Apple is reportedly considering using Brighter AI’s technology to minimise the risk of Apple Vision Pro capturing identifiable information in public photos or videos…reports Asian Lite News
Apple is planning to acquire a German AI startup — Brighter AI, specialising in anonymising face and licence plate data, a media report has said.
According to 9to5Mac, citing sources, the tech giant aims to use this acquisition to improve privacy features on its mixed reality (MR) headset Vision Pro.
Apple is reportedly considering using Brighter AI’s technology to minimise the risk of Apple Vision Pro capturing identifiable information in public photos or videos.
These concerns are usually not present while using an iPhone to capture footage. However, Apple Vision Pro may raise concerns because it can shoot video more discreetly than smartphones.
This technology could also be useful in future devices that make photo and video capture less noticeable. When capturing media with Vision Pro, a subtle visual cue appears on the front panel, the report mentioned.
Brighter AI offers sophisticated AI technology that can remove all traces of data without obscuring it, making the acquisition of the company of particular interest. The method used by Brighter AI keeps subjects’ natural appearance while maintaining their unrecognisability, according to the report.
Instead, Brighter AI can alter images so that subjects are no longer identifiable. It accomplishes this while maintaining natural appearances. Meanwhile, Apple officially launched Vision Pro in the US on February 2. It starts at $3,500.
The tech giant has announced more than 600 apps and games designed for the Apple Vision Pro headset.
The company’s however, did not make an official comment on changing Bard’s name to Gemini…reports Asian Lite News
Google is planning some big changes to its artificial intelligence (AI) models, including reportedly changing the name of Bard to Gemini.
Android app developer Dylan Roussel has apparently leaked a company change-log that says “Bard is now Gemini” which is the new model to compete with OpenAI’s GPT-4.
“Bard is now Gemini. Gemini is the best way to get direct access to Google Al. All the collaborative capabilities you know and love are still here, and will keep getting better in the Gemini era,” reads the change-log.
The company’s however, did not make an official comment on changing Bard’s name to Gemini.
“We’ve also evolved the Ul to reduce visual distractions, improve legibility, and simplify the navigation,” according to the document.
The log said that Google will debut voice chat with Gemini, as well as a new “Ultra 1.0” model with “Gemini Advanced,” a paid plan that offers ChatGPT Plus-like file uploading features.
“Gemini Advanced gives you access to our most capable Al model, Ultra 1.0. With our Ultra 1.0 model, Gemini Advanced is far more capable at highly complex tasks like coding, logical reasoning, following nuanced instructions, and creative collaboration,” read the Google document.
Gemini Advanced will continue to expand with new and exclusive features in the coming months, including expanded multi-modal capabilities, even better coding features, as well as the ability to upload and more deeply analyse files, documents, data, and more.
Gemini Advanced is a paid plan available in over 150 countries and territories. The Gemini app is coming soon, starting with English.
Google, which brought Gemini Pro into its AI chatbot Bard in English last December, has now made it available in more than 230 countries and territories in over 40 languages, including nine Indian languages.
The nine Indian languages include — Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Bengali, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Gujarati, and Urdu.
EU flags are seen outside the European Commission in Brussels, Belgium, Jan. 6, 2023.(Xinhua/Zheng Huansong/IANS)
The European Parliament is anticipated to vote on the finalized text in March or April before it becomes law, with the AI Act slated to enter into force 20 days after publication in the official journal…reports Asian Lite News
The 27 member states of the European Union (EU) have unanimously endorsed the bloc’s “landmark legislation” governing the utilization of artificial intelligence (AI), also known as the EU AI Act, according to European Commissioner for the Internal Market Thierry Breton.
Breton described the move as “historic, world first, pioneering” on the social media platform X, emphasizing that negotiators have found the “perfect balance between innovation and safety.”
In December, EU lawmakers and member states reached a political agreement on the key provisions of the AI Act, hailed by the European Commission as the “first-ever comprehensive legal framework on AI worldwide”.
However, the complexity of the legislation prompted months-long technical refinement, during which countries like France and Germany expressed concerns particularly regarding the stringent regulatory rules for powerful AI models, prompting a new round of discussions on its contents.
