Friday, May 5, 2023

Top Software Engineer Confirms Google Is Losing Its Edge In AI To The Open-Source Community

A leading software engineer who happens to be working at Google is sharing his two cents on the matter related to the tech giant losing its edge in the current competitive AI race.

Luke Sernau did not shy away from mentioning how the top search engine giant is not doing enough and that is making it fall behind drastically against the open source community. The latter is where so many researchers make use of AI to produce quick and unprecedented advances.

The engineer that goes by the name of Luke Sernau mentioned in a recently published document regarding the internal systems functioning at Google during the start of April. He claims that in the past couple of weeks, this document was passed around thousands of times among people using the search engine. And one person who was familiar with the matter added that it was concerning for obvious reasons.

The paperwork was published by another consulting company called SemiAnalysis and it was seen making the rounds at Silicon Valley too.

As a part of the engineer’s analysis, it was observed how Google had an intense rivalry with other leading startup giants including OpenAI and that was a clear distraction from huge developments arising in the world of open-source advancements.

He added how Google has really spent a lot of time overlooking the shoulders of others including the ChatGPT makers but it’s time the firm crosses its own goals and milestones. They felt it was time to see what the next decision would be.

The current uncomfortable truth was linked to being in a position where Google was losing this arms race and it needed to act quickly. Google’s Sernau did not entertain any comments but he feels that others are eating a lot of its hard work including the open-source community.

A lot of progress has been done in AI and as that accelerates, many employees at the company and other places continue to engage in internal discussions both internally and externally. It has to do with technology and how that remakes the industry.

Google has been in the spotlight for a while now regarding this pressure and how ChatGPT’s popularity is a lot to handle. Therefore, Google has lost its advantage in this AI race and that’s shocking because it was really once deemed to be a leader of this industry.

The real threat linked to Google was coming through open source communities and that’s where so many engineers are advancing ahead with great speed. They’re rivaling the big tech giants’ quality and they can be produced at a cheaper cost.

These types of models are not only quicker and more efficient but can be customized and considerably more useful that the tech giant’s own model.

They don’t have any form of a secret sauce but there is great hope that Google might collaborate or learn from what other people in the industry are doing. He similarly set out some concerns about how clients were no longer willing to set out funds for models having high technology offerings for free.

While Google is yet to provide its own two cents on the matter, it did reveal through a recent earnings call that the CEO of Alphabet felt Google was making its fair share of investments and breakthroughs in the world of AI in the past ten years. This has kept it in a great position and there was certainly so much progress being made in making the right models and collaborating with others.


H/T: Semianalysis | Chart: lmsys

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by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

Tech Bosses Summoned To White House And Told To Protect Public From Dangers Of AI

Bosses of leading tech giant companies were recently summoned to the White House where they were briefed and requested to protect the public against a great many threats from AI.

The list of those who made their way to the US Capital included Google’s Sundar Pichai, Microsoft’s Satya Nadella, and Sam Altmann from OpenAI. They were all informed about how they had a huge moral responsibility that rest on their shoulders in terms of protecting and safeguarding the society.

It was very clear how The White House would be required to control that sector further and it only recently set out an array of AI products including ChatGPT and Bard and how they’ve really grabbed a hold of the public’s perception.

The products in question are providing regular users with the chance to chat with the likes of Generative AI and which can provide a summary of data from several sources in a span of a few seconds only. Similarly, they could debug computer codes, produce presentations, and even come up with poetry that sounds appealing and acceptable, just like it was generated by humans.

This rollout has really set out a new debate regarding the AI role in this world and it continues to offer a very tangible illustration regarding the huge line of risks and rewards that pops up with such technology.

Tech executives were all gathered on Thursday at the high-profile meeting in the White House where they were told that it was all up to them to firmly ensure the safety of other citizens who had complete trust and reliance upon them.

The number of products in question is plenty and the White House administration also confirmed how they were more than open to carrying out new laws and regulations on how to better cover the subject of AI so it’s a safety matter for all involved.

This rollout really ended up sparking a new debate regarding what role artificial intelligence plays in today’s world. It’s a very tangible illustration of the huge risks involved and the great rewards that such technology possesses in this day and age.

Sam Altman of OpenAI spoke to reporters recently where he added how he was pleasantly surprised to see regulators being on the same page in terms of what is needed to happen.

Meanwhile, the country’s VP, Kamala Harris was also seen issuing a statement on this ordeal. She revealed how this had a huge potential to enhance other people’s lives.
The tech sector had many roles to play and that includes ethical, legal, and moral responsibilities to make sure there was enough security and safety of products.

At the moment, the current Biden administration has set out a mega $140 million investment that will see the launch of research institutes that are based on AI.

There is definitely a huge call for the massive rise in emerging AI and the fact that it needs to be regulated further is one call being made by tech leaders as well as the country’s politicians.

The news comes as the man dubbed ‘godfather of AI’, Geoffrey Hinton recently bid farewell to Google citing claims that he had huge regrets about his work. He similarly spoke to the BBC during a recent interview about how AI was a scary world and it came with huge dangers that cannot be ignored. And seeing someone who helped the technology evolve mention this and also reveal how much he regretted his work in allowing it to come forward shows how serious the situation is.


