Okay, you ready for a wild ride?
That's an understatement.
Today, we're diving deep into the world
of artificial intelligence.
And trust me, things are moving faster than you might think.
It's like watching a rocket take off.
I know, right?
AI is advancing at an incredible pace,
and this deep dive is just scratching the surface.
I was listening to my usual
Winemaker's Daily Brief podcast this morning.
Uh-huh.
You know, expecting the usual vineyard updates
and maybe some new cork technology.
You're gonna have to tell me more about that wine podcast.
But no, front and center was a story about open AI,
and let me tell you, it's a real head scratcher.
Okay, what's the scoop?
Apparently, some big names have left the company,
and everyone is wondering what's going on.
It's a big deal because we're talking about
some of the biggest names in AI.
Yeah, I felt a little starstruck reading their bios.
Mir Moradi, the CTO who brought us ChatGPT and Dellie,
Ilya Sitzgever, one of the co-founders,
and even the research VP all out the door
at roughly the same time.
These are the rock stars of AI.
It's like a band breaking up.
And it makes you wonder, why would they leave now?
What's the story here?
That's the million dollar question.
It seems to coincide with rumors of open AI restructuring.
They're moving away from their original nonprofit model,
and it looks like they're heading
toward becoming a for-profit powerhouse.
Wait, $150 billion.
They're even talking about a valuation of $150 billion.
For a company that, as far as I understand,
still hasn't figured out how to make AI
that doesn't occasionally go rogue.
That seems like a lot of faith to put in algorithms.
That's a valid concern.
Some experts are ringing the alarm bells,
saying that these valuations are getting
ahead of the actual progress, and that focusing on profit
could actually hurt responsible development of AI.
So open AI is potentially pivoting
towards a more commercial model,
while the people who championed ethical AI development
are heading for the exits.
There are some real concerns about how this shift might
affect the future of AI.
It feels like something is shifting.
Absolutely.
And it gets even more interesting
when you consider Sam Altman's vision for an intelligence age.
An intelligence age.
You mean AI assistance becoming as commonplace
as smartphones today?
I'm all for an AI that helps me pick the perfect wine
pairing for dinner.
But a part of me wonders if we're rushing into something
we don't fully understand.
It's definitely a double edged sword.
Altman himself acknowledges the ethical landmines
we need to avoid.
There's bias in algorithms, job displacement, privacy concerns.
It's a big list.
OK, let's unpack this intelligence age
idea a bit further.
What exactly does Altman envision?
He's painting a picture of AI transforming
every aspect of our lives.
Education, health care, even climate change.
He sees AI as a solution to our biggest problems.
It sounds incredible, almost utopian.
That's a big leap of faith.
But what I'm hearing is that his vision hinges on AI evolving
from where it is now, impressive,
but flawed, into something far more sophisticated and, dare
I say, trustworthy.
Open AI, under Altman's leadership,
is chasing this grand vision of the intelligence age
while wrestling with the real world challenges of building AI
that's both powerful and responsible.
It feels like we're standing at the foot of a very tall
mountain, unsure if we have the right gear
or even if the climb is worth the risk.
But before we get lost in the philosophical implications,
I have to ask about something that feels tangible, almost
ripped from a science fiction movie.
Lionsgate and their AI filmmaking venture.
Exactly.
Lionsgate, the studio behind action packed blockbusters
like John Wick, is partnering with an AI startup called
Runway to, get this, help them make movies.
It's fascinating, isn't it?
Hold on.
AI is going to be directing Keanu Reeves next.
Imagine AI generating storyboards,
creating visual effects, even editing footage.
And they're training it on Lionsgate's massive library
of films.
I'm both terrified and strangely excited by this concept.
Mm.
OK, so we've got AI potentially directing Keanu Reeves.
Well, not quite robots demanding top billing just yet.
Part of me is wondering if the robots are going to be
asking for headshots next.
Think of it more as a collaboration.
But seriously, what are the practical implications
of this partnership?
Imagine AI analyzing what makes a John Wick film work visually.
The pacing, the action sequences.
OK.
It could then assist filmmakers in replicating
those elements, potentially saving time and money
in the process.
OK, so faster, potentially cheaper filmmaking.
Right.
But what about the human element?
What about the writers, the editors, the visual effects
artists?
Yeah.
Are they going to be replaced by algorithms?
That's the million dollar question.
And it's already causing a stir in Hollywood.
Some people see AI as a tool to enhance creativity,
while others are worried about job displacement
and what it means for the future of human artistry.
Right.
There are even lawsuits popping up
with artists claiming copyright infringement
because the AI was trained using their work without permission.
So it's the same ethical tightrope
we see with open AI just playing out on the big screen.
It seems to be a recurring theme.
Are we sacrificing artistic integrity and potentially
livelihoods for faster, cheaper, and maybe less inspiring
entertainment?
It's a slippery slope and a debate that's far from over.
Yeah.
What's clear is that AI is no longer
confined to Silicon Valley.
It's true.
It's knocking on Hollywood's door,
and the implications for the future of entertainment
are enormous.
And speaking of enormous implications,
let's shift gears to something else that caught my eye.
OK.
This whole humanities last exam thing.
The humanities last exam, tell me more.
It sounds like the title of a high stakes thriller,
but I'm guessing the reality is a bit less Hollywood
and a lot more nuanced.
Definitely more nuanced.
OK.
Remember, this isn't about AI becoming sentient or turning
against us.
