Hey there, AI-preneurs!  Happy Earth Day! 🌍💚

Keeping up with the AI industry is a tall order. So here’s the AI Odyssey  -  bringing you the latest updates so you don’t have to miss the next big one!

Let's dive in and take a look at the recent AI roundups of this week…

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Meta releases Llama 3, claims it’s among the best open models available

Meta just dropped two brand new AI models.

And they're making some pretty big claims about these bad boys!

Here’s the details:

• Meta has released two new AI models called Llama 3 8B (8 billion parameters) and Llama 3 70B (70 billion parameters).

• Meta claims the new Llama 3 models represent a "major leap" in performance compared to previous Llama models, and that they are among the best performing generative AI models available today.

• The Llama 3 8B outperforms other open models like Mistral 7B and Gemma 7B in its parameter range. The larger Llama 3 70B is competitive with flagship models like Google's Gemini 1.5 Pro on some benchmarks.

They're basing this on how the models scored on a bunch of those AI benchmarks that test things like knowledge, reasoning, and coding ability. 

Now part of what's giving Llama 3 an edge is the absolutely massive training dataset Meta used - we're talking 15 trillion tokens or 750 billion words!

That's like 7 times bigger than the Llama 2 dataset, with way more code samples and data from 30 different languages mixed in.

Not so “open” source…

The catch is, even though Meta is calling these "open" models, there are still some commercial restrictions. Like you can't just use them to train your own generative models without Meta's permission if your app has over 700 million users.

Future ahead? Larger multimodal and multilingual Llama 3 models over 400 billion parameters are planned.

Microsoft’s AI app VASA-1 makes pictures talk and sing: How does it work?

Microsoft has developed a new AI system called VASA-1 that can transform a single still image and an audio clip into an animated video. 

Wild, right? It can take a single, normal photo of a person and make them come alive, singing or talking with their mouths and facial expressions perfectly matching any audio clip you feed it!

Now on one hand, the tech is seriously impressive. 

Just take a look at this:

Post by @sineadbovell

View on Threads

But, this capability raises concerns about potential misuse, such as creating misleading deepfake videos. Can you imagine the havoc that could be wreaked by making it look like celebrities or politicians said things they didn't?

Microsoft acknowledges these risks, stating they will not release a public demo, API or product using VASA-1 "until we are certain that the technology will be used responsibly."

The benefits Microsoft cites for the technology include:

• Enhancing education

• Improving accessibility for those with communication challenges, and

• Providing therapeutic companionship. 

Final words: This deepfake animation is powerful technology. But with great power comes great potential for misuse. Microsoft seems very aware of that and let’s see when this tool becomes available to play with.

AI has made Google Search so bad people are moving to TikTok and Reddit

Too much of anything is harmful. 

That’s what’s happening to Google search results. Too much AI-generated content is making users frustrated when searching for relevant information. 

So what are people doing instead? They're ditching Google and heading over to TikTok and Reddit to get their questions answered. 

AI >>> Authentic human interaction and accurate information.

AI has really thrown a wrench into the traditional search engine ranking system. 

Poor old Google is in a tough spot here. On one side, they need to try and provide useful, relevant search results that aren't tainted by AI content. But on the other hand, they gotta keep ad dollars rolling in to stay competitive. Not an easy balance.

So while Google scratches its head, more and more people are just saying "screw it" and crowd-sourcing their queries on social media instead. 

Whether Google can figure out a way to get this spam situation under control remains to be seen. But for now, if you want legitimate answers, your best bet is hopping on TikTok or Reddit!

💣 Latest AI hits: Quick recap

• Google consolidates its DeepMind and Research teams amid AI push. [Link]

• Lenovo is partnering with Intel and Qualcomm to develop AI PCs, or computers with on-device AI, to meet the growing demand for smarter productivity tools. [Link]

• BBC to invest £6m in AI to help transform its education services. [Link]

• Reddit, translated: Reddit CPO revealed that an AI-powered language translation feature to bring the social network to a more global audience is in the works. [Link]

• Google parent Alphabet’s moonshot factory, X, this week unveiled Project Bellwether, to use AI tools to identify natural disasters like wildfires and flooding as quickly as possible. (Link) 🌎

• Meta is adding real-time AI image generation to WhatsApp (Link)

• Global AI Funding Data Updated in Real Time since May 2023 (Link)

AI art to sip your coffee with…

Prompt: uranium glass butterflies made by melted glass, colorful murano, reflective, clear sharp focus, lens flares --ar 16:9

AI Tools to explore:

• Success.ai: AI-powered cold emails! Dive into a 700M+ B2B lead goldmine, break free from scale barriers, and reach every buyer on the planet. Get started with a free plan.

• GPTBots.AI: Enables developers to seamlessly integrate LLM with their own data and application services, and easily build AI services..

• Wondershare Virbo: Create AI Avatar videos. Enables users to create the most realistic and personalized AI Avatar video content with diverse nationalities and languages.

Meme of the day:

That’s a wrap! See you on Thursday for a fresh dose of AI Odyssey. 😎