendly interface for inputting prompts to generate images, with options for color palettes, formats, and moods. The tool includes features like touch-up, upscaling, and a creativity slider for image variations, using Stable Diffusion and GPT models for prompt suggestions.

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4. Elon Musk seeks $1 billion for X.AI

X.AI, an AI startup founded by Elon Musk, has filed with the SEC to raise up to $1 billion in an equity offering. The company focuses on understanding the universe's true nature and has launched Grok, a chatbot with a unique blend of wit and rebelliousness.

X.AI aims to compete with major AI players like OpenAI's ChatGPT and Google's Bard. The startup has already secured nearly $135 million from four investors and has agreements for the remaining shares. X.AI's team includes alumni from DeepMind, OpenAI, and Google Research.

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5. AI revives Jimmy Stewart's voice in Calm

Calm has launched "It's a Wonderful Sleep Story," a new holiday tale inspired by "It's a Wonderful Life," featuring the AI-generated voice of Jimmy Stewart. The voice recreation was done by Respeecher, a Kyiv-based startup known for its work in "The Mandalorian" and "Cyberpunk 2077's Phantom Liberty DLC."

The process involved another actor doing an impression of Stewart, with Respeecher's CEO emphasizing the project's adherence to high ethical standards. The initiative was undertaken with the express consent of Stewart's family and estate, reflecting the growing trend of using AI to recreate voices and digital likenesses in entertainment.

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