AI: Balancing Risk and Return

Innovative technologies are revolutionizing business as we know it, and they’re more accessible than ever. But to truly harness the transformative potential of AI, you need to know how and when to use it. And which pitfalls to avoid.

The six-week Artificial Intelligence: Implications for Business Strategy online short course from MIT Sloan School of Management and MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory explores AI’s business applications and challenges. 

Choose this program to:

• Optimize your business: Leverage AI, ML, and robotics to drive efficiencies, improve productivity, and support your growth.

• Develop a strategic roadmap: Apply your knowledge to effectively integrate AI into your business.

• Gain a dual perspective: Benefit from a course designed by two prestigious schools — the MIT Sloan School of Management and the MIT CSAIL.

• Conveniently build career-critical skills: Follow a program that fits your schedule and benefit from 24/7 support and various payment options.

Today:

• Neuralink's First User Triumphs

• Cohere Aims for $5B Valuation

• Dell and Nvidia Unveil AI Factory

• Sakana AI's Open-Source Models

• Snowflake & Reka's Multimodal LLMs

Elon Musk Reveals His STUNNING Human Neuralink Patient | The Brain Computer Interface N1

Neuralink's first user, Noland Arbaugh, shares his experience. Paralyzed from the shoulders down due to a diving accident, he demonstrates control over a computer cursor using Neuralink's brain implant. 

The device, powered wirelessly and implanted with precision, offers hope for improved human-computer interaction. Neuralink's innovation marks a significant step toward merging the human mind with machines, promising a future of enhanced capabilities and accessibility.

WATCH THE VIDEO ON YOUTUBE

AI startup Cohere seeks $5 billion valuation in latest fundraising

AI startup Cohere aims for a $5 billion valuation in its latest funding round, seeking $500 million. Its revenue surged from $13 million to $22 million, backed by a new model, Command-R. Cohere, rivaling OpenAI, focuses on enterprise AI solutions and plans to expand to other cloud providers. 

Previously valued at $2.2 billion, Cohere targets aggressive growth, tapping into investors' enthusiasm for AI despite modest revenue. Competing with giants like OpenAI and Anthropic, Cohere's funding spree reflects a broader trend of high valuations in the AI sector, prompting scrutiny over future revenue potential relative to investment.

REUTERS

Nvidia And Dell Build An AI Factory Together

Dell Technologies and Nvidia joined forces at the Nvidia GTC conference to introduce the Dell AI Factory, simplifying AI adoption for enterprises. The collaboration merges Dell's infrastructure with Nvidia's AI software and hardware, offering comprehensive solutions. Dell also upgraded its PowerEdge XE9680 server to support Nvidia's new AI accelerators, including liquid-cooling options for enhanced performance. 

Additionally, Dell introduced updates to its storage solutions, aligning with Nvidia's advancements. Analysts view this strategic collaboration as pivotal in lowering barriers to AI adoption, providing enterprises with scalable and efficient AI infrastructure for future needs and innovation.

FORBES

Open-source AI models released by Tokyo lab Sakana founded by former Google researchers

Sakana AI, a Tokyo-based startup founded by ex-Google researchers, introduces AI models using a unique evolutionary-inspired method called "model merging." This approach combines existing models, generating new ones through iterative selection akin to natural selection. 

The company releases three Japanese language models, with two being open-sourced. Co-founder David Ha, along with Llion Jones, a co-author of Google's "Attention Is All You Need" paper, aims to establish Tokyo as an AI hub. Sakana AI's $30 million seed funding, led by Lux Capital, highlights investor confidence in its vision.

REUTERS

Snowflake teams up with Reka to add multimodal LLMs to data cloud

Snowflake collaborates with Reka, leveraging multimodal large language models (LLMs) in its Data Cloud. The partnership aims to empower enterprises to build generative AI applications capable of processing text, images, and videos. Reka's models, Flash and Core, enhance Snowflake Cortex, offering advanced AI capabilities for diverse business use cases. Flash, optimized for performance, and Core, approaching GPT-4 levels, expand Cortex's AI toolkit. 

With over 400 enterprises already utilizing Cortex, the addition of Reka's models underscores Snowflake's commitment to democratizing AI and accelerating business value. Further AI innovations are anticipated, aligning with Snowflake's vision to integrate AI seamlessly into data workflows.

VENTUREBEAT

🧠RESEARCH

Mora: Enabling Generalist Video Generation via A Multi-Agent Framework

OpenAI's Sora video model, launched in February 2024, stands unrivaled in its versatility for diverse video tasks. Addressing the scarcity of public models, the paper introduces Mora, a multi-agent framework replicating Sora's capabilities. Mora excels in text-to-video, image-to-video, editing, and simulation tasks, narrowing the performance gap with Sora.

