Welcome to today’s dispatch of The Download, a daily briefing that keeps you informed about the latest happenings in the tech realm.
A glimpse inside OpenAI’s eventful year
It’s rare for a firm to experience a year as tumultuous as OpenAI has. Commencing 2023 at the apex of triumph with its ChatGPT chatbot, the celebrated AI enterprise recently picked itself up from a failed ousting which witnessed Sam Altman briefly dethroned yet swiftly restored as CEO.
Our AI specialists have been tracking OpenAI’s journey keenly this year, often with privileged insight into the individuals crafting the groundbreaking tools and platforms. Explore a selection of major points from the previous year—and our predictions for what lies ahead.
+ OpenAI’s insatiable appetite for data may be its Achilles’ heel. The organization’s AI offerings might be infringing upon data privacy laws with no clear remedy on the horizon. Delve into the complete article.
+ Ilya Sutskever, OpenAI’s lead scientist, emerged as one of the prime figures in the recent coup against CEO Sam Altman at OpenAI. Earlier in the year, when Will Douglas Heaven met with him, Sutskever shared his latest focus—preventing a rogue artificial superintelligence. Delve into the complete article.
+ What’s next for OpenAI. Delve into our chronology that details the recent kerfuffle, and what implications it may have for the broader AI sector. Delve into the complete article.
Essential reads
I’ve scoured the internet to present to you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating tech stories.
1 X and OpenAI are embodiments of their figureheads
While both enterprises tout revolutionary ambitions, they actually both pivot around the visions of individual men. (WP $)
+ It is crucial not to bypass the accountability of OpenAI. (FT $)
+ Nonetheless, Wall Street discerns lucrative opportunities. (Motherboard)
+ Today’s era of AI represents a capitalist playground. (NYT $)
2 American vloggers championing China’s messaging
Stateside influencers have turned into a fresh conduit for Beijing’s narratives. (FT $)
+ China’s youthful workforce is adopting the digital wanderer lifestyle. (Reuters)
3 AI has not attained humanity
It’s critical to reinforce the notion that despite AI systems adeptly simulating us, they lack sentient cognition. (Vox)
+ We’re in the epoch of unfettered AI. (The Atlantic $)
+ AI has surpassed humans in a test of creativity—what are the implications? (MIT Technology Review)
4 Australia’s existence is questioned
According to Bing search outcomes powered by conspiracy lore, Australia might just be a myth. (The Guardian)
5 India’s influential social media figures hold sway over elections
Marketing agencies are eager to enlist popular online personalities. (Wired $)
6 Black Friday’s contrast in retail bots
When it comes to usefulness, they differ widely. (WSJ $)
7 The shadowy billion-dollar realm of crypto “pig butchering”
Despite the high stakes, the identities of the perpetrators behind these scams remain largely obscure. (Reuters)
+ One by one, the crypto magnates are tumbling. (NY Mag $)
+ Exploring the unwitting accomplices in pig-butchering frauds. (MIT Technology Review)
8 The pervasive gloom of current social media
Dismal content doesn’t simply affect individuals—it reshapes communities as well. (Wired $)
+ Indeed, the weariness from Zoom gatherings is not imagined. (IEEE Spectrum)
+ Tips for disconnecting. (MIT Technology Review)
9 The end to your cluttered chambers is near
This dexterous robot is engineered to tackle tidy tasks and pick up after you. (New Scientist $)
10 Revisit Napoleon’s expansive Wiki entry
It’s a solid bet Ridley Scott, his most recent chronicler, neglected it. (Slate $)
+ The current biographical film is unexpectedly amusing. (The Atlantic
Quotation for today
“When Sam was without a residence, Microsoft presented him with one readily — and when the entire firm was in need of a dwelling, Microsoft was there to provide.”
—Barry Briggs, an ex-Microsoft official, describes to the Financial Times the astute responses of Satya Nadella during the OpenAI situation are poised to solidify the bond between the corporations even more robustly.
Headline Article
Big technical challenges loom for California’s impending offshore wind surge
California has set an aggressive target: constructing 25 gigawatts of offshore wind power by 2045. This amount is about one-third of the state’s present total power production or sufficient to electrify 25 million residences.
However, the venture encounters a severe topographical hurdle: the continent’s shelf plummets suddenly just a short distance from California’s shoreline. Additionally, it confronts colossal technical and bureaucratic barriers. Explore the complete article.
—James Temple
Pleasures still within our grasp
A space for solace, amusement, and distraction in these perplexing times. (Have suggestions? Send them my way or shoot a message via Twitter.)
+ Imagine having a diminutive orchestra tag behind me producing the Rocky theme each time I engage in a jog.
+ Oh how I yearn for a Mrs Doubtfire behind-the-scenes documentary.
+ Inject some theatrical tension into your life with these dramatic stingers.
+ Go on an unwinding escape—within the confines of your own abode.
+ Discover some ingenious methods for consuming your Thanksgiving leftovers.