The European Parliament is anticipated to vote on the finalized text in March or April before it becomes law, with the AI Act slated to enter into force 20 days after publication in the official journal.
While the legislation will not take immediate effect, certain rules will be implemented within six months, and other aspects will be enforced two years later.
In June last year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during his US visit — met with notable US and Indian tech executives, including Nadella, Alphabet and Google CEO Sundar Pichai, and Apple CEO Tim Cook…reports Asian Lite News
Microsoft Chairman and CEO Satya Nadella will visit India on February 7 and 8 as part of his annual visit to the country and might meet AI startups and discuss new opportunities with AI.
“Satya Nadella, Chairman and CEO, Microsoft, will address India’s developer community and technologists on discovering new opportunities with AI,” the company said in a statement.
The president of Microsoft India and South Asia, Puneet Chandok, stated in an internal email a few weeks ago that Nadella’s visit reaffirms Microsoft’s dedication to using technology to increase opportunities in the country.
In June last year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during his US visit — met with notable US and Indian tech executives, including Nadella, Alphabet and Google CEO Sundar Pichai, and Apple CEO Tim Cook.
Following that, Nadella’s office issued a statement outlining his meeting with the PM.
“One important topic was the power of technology, particularly Artificial Intelligence, to help improve the lives of Indians,” Microsoft’s statement said.
“India is home to one of the most vibrant developer and start-up ecosystems in the world, and Microsoft remains deeply committed to the growth of Indian technology — that will impact both India and markets across the globe,” it added.
Meanwhile, Microsoft has reached the coveted $3 trillion mark and became the second company after Apple to achieve this feat.
Microsoft reached a $3 trillion market cap, for the first time in its 48-year history. The company reached the milestone valuation after its stock climbed 1.5 per cent in trading on Nasdaq.
Apple hit the $3 trillion market cap around two years ago.
Last year, Satya Nadella made a four-day official visit to India during which he met some of the key customers, start-ups developers, not-for-profit organisations and students as well.
Founders of some of India’s prominent AI start-ups including Lightspeed and Peak XV-backed Sarvam, Bhavish Aggarwal’s AI startup Krutrim may meet Satya Nadella in Mumbai and Bangalore this year.
In October 2023, Satya Nadella highlighted Microsoft’s big plans for AI after its partnership with OpenAI. It also announced that Micorsoft will be strengthening its partnership with OpenAI by integrating the Bing search engine into ChatGPT. After OpenAI’s board dismissed Sam Altman, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella announced that Altman, Brockman, and other OpenAI employees will be joining the company’s new advanced AI research team.
The design facilitates a wide range of content creation tasks and video editing applications, including image-to-video, video inpainting, and stylised generation…reports Asian Lite News
Google has introduced a new video generation AI model called Lumiere that uses a new diffusion model called Space-Time-U-Net, or STUNet. Lumiere creates 5-second videos in one process instead of putting smaller still frames together.
This technology figures out where things are in a video (space) and how they simultaneously move and change (time).
“We introduce Lumiere — a text-to-video diffusion model designed for synthesising videos that portray realistic, diverse and coherent motion — a pivotal challenge in video synthesis,” said Google researchers in a paper.
“We introduce a Space-Time U-Net architecture that generates the entire temporal duration of the video at once, through a single pass in the model,” they wrote.
The design facilitates a wide range of content creation tasks and video editing applications, including image-to-video, video inpainting, and stylised generation.
Lumiere can perform text-to-video generation, convert still images into videos, generate videos in specific styles using a reference image, apply consistent video editing using text-based prompts and create cinemagraphs by animating specific regions of an image.
The Google researchers said that the AI model outputs five-second-long 1024×1024 pixel videos, which they describe as “low-resolution.”
Lumiere also generates 80 frames compared to 25 frames from Stable Video Diffusion.
“There is a risk of misuse for creating fake or harmful content with our technology, and we believe that it is crucial to develop and apply tools for detecting biases and malicious use cases to ensure a safe and fair use,” said the paper authors.
Promises of a free PlayStation 5 or other valuable assets after entering card details on a phishing site can be some of the most common examples…reports Asian Lite News
Artificial Intelligence-based apps, online games, smart homes — all could increase your children’s risk of cyber-attacks, according to a report on Saturday.
