GPT-4 has arrived - a little less smarter than humans still

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✨ Top Picks

The Future, today. In just 3 minutes.

1/ OpenAI launches GPT-4 after three years of research

It’s the AI developer’s most advanced system yet that can interpret both text and images to provide a variety of valuable use cases: GPT-4, said to be three years in the making.

GPT-4 stirs up excitement with the following information disclosed by OpenAI so far:

• Promoted to be the “most advanced system, producing safer and more useful responses,” including detailed data analysis, assistance with coding, and image interpretation

• Currently available to ChatGPT Plus users and soon accessible to those on the API developer waitlist

• Perhaps to allay fears, OpenAI says it’s still less capable than humans in many “real-world” scenarios, although GPT-4 is now multimodal, accepting both image and text inputs while emitting text outputs

The model is already used in real-world products, including:

• Language learning through Duolingo

• Visual assistance for app Be My Eyes

• Financial fraud prevention through Stripe

• For general users: image analysis, data analysis and problem-solving, image interpretation (e.g., show what’s particularly funny about a meme), accurate document summarization, app development, and more

2/ Meta cuts 10,000 more workers after scrapping NFT plans

Just days ago, Facebook parent company Meta cut NFT support across Facebook and Instagram and made noises around AI. Now it’s shedding another 10,000 jobs.

In a post, Mark Zuckerberg revealed Meta will terminate about 10,000 further employees in the months ahead across multiple waves. The tech giant will also close about 5,000 current listings for open positions, with both moves affecting its recruiting department this week, its tech groups in April, and business groups in May.

What does this pivot - apparently so aligned with its “year of efficiency” campaign - mean for the company and its extremely challenged metaverse?

Based on this news as well as other recent pronouncements, Meta still says it’s building toward the metaverse. It’s a long-term push, for sure, and one that entails many more of these key developments in the months to come.

3/ Fortnite’s Epic has ‘close to 20’ crypto games in store pipeline

Expect a flurry of crypto-enabled games in Fortnite creator Epic Games’ marketplace by 2024. An executive discloses that the brand has five crypto games currently in its marketplace, with plans for almost 20 more. Take note, though, that none will neither be developed nor published by Epic.

Web3 gaming studio Mythical Games’ Blankos Block Party is first on the list, a free multiplayer game filled with player-created maps and other creative modes to collect and personalize the collectible vinyl toys Blankos.

Here’s a quick look at the blockchain gaming space:

• Investment in blockchain games and the metaverse saw a solid start this year, despite 2022 proving challenging as once-in-demand games like Axie Infinity saw their NFT floor prices drop.

• Gaming giant Ubisoft infamously said “gamers don’t get it” in January, amid its failed attempt to engage in NFTs.

It’s worth noting that Epic - while claiming it’s closing watching safety - still keeps crypto games in its marketplace at arm’s length, where publishers remain responsible for transactions, customer service, and refunds.

4/ Metaverse fashion is on the rise, but for whom?

Really, who’s digital fashion’s target consumer in mind?

Traditional fashion brands may have already jumped on board the digital fashion bandwagon - with Adidas, Coach, and Dolce & Gabbana showcasing their collections of digital wearables - yet identifying audiences in this growing realm remains critical today and in the coming years.

Web3 and metaverse expert Cathy Hackl, founder of Web3 consultancy Journey, points to four main markets for on-chain fashion:

• Web3-native consumers who purchase NFTs to wear in the metaverse

• Gamers on popular platforms like Fortnite and Roblox

• Digital art collectors who buy these assets for speculation

• Social media users of Instagram and TikTok dabbling with AR filters and digital tailoring

A likely key to onboarding more users: introduce digital elements to physical goods to bridge the gap between web2 and web3.

