BB Digest: Social media loves AI video

Digest #494 → Subscribe | Upgrade to Pro

Hey folks,

I’ve been using o1-mini. One way it differs from gpt-4o is that it picks up my subtle cues when thinking about a problem. If you tend to prompt with hints, you might like it.

Here are the workshops for next week;

• Tuesday - How to bulk-use AI in spreadsheets for fun and profit.

• Wednesday - AI-powered storytelling: Craft your company’s Why and What.

TLDR; inside today’s newsletter

• Three major updates in the AI video world—it’s getting real, pun fully intended.

• ICYMI: 3 new tutorials and 2 blog posts from us

• snack n skill - a bite-sized lesson to learn on your lunch break

• 6 of the best new AI tools

• 4 interesting posts from around the web

• to-do’s

Alright, let’s get to it!

 🔎 Trends & news

• YouTube plans more GenAI features for creators. It’ll soon integrate Google’s video model Veo with Shorts. In Creator Studio, an AI-powered Inspiration tab and reply suggestions for comments are set to roll out.🍿 Our Summary (also below)

• Snap is also launching a new AI video-generation tool for creators. Currently in beta for select creators on the web, the tool allows video creation from text prompts, with image prompts coming soon. Snap says it’s using its own AI models to generate the videos. ps: Snap also launched its AR glasses called Spectacles. I have the OG spectacles when you could get them from a vending machine - used them once, while skiing.

• Lionsgate is giving RunwayML access to its catalogue to create a customized model for them. This catalogue includes “The Hunger Games”, “Twilight” and even the “John Wick” series. The studio says AI can be used to make solutions that help in the creative process, potentially saving “millions and millions of dollars”.

• More in video generation: Runway announced that they’ll launch an API for Gen-3 Alpha, while Luma Labs’s API for Dream Machine is already live.

• ZapConnect is back on Sept. 26, 2024! ZapConnect, Zapier's annual user conference, will have 30+ sessions offering exclusive insights into revolutionizing your workflows with automation. Plus, you won’t want to miss a special keynote on the future of work and AI with Zapier CEO Wade Foster and HubSpot CTO Dharmesh Shah. Time is running out—register now!*
  *sponsored

👀 ICYMI: New stuff we’ve launched

• Design statistically sound A/B tests (and interpret them) with Claude.

• Scrape, summarise and analyse news articles with Otto.

• Use Claude to create customer loyalty programs based on behavioural data.

• How Dan Shipper uses AI to think, write, and build.

• How Sahil Lavingia uses AI to code faster.

🍽️ Snack ‘n’ skill

Learn how to scrape and analyze news articles with Otto

Staying on top of industry news is crucial, but it's a time-consuming task. Most jobs require extracting specific information from numerous articles, which can be tedious and inefficient.

Step 1. Harness AI agents for news analysis

Otto is a versatile AI tool that can scrape, summarize, and analyze web content. We're using it to create an automated system for gathering and processing news articles on a specific topic.

Step 2. Build your news analysis machine

• Set up a new table in Otto with custom columns.

• Use Otto's AI to find relevant news articles.

• Auto-populate your table with article URLs and metadata.

• Let Otto scrape and summarize the article content.

• Add custom columns for specific information extraction (like Summary or Category)

• Expand your analysis by adding more rows or columns.

Tip: We did a live workshop with co-founder and CEO Sully Omar. You can catch the full recording or our free recap of the event.

This walkthrough is a condensed version of this tutorial. Check it out for one-click copyable prompts and more detailed steps.

⚙️ Top new tools

• TLDR* - Unmissable free newsletter that's a byte-sized version of Hacker News.

• Otto - Use AI agents within tables to automate hours of manual research in a few minutes.

• Magic Inspector - Build reliable, automated tests without any technical knowledge.

• SuperFlex - Your front-end development assistant.

• Marblism - Generate full-stack web apps from a prompt.

• Zivy - Automatically prioritize and organize Slack messages.

• Bolna - 24x7 AI receptionists to answer all inbound calls.

More tools here →
*sponsored

🗣️ Everyone’s talking about

YouTube is stepping up its game with generative AI tools designed to help creators innovate and engage more effectively. In a recent blog post, it outlined plans to expand earlier experiments and introduce new applications of GenAI to make creators’ lives easier.

What’s going on here?

YouTube is introducing new AI-powered features that simplify content creation and enhance audience interaction.

What does this mean?

The biggest integration is adding Google’s video generation model, Veo, to YouTube Shorts. This expands the Dream Screen feature from simple backgrounds to dynamic video backgrounds and 6-second clips that can be used as B-roll.

Next, the Inspiration Tab in YouTube Studio is getting a smart makeover, acting as your AI brainstorming partner. It will offer tailored suggestions for video ideas, titles, thumbnails, and outlines, making it easier to bring your projects to life. Additionally, within the Studio, the new Community hub (a revamped version of Comments) includes an option to reply to your viewers with AI-based suggestions that match your writing tone.

Auto Dubbing is also expanding to more creators, providing translated audio tracks that maintain your original tone and ambiance. This helps you reach a global audience effortlessly.

Why should I care?

YouTube is pushing the boundaries of what’s possible with generative AI and is in a prime position to do so. It’s now as relevant as mainstream media, which has so far been hesitant about GenAI, but YouTube still has plenty of room to experiment.

While TikTok has tried some GenAI features limited to creating ads and Meta has yet to integrate AI into content creation beyond the basic Meta AI button in the search bar, YouTube is leading the way with comprehensive AI tools for creators.

Read more stories on the Ben’s Bites blog.

 📜 Interesting posts

• 🌟 The ChatGPT hack that rescued my customer success team.

• Sam Altman leaves OpenAI board's safety and security committee.

• T-Mobile partners with OpenAI for customer service revamp.

• One in five GPs (general practitioners) use AI such as ChatGPT for daily tasks.

📌 To-dos

1. Folks at a16z speedrun are bringing together AI and creative builders on 26th Sept. Register here.

2. Let us know if you have any tutorials or courses you want us to create—we’re always open to ideas.

That wraps things up for today! See you again next Tuesday. 👋

Ben