Daily Digest: AI overviews explained

PLUS: Nvidia's new toys, OpenAI wants robots

June 03, 2024

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Hello folks, here’s what we have today;

PICKS

  1. Google's new AI Overviews have been turning up some interesting, and sometimes questionable results. Some are real, many fake. Google is owning up to some early hiccups while explaining how AI overviews “don’t hallucinate” and early fixes.🍿Our Summary (also below)

  2. OpenAI is hiring for its robotics team again. If you remember, when OpenAI started, robots were a big part of their focus. In 2020, they abandoned those plans (for several reasons) to go all in into language models. Now, they're going back to robots, but with a twist.🍿Our Summary (also below)

ps: I was on the Around The Prompt podcast with Logan and Nolan - got to chat about Makerpad, Ben’s Bites and AI investments.

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QUICK BITES

Google's new AI Overviews have been turning up some interesting - and sometimes questionable - results. Some are real, many fake. Google is owning up to some early hiccups while explaining how AI overviews “don’t hallucinate” and early fixes.

What is going on here?

Google clears up their position on the wild AI overviews circulating on social media.

What does this mean?

AI Overviews are designed to be a more intelligent search tool, tackling complex questions by integrating with Google's core search tech. They aim for accuracy by pulling information directly from top web results, unlike chatbots that simply generate text that’s prone to hallucination.

However, early results have been mixed. While most searches work as intended, AI Overviews have struggled with nonsensical or satirical queries, sometimes pulling information from unreliable sources.

One example is the "eating rocks" query, where the AI overview directed users to a website with satirical content on the topic. This highlights the challenge of distinguishing between serious and nonsensical information online.

Google is actively working on fixes, such as rejecting AI overviews for odd queries and not trusting user-generated content for health and legal queries.

Why should I care?

Bad AI Overviews when it’s being served to millions of users bring unimaginable risks. It can negatively impact users, potentially spreading misinformation or harmful advice. Nice, that Google’s on top of it all.

I don’t expect Google to roll back AI overviews over these hiccups. We've seen similar issues with other new search features in the past, and Google is already taking steps to address them.

QUICK BITES

OpenAI is hiring for its robotics team again. If you remember, when OpenAI started, robots were a big part of their focus. In 2020, they abandoned those plans (for several reasons) to go all in into language models. Now, they're going back to robots, but with a twist.

What is going on here?

OpenAI is re-building its robotics team to create the brains for robots.

OpenAI taught robots to solve the Rubik’s cube early on their AI journey.

What does this mean?

OpenAI is reviving its robotics team, but this time with a new focus on providing AI models to other robotics companies rather than building their own robots. Instead, they are leveraging their AI expertise to partner with robotics companies like Figure AI, providing them with the "brains" to power their robots. This new team only came into existence just two months earlier.

This shift allows OpenAI to contribute to the growing field of AI-powered robotics without directly competing with these companies. They will focus on developing the underlying AI models that enable robots to perform tasks like speech and reasoning, while leaving the hardware development to others.

Why should I care?

OpenAI's investment in robotics companies like Figure AI (which raised $745 million), 1X Technologies ($125 million), and Physical Intelligence ($70 million) indicates a significant funding trend in AI-powered robotics.

By partnering with robotics companies, OpenAI can narrow its focus on advancing AI models, especially in light of its expanding ambitions in areas like media generation, AI devices, and search.

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