Beginners in AI

Thank you for joining us again!

Welcome to this week's edition of Beginners in AI, where we explore the latest trends, tools, and news in the world of AI and the tech that surrounds it. Like all editions, this is human curated and published with the intention of making AI news and technology more accessible to everyone.

This week, xAI’s Grok 3 is making waves, promising to reshape the AI landscape in a multitude of ways. Meanwhile, Google’s AI co-scientist is accelerating discoveries, Microsoft is pushing quantum computing to new heights, and Fiverr is redefining freelancing with AI-driven royalties. Plus, we look at a flying car in action, where to try Google’s advanced AI video generation, and another robotic breakthrough that’s bringing humanoids closer to real-world tasks in the home.

AI TOP STORY
HEADLINE OF THE TOP STORY

Grok 3: The AI Model Poised to Redefine the Industry

What is Grok-3?
Elon Musk’s xAI has unveiled Grok-3, the latest iteration of its AI model designed to compete with OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Google Gemini, and even DeepSeek. This new model promises superior reasoning, enhanced contextual understanding, and faster response times. Built to integrate natively with X (formerly Twitter) and to function as both a standalone phone app and accessible by web browser, Grok-3 is a step toward Musk’s vision of AI that prioritizes real-time data over traditional, static training methods. The current release is considered an early version, as the model is continuously training. It is also available to try for free for the time being.

How is it Different?
Grok-3 reportedly outperforms its predecessors with improvements in multimodal capabilities, handling text, code, and potentially images in various benchmarks. Unlike ChatGPT and Gemini, which rely on general training updates, Grok-3 leverages direct access to X’s social data, allowing it to process trending topics in real time. And this is really what's going to matter in the long run when it comes to AI companies. The amount of new data that they will have access to and be able to leverage, not just in the training of the AI models with knowledge cutoff dates, but in the ability for those models to understand the physical world in real time. Grok has a unique advantage over competitors in that it will have access to all of the data flowing through X, in addition to Tesla Vision from Tesla vehicles driving all around the world, and potentially Optimus robots walking in all of the places that vehicles can’t go. Google(Gemini AI models) and Meta(Llama AI models), also have their own vast sources of data inflows from their main businesses to draw upon in this AI competition.

What to Take Away
This development could reshape AI interaction by prioritizing real-time learning over periodic model refreshes. It also highlights xAI’s growing ambition to challenge OpenAI, which Musk helped co-found, but later distanced himself from. If Grok-3 delivers on its promises, it could push the entire industry toward faster, more adaptable AI models that evolve alongside live data streams, impacting sectors from social media to finance and even space travel, if Grok is incorporated into the mission to Mars that Musk is planning.

Read More

THE WEEK IN AI AND TECH

Sky's the Limit

Footage(notably shot from a distance by reporters) has emerged of a flying car lifting off over another car, showcasing the potential of new transportation technologies. The vehicle, developed by Alef Aeronautics, is 100% electric and features distributed electric propulsion, allowing for vertical takeoff and flight over congested areas. The prototype tested, the Alef Model Zero, demonstrated the feasibility of such technology, with plans for a commercial version, the Alef Model A, which will seat two passengers and offer both driving and flying capabilities. Cars may have become more sophisticated with added computer systems, but the method by which we travel in them has not. This could be the next big leap in how people get around. Alef is already taking pre-orders.

Read More

AI Lab Partner

Google has introduced an AI 'co-scientist' designed to collaborate with researchers. This virtual assistant can generate hypotheses, analyze data, and expedite scientific discoveries, aiming to accelerate research across various fields. Built with Gemini 2.0, the AI co-scientist functions as a multi-agent system, capable of autonomously proposing novel research directions and identifying knowledge gaps. Early collaborations with institutions like Stanford University and Imperial College London have demonstrated its potential, including the independent hypothesis of a new gene transfer mechanism and the suggestion of drugs for treating liver fibrosis.

Read More

Quantum Leap

Microsoft has announced the development of 'Majorana 1,' a new quantum computing architecture. This chip aims to host up to one million qubits(the fundamental unit of information in quantum computing), potentially overcoming current limitations in quantum computing and paving the way for more stable and scalable systems. The Majorana 1 architecture utilizes topological qubits which are designed to be more stable and less prone to errors caused by environmental noise. By leveraging Majorana quasiparticles, Microsoft aims to create a reliable foundation for large-scale quantum computations, potentially revolutionizing fields that require complex data processing.