It's about assessing its capabilities
in a rigorous, standardized way.
OK.
Think of it like setting a really high bar
to see what AI can achieve.
OK, so how do you even begin to design
a test for something as complex and rapidly evolving as AI?
It's a challenge for sure.
I mean, are we talking multiple choice questions
or some kind of supercharged Turing test?
It's way more intricate than that.
The team behind humanities last exam
is crowdsourcing at least 1,000 questions
from leading experts across a huge range of disciplines.
So anyone can submit a question for this AI super exam?
Well, not just anyone.
They're looking for questions that
require deep, specialized knowledge
and abstract reasoning.
Oh, wow.
It's like the world's toughest job interview, but for AI?
So if I'm following you, it's not about tricking the AI
or testing its knowledge of trivia.
It's about challenging its ability
to think critically, to problem solve, and maybe even
demonstrate a level of understanding
that goes beyond simply processing information.
You've got it.
Wow.
And to make sure it's a fair test,
they're keeping some of the questions secret.
Really?
That way AI systems can't be trained
on the answers beforehand.
Sneaky.
It's like a pop quiz to see if AI can really
think on its feet.
Exactly.
But what happens if an AI actually aces this exam?
Well, let's not get ahead of ourselves.
And there's their prize.
There is a $500,000 prize pool.
Wow.
OK.
But beyond the money, though, the real reward
is the advancement of AI research.
So it's less about crowning a single AI overlord
and more about pushing the boundaries
of what's possible in the field.
Exactly.
Think of it as a catalyst for innovation.
By creating this incredibly challenging benchmark,
we're not just testing existing AI.
We're also inspiring the development
of even more sophisticated systems in the future.
It's like that old saying, a rising tide lifts all boats.
But in this case, it's a really, really hard exam
pushing the entire field of AI forward.
And here's the thing.
It's not just about the AI.
OK.
This whole endeavor is a testament
to the power and diversity of human intelligence.
It takes brilliant minds from all walks of life
to even come up with these questions,
let alone answer them.
You've got a point there.
It's like we're celebrating human ingenuity at the same time
as we're challenging ourselves to create something that
might one day surpass it.
It's a fascinating paradox.
And it speaks to the very heart of our relationship with AI.
We're both the creators and potentially the students
in this grand experiment.
I love that analogy.
And speaking of being students, I feel like I need a crash
course in just how AI works its magic,
or should I say its algorithms, before we can even
begin to grasp the implications of all this.
An excellent segue.
Because to understand the potential
and the limitations of AI, we need to peel back the layers
and see what's really going on under the hood.
All right.
So we've talked about the what of AI,
the groundbreaking applications, the ethical questions swirling
around, and even the idea of AI taking tests.
But what about the how?
What's actually going on inside those silicon brains?
At its heart, a lot of the AI we're talking about
relies on something called machine learning.
Machine learning.
It sounds so, well, mechanical.
Is it really as simple as feeding a computer
a bunch of data and letting it loose?
It's simpler in a way, but also way more complex than that.
Imagine teaching a child to recognize a cat.
You wouldn't just say, it's a furry animal with four
legs and a tail.
You'd show them pictures of cats, tons of them,
in different positions with different fur.
To help them learn what a cat looks like.
Exactly.
Machine learning works in a similar way.
We feed algorithms huge amounts of data images, text, code,
and they learn to spot patterns, make predictions, even
generate new content based on what they've learned.
So when we talk about chat GPT writing poetry or deli
creating those mind blowing images,
it's not actually thinking like we do.
No, not really.
It's more like it's learned to mimic human creativity
by analyzing a mountain of existing work.
That's a great way to put it.
It's pattern recognition on a massive scale.
But instead of numbers, it's manipulating language, images,
even musical notes.
OK, that makes a certain kind of sense,
even if it is mind boggling.
It is pretty wild when you think about it.
But if it's all just patterns and algorithms,
where do things like bias come in?
That's the key point.
AI doesn't come from nowhere.
It's shaped by the data it learns from.
And that data often reflects our own biases, our blind spots,
even our best and worst impulses.
It's like if you train a language model on all
of Twitter, it might pick up some less than desirable habits.
Precisely.
And that's why the responsible development of AI
is so important.
It's not just about making sure the algorithms work.
It's about making sure that the data itself is representative,
inclusive, and as free from harmful biases as possible.
It's like they say garbage in, garbage out.
But with the potential for that garbage
to have a much wider and more damaging impact.
Exactly.
As we stand here on the edge of this intelligence age,
it's not just about being amazed by the technology.
It's about asking tough questions
about what kind of future we're building with AI
and how we can make sure it benefits everyone.
I couldn't agree more.
We're at a crossroads.
It feels like it.
And the decisions we make today will determine whether AI
becomes a force for good or just ends up
making existing inequalities even worse.
A lot to think about.
But that's what we do here on the deep dive, right?
That's right.
We explore these fascinating complex topics
and hopefully leave you with more questions and answers.
And maybe even more importantly, to keep
asking the right questions.
Absolutely.
So to our listeners, if this deep dive
into the world of AI has sparked your curiosity, keep digging.
There's a whole universe of information out there.
And who knows, maybe you'll be the one
to make the next big breakthrough,
write the next chapter in the story
of artificial intelligence.
Or even help write the rules for how
this powerful technology shapes our future.
Beautifully said.
Thank you.
On that note, we'll leave you to ponder the possibilities.
Until next time.
Keep exploring, keep questioning,
and keep diving deep.