KC DEBRIEF WEEK 47, FRIDAY 2023/11/24
DIGITAL TITANS
_Google taps AI Art Generator to discover IRL versions of your dream products. Google is playing genie for your shopping wishes this holiday season, with artificial intelligence by its side. Its Search Engine Experiment (SGE), designed to help users understand topics and find insights faster, is now incorporating shopping tools to help those struggling to locate that perfect item they’ve imagined for a loved one but can’t quite describe. Picture this: you’re hunting for a “puffy metallic winter coat” that probably exists only in your mind. With Google’s shopping-friendly AI addition, you can type that description, and like magic, the machine generates an image of your imagined item.SGE will then suggest similar, real-world products that match your vision, truly making your dreams come true.The tech giant demonstrates the feature’s prowess in a GIF:Fret not if you’re drawing a blank on what to get a friend. Thanks to AI assistance, simply entering phrases like “great gifts for home cooks” will turn up an elaborate series of categories like specialty tools or cooking classes, showcasing options from various brands, both big and small. All of a sudden, you’re the ultimate gift-giver with a list of tailored suggestions. If you’ve already opted into SGE in the US, you can start using the tool right away on the Google app and Chrome desktop. If not, you can join now through Google’s Search Labs. The AI-generated art component will roll out to US users in December, bringing a tangible touch of magic to your last-minute gift shopping experience.
_Microsoft has released a new AI tool called Azure AI Speech that can create photorealistic avatars that can speak with human-like voices. The tool can be used to create "conversational agents, virtual assistants, chatbots and more." It can also be used to replicate the voice and likeness of a real person. Microsoft has said that the tool has safeguards in place to prevent it from being used to create harmful deepfakes. However, some experts have warned that the tool could be used for election interference or to spread misinformation. The tool has been met with criticism from some who believe that it could be used to create realistic deepfakes that are difficult to distinguish from real videos. Others have expressed concern that the tool could be used to create fake news or to impersonate people. Microsoft has defended the tool, saying that it has the potential to be used for good, such as to create educational content or to help people with disabilities communicate. However, the company has also acknowledged that the tool could be misused. The release of Azure AI Speech raises concerns about the potential for deepfakes to be used to spread misinformation and to harm people's reputations. It is important to be aware of the risks of deepfakes and to use technology responsibly.
INNOVATION
_The electronic noses designed to prevent food poisoning. The human nose and its ability to smell is an amazing thing. Each nose has around 400 scent receptors that are said to be able to detect around one trillion different odours.To replicate such a level of sensory expertise in scientific equipment is a daunting challenge. Yet thanks to recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI), the latest electronic noses - high-tech sensors that can detect and report specific smells - are quickly improving their levels of speed and accuracy.Their proponents say that they can transform food safety. Common types of potentially deadly foodborne bacteria are salmonella and E. Coli. Both of these have their own "electronic personality", says Prof Raz Jelinek, the co-developer of an e-nose called Sensifi, and a professor of chemistry at Ben Gurion University of the Negev, in Israel. "They have their own electrical signal."The e-noses made by the Israeli company of the same name contain electrodes that are coated with nanoparticles of carbon. They detect the smells or volatile organic compounds (VOC) given off by bacteria.
PEOPLE, MEDIA, CULTURE
AI LA LA LAND
//Ad agencies embrace AI hallucination with the ‘Insights Machine’. Developed by Pereira O’Dell and Plan.Net, the new platform is designed to spark new ideas in the minds of marketers. As anyone who’s toyed with ChatGPT over the past year can attest, an advanced large language model (LLM) can do a whole bunch of things quite well. Ask it to compose a rap song about Ritz crackers in the voice of St Francis of Assisi and it will do so in a matter of seconds. (“They’re not just crackers, they’re a crispy revelation / Blessed by the saints, a tasty sensation.”) If it’s a matter of concocting human language in just about any form, LLMs will probably have you covered. But we’ve also learned, sometimes painfully, that there are some things LLMs can’t do so well – not yet, anyhow. For one thing, they’re not great at sticking to a strict code of truthfulness; they often ’hallucinate’ or deliver factually inaccurate information that’s veiled as truth. They also can’t tell us much about the internal, subjective human experience, despite the claims of people like Blake Lemoine – the former Google engineer who was fired after he gushed to the press about the supposed sentience of the company’s LaMDA AI model – most experts would roll their eyes at the suggestion that AI is self-aware. Thankfully, most mainstream LLMs aren’t allowed to pretend they’re a person; ask ChatGPT if it’s capable of feeling anger, and it will politely tell you that it’s a machine and therefore incapable of experiencing emotion. Was there something else it could help you with? But what if AI could emulate human personalities well enough to effectively give marketers a direct line of communication with their target audiences? What if, in other words, marketers had a focus group of AI personalities that was constantly at their disposal, through which they could test ideas and glean inspiration? It was questions like these that sparked the Insights Machine, a new platform from marketing agencies Pereira O’Dell and Plan.