The report, by global cybersecurity firm Kaspersky, noted that children are more likely to use AI tools that, so far, are not ready to provide the necessary level of cybersecurity and age-appropriate content.
These include apps such as uploading a photo to receive a modified version. However, when children upload their images to such applications, they never know which databases their photos will ultimately remain, and whether they will be used further.
AI apps, specifically, chatbots also provide age-inappropriate content when prompted.
The report also called on parents to be aware of the growth of malicious actors’ attacks on young online gamers, who often virtually build trust by luring the kids with gifts or promises of friendship.
They then obtain their personal information by suggesting that they click on a phishing link, which downloads a malicious file onto their device disguised as a game mod for Minecraft or Fortnite, or even grooming them.
Further, with an increasing number of banks providing specialised products and services tailored for children, including banking cards designed for kids as young as 12, children are also at risk of frauds from FinTech industry.
Promises of a free PlayStation 5 or other valuable assets after entering card details on a phishing site can be some of the most common examples.
Smart home devices also create threats for children, where cybercriminals can contact them through the device and request sensitive information such as their name, address and time, when their parents are not at home — or even their parents’ credit card number.
“In such a scenario, beyond just device hacking, there is also a risk of financial data loss or even a physical attack,” said the report.
As children tend to demand their personal space, parents must learn the skill to discuss their children’s online experience and the importance of parenting digital apps for online safety while respecting personal space. This involves establishing clear boundaries and expectations and discussing the reasons for using the app with any child, the report said.
“As we can see, many of the trends that are playing out in society are also affecting children, making them potential targets for attackers. This includes both the development and popularity of AI and smart homes, as well as the expansion of the world of gaming and FinTech industry,” said Andrey Sidenko, security and privacy expert at Kaspersky, in a statement.
“Therefore, it is crucial to teach children the basics of cybersecurity from an early age, how not to fall into the trap of cybercriminals, what cyberthreats can occur during gaming, and how to properly protect your personal data. All this is now a must-have knowledge not only for adults, but also for the youngest users,” he added.
Kaspersky experts advised parents to stay informed about the latest threats and actively monitor children’s online activities.
“It’s crucial for parents to have open communication with their children about the potential risks they may encounter online and to enforce strict guidelines to ensure their safety,” the report said.
The 12 startup business plans covered a variety of verticals, including AI safety, AI for health, AI for social good, and more.
The inaugural Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI) Entrepreneurship Courses concluded with 12 AI-based startup business plans presented at an on-campus event in Masdar City.
22 students gained the entrepreneurial skills, tools, and networks needed to commercialise their AI solutions in the UAE, and three startups were fast-tracked for financial grants from MBZUAI.
Jointly launched by MBZUAI’s Incubation and Entrepreneurship Centre (MIEC) and startAD, the Abu Dhabi-based startup accelerator powered by Tamkeen and anchored at NYU Abu Dhabi, the programme aims to boost the AI startup ecosystem in Abu Dhabi.
The top three AI-assisted technologies and applications are Audiomatic, which provides automatic and emotionally intelligent audio production for video content, including customised scores, sound effects, and narrations; Limb, an application providing accessible physiotherapy information such as exercise correction and pain management features; and Momzo, a complete AI assistant for women’s maternity to motherhood powered by generative AI.
“These are the first AI-focused entrepreneurship courses at the university and in the UAE and come on the eve of an expected AI startup boom led by generative AI,” MBZUAI’s Vice President of Public Affairs and Alumni Relations Sultan Al Hajji said.
He added, “The entrepreneurship courses actively encourage students to take advantage of the favourable entrepreneurial environment in Abu Dhabi and ignite the potential to transform their research and engineering know-how into a business. The startup pitches highlight specific-industry and application-use cases and have the potential to make a significant impact on society with their bold, sophisticated, and innovative concepts.”
Managing Director of startAD Ramesh Jagannathan said, “The MBZUAI IEC programme immersed AI innovators in the exciting world of innovation and entrepreneurship, where they learned to apply business literacy heuristics to their ideas. According to an Accenture Report, AI will add $182 billion in annual gross value to the UAE’s economy by 2035. These startup projects demonstrate high potential and are poised to strengthen the UAE’s knowledge economy.”