Read More

Freelance Future

Fiverr has launched 'Fiverr Go,' a platform enabling freelancers to create and manage personalized AI models. This initiative allows creatives to train AI with their own work, ensuring they retain control and receive proper compensation, defying expectations that the gig economy would collapse from the rapid adoption of AI tools by consumers. Fiverr Go offers tools for various professions, including voiceover artists, songwriters, graphic designers, and copywriters, allowing them to scale their services without compromising their creative integrity. The platform also includes an AI-powered personal assistant to handle routine tasks and client communications, enhancing efficiency for freelancers.

Read More

Google’s Veo 2 Brings AI Video Magic to Freepik

Google has partnered with Freepik to launch its advanced AI video generation model, Veo 2, on the Freepik platform. This collaboration makes Freepik the first platform globally to integrate Veo 2, offering users the ability to create videos with exceptional realism, precision, and smooth animations. Veo 2 excels at crafting high-fidelity textures, accurately simulating real-life physics(a problem for many AI), and producing cinematic-quality results, especially when provided with detailed prompts and extensive camera controls(use this guide). The model supports up to 4K resolution and can generate videos longer than two minutes, although the current platform limits output to 720p and eight seconds. The first 10,000 users to register receive two free video creations.

Read More

TECH TERMS TO KNOW

The word "grok" comes from Robert A. Heinlein's 1961 science fiction novel Stranger in a Strange Land involving a man from Mars. It means to deeply and intuitively understand something, almost as if becoming one with it. The term suggests more than just knowledge—it implies a profound, almost instinctive comprehension.

In the context of Elon Musk's "Grok AI", the name suggests an AI designed to grasp information in a deep, insightful way, beyond simple data processing. The implication is that the AI doesn't just analyze but truly understands concepts in a meaningful manner. It's also a reminder of Musk's grand desire for humans to one day colonize Mars.

TOOL SPOTLIGHT (non-sponsored)

Browser Use is a 100% open-source AI agent designed to automate web-based tasks, similar to OpenAI's Operator but with some key differences:

Key Features

AI-Driven Automation: Browser Use enables AI agents to control and interact with web browsers effectively, performing tasks like web scraping, form filling, and data extraction.

Open-Source Flexibility: As an open-source project, Browser Use offers high customizability and adaptability for developers.

Cost-Effective: It's free to use for those who can download and implement it off of Github, but also comes with with a cloud version available for $30 a month for non-developers to use from their web browser.

ROBOTICS AND AI

Startup Figure has unveiled 'Helix,' an AI breakthrough designed to enhance the capabilities of humanoid robots. The robots will run on this in-house operating system, ending their OpenAI collaboration. Helix enables these robots to autonomously perform complex tasks, such as picking up virtually any small household object. In a recent demonstration, Figure showcased two humanoid robots equipped with Helix efficiently putting away groceries, highlighting the system's practical applications. With Helix, there isn’t a need to reprogram the robot for each new object or task, overcoming a major hurdle that robots faced trying to move from narrow tasks they were trained on to generalized tasks they weren’t trained on.

At its core, it’s a Vision-Language-Action (VLA) system that enables robots to:

1. See their environment through cameras

2. Understand voice commands like "Put the cookies in the drawer"

3. Act by physically manipulating objects—even ones they’ve never seen before

Read More

TRY THIS PROMPT (copy and paste into AI ChatGPT, Grok, Perplexity, Gemini)

Skill Breakdown: 

I'm trying to learn [skill]. Break down the learning process into five manageable steps, including resources or exercises I can use for each step. 

Consider different learning styles and suggest activities that cater to visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learners. For example, if the skill is coding, suggest online tutorials for visual learners, podcasts for auditory learners, and hands-on projects for kinesthetic learners. 

Also, provide a timeline for each step, taking into account my available time(upload screenshot of monthly calendar) and desired level of proficiency. 

Offer tips for staying motivated and overcoming common challenges faced by learners of this skill.

Additionally, suggest ways to assess progress and identify areas where the learner may need to focus more attention. Consider also the different learning environments online and in my area within [provide budget here] that might be conducive to learning this skill, such as online courses, in-person workshops, or self-study with books and other materials. 

DID YOU KNOW?

AI Discovered a New Antibiotic – Researchers at MIT used deep learning to identify halicin, a powerful antibiotic capable of killing drug-resistant bacteria, something humans had overlooked for decades. Naturally, this development has led people to ask the question if AI is already being used to create viruses that don't occur naturally too.

30 Referrals: Lifetime access to all Beginners in AI videos and courses

AI-GENERATED IMAGE OF THE WEEK

Interested in stock trading, but no clue where to start? Check out our sister newsletter launching daily in April.

Thank you for reading. We’re all beginners in something. With that in mind, your questions and feedback are always welcome and I read every single email!

-James

By the way, this is the link if you liked the content and want to share with a friend.