🏃‍♂️ Quick Hits

🎮 Gaming

• MMORPG MapleStory, after a 20-year success rooted in the Nintendo Game Boy and GameCube era, is dipping its toes in blockchain. (Link)

• There’s some bad branding around NFTs - this gaming CEO wants them to be called this instead. (Link)

• Game monetization, NFTs, and fixing P2E to play-to-learn (and earn) are the 3 problems that games and the metaverse are currently grappling with. (Link)

• An expo for web3, esports, creators, and brands is rocking Pasadena from June 8-9. (Link)

• Enter the world of Travenis, touted as the first P2E metaverse game based on GTA San Andreas. (Link)

🕶 Fashion

• Rock fashion label John Richmond is SHIB The Metaverse’s official fashion partner. (Link)

• What’s the secret sauce to web3 boutique House of Blueberry’s success? (Link)

• Atlanta’s 3D fashion show celebrates Black women-owned clothing brands. (Link)

• There are 4 predominant markets for on-chain style, embracing the web3-native customers, avid gamers, and social media savvies. (Link)

• Design platform Madeium teams up with web3 tech Intertrust to “modernize” footwear and fashion. (Link)

🏀 Sports

• Metaverse as a new Olympic sport: the 2028 Summer Games will welcome 6G to the global stage. (Link)

• The National Hockey League was thinking of analytics, storytelling, broadcast visualizations, and a little bit about gaming - not the metaverse. But look where virtual space has taken the league. (Link)

• Stream golf at the Play Today metaverse and more this week. (Link)

• In sports and gaming-dominated virtual realm, can Meta survive as metaverse shifts away from VR headsets? (Link)

• VR sports show the path to the metaverse. (Link)

• Catch the session "Sports & The Metaverse: Mixed Reality Experiences for Fans & Collectors" at Miami NFT Week. (Link)

🎥 Media & Entertainment

• Shiba Inu's high-ranking metaverse creator was spotted in talks with Paramount futurist Schilowitz. (Link)

• Metaverse mining has arrived. (Link)

• TikTok launches a STEM-focused feed to inspire and educate via science and math videos. (Link)

• Music veteran Tony Barnes co-founds metaverse studio Karta. (Link)

• Web3 animation project The Gimmicks beats the crypto winter and thrives, bringing a new level of creativity to blockchain. (Link)

• At MWC 2023, Indonesia launches its multisectoral metaverse collaboration initiative. (Link)

🖼 Art

• The Girl with a Pearl Earring painting created by AI sparks further controversy across the art world. (Link)

• A Florida court rules in favor of a plaintiff who sued anonymous hackers and issued formal notice of the legal action via NFT. (Link)

• Digital collectible platform VeVe takes us down memory lane with Sesame Street NFTs. (Link)

• NFT Butler is the newest must-have tool for NFT marketers, giving users the power to bid like never before on OpenSea. (Link)

• P2E game Fight Out enables users with special NFT avatars, with real-world stats and skills to compete. (Link)

• Asia Broadband unveils its inaugural NFT collection Golden Baboons Mining Club. (Link)

🤖 AI

• So how do you actually create an AI? (Link)

• OpenAI’s newly released GPT-4 is hyped to be more creative and less likely to invent facts. (Link)

• How is AI revolutionizing the logistics industry? (Link)

• AI-powered harnesses are some of 10 European startups’ featured wares at MWC 2023. (Link)

• India’s Goa is taking the road to smarter living with AI-powered traffic signals. (Link)

• Adobe’s subtitling AI is good, but this free Resolve add-on has far more potential. (Link)

• Court is now in session - and it's being presided over by a robot judge. (Link)

• AI's got the tech world in a feverish frenzy - but who's sweating the most? (Link)

• UT Austin is offering a Master of Science in Artificial Intelligence for $10,000. (Link)

💸 Funding & Partnerships

• In February, blockchain games and metaverse projects raised $148M, while in January they raised $156M. (Link)

• Microsoft inks a 10-year licensing deal to bring Activision's Call of Duty franchise to cloud gaming platform Boosteroid, partly to allay competition concerns over its Activision acquisition. (Link)

• Digital fashion pioneer DressX ramps up its metaverse strategy with $15M Series A. (Link)

• Brazil's Jungle raises $6M for its web3 mobile shooter. (Link)

• Metaverse payment platform Tilia gets a major funding boost from J.P. Morgan. (Link)

• Cryptio and Protocol Labs join forces to help Filecoin miners get their finances in order and make a public debut. (Link)

• Déesse DAO partners with gaming finance provider GameFi.org to widen its metaverse of web3 games. (Link)

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All content on this newsletter is for informational purposes only and does not aim to serve as or replace expert investment advice.

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