Mirrors, Windows, Rooms, and Life as Information

This week we are leaning into multiple metaphors: AI as a mirror, UX design as a window or room, and life as information. Plus: read about Michael Levin's upcoming presentation at the Imagining Summit, Helen's Book of the Week, and our upcoming events.

Dave Edwards Sep 14, 2024

Our Ideas

The Design Illusion of LLMs

It’s easy to fall prey to the design illusion that because LLMs look sleek, they must be well-designed. But aesthetics alone do not equal design. As Steve Jobs once said, “Design is not just what it looks and feels like. Design is how it works.”

Dave Edwards Sep 13, 2024

The Science

What AI and Biology Reveal About the Future of Autonomous Systems

It’s curious that these two papers, tackling such similar ideas, came out at the same time. Is this coincidence, or does it tell us something about where the study of life and intelligence is heading?

Helen Edwards Sep 13, 2024

Conversations

Why Does ChatGPT Matter?

A discussion about ChatGPT: Why does it matter, how special is it, and what might be ahead?

Dave Edwards, Helen Edwards Feb 26, 2023

Why does ChatGPT matter?

People always get excited about AI advances and this one is accessible in a way that others weren’t in the past.
People can use natural language to prompt a natural language response.
It’s seductive because it feels like synthesis.
And it can feel serendipitous.

But…

We need to remember that ChatGPT and all other generative AI are tools and they can fail us.
While it may feel serendipitous, that serendipity is more constrained than it may feel.

Some other ideas we cover:

The research at Google, OpenAI, Microsoft, and Apple gives us some context for evaluating how special ChatGPT actually is and what might be ahead.
The current craze about prompt engineering.

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Published in: Conversations

Authors

Dave Edwards is a Co-Founder of Artificiality. He previously co-founded Intelligentsia.ai (acquired by Atlantic Media) and worked at Apple, CRV, Macromedia, Morgan Stanley, and Quartz.

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Helen Edwards is a Co-Founder of Artificiality. She previously co-founded Intelligentsia.ai (acquired by Atlantic Media) and worked at Meridian Energy, Pacific Gas & Electric, Quartz, and Transpower.

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