Zoom's Latest TOS Update

Delving Deep into the Updated Terms of Service: A Comprehensive Analysis on Zoom's Use of User Content for AI Training and What It Means for Individual Privacy Rights

Author

Wes Roth
August 08, 2023

Today:

Zoom's Updated Terms of Service Permit Training AI on User Content Without Opt-Out

Zoom's got some new rules, and not everyone's jazzed about them. They've changed their Terms of Service to say that they can use the data they collect from us, like how we use their app, for pretty much anything they want. This even includes using our data to teach their machines - think of it as giving their computers a brain boost. The kicker? We can't say "no thanks" to this.

To top it off, Zoom's also saying they can share, change, and use our content - think video calls, messages, the works - any which way they want, forever, without paying us a dime. They say it's all to make their stuff better for us, but some folks think they're crossing a line.

Now, after some big names tweeted about it, Zoom chimed in. They said when we're in a meeting or chatting, we'll know if they're using our info to make things better. But the thing is, that's not the same as saying they won't use our data for other stuff, especially with the new terms we talked about.

Bing AI Celebrates 6 Months With New Features & Impressive Stats

Bing's got this thing called the Bing Image Creator where you type in a description, and boom! You get a picture. That's thanks to some smart tech from OpenAI called DALL-E. Plus, Bing Chat got smarter. It remembers your old chats, so you can check them out again whenever.

Now, for those on the go, Bing's fancy AI features are on mobile too. If you're a PC person, there's Windows Copilot, which makes everything smooth with Bing Chat. And for the text-savvy crowd, SwiftKey's got Bing baked in. Texting, translating, and tweaking email vibes—all with the help of AI.

Microsoft is also opening doors for Bing on other browsers, but they still think Edge is where it's at. There's this thing where you can show Bing a picture and ask about it. And for those who like things on the dark side, there's a Dark Mode for Bing Chat.

Got an iPhone? The Bing app has some neat switches to play with GPT-4 and adjust your chat style. For businesses, Bing Chat Enterprise is the new kid on the block with top-notch data protection.

Microsoft's stoked about the future of Bing. They're saying the new AI stuff is big news for folks in the digital marketing world. All in all, Bing's growth and flashy AI tools highlight just how big AI's getting in the online search game.

OpenAI Launches GPTBot With Details On How To Restrict Access

OpenAI's rolled out a new web crawler called GPTBot to juice up future AI models. It scours the web, looking for useful data but avoids sites behind paywalls, those that don't align with OpenAI's rules, or ones collecting personal info. If you let GPTBot onto your site, you're helping make AI better. But, if you're not cool with that, OpenAI says, "No sweat." Web admins can give GPTBot the boot or limit its hangout spots on their site by tweaking their robots.txt file. All the while, OpenAI's being upfront about where GPTBot's web visits are coming from.

But here's the tea: folks on Hacker News are hashing it out about whether this is all above board. Some worry about copyrighted stuff being snagged without a shoutout, especially since GPTBot doesn't give credit where it's due. And what about licensed pics or tunes? Using them in AI training could step on copyright toes. While some reckon OpenAI's just using what's out in the open, others feel if they're making bank off this data, they oughta share the wealth. Bottom line? GPTBot's stirring the pot in the tech world, with peeps asking for more clarity as AI races ahead.

Google Search's Latest AI Feature Is a Grammar Checker. How to Use It

Google's added a grammar checker to its search. Although Gmail and Docs already check your writing, this is new for Search. Using AI, this tool looks over your sentences to make sure they're on point. But watch out, it might not always get it right, especially with tricky phrases. Right now, it's only for English.

Want to give it a go? Type your sentence in the search bar and toss "grammar check" at the end. If Google spots a mistake, you'll see bold and underlines. No errors? You'll get a green check. Copying the fixed sentence is a breeze — just hover and click "COPY". We tested it out and, no shocker, it's not perfect. Like with the sentence "The dogs aren't outside today it is too hot," Google suggested a comma, but that ain't right. Got feedback? There's a button for that.

Meta disbands protein-folding team in shift towards commercial AI

Meta's ditched its protein-folding team, signaling a move from pure science to making cash with AI. They'd built a massive database of protein structures which was a big deal for drug makers. But Meta, once big on "what if" research, is now chasing money-making AI projects. This is all part of their big shake-up, cutting jobs and aiming for more profits after investors got antsy.

