5 things about AI you may have missed today: China warns of AI risks, Elon Musk as Indian groom and more

The field of artificial intelligence is one of huge extremes. While on one end, companies like Google and Microsoft are rolling out AI products virtually every day, on the other hand, major protests are taking place that want the rise of AI to be halted. And these protests include major AI researchers including the father of AI Geoffrey Hinton and the man that started the AI craze, the founder and CEO of OpenAI Sam Altman. In a development to the protests, today China also called for security measures against AI, highlighting its risks. In a separate, lighter vein, a digital artist used AI to reimagine Elon Musk as an Indian groom. This and more in our daily AI roundup. Let us take a look.

China warns of AI risks

The ruling party of China, the Chinese Communist Party, called for major national security measures to mitigate the risks of AI. The call for action was given in light of the big strides taken in the field of AI. According to the official Xinhua News Agency, a meeting was held on Tuesday headed by party leader and President Xi Jinping where the need for “dedicated efforts to safeguard political security and improve the security governance of internet data and artificial intelligence” was highlighted.

Elon Musk turns groom in a new AI photo

The wedding photography Instagram page called Rolling Canvas Presentations shared a new image created using the help of Midjourney, an AI-powered text-to-image generator. The image reimagined billionaire Elon Musk as a groom wearing traditional North Indian attire.

The caption read, “When Elon Musk had an Indian wedding - in my imagination :) From the times when we used to paint our imagination on paper to now when we can convey our ideas to computers/AI and it brings them to reality. Fascinated to be alive at these times and be part of a possible transition”.

Microsoft showcases AI Anthology

Microsoft has released a compilation of 20 essays authored by distinguished scholars and professionals from various disciplines in an ‘AI Anthology’. The essays explore the diverse ways in which AI can be harnessed to benefit humanity while shedding light on potential challenges. The AI Anthology project was initiated with the help of OpenAI.

Twenty experts were given the early access to GPT-4 and were asked to focus on two aspects which were, ‘how might this technology and its successors contribute to human flourishing’ and ‘how might we as society best guide the technology to achieve maximal benefits for humanity’.

Based on their findings, they wrote essays highlighting their ideas and experiences. Some of the authors include Alec Gallimore, Dean of Engineering at University of Michigan, Gillian Hadfield, Professor of Law and Economics at the University of Toronto, and Robert Wachter, Chair of the Department of Medicine at the University of California.

AI godfather feels ‘lost’ over his life’s work

One of the AI godfathers, Yoshua Bengio, spoke with BBC today to reveal that he felt ‘lost’ over his life’s work. Bengio has been one of the vocally active critics of the unregulated rise of AI. Highlighting his concerns over bad actors, he told BCC, “It might be military, it might be terrorists, it might be somebody very angry, psychotic. And so if it's easy to program these AI systems to ask them to do something very bad, this could be very dangerous”.

He also shared that these concerns were taking a toll on him as he felt his life’s work was responsible for some of the leading research that led AI to where it is today.

South Korea uses AI to measure North Korean leader's weight

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is believed to weigh over 140 kg according to an AI estimate. 

The North Korean leader's health is kept hidden from the public eye but due to recent speculation over his deterioration of health, people have begun speculating about the condition of the 39-years old (believed to be). 

"He appeared tired with clear dark circles around his eyes during his public appearance on May 16, and was estimated to weigh over 140 kilograms according to AI analysis," Yoo Sang-bum, a member of the parliamentary intelligence committee, told reporters after a briefing by the National Intelligence Service.