This week’s standout story for me, both as a tech enthusiast and per our engagement metrics, is Brian’s encounter with the Humane AI pin. This matchbook-sized wonder packs a punch with 32GB storage, a versatile 12-megapixel camera, and a show-stopping laser projection system, capable of displaying information on any surface. Beyond its gadgetry, it offers a glimpse into a future where AI seamlessly integrates into our daily lives, becoming as wearable as a pin and as intimate as our daily routines.
Contemplating AI’s role, I find myself pondering our willingness to delegate certain tasks to AI while resisting others, especially those inherently human endeavors like creating art or grappling with existential concerns. It prompts the question: What defines our humanity?
In business news, Airbnb has made a clandestine move, acquiring GamePlanner.AI, an AI startup co-founded by Adam Cheyer and Siamak Hodjat, known for their work on Siri and Samsung’s Bixby. This secretive deal, rumored around $200 million, hints at Airbnb’s potential entry into the travel concierge space, marking its first acquisition since going public in 2019.
Diving into AI developments, we’re on the brink of AI-powered robots adept at learning and interacting with the physical world, revolutionizing repetitive tasks across sectors. Peter Chen, co-founder of Covariant, emphasizes the pivotal role of deep reinforcement learning in enabling robots to adapt and refine strategies, foreseeing a surge in viable robotic applications by 2024.
In France, a burgeoning AI hub is taking shape, propelled by a robust talent pool and significant venture capital activity. French startups like Dust, Finegrain, Gladia, Mistral AI, and Scenario contribute to positioning the country prominently on the AI map.
On the startup front, Atlas, a 3D generative AI platform, emerges from stealth mode with $6 million in seed funding to simplify world designing for game development. Civitai, a generative AI content marketplace, secures $5.1 million in funding, providing a platform for users to share and discover AI-generated image models.
Ghost Autonomy, partnering with OpenAI, secures a $5 million investment to explore the use of multimodal large language models (LLMs) in self-driving cars, marking a fascinating intersection of language models and autonomous driving.
In healthcare, Forward Health introduces the CarePod, a self-contained medical station powered by AI, capable of performing clinical tasks without the need for on-site medical personnel.
Navigating the challenging landscape of funding, founders, especially those eyeing Series A, face a funding winter. An insightful TC+ article advises leveraging LinkedIn to build networks, engage with investors organically, and maintain visibility through regular updates.
Inversion Art aspires to be the Y Combinator for artists, offering an accelerator program blending financial investment with back-office management services to empower artists on their terms.
As for corporate moves, Samara, a spin-off from Airbnb, secures new funding, positioning itself as a potential solution to the U.S. housing crisis. In contrast, Zeus Living, reportedly backed by Airbnb, closes its doors after initially focusing on redecorating and renting landlords’ homes.
In tech partnerships, OpenAI’s ChatGPT, now connected to the internet, sees a parallel in You.com, a search engine aiming to enhance large language models’ capabilities.
GM intensifies oversight over Cruise, its self-driving car subsidiary, following incidents that led to the suspension of Cruise’s commercial operation permits in California. Exxon, known for fossil fuels, plans to tap into the U.S.’s lithium reserves to power electric vehicles, signaling a strategic shift toward sustainable energy.
