Tech & Society
How to Share Dangerous AI
OpenAI raised eyebrows in February when it announced — and withheld — the full version of its groundbreaking language model, GPT-2. Six months later, the company has re-examined the decision.
Latest
Tech & Society
Smart Students, Dumb Algorithms: NLP Systems Struggle at Grading Essays
A growing number of companies that sell standardized tests are using natural language processing to assess writing skills. Critics contend that these language models don’t make the grade.
Machine Learning Research
Points Paint the Picture
Creating a virtual representation of a scene using traditional polygons and texture maps involves several complex operations, and even neural-network approaches have required manual preprocessing. Researchers propose a new deep-learning pipeline that visualizes scenes with far less fuss.
Letters
Andrew Visits Taiwan AI Labs
I traveled to Taiwan last week, where I met many CEOs interested in AI transformation of traditional companies. I also visited Taiwan AI Labs which, similar to OpenAI, started as a nonprofit AI research institute.
The Batch Newsletter
The Batch: Taming Dangerous AI, Microscopes Spot Tumors, NLP Grades Standardized Tests, Viz Without Mesh
I traveled to Taiwan last week, where I met many CEOs interested in AI transformation of traditional companies. I also visited Taiwan AI Labs which, similar to OpenAI, started as a nonprofit AI research institute.
Hardware
Size Matters
Silicon Valley startup Cerebras shifted out of stealth mode to unveil its flagship product: an enormous chip designed from the ground up to accelerate neural networks.
Machine Learning Research
Scaling Bayes
Neural networks are good at making predictions, but they’re not so good at estimating how certain they are. If the training data set is small and many sets of model parameters fit the data well, for instance, the network may not realize this explicitly, leading to overly confident predictions.
Tech & Society
Second Sight
Unlike bats, humans can’t see with their ears. Now an app is giving sightless pedestrians the ability to navigate by ear. Microsoft’s Artificial Intelligence and Research Laboratory offers a free iPhone app called Soundscape.
Science
In a Galaxy Far, Far Away
The origin of the brief, high-intensity signals from outer space called fast radio bursts baffles astronomers. Now AI is generating real-time data to help solve the mystery.
Machine Learning Research
Get Your Kicks With DRL
Researchers typically test deep reinforcement learning algorithms on games from Space Invaders to StarCraft. The Google Brain team in Zurich adds another option: football, also known as soccer.
Letters
Pie & AI in Medellin
We ended a busy week in Colombia hosting a Pie & AI meetup in Medellín. I met hundreds of engineers and business professionals excited to take the next step in their AI careers. I was energized by the enthusiasm the Colombia community had...
The Batch Newsletter
The Batch: Gunning for GPUs, Football for DRL, Navigation for the Blind, Mystery Signals From Outer Space
We ended a busy week in Colombia hosting a Pie & AI meetup in Medellín. I met hundreds of engineers and business professionals excited to take the next step in their AI careers. I was energized by the enthusiasm the Colombia community had for collaborating...