Here are this week's most read stories:
**White House Unveils Guidelines for Safe, Secure, Responsible AI Use**
The Biden administration has established new guidelines for federal agencies to ensure the safe and responsible use of artificial intelligence (AI). As outlined by Vice President Kamala Harris, these standards are integral to the government’s commitment to protecting citizens' rights and safety while harnessing the benefits of AI technology. This initiative builds on Harris' vision articulated during the AI Safety Summit in London, framing the responsible use of AI as essential to advancing public interest—per the recently issued Executive Order on AI.
The first standard centers on safeguarding rights and safety. Agencies must verify that any AI tools deployed do not compromise citizens' rights or safety. Harris illustrated this requirement with an example: if the Veterans Administration intends to use AI for diagnostic support in hospitals, it must first demonstrate that the AI does not lead to racially biased outcomes in diagnoses.
The second standard emphasizes transparency, ensuring that the public is informed about when and how AI is utilized within government operations. “Our goal is to establish accountability for the responsible use of AI,” Harris noted, asserting that transparency enhances accountability.
**U.S.-U.K. Form Historic Alliance on AI Safety, Testing**
In a groundbreaking partnership, the United States and the United Kingdom have committed to collaboratively developing safety tests for AI systems. U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and U.K. Technology Secretary Michelle Donelan formalized this agreement through a Memorandum of Understanding aimed at sharing technical knowledge and addressing AI model risks.
This alliance follows the recent guidelines mandating U.S. federal agencies to use AI responsibly. Under this agreement, AI Safety Institutes from both nations will collaborate in creating stringent safety testing protocols. “This partnership is designed to propel our Institutes’ work addressing a comprehensive range of risks that impact national security and societal well-being,” Raimondo commented. Through this collaboration, the involved Institutes aim to enhance their understanding of AI systems and produce more comprehensive evaluations and guidance.
**AI Protections Secured for Animation Voice Actors**
Voice actors in animated productions have gained significant protections as part of a new contract established between SAG-AFTRA and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP). With an overwhelming support of 95.52%, members have affirmed a three-year agreement acknowledging the vital role of human voice talent and addressing the use of digital replicas.
Crucially, the contract stipulates that voice actors will receive compensation if their voices are utilized to generate a synthetic replica for recognizable characters. Even if the digital replica diverges from the original voice, as long as it is verified that the synthetic version was created using the actor’s voice, compensation is guaranteed. This shift marks an important step in safeguarding the livelihoods and creative contributions of voice talent in the animation industry.
**Amazon Invests $4 Billion to Advance Generative AI Tech for Customers**
Amazon is bolstering its investment in Anthropic, contributing an additional $2.75 billion to enhance their partnership with the large language model development firm. This follows Amazon's initial investment of $1.25 billion from the previous year, bringing the total commitment to $4 billion.
Swami Sivasubramanian, vice president of data and AI at Amazon Web Services (AWS), stated, “Generative AI represents one of the most transformative technologies of our time. Our strategic collaboration with Anthropic is designed to improve customer experiences and drive innovation.” Anthropic, which utilizes AWS as its principal cloud provider, is also leveraging Amazon’s hardware to train its AI models, forgoing conventional chips from Nvidia.
**Quantum-Powered Machine Learning Spots Pneumonia in Chest X-Rays**
In a significant advancement in medical imaging, researchers are utilizing quantum-inspired computing techniques in conjunction with machine learning to accelerate pneumonia diagnosis from chest X-ray images.
Pneumonia, a potentially life-threatening lung infection, is typically diagnosed by radiologists evaluating X-ray images for signs of infection. However, lengthy backlogs and workforce shortages can hinder timely diagnoses, with pneumonia being a leading cause of mortality in children under five, according to the World Health Organization.
A study led by Carnegie Mellon University professor Sridhar Tayur presents findings that integrating quantum computing methods with machine learning can enhance the speed and accuracy of pneumonia detection in X-rays. This innovative approach holds promise for improving medical outcomes by facilitating quicker diagnoses and treatment decisions.
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