//Artificial intelligence still can’t beat a human when it comes to programming. But it’s only a matter of time. A Coder Considers the Waning Days of the Craft. Coding has always felt to me like an endlessly deep and rich domain. Now I find myself wanting to write a eulogy for it. By James SomersNovember 13, 2023 “I have always taken it for granted that, just as my parents made sure that I could read and write, I would make sure that my kids could program computers. It is among the newer arts but also among the most essential, and ever more so by the day, encompassing everything from filmmaking to physics. Fluency with code would round out my children’s literacy—and keep them employable. But as I write this my wife is pregnant with our first child, due in about three weeks. I code professionally, but, by the time that child can type, coding as a valuable skill might have faded from the world. I first began to believe this on a Friday morning this past summer, while working on a small hobby project. A few months back, my friend Ben and I had resolved to create a Times-style crossword puzzle entirely by computer. In 2018, we’d made a Saturday puzzle with the help of software and were surprised by how little we contributed—just applying our taste here and there. Now we would attempt to build a crossword-making program that didn’t require a human touch. When we’ve taken on projects like this in the past, they’ve had both a hardware component and a software component, with Ben’s strengths running toward the former. We once made a neon sign that would glow when the subway was approaching the stop near our apartments. Ben bent the glass and wired up the transformer’s circuit board. I wrote code to process the transit data. Ben has some professional coding experience of his own, but it was brief, shallow, and now about twenty years out of date; the serious coding was left to me. For the new crossword project, though, Ben had introduced a third party. He’d signed up for a ChatGPT Plus subscription and was using GPT-4 as a coding assistant.
_LLMs, links, and the death of links. We spent the last 30 years building structures on top or instead of the raw links of the web, from Google to TikTok… but now LLMs might read all the links for us.
BRANDS
_Pharma Brands use AR snapchat lenses to engage consumers. Pharmaceutical companies Dermavant and Botox Cosmetic have turned to Snapchat to teach consumers about their products’ FDA-approved use. To coincide with World Psoriasis Day on Oct. 29, Dermavant released a Snapchat Lens themed to its product Vtama that opens an augmented reality mini-game where the user’s character can walk across the roofs of stores with names related to challenges those with psoriasis may face, such as Flakey Bakery and Can’t Wear Black With Plaques. Users can tap the screen to jump over obstacles that appear from these stores, like croissants and black turtlenecks.As the game is played, medical information about the cream appears at the bottom of the screen.“These AR Lenses highlight the innovation that is possible within pharmaceutical marketing, a heavily regulated space. We’re very excited to partner with Snapchat and have the opportunity to reach and educate consumers about our FDA-approved product in new and engaging ways,” said John Darden, vp of marketing at Dermavant.Elsewhere, Botox celebrated Botox Cosmetic Day on Nov. 15 with a Snapchat Lens that places a small slot machine above the user’s head and asks them to frown their eyebrows, smile and raise their eyebrows to cause three reels to stop spinning. If the user creates a line of three matching symbols, celebratory icons fall from the top of the screen.If someone keeps the Lens open after they’ve performed the expressions, the Botox Medical Guide will appear on the screen to give them more information about the product.“The AR Lenses from Botox Cosmetic and Vtama cream are great examples of how our AR technology allows brands from different verticals to engage with our users in unique, informative and fun ways,” said David Sommer, head of U.S. verticals at Snap Inc., noting that more than 250 million people engage with AR on the app daily.
_Putting Jägermeister’s digital brand ambassador to work. Jägermeister’s digital ambassador, the Jägermeister HAPE, is having an impact within the drinks company as well as in the nighttime economy. Moving into the Web3 playground to engage with its target audience, in partnership with a 3D NFT fashion brand, may seem like a natural progression for the herbal liqueur, but at heart it’s still a traditional company. Not everyone is comfortable with the speed of change taking place and it’s important to bring all stakeholders on board. “We are trying to digitalise the whole company,” explained global e-commerce manager Susanne Wehr, speaking at the recent DMEXCO conference. “The really cool thing about our Jägermeister HAPE is that it was a visual identity that we could also use to market inside [the business].” How it works. One way that happens is that stickers of the Jägermeister HAPE have appeared on everyone’s laptops, Wehr reported. “It’s great to see that even people who don’t have that much contact with the world we are in here can relate, and it makes it so much easier to go to the next step.” The history . The Jägermeister HAPE has two versions: the daytime (serious) character and the nighttime (fun) character. It was launched via parties in New York and London (including a mirror that allowed partygoers to dance with the HAPE) and an activation in Times Square. Digital items and wearables were released to the HAPE community, which began dressing their own NFTs in the style of Jägermeister. “We are at this sweet spot between community, culture, commerce, and with the new technology we can really leverage that” – Susanne Wehr, Global E-commerce Manager, Jägermeister.
_Netflix. Squid Game: The Challenge contestants threaten legal action against Netflix and producers.
OFF TOPIC
_London Government rejects building Stratford Sphere Venue. Sadiq Khan claims it “would result in an unacceptable negative impact on local residents.” Since its opening earlier this year, the Las Vegas Sphere has garnered attention worldwide. Its revolutionary technological facade lets viewers experience visuals like never before, hosting a sold-out residency with Irish rock band U2. Madison Square Garden Entertainment has proposed rebuilding the 90-meter-high music venue in London. The structure in Stratford, East London, would house 21,500 attendees and reside near the city’s Olympic Park. The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has rejected the deal, claiming that it “would result in an unacceptable negative impact on local residents.” When the Sphere was initially presented in 2018, Khan admired its state-of-the-art technology, saying, “It’s great to welcome another world-class venue to the capital, to confirm London’s position as a music powerhouse and to boost still further our city’s thriving night-time economy.” The government concluded its rejection this week by stating that the intense illumination would “cause significant light intrusion resulting in significant harm to the outlook of neighboring properties, detriment to human health, and significant harm to the general amenity enjoyed by residents of their own homes.”