While Meta was an AI pioneer, they're playing catch-up with big shots like OpenAI and Google in the chatbot game. Word on the street is, they'll drop some chatbots of their own soon. Some folks reckon Meta's research lab's academic vibe slowed them down in the AI race. Now, there's worry about whether Meta will keep their protein database up and running. Though they haven't given a straight answer, for now, researchers can still access the data.

Investors Are Dropping Billions on Startups in the AI Craze

Big tech's going bananas over AI! After Microsoft threw a boatload of money at OpenAI (you know, the folks behind ChatGPT), everyone else started raining billions on AI startups. Just in the first half of 2023, AI companies bagged a cool $25 billion. That's 18% of global funding!

Last year, $4.5 billion was just for companies working on AI that can create content (like ChatGPT). This year? Companies like Inflection AI have become overnight sensations, raking in billions from big names like Microsoft, Nvidia, and even Bill Gates himself.

Some other AI newbies catching everyone's eye include Anthropic and Cohere. Google, Salesforce, Zoom, and other big players are writing hefty checks to invest in these startups.

Everyone's jumping on the AI bandwagon. Meta (formerly Facebook) is using AI to keep folks scrolling and boost ad bucks. The result? Users stick around 7% longer. That's more ads and more money.

AI model can help determine where a patient’s cancer arose

MIT and Dana-Farber big brains have whipped up a fancy computer thingy that can take a peek at about 400 genes and make a pretty solid guess about where the cancer began.

Using this cool tech, the researchers found the origin for 40% of these mysterious cancers in a study of around 900 patients. This means more of these folks could get tailor-made treatments that might work better for their type of cancer.

Main dude, Intae Moon from MIT, said the big takeaway here is that this new tool might help doctors give more personalized treatments for these hard-to-pin-down cancers. Another top gun, Alexander Gusev from Harvard and Dana-Farber, backed this up big time in Nature Medicine.

The researchers named their new tech OncoNPC. When they tested it on some known tumors, it got the origin right about 80% of the time. For the ones they were really sure about? A whopping 95%.

They then gave it a whirl on some of the mystery cancers and managed to give a solid guess for 40% of them. Looking at other genetic clues, it seems like the model's guesses are spot on.

Do you need a speech therapist? Now you can consult AI

Better Speech, an online speech therapy service, just rolled out Jessica, their brand-new AI Speech Therapist. No more waiting rooms – you get help right from home. This AI wonder can spot where you're messing up and give pointers on the spot. The company's bigwig, Ranan Lachman, thinks it's gonna be a game-changer.

And while Jessica is pretty smart and gets smarter with each chat, she's not here to kick real therapists to the curb. For now, she's just an extra tool in the toolbox. Plus, Better Speech is even gifting her services to 1,000 kiddos in places where speech therapy's hard to come by. Talk about a win-win!

Contractors Say OpenAI Psychologically Scarred Them For $2/Hour

Content moderators in Kenya are saying, "Enough's enough." Four former workers of Sama, a content moderation company, are pushing the Kenyan government to look into the rough working conditions during their eight-month gig with OpenAI. These folks claim they weren’t clued into the graphic content they'd see – we're talking the worst of the worst: violence, abuse, and more messed-up stuff. And for what? Pay that barely hit $4 an hour. When the contract suddenly wrapped up, they say they were left high and dry, grappling with the headspace it left them in.

While Sama’s out here saying they've done right by their workers, giving them fair wages and support, this ain’t their first rodeo with controversy. It’s a big wake-up call about how the booming AI world is really running behind the scenes. So, while contractors could step up, it’s the heavy-hitter firms like OpenAI that need a hard look in the mirror.

China’s draft measures demand ‘individual consent’ for facial recognition use

China's gettin' hip to privacy worries with facial recognition tech. They've been all-in on it, and while it's been super handy for stuff like paying at stores or boarding planes, it's also made some folks uneasy about Big Brother vibes and unfairness. I mean, imagine only getting into your building with a face scan. Plus, the tech's had some hiccups, especially with recognizing folks from different backgrounds, causing some unfair targeting.

The big internet boss in China, the CAC, is now laying out some ground rules. They're saying people should get a choice on whether they're cool with having their face scanned. And places can't force you to do it just to improve their services or be the only way to get into a place. Also, if kids under 14 are involved, you gotta get a nod from their parents. And if you're a company holding face data on a heap of people, you gotta check in with the CAC and let 'em know what's up.

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