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Hello and welcome to today's edition of Inside AI! Here are today's key highlights: - AI is fueling Apple's surge in research spending.
- Amazon CEO says "every single" team is working on multiple AI initiatives.
- Microsoft is shutting down the standalone Cortana app as it shifts focus toward Bing Chat and other AI.
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| 1 | What happened: Apple's CEO, Tim Cook, confirmed that the company's significant R&D spending is partly driven by its investments in AI. What the numbers say: Apple's latest earnings report shows the company has spent $22.6B on research and development so far in fiscal 2023, a $3.12B increase from where it was last year. What brands should care: Despite facing declining sales, Apple has been more reserved in its AI announcements compared to competitors like Meta, Microsoft, and Google, which are actively engaged in an AI arms race. Quotable: In its latest earnings call, Cook emphasized that AI is critical to Apple's future and it plans to continue investing in AI technologies, adding that the company views AI and machine learning as "integral to virtually every product." Reports suggest that Apple is developing new AI tools, including a large language model nicknamed "Apple GPT," while Cook noted that AI and machine learning have been integral to Apple's products for years. 
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| 2 | | During Amazon's latest earnings call, CEO Andy Jassy revealed that every team within the company is actively working on generative AI projects, spanning entertainment, AWS, advertising, and devices. Jassy expressed the importance of GenAI, saying it will be at the heart of operations and represent a significant investment and focus for the company. More: - While Jassy didn't go into specific details about Amazon's AI projects during the call, he mentioned two areas of focus: streamlining operations for cost-effectiveness and enhancing customer experiences.
- Jassy acknowledged that many are familiar with generative AI in applications like OpenAI's ChatGPT.
- However, he stressed its importance in backend areas, such as using it at the compute layer to train foundational models.
- While Amazon will create its own GenAI applications, the majority will be developed by other companies, with a positive outlook on many of them being built on AWS, he said.
- Jassy also highlighted Amazon CodeWhisperer, an AI-powered coding companion with promising early results in improving developer productivity.
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| 3 | | Microsoft is discontinuing its standalone Cortana app in Windows, directing its focus towards newer AI-centric tools like Bing Chat. Cortana, Microsoft's virtual assistant since 2014, lagged behind rivals Alexa, Siri, and Google Assistant in popularity. More: - While Cortana will still be available in Microsoft apps like Outlook and Teams, the company is shifting its attention to AI-powered tools, including AI-based Bing search and Windows Copilot AI assistant.
- Cortana's support has been scaled back over the years, with previous removals from iOS, Android, and the Windows taskbar.
- The move underscores Microsoft's newfound focus on GPT-4 AI technology over the more basic voice assistant.
- A Microsoft support document mentions that AI experiences will still be available in Windows 11.
- It highlights Windows Copilot, the new Bing, Microsoft 365 Copilot, and the new voice access for controlling the PC with your voice in Windows 11.
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| 4 | | Pony.ai, a self-driving vehicle tech startup, is teaming up with Toyota and its China manufacturing affiliate in China to mass produce robotaxis. The joint venture will invest more than $139M to bring autonomous electric vehicles to the market. More: - The companies didn't disclose a timeline or number of vehicles.
- Toyota invested $400M in Pony.ai in 2020, cementing a partnership forged in 2019.
- Fremont-based Pony.ai, founded in 2016, operates self-driving fleets in China and California.
- Pony'ai's goal is to develop level 4 autonomous cars for predictable environments, and it has secured significant funding, becoming one of China's most valuable autonomous driving startups.
- The Chinese market for self-driving vehicles and mobility services is expected to reach over $500B by 2030.
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| 5 | The University of Hong Kong (HKU) has ended its ban on students using ChatGPT and will provide generative AI tools for free to both students and teaching staff. However, there will be a monthly limit of 20 prompts per person for using the AI tools, which include Microsoft Azure OpenAI, ChatGPT, and DALL-E. More: - Previously, HKU treated unauthorized AI use by students as plagiarism.
- The university recently received funding to enhance generative AI technology across various disciplines.
- HKU said it aims to integrate AI into the curriculum and prepare students for the future.
- Students will be encouraged to use AI tools in their work, and regular evaluations will be conducted to address challenges.
- The goal is to make students proficient in generative AI and become leaders in the field.
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| 6 | | Weekly roundup — Other top AI stories you might have missed this week: - Google is working on an enhanced version of its voice Assistant, fueled by the latest generative AI technology. A team is already actively working on creating a mobile version of the advanced voice Assistant.
- AI helped to detect 20% more breast cancer cases from mammograms compared to screenings by only radiologists, according to early results from a large-scale study. The research also showed that AI lowered radiologist workloads by nearly half.
- Meta is gearing up to launch AI-powered chatbots, called "personas," on Facebook and Instagram as soon as next month. According to the Financial Times, the chatbots will reportedly have distinct personalities, like offering travel recommendations in a surfer's style or speaking like Abraham Lincoln.
- Thee domain AI.com, which used to forward to OpenAI's ChatGPT, now redirects users to xAI, Elon Musk's AI company. It's still unconfirmed who owns the high-value domain, acquired in 2021 before it started redirecting users to ChatGPT in February.
- Google's AI Test Kitchen app, its playground for people to try out AI-powered tools, was removed from the Android and iOS app stores. The AI Test Kitchen app was delisted, suggesting the first stage of a shutdown.
- Adobe introduced "Generative Expand," an AI-powered Photoshop tool for users to expand an image beyond its borders. In the first few weeks of beta testing, the tool has been used over 900 million times.
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| 8 | | QUICK HITS - The AWS Cookbook - packed with practical insights and hands-on examples - is a must-have for your cloud toolkit.*
- U.S. congressional staffers next week will attend the Congressional Boot Camp on AI at Stanford University to learn about AI and its impact on international security, work, bias, and more.
- Starting Aug. 29, Kickstarter will require projects to disclose their use of AI.
- Google-parent Alphabet Inc. has been accused by the Alphabet Workers Union of illegally terminating contract employment for most Google Help workers who were attempting to unionize. The workers, whose jobs involved improving Google's search engine and AI chatbot, are employed by Accenture, but the union argues that Alphabet is their legal employer.
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 | AI and technology writer | | Beth is the curator and writer of the AI and Tech newsletters at Inside. With a career in journalism and editing that began in 2007, she has written for publications including USA Today, The Arizona Republic, Arizona Business Gazette, and more. You can reach her at Beth.Duckett@yahoo.com. | | This newsletter was edited by Christopher Hachey | |
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