The 22 graduates represent more than ten nationalities, with 41% being women. All participants graduated from the intensive five-week entrepreneurship courses, which included eight workshops and three community engagement events covering topics such as idea generation, market discovery, prototyping, and pitching.
The 12 startup business plans covered a variety of verticals, including AI safety, AI for health, AI for social good, and more.
The top three pitches were named by a panel of expert judges, including Jean-Luc Scherer, business incubation expert and advisor at Sandooq Al Watan; Mariam Al Badr, director of outreach at Khalifa Fund; Dr. Ramzi Ben Ouaghrem, director of research development and engagement at MBZUAI; Michael Huang, acting director of strategy and IEQA at MBZUAI; and Selim Tira, investment representative at Shorooq Partners.
It is heartening to see that the Galaxy S24 Ultra with a 6.8-inch flatter display has turned its focus back on the phone’s most fundamental role: communication…reports Asian Lite News
Artificial intelligence (AI) is here and when it comes to devices around us, the role of this new technology to boost productivity, creativity and overall daily-life experiences is now being explored by various original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). For the record, Samsung has taken a leap with its new ‘Galaxy AI phones’.
From breaking language barriers with AI-driven text and call translations to maximising creativity with its ‘ProVisual Engine’ that comes with AI-powered tools for images, the new Galaxy S24 Ultra has gone beyond incremental changes we have been witnessing in premium smartphones lately.
With the gesture-driven ‘Circle to Search’ feature with Google, the company has transformed the way online searches for shopping, travel and other tasks are done.
It is heartening to see that the Galaxy S24 Ultra with a 6.8-inch flatter display has turned its focus back on the phone’s most fundamental role: communication.
With the ‘Live Translate’ feature, you can chat with another student or colleague from abroad without any language concern.
You can book an Uber or a dinner reservation at your favourite restaurant while on vacation in another country where language can be a problem.
The ‘Live Translate’ is a two-way, real-time voice and text translations of phone calls within the native app. No third-party apps are required, and on-device AI keeps conversations completely private, according to Samsung.
Galaxy S24 series marks a milestone in the history of search as the first phone to debut intuitive, gesture-driven ‘Circle to Search’ with Google.
With a long press on the home button, you can circle, highlight, scribble on or tap anything on Galaxy S24 Ultra’s screen to see helpful, high-quality search results.
If you see a friend wearing a stunning jacket, you can just focus on the jacket, use the ‘Circle to Search’ feature and the AI-driven search will offer multiple options when to buy that jacket from online, without having to leave the app.
Depending on your location, for certain searches, generative AI-powered overviews can provide helpful information and context pulled together from across the web, and you can ask more complex and nuanced questions.
With the ‘Interpreter’ feature, live conversations can be instantly translated on a split-screen view so people standing opposite each other can read a text transcription of what the other person has said. The feature even works without cellular data or Wi-Fi.
For messages and other apps, the ‘Chat Assist’ feature can help perfect conversational tones to ensure communication sounds as it was intended: like a polite message to a coworker or a short and catchy phrase for a social media caption.
AI built into Samsung Keyboard can also translate messages in real time in 13 languages.
The Indian organisations will also get a big boost with ‘Note Assist’ in Samsung Notes, featuring AI-generated summaries, template creation that streamlines notes with pre-made formats and cover creation to make notes easy to spot with a brief preview.
For voice recordings, when there are multiple speakers, the ‘Transcript Assist’ feature uses AI and speech-to-text technology to transcribe, summarise and even translate recordings.
The Galaxy S24 Ultra is equipped with Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 Mobile Platform. The device offers superior usability and faster and smoother gameplay, alongside the Ray tracing module for a more immersive gaming experience.
Galaxy S24 Ultra design utilised titanium for the first time for a premium feel and enhanced durability. The thinnest model yet, the device features a flat front edge display compatible with the S Pen and a more vivid and durable screen with even bezels.
Now comes to the camera. The ‘ProVisual Engine’ is a comprehensive suite of AI-powered tools that transforms image capturing abilities and maximises creative freedom, taking care of shaky, pixelated images taken from far away.
