On March 29, 2023, more than 500 top technologists and business leaders signed onto an eye-catching open letter begging artificial intelligence labs to immediately pause all training on any AI systems more powerful than Open AI’s GPT-4 for at least six months. The consequences for plowing ahead without taking a breather, they warned, would cause “profound risks to society and humanity.” Luckily, the world listened and the word “AI” has vanished into our collective memory holes.
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Just kidding. Advances in AI most certainly have not stopped, paused, hiccuped, or done anything other than abruptly accelerate forward in the preceding six months. In October 2023, just about any startup or business even remotely connected to technology has tried to figure out ways to add ChatGPT-style chatbots or AI image generators into their pitch to consumers. AI companies like OpenAI have plowed ahead with newer models and greater capabilities while others, like Meta and Amazon, have shifted their priorities to pour resources into the brewing AI tech race. The so-called pause was more like a firing gun.
Below are some of the biggest advancements in AI that have occurred in the six months since Future of Life Institute published its letter. Many of these touchstones are technical in matter, but others involve the way civil society, content creators, and lawmakers have responded to this quickly evolving world.
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