Daily AI NEWS - June 19, 2024
AI, Technology, Healthcare

Recent advancements in AI technology are revolutionizing the field of video generation, with companies like Luma and Runway showcasing their latest developments. Luma’s demo reels for its text-to-video AI tool exhibit a Pixar-like movie, complete with familiar characters, highlighting the impressive capabilities of AI in creating visually rich content.

Meanwhile, AI is also altering the landscape of internet culture by transforming classic memes into animations. Though the results can be hideously animated and far from perfect, they demonstrate the potential and the challenges of applying AI in creative domains.

Runway’s new Gen-3 Alpha AI video generator takes innovation a step further, bringing giant cotton candy monsters to life and enabling the creation of detailed humans and surreal scenes, pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in video entertainment.

McDonald's is ending a two-year partnership with IBM to test AI in drive-thru ordering at over 100 restaurants. The Chicago-based fast-food giant will remove the technology by the end of July. Despite this, McDonald’s maintains that AI drive-thrus could still play a role in its future.

In contrast, White Castle is implementing an AI voice system for drive-thru orders that it claims is more accurate than human staff. The aim is to free up time for employees and improve customer experience.

Amazon-powered AI cameras are now used in the UK to monitor train passengers' emotions without their knowledge. These cameras aim to detect bike thefts and spot trespassers. Users have raised significant privacy concerns over the implications of such surveillance technology.

In the creative tech space, Adobe's new terms explicitly state it will not use user content to train its Firefly AI. This policy applies unless the content is uploaded to Adobe Stock, addressing previous worries over data usage.

Meanwhile, Softbank introduces AI-driven voice modification technology designed to minimize stress for call center employees by canceling out angry customer emotions in Japan. This innovation targets real-time feedback to improve working conditions for staff.

AI is currently transforming healthcare and research, with significant developments across various fields. A prominent AI researcher has issued a dire warning about a potential reproducibility crisis in data science, highlighting concerns over whether results can consistently be reproduced.

At Stanford, researchers have achieved a major breakthrough by using AI to analyze brain scans and categorize depression into six distinct types, potentially leading to more personalized treatments for patients.

OpenAI, the entity behind ChatGPT, has announced a partnership with Color Health to enhance cancer care. This collaboration aims to accelerate the treatment process, promising significant improvements in patient outcomes.

Nvidia’s market cap closed on June 18th at $3.335 trillion, riding an AI boom powered by the company’s GPUs pushing it past Apple, Google, and Microsoft.

Nvidia has leapfrogged Microsoft and Apple to become the most valuable company in the world, following months of explosive share price growth driven by demand for its chips and an investor frenzy over artificial intelligence.

The massive data center footprints that firms like Google, Microsoft, and Amazon have amassed are proving valuable during the generative AI boom.