Galaxy S24 Ultra’s Quad Tele System, with new 5x optical zoom lens, works with the 50MP sensor to enable optical-quality performance at zoom levels from 2x, 3x, 5x to 10×10 magnification, thanks to Adaptive Pixel Sensor. Images also show crystal clear results at 100x with enhanced digital zoom.
With upgraded Nightography capabilities, you will find that photos and videos shot on Galaxy S24 Ultra’s Space Zoom are brilliant in any condition, even when zoomed in.
You will also be able to capture more light in dim conditions with Galaxy S24 Ultra’s larger pixel size, now 1.4 micrometre, which is 60 per cent bigger compared to S23 Ultra.
Blur is reduced on Galaxy S24 Ultra with wider optical image stabiliser (OIS) angles and enhanced hand-shake compensation.
When recording videos, both front and rear cameras are equipped with ‘Dedicated ISP Block’ for noise reduction.
To give you even more creative freedom, ‘Generative Edit’ can fill in parts of an image background with generative AI.
When a picture is crooked, AI will fill in the borders. When an object needs to be slightly moved to be in the perfect position, AI will let you adjust the position of the subject and generate a perfectly blended background in its original spot.
For gamers, Galaxy S24 Ultra offers an optimal thermal control system with a 1.9 times larger vapour chamber, improving device surface temperature.
The Corning Gorilla Armor display is optically enhanced and demonstrates superior durability against damage caused by everyday scratches.
In India, Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra in Titanium Gray, Titanium Violet and Titanium Black colours starts from Rs 129,999 (12GB+256GB variant).
The 12GB+512GB variant costs Rs 139,999 and 12GB+1TB model of Galaxy S24 Ultra will come at Rs 159,999.
In India, customers pre-booking Galaxy S24 Ultra get benefits worth Rs 22,000 and the effective price can go pretty low with device upgrade and other offers.
Conclusion: In a saturated smartphone market, Galaxy S24 Ultra promises fresh air, with practical, real-life use cases of AI that will make your life easy.
Remember: The primary use of a smartphone is to communicate and Galaxy S24 Ultra does exactly that with the help of AI, in a much smarter way.
While researchers around the world expect job losses due to artificial intelligence (AI) soon, a new study has said that AI might not take as many jobs as expected.
A recent study conducted by MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) investigated whether AI could perform tasks more efficiently than humans and whether it was cost-effective for businesses to replace human labour with AI.
The study took into consideration the broader implications of AI implementation in the labour market.
The researchers found computer vision AI can currently automate tasks that makeup 1.6 per cent of worker wages in the US economy, excluding agriculture.
However, only 23 per cent of those wages, equivalent to 0.4 per cent of the entire economy, would be cheaper for companies to automate instead of hiring human workers at current costs.
“We find that at today’s costs US businesses would choose not to automate most vision tasks that have “AI Exposure,” and that only 23 per cent of worker wages being paid for vision tasks would be attractive to automate,” the authors said.
“Overall, our findings suggest that AI job displacement will be substantial, but also gradual — and therefore there is room for (government) policy and retraining to mitigate unemployment impacts,” they added.
The study included examples of “vision tasks” that AI could achieve including analysing images from hospital diagnostic equipment or examining trays to ensure they contain the correct items.
Researchers surveyed employees to determine the share of their tasks that could be accomplished by computer vision. They subsequently developed models to assess cost-effectiveness.
They discovered that using AI visual detection to replace workers would rarely be worthwhile.
“We find that the median employee works in a firm where close to none of the vision tasks are cost-effective to automate. Even a firm with 5,000 employees, i.e., larger than 99.9 per cent of firms in the US, could only cost-effectively automate less than one-tenth of their existing vision labour at the current cost structure,” the researchers stated.
The study acknowledged that the cost of AI will decrease over time, but the authors don’t think it will do so as quickly as some have suggested. They also predicted that it would take some time for AI to have a major impact on these kinds of professions.
CEOs Eye GenAI
About seven out of 10 CEOs globally are planning to invest in generative artificial intelligence (genAI) this year, a new report said on Tuesday.
According to the global software-as-a-service (SaaS) company Netcore Cloud, genAI emerges as a top investment priority, with CEOs foreseeing a tangible payoff within the upcoming three to five years.