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by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

Closer Look At The World Of Copywriting And Why It Might Be A Skill Worth Having

In the modern tech world of today, having a great skillset can really do wonders for those in search of something a little extra. And copywriting is the perfect example of a field that is bringing fruitful returns for those that have mastered the skill.

But what are copywriters and what are the things that they do? To gain a more insightful understanding, we thought it would be interesting to take a look at the field that people are calling a money-making endeavor.

The news comes to us thanks to a recent survey conducted by Semrush who took into consideration 400 different job postings from Indeed and also glanced over some findings from State of Content Marketing: A global report. This was related to a whopping 85,000 job posts and the survey which comprised 1700 marketers.

The authors of the research claim to have found copywriters have a huge number of responsibilities that went above and beyond the likes of making copies and that entails creating a brand voice and taking part in collaborations with others. Meanwhile, you could research some great ideas and understand marketing strategies too.

But what are the leading skills that people want from the likes of copywriters is a point worth pondering upon. The answer is simple, you are expected to produce exceptional written and verbal communication skills. In the same way, your creativity and four years' worth of experience are necessary.

Among the top degrees enlisted in postings for jobs for such individuals, you’ve got marketing, journalism, and even writing. Other than that, you’ve got English and communications as well. These should be a part of your top skills and ones that you’re great at if you wish to make your bosses happy.

The study proved how you not only have to come up with content of your own but also edit copies for emails, webpages, brochures, blogs, pages on social media, and more. You must make sure you’re well-versed in marketing because understanding a business’s voice the right way and being able to project that in your work is key.

Other smaller expectations include learning more things about the target audience, meeting the content’s needs, and also taking part in proofreading, SEO strategies, and research keywords.

For qualities, you need to be able to work well in groups, and take directions while working independently is equally pivotal. Someone that’s creative, strong, pays attention to detail, and has exceptional leadership qualities are other qualities worth a mention.




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by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

Thursday, May 4, 2023

AI Tools Such As Chatbots Boosted Worker Productivity By 14 Percent, New Research Proves

The world of AI has taken off with a bang in the tech world and beyond, with more and more sectors making the most of recent tools like chatbots.

While some might be a little apprehensive at first in terms of the usage of these offerings, the latest study by MIT and Standford is proving why you shouldn’t be shy to implement the endeavor into your workforce.

As reported by Bloomberg recently, we’re talking about a new study that is known to be the first biggest real-world application of generative AI at the workplace. Plenty of researchers took part and carried out measurements for the productivity of nearly 5,000 people working as experts in customer support.

Most of these agents were based in nations like the Philippines where they were a part of the leading Fortune 500 enterprise software company. The study went on for a span of one year.

The agents working in tech support were reported as utilizing AI tools for things like the development of conversational scripts or chats whose productivity was greatly enhanced. This happened to be measured by the number of issues resolved each hour. And on average, it was outlined to be 14%. But the improvement was more pronounced for workers that were novices as well as those that were poorly skilled. The latter ended up getting their work done nearly 35% faster than others.

There were a few situations where making use of AI went above having real-life work experience. In other words, those using AI support did a better job when compared to agents working without the facility of AI, over a timeframe of six months.

On the other hand, such AI tools ended up showcasing a small impact on experienced workers having great skills. And there were also times when it ended up serving as a huge distraction.

One of the Ph.D. candidates added how support for AI could be quite helpful in terms of workers at the entry-level and those outlined as having early careers with not a lot of experience in the field. Therefore, the study showed how those employees with less experience benefited more from AI by taking on recommendations so they could attain speed and receive training in skillsets that arise with experience in the field.

Keeping that aside, the research proved how AI tools benefited the best and brightest of the industry where workers classified as the best and brightest of them all were training the AI alone. They are among those that turn these into recommendations so others can benefit.

Therefore, such studies claim that firms need to realize how changes in productivity are a signal that those performing at their best need to be rewarded for their great behavior and setting out solutions so others may benefit.

As a whole, the study also shows how AI assistance enhances customer satisfaction, betters rates for retention of employees, and also limits requests for interventions of the managerial position.

The authors started to explain how such research is not designed to predict if AI can or will replace a business’s workforce. However, it can conclude that technology assists workers in a more effective manner in terms of multitasking and handling more complex issues at a faster pace.

And as we all are well aware, better results that arise at a faster pace than usual are bound to make customers happy. And they end up being really nice to agents in the customer service industry while enhancing retention rates of employees.

Remember, the authors also quoted how such endeavors like AI tools end up making individuals more effective at the workplace, and that makes the general environment a more pleasurable and stress-free place to carry out duties.


Read next: Social Media Referrals for News Sites Are at an All Time Low
by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

52% Of Search Experts Believe AI Will Be Very Important In The Future For Delivering Relevant Search Results

Most professionals working in roles that are focused on online search are having an important say on how they feel AI can impact their search results.

