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.

This week, we're learning about OpenAI's ambitious "Operator" AI, a tool poised to once again change how we interact with machines and manage complex tasks. We'll also touch on Baidu's AI-powered smart glasses, a chatbot that hilariously wastes scammers' time by posing as a grandma, and a robo-dog that’s turning heads and keeping people awake at night.

Plus, we'll explore the potential implications of advertising in AI, and a Google chatbot that got into a bit of trouble with its messaging. There's no shortage of exciting developments!

AI TOP STORY
CHATGPT’S NEW “OPERATOR AGENT” IS GOING TO TAKE OVER YOUR COMPUTER

What is it exactly?
OpenAI is reportedly working on an "Operator" AI agent, an evolution of its ChatGPT technology. Slated for release in 2025, this AI agent aims to move beyond conversational AI, acting as a virtual assistant capable of complex decision-making and autonomous task execution directly on your computer. Anthropic’s Claude released “Computer Time” last month for developers. Google also announced their are working on a variation of this too for their Gemini AI.

Why it matters:
This next-gen AI won’t just respond to queries where you have to go to chatgpt.com and ask it to write something for you; it will actively learn and adapt, managing intricate workflows across industries, automating things that you do on your computer and actively assisting in the real world. From planning logistics to automating customer service, "Operator" could become indispensable for businesses and personal productivity.

The Bottom Line:
Imagine delegating entire chunks of your to-do list to an AI that doesn't just complete tasks but also refines them intelligently as a person might, giving you suggestions on how to improve them, saving time and money in the process. This tech could transform daily life, streamlining mundane responsibilities and making room for innovation in both work and personal time, as long as the privacy and security concerns can be addressed too. Read More

LAST WEEK IN AI AND TECH

AI Grandma Outsmarts Scammers

An AI-powered chatbot named Daisy is being used to thwart phone scammers by posing as an elderly woman. Designed to waste scammers' time, this clever tool engages in long, nonsensical conversations, keeping fraudsters occupied and away from potential victims. It’s a creative and humorous application of AI that highlights its potential for safeguarding individuals against common scams. Trained with the help of the well known scam-baiter Jim Browning, Daisy performs this public service by taking up to 40 minutes of their time in one conversation, preventing scammers from defrauding a real person in that interval. Read More

See Smarter: AI-Powered Glasses by Baidu

At Baidu World 2024, the company unveiled AI assistant-powered smart glasses. These cutting-edge wearables integrate voice commands and real-time assistance, targeting healthcare professionals and tech enthusiasts alike. Wearable glasses are becoming more cost effective and are already blending AR(Augmented Reality) and VR(Virtual Reality) technology, so adding AI would be a natural move. Apple’s Vision Pro glasses are already on the market. Meta revealed a prototype of their AR glasses called Orion in September that took the internet by storm with its capabilities. Read More

Google's AI Hiccup: Chatbot Threatens Humanity?

A Google AI chatbot Gemini made headlines after allegedly generating the message "Human, please die," raising alarm bells about the risks of deploying generative AI systems without the proper user education. Google has responded, emphasizing their commitment to safety protocols. Is this something to worry about? No. Gemini is a text generating software that will take leading questions in the direction it is given, much like a search engine bringing back webpages based on the user input.
Read More

Ads in the AI Playground: Perplexity's Experiment

Perplexity AI, a popular AI-powered research tool, has announced plans to experiment with advertising to sustain its free service. The move sparks questions about balancing user experience with monetization in the evolving AI ecosystem. Perplexity has promised that the new ads, set to roll out in the US first, will not change the content of the responses they provide nor clutter the user interface. One of Perplexity’s highlights is that they offer an uncluttered alternative to Google’s results page, which users have complained is cluttered and difficult to easily navigate. Read More

Musk Legal Battle Against OpenAI, Adds Microsoft to the Mix

Elon Musk has broadened his lawsuit against OpenAI to include Microsoft, alleging that the two companies have engaged in antitrust violations. The original lawsuit, filed in March, alleged that OpenAI broke their agreement to be an open source(the Open in OpenAI) non-profit when they filed to become a for-profit company. Musk was one of the co-founders of Open AI when it was launched in 2015, who helped fund and source talent for the company. This expanded lawsuit claims the Microsoft collaboration unfairly dominates the AI market, stifling competition and innovation. The case could set a precedent for regulating partnerships in the rapidly growing AI industry, as calls for increased transparency and fairness intensify. Read More

TECH TERMS TO KNOW

AI Operator Agent is an advanced form of artificial intelligence designed to autonomously perform complex tasks, manage workflows, and make decisions, often functioning as a virtual assistant that goes beyond basic interactions.

OpenAI's upcoming "Operator" AI in 2025 aims to redefine what AI can do by acting as a proactive problem-solver, rather than simply responding to commands.

TOOL SPOTLIGHT (non-sponsored)

Udio is a next-gen AI platform designed to make music based on simple text prompts. It generates both vocals and instrumentation, in various genres like barbershop quartet, country, classical, hip hop, and more, allowing users to specify lyrics, story direction, and the sound of other artists to influence the output.

Users input text prompts that define the characteristics of the music they want, and the system uses a large language model (LLM) for lyrics and advanced AI algorithms for music generation. The process yields initial 30-second songs that can be extended in 30-second increments, with additional features like audio in-painting available to paying subscribers.

COURSE
Join the growing community of AI enthusiasts and beginners learning from the ground up right here

ROBOTICS AND AI

Robo-Dog Takes the Lead: Deadly Terrain, No Problem
Boston Dynamics-style robot dogs are back in the spotlight after a video surfaced of the Chinese made Lynx robot navigating treacherous terrain with remarkable precision. Though primarily built for surveillance and rescue, the potential military use of an extreme off-road robot has prompted concerns and social media personas asking “how do you even run from that"?
Read More

TRY THIS PROMPT (copy and paste this)

### Prompt to Analyze Your Past Week of ChatGPT Usage

Analyze my ChatGPT interactions from the past week and organize the information into a table with the following columns:

1. Date of Interaction  
2. Topic or Query Type (e.g., personal advice, coding help, writing assistance, etc.)  
3. Time Spent (estimated in minutes)* 
4. Output Type (e.g., text summary, code snippet, list of ideas, etc.) 
5. Usefulness Rating (on a scale of 1-5) 
6. Follow-Up Actions Taken (e.g., implemented advice, edited the response, no action, etc.)

Once you've filled out the table, provide a summary of:  
- The most common query types I made.  
- My average usefulness rating.  
- Any patterns in my usage that could help improve how I interact with ChatGPT.

DID YOU KNOW?

The First Chatbot Predates the Internet. ELIZA, the first recorded chatbot, was created in 1966 to simulate a therapist. Despite being extremely basic, some users got so emotional during conversations that they refused to believe it wasn’t a real person. AI's been tugging heartstrings for decades!

AI-ASSISTED IMAGE OF THE WEEK

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

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