LlamaFactory: Unified Efficient Fine-Tuning of 100+ Language Models

LlamaFactory simplifies fine-tuning of over 100 large language models (LLMs) for diverse tasks via its integrated framework. With a user-friendly web UI called LlamaBoard, users can customize fine-tuning without coding. Empirical validation demonstrates its efficiency and effectiveness in language modeling and text generation tasks. The framework is available on GitHub and has gained significant traction.

Evolutionary Optimization of Model Merging Recipes

Evolutionary algorithms automate the creation of potent foundation models by merging diverse open-source models. Unlike manual approaches, this method discovers effective combinations without extensive data or compute. It optimizes both parameters and data flow, enabling cross-domain merging, as demonstrated by a Japanese LLM excelling in math reasoning. The approach contributes state-of-the-art models and advances automated model composition.

SceneScript: Reconstructing Scenes With An Autoregressive Structured Language Model

SceneScript introduces a novel method for scene reconstruction using structured language commands generated by an autoregressive model. Departing from traditional approaches, it encodes visual data into commands, achieving state-of-the-art architectural layout estimation and competitive 3D object detection. The method is flexible, adapting to new commands for tasks like 3D object part reconstruction.

RadSplat: Radiance Field-Informed Gaussian Splatting for Robust Real-Time Rendering with 900+ FPS

RadSplat introduces a lightweight method for real-time rendering of complex scenes, achieving over 900 FPS. By incorporating radiance fields as a prior, it enhances quality and optimization robustness. The method includes a novel pruning technique for compact scene representations and test-time filtering for accelerated rendering, scaling to large scenes while maintaining state-of-the-art synthesis quality.

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📲SOCIAL MEDIA

🗞️MORE NEWS

Microsoft debuts first Surface PCs with dedicated Copilot AI button

Microsoft introduced new Surface Pro 10 for Business and Surface Laptop 6 for Business, featuring a dedicated Copilot button for accessing the chatbot, fulfilling a January promise. The button, a major keyboard change, emphasizes AI convenience. With NPUs for faster responses and security, these AI PCs start at $1,199, available for pre-order. CNBC

A new web3 network is being built right now that wants to end Big Tech’s control of your data

In the realm of Web3, Edge and Node aims to counter Big Tech's data dominance through decentralized networks like The Graph. With plans to democratize data and integrate AI, they envision a censorship-resistant internet. The Graph's roadmap includes facilitating AI training with decentralized data, potentially reshaping both industries. TECHCRUNCH

AI generates high-quality images 30 times faster in a single step

MIT researchers have devised a groundbreaking method, called Distribution Matching Distillation (DMD), that accelerates the generation of high-quality images by 30 times in a single step. This approach simplifies complex diffusion models into one step, maintaining or even improving image quality. DMD holds promise for various applications, from design tools to drug discovery. MIT

Britain's BBC considers building in-house AI model

The BBC plans to create its own AI model using its vast text archives for production support. Discussions include potential partnerships for model training and selling archive access to tech firms. Concerns about model bias are being addressed. The BBC denies agreements for commercial AI use of its archives. REUTERS

A Stealth AI ‘Agent’ To Speed Global Hiring Launches With $27 Million Fundraise

Borderless AI, backed by $27 million in seed funding, introduces an AI agent, Alberni, to streamline HR tasks like onboarding and paying global workers. Co-founded by Sean Aggarwal and Willson Cross, it aims to enhance efficiency in global hiring, challenging established players in the field. Compliance remains a top priority. FORBES

Runway partners with Musixmatch, allowing musicians to generate AI lyrics videos

Runway, in partnership with Musixmatch, enables over a million musicians to utilize Gen-2 AI for video creation synced to song lyrics. This collaboration aims to streamline the production of lyric videos, tapping into AI's creative potential. Runway faces competition but seeks to maintain its edge through strategic alliances. VENTUREBEAT

UN adopts first global artificial intelligence resolution

The United Nations General Assembly has unanimously adopted the first global resolution on artificial intelligence. The resolution encourages protecting personal data, monitoring AI for risks, and safeguarding human rights. It advocates for strengthening privacy policies and recognizes the importance of navigating the challenges posed by rapidly evolving technology while upholding fundamental values. This resolution reflects ongoing global efforts to shape the development of AI and address potential risks associated with its misuse. REUTERS

Medics design AI tool to predict side-effects in breast cancer patients

Doctors have crafted an AI tool to forecast post-treatment side-effects in breast cancer patients, aiding personalized care. Trials across the UK, France, and the Netherlands show promising results in predicting issues like chronic arm swelling. The technology, aiming to enhance patient support, could revolutionize breast cancer treatment outcomes. THE GUARDIAN