The news comes to us thanks to a recently conducted survey by Lucidworks that proved search practitioners’ points of view on the topic. Moreover, this report had to do with data from 100 people who worked in the sector related to online search. This entails engineers, experts in the digital commerce field, and data scientists as well.

A staggering 52% of the majority claim AI will be a point worth noticing and a very important endeavor for the future in terms of setting out the right search results. Meanwhile, 36% feel it’s going to be very important.


On the other hand, 40% of those surveyed felt delivering the right search results would need a lot more effort in terms of the future as this is just the start. But then 32% held the opinion that less effort would be required, and 28% mentioned how it would need the same types of effort.

36% of search experts quoted the collection of signal data of a great quality to be the most integral factor for conducting the right search results. Meanwhile, 34% cited data analysis and 30% quoted taking on the right actions using this kind of information.

People participating in the study added how taking the right decision including ranking, precision, and recall from search-based data was another factor that must be considered for obvious reasons.

Remember, getting the most effective results from search relevance may sound easy but it requires a lot of effort, experts revealed.

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by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

Twitter Puts New Visual Display To The Test As It Restores Free API Access To Emergency Services Among Other Changes

Twitter is testing out a new range of visual elements including a user profile video tab as the company shifts focus to reshaping user experience under the leadership of Elon Musk.

The tech billionaire noted how video needs to be very specific in terms of enhancements and that entails different options for monetization for its line of creators.

He feels the app has what it takes to compete with the likes of YouTube and that offers the best direct connections while ensuring greater revenue sharing thanks to ads. But the catch is that it really does need to work.

For starters, the platform is exploring different means to present media content across user profiles and that may assist in bettering the whole video experience. As could be seen in examples put out by Twitter designers, the app is on the move to enhance the display across user profiles so it sets out a new Instagram-like grid that makes the whole experience so much more engaging.


This event gives rise to a video tab idea that Musk claims are going to be coming soon. In the same way, he is putting out new in-app tabs for such content like the streams of videos seen across the TikTok app. This way, users can scroll through with ease and put out the best videos in real time. And while the app did explore that in the past, this is more innovative.

Then in 2021, we saw the company put out a new trial for full-screen feeds across its Explore tab. This set out greater emphasis on videos.

The firm shelved such experiments, right before we saw tech billionaires take over but there was a clear renewed focus across videos. It was seen making a huge comeback and we have seen Musk roll out old concepts with the aim of bettering user engagement.

This went on to feature another test that the app was on the lookout to launch including pictures having long tweets. This can be increased by 10,000 characters.

As can be witnessed through another example, the subscribers for this Twitter Blue can now add images across bigger tweets so they would seem similar to blog posts. Similarly, it would be like the app’s long-form option that had been shelved in the past.

H/T: Jane Manchun Wong
The next main focus of the app appears to be monetization of long content which the company did by relaunching its option for subscriptions. Moreover, the app referred to it as Super Follows and it’s now looking at it to get more subscribers that would enhance their monetization based on their following.

As a part of this new format, it covers the expenses linked to the company’s staff who ended up offering subscriptions to the app’s creators and would assist in creating the right hype. Similarly, it’s considering new counts for subscribers that put different content on display and better engage the audience.

Furthermore, Elon Musk is finally going back on his own terms of removing free API access for emergency services that helped in providing alerts linked to weather, emergency services, as well as alerts for traffic.

The app was seen charging for this API so firms and government-owned groups would now have to pay a hefty cost that started at a whopping $42,000 a month. And as you can imagine, many were willing to opt-out.

Last but not least, thanks to a leading social media expert, Jane Manchun Wong, we’re hearing about the Twitter app including more images toward the middle section of long-form tweets. Therefore, don’t be surprised to see blog-styled posts pop up on feeds from now on.

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by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

Two new updates are on the way for desktop and WhatsApp business users

WhatsApp’s developers have been actively working on new updates for its users. According to WBI, the platform is now working on two more updates, one for the Android OS and the other for Windows users.

Starting off with the Windows version, soon, users will be able to play voice notes outside of their conversations. While it may not be something new for Android or iOS users, soon Windows users will be joining them.

The feature is aimed at providing a better experience by allowing the audience to multitask while listening to long voice notes. Users can continue conversations with others while listening to a voice message. As a result, they won’t be bound to stay in one conversation as long as the message is playing.

The testing version has been rolled out to some of the users, and soon it will be available globally.


Moving on to the second upcoming feature, Campaign Messages, which will be released on the business variant of WhatsApp, The feature is aimed at creating interaction between small businesses and their respected audience through campaigns.

Based on the picture posted on the WBI blog post, it can be seen that businesses will be allowed to generate messages for any of the respected campaigns for brand promotion. It will save the time of the account handler, who initially would have to send such campaign messages individually, but with this feature under development, they will be able to share them simultaneously with multiple clients. However, it is believed that it may not be available to all and will be offered via a paid service.

It is still in the early stages, and the pilot version is yes to be shared, but it will be available at any time. The officials have not shared any insight on the feature; hence, no information is currently available about how the feature is exactly going to work. In order to test it, business owners would have to wait some time so they could finally get their hands on it and see for themselves.


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by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World