The report also suggested that consumer preferences are strongly inclined toward short-form video content, and convenient and instant transactions.
With 90 per cent of consumers convinced by videos in their product decisions, industry leaders are embracing influencer marketing, leveraging short videos to shine a spotlight on their product line, according to the report.
About 89 per cent of consumers revealed that viewing a video has tipped the scales when deciding on a product or service.
Moreover, the report noted that users actively explore brands and products on Instagram, making it the platform’s second most engaging activity, captivating 62.2 per cent of its users.
Similarly, on TikTok, 65 per cent of users rely on online reviews and creator recommendations for informed online purchase decisions.
“As we step into a future dominated by AI and automation, understanding these trends is crucial for any marketer looking to make a substantial impact,” said Mahesh Narayanan, Chief Marketing Growth Officer at Netcore Cloud.
Further, the report mentioned that as user preferences for different channels gain importance, companies embracing robust omnichannel engagement stand to earn up to a 9.5 per cent annual revenue surge.
Understanding AI involves grasping data concepts. Digital skills contribute to data literacy, empowering students to analyse, interpret, and draw meaningful insights from data. This skill is invaluable in a data-driven world…writes Aarul Malaviya
As industries increasingly integrate AI technologies, a workforce well-versed in AI and digital skills becomes essential. Students equipped with these abilities are better positioned for future job markets that demand proficiency in handling advanced technologies.
Facilitates Problem-Solving and Critical Thinking: AI literacy fosters problem-solving skills and critical thinking. Understanding how AI works enables students to analyze complex issues, identify opportunities for automation, and develop innovative solutions, thereby enhancing their analytical abilities. It sharpens their mind and strengthens their intellectual muscles.
Promotes Technological Adaptability: In a world where technology evolves swiftly, having digital skills ensures adaptability. Students who are familiar with digital tools and platforms can quickly adapt to new technologies, making them more resilient in an ever-changing environment.
Supports Lifelong Skills: In the dynamic landscape of technology, foundational digital literacy equips students with essential knowledge and skills applicable to both current and future technologies. For instance, grasping fundamental concepts like input/output, application operation, and understanding hardware devices impart transferable knowledge. These basics serve as a solid foundation that students can apply to navigate and adapt to new and emerging technologies.
Enhances Creativity: AI literacy can enhance creativity by providing tools and frameworks for students to explore new ideas and possibilities. Digital skills enable students to leverage creative software, design thinking principles, and digital platforms to express and implement their innovative ideas. Technology provides the necessary tools to enhance their ability and give shape to their growth story.
Promotes Data Literacy: Understanding AI involves grasping data concepts. Digital skills contribute to data literacy, empowering students to analyse, interpret, and draw meaningful insights from data. This skill is invaluable in a data-driven world.
Improves Ethical Awareness: AI comes with ethical considerations. Students with AI literacy are better equipped to understand the ethical implications of AI applications. This awareness is crucial for responsible and ethical decision-making in various fields. In addition to online safety, digital literacy encompasses teaching digital responsibility and the proficiency to consume and communicate information ethically in the online realm.
Enables Global Connectivity: Digital skills enable students to connect with peers and resources globally. Online collaboration, communication, and the ability to navigate digital platforms facilitate a more connected and collaborative learning experience.
Provides Entrepreneurial Opportunities: AI literacy opens doors to entrepreneurial opportunities. Students can leverage AI technologies to develop innovative solutions, create startups, and contribute to the entrepreneurial ecosystem. It opens up an avenue with limitless possibilities.
Despite the widespread presence of technology in homes and educational settings, a significant proportion of minority individuals still possess limited digital literacy skills. Prioritizing digital literacy in education becomes essential for institutions to enhance the digital skills of underrepresented groups. This proactive approach enables these students to acquire additional career opportunities and better positions them for success in the future.
Students are reaping AI benefits via ed-tech tools and the formative learning they facilitate. However, this application is frequently inconsistent and dependent on the initiative of innovative educators or departments, rather than being a standard practice across institutions.
Being AI-literate and possessing digital skills is not just about staying current, it’s about preparing students for a future where technology plays a pivotal role. These skills empower students to be effective contributors, critical thinkers, and responsible users of technology in an increasingly digital and AI-driven world.
