A New Era in AI-Powered Biotech

Today:

We'll explore the following topics:

• 💡 EvolutionaryScale's Big Move: $40M for AI in Biotech

• 🚀 AMD Acquires Mipsology

• 📱Generative AI Is Coming to Phones Soon

Ex-Meta Researchers Have Raised $40 Million From Lux Capital For An AI Biotech Startup

Ex-Meta scientists who worked on AI for biology just scored a big win. Their new startup, EvolutionaryScale, raised $40 million from Lux Capital and some big names in AI investing. The goal? To predict the 3D shapes of proteins way faster than Google's AlphaFold, which is currently the top dog in this game. Why does that matter? Well, knowing a protein's shape can help create drugs to cure diseases, among other things.

Despite the buzz, there's no guaranteed payday. While their tech is faster, it's not as accurate as AlphaFold. Plus, the startup needs boatloads of cash to scale up—talking nearly $280 million in the first three years. And even if they nail it, turning a profit could take a decade. But if they're right, this could be a game-changer in medicine and beyond. Oh, and the startup is valued at a cool $200 million. Not too shabby for a field that's still figuring itself out.

READ THE ARTICLE ON FORBES

AMD Acquires French AI Software Company Mipsology

AMD, that big computer chip company, just bought a French AI company called Mipsology. This company is all about making software that helps computers understand and respond to pictures and videos. Think of it like teaching computers to "see" like we do. This Mipsology's main software, Zebra, is used in stuff like self-driving cars, robots in factories, and smart stores.

AMD's been really diving deep into the AI pool lately. They even launched a new AI-focused chip in June. This Mipsology buy is just another step for AMD to get an edge over their big rivals, Nvidia and Intel. Also, there's some buzz that AMD's about to drop some big news about a new graphics chip at a gaming event in Germany.

READ THE ARTICLE ON INVESTOPIA

Qualcomm's 'Holy Grail': Generative AI Is Coming to Phones Soon

Qualcomm's hitting the gas on putting AI tech, like what powers ChatGPT, right in your phone's brain! So, instead of being a big desktop computer thing, this high-end AI magic is gonna be at your fingertips. Yeah, we've seen AI spruce up photos, but Qualcomm's taking it next-level. They're gonna showcase this in Hawaii, and their top dog, Ziad Asghar, is super hyped. Why? 'Cause with everything on your phone, the AI's gonna know you real well - like a smart buddy that's got your back 24/7.

The big win? It's private, quick, and works even when you're flying above the clouds. And it's smart on the dollars too. Big AI setups cost a ton, but using your phone's own "brain" is kinda like getting a free ride after buying the car.

READ THE ARTICLE ON CNET

VFX artists show that Hollywood can use AI to create, not exploit

Hollywood's been dabbling with AI, even with current labor beefs. At SIGGRAPH in LA, tech buffs geeked out about AI tools and how they can jazz up movies, if used right. SIGGRAPH is all about computer graphics and special effects. Big chat of the day? A strike! But the mood was more "It stinks, but let's keep pushing our skills."

Many fear AI will boot out artists and writers, and some big wigs even dream of replacing them with AI. Yet, AI's been in the biz for ages, just helping artists out. For instance, Pixar used some fancy tech to animate their new movie, Elemental, making characters out of fire, water, and air. Using AI tools, they blended real flame effects with artists' visions to get the best look.

But, don't get it twisted! Pixar's Paul Kanyuk was clear: they didn't let AI make the film. They used AI tools to nail the artistic goals.

READ THE ARTICLE ON TECHCRUNCH

VFX artists show that Hollywood can use AI to create, not exploit

Hollywood's been dabbling with AI, even with current labor beefs. At SIGGRAPH in LA, tech buffs geeked out about AI tools and how they can jazz up movies, if used right. SIGGRAPH is all about computer graphics and special effects. Big chat of the day? A strike! But the mood was more "It stinks, but let's keep pushing our skills."

Many fear AI will boot out artists and writers, and some big wigs even dream of replacing them with AI. Yet, AI's been in the biz for ages, just helping artists out. For instance, Pixar used some fancy tech to animate their new movie, Elemental, making characters out of fire, water, and air. Using AI tools, they blended real flame effects with artists' visions to get the best look.

But, don't get it twisted! Pixar's Paul Kanyuk was clear: they didn't let AI make the film. They used AI tools to nail the artistic goals.

READ THE ARTICLE ON TECHCRUNCH

Hacking animal communication with AI

Ever wondered what Fido or Tweety is trying to say? Scientists in Israel are puzzling over how AI can crack the code of animal talk. Inspired by Doctor Dolittle—the fictional guy who could yap with animals—they're diving into the challenges of making real-life convo with critters a thing.

Figuring this out could be a game-changer. It could help farmers with their bees, let us know if something's up in a protected forest, or even be practice for chatting with ETs one day. So, as tough as it is, it's worth the effort.

READ THE ARTICLE ON PHYS ORG

Motion-to-Matching: A Mixed Paradigm for 3D Single Object Tracking

So, tracking a 3D object using those laser points (LiDAR) is kinda a big deal in the tech world. Old ways of doing this either matched appearances or looked at short-term movements. The problem? The matching style gets thrown off by lookalikes and ain't great with few points. The motion-focused style? It just peeps at quick movements and misses the big picture.

Enter the MTM-Tracker. It's like taking the best of both worlds. Stage one uses past data for movement hints and gets a rough idea of where the target is. Stage two gets fancy, picking up on movement details from those laser points to better track our object. Tests show it’s doing pretty swell on major benchmarks. And hey, if you're into coding, they're gonna drop that code link soon!

READ THE ARTICLE ON ARVIX