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✅ Tech giants commit to White House-set AI guidelines

✍🏼 Google tests AI ‘news writer’

😋 McDonald’s takes a bite out of the metaverse via McNuggets

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Tech giants commit to White House-set AI guidelines [Link]

OpenAI, Google, Microsoft, and other tech companies have agreed to voluntary safeguards set by the Biden administration to mitigate the risks and safety concerns over AI, as the White House announced on Friday amid the ongoing push in America, the European Union, and other parts of the world toward AI regulation.

The finer details of the tech giants’ pledge:

• The “voluntary” commitments - agreed to be implemented immediately - come from 7 leading AI firms “to help move toward safe, secure, and transparent development of AI technology”: Amazon, Anthropic, Google, Inflection AI, Meta, Microsoft (see its detailed commitments), and OpenAI.

• The pledge: Share more information among tech companies, governments, and researchers on managing AI risks, investing more in cybersecurity, and third-party AI system testing once released.

• The companies commit to “watermarking” and other tools to inform users that the content is AI-generated.

In related news, OpenAI’s Head of Trust and Safety Dave Willner is stepping down from the tech firm as AI systems like their ChatGPT face more intense scrutiny among regulators worldwide. In a LinkedIn post, Willner says he is choosing to balance working with smaller companies and seeing his kids grow.

Google tests AI ‘news writer’ [Link]

Google’s new AI tool named Genesis is built to help journalists write news articles.

Genesis, according to those privy to the matter as reported by the New York Times, would "take in information - such as details of current events - and generate news content.” It will also act as a personal assistant.

Perhaps in an act of reassurance, Google says it’s “in the earliest stages of exploring ideas” to drive AI-enabled tools assisting journalists in their work. It adds that the tools “are not intended to, and cannot, replace the essential role journalists have in reporting, creating, and fact-checking their articles."

McDonald’s takes a bite out of the metaverse via McNuggets [Link]

Waning hype or note, brands are still having a go at their own metaverse moments. A case in point: McDonald’s Hong Kong’s launch of the McNuggets Land, a virtual world in The Sandbox.

The why: McNuggets Land celebrates the fast food giant’s 40th anniversary for its popular Chicken McNuggets. In this metaverse that will be live until Aug 28 globally, the game is packed with nugget characters, dipping sauce-inspired decor, as well as quests that will yield rewards on the blockchain as well as IRL.

McDonald’s, however, isn’t a new entrant in the web3 world, as its American division rolled out McRib-inspired NFTs back in late 2021 while its France unit developed NFT inspired by the iconic Big Mac in the same year.

How the metaverse can make retail more inclusive [Link]

Recent studies point to a narrowing gap between consumption and the promise of the metaverse, with a 2019 Google AR survey showing 66% had interest in using AR for their buying decisions and a Shopify study demonstrating a 94% higher conversion rate for products with AR content compared to those without.

Inclusivity, a raging topic in retail and e-commerce, points to removing physical and tech barriers to shoppers from every level, providing an equal buying experience to all.

The metaverse is anticipated to help retail become more inclusive through:

• Diverse avatars that faithfully represent identity

• The removal of physical barriers to shopping

• Enhancing the feel of products and services for the disabled via advanced audio and visual tools

• An immersive experience available to all shoppers

Quick Hits

🎮 Gaming

• Fortnite unveils a spectacular Barbenheimer map - a whimsical world of adventure and fun. (Link)

• PlusMusic.ai uses AI to create in-game soundtracks. (Link)

• Tiny football: Skill-based one-button kick action game releases full version 1.0. (Link)

• The recent Roblox leak reveals detailed personal data of 4,000 devs. (Link)

• How is AI set to translate to real profits in the gaming field? (Link)

• Gaming studios with investment sizes of $4M (Dh16M) and above make UAE their new home. (Link)

🕶 Fashion

• From Parsons to Central Saint Martins: Top fashion schools are future-proofing their curriculum with AI and web3. (Link)

• Meanwhile, Kim Kardashian’s SKIMS has a $4B valuation. (Link)

• Here’s what “virtual try-on” in airports looks like. (Link)

• The fashion industry gets a boost in reducing waste through AI. (Link)

• AI transforms plastic bottles into fashion for Gen Z and inspires sustainable art by Uorfi Javed. (Link)

• ZTX and Dust Labs unveil exclusive partner wearables to jazz up the web3 world. (Link)

🏀 Sports

• Upland and FIFA unite football fans in the metaverse with the official launch of FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia and New Zealand 2023TM Experience. (Link)

• Robots as athletes: Can AI beat the renowned NBA shooting coach? (Link)

• London-based fitness tech app Magic nets $2.5M to develop an AI-powered personal trainer. (Link)

• Martial arts legend Bruce Lee gets a nod with a 50th anniversary metaverse tribute on Samsung Galaxy Store. (Link)

• What would football look like in 20-30 years? Sky Sports explores the future of the sport in a new series. (Link)

• Vietnam Pro Basketball League taps Magnifi for AI-powered coverage. (Link)

🎥 Media & Entertainment

• Telegram bot tokens surpass $90M market cap, according to CoinGecko. (Link)

• Barbie-inspired Glamour magazine cover featuring Lisa Opie sparks controversy. (Link)

• As a 1st-of-its-kind stand-up comedy extravaganza in the metaverse, Amar Vanee and Aditya Gundeti deliver unforgettably zany performances. (Link)

• An AI tool creates South Park episodes with the user in a starring role. (Link)

• Fellaz, a player in metaverse entertainment, will merge virtual idols and live performers “seamlessly.” (Link)

• “Generative AI is useful for creating ‘music stems, and building a sort of catalog of music elements that can then be used by people collaboratively to start making an entire song – something that was not happening in the past.” - Lickd CEO Paul Sampson (Link)

🖼 Art

• Floor app reveals Ethereum NFT art drops exclusively on iOS and Android. (Link)

• NFT startup Proof unveils Mythics, the latest evolution in Ethereum profile picture (PFP) collection. (Link)

• Asia Broadband advances its 2nd NFT collection to accelerate digital asset expansion in the high-growth NFT market. (Link)

• Another-1 immortalizes street art and streetwear with Drip-Lab, combining NFTs, PFPs, and NFC tech. (Link)

• Bitcoin miner Hive is using old Ethereum rigs and AI to make Ordinals art. (Link)

• NFT collection Dimension X is set to debut on Aug 8. (Link)

• Indigenous crafts, fashion, and the metaverse come together in Bolivia. (Link)

🤖 AI

• OpenAI introduces a “custom instruction” feature to enable personalized responses from ChatGPT. (Link)

• Head of Britain's M16 agency: British spies use AI to hamper the supply of weapons to Russia. (Link)

• Remini tops the App Store for its viral "AI headshots" - but some say its body edits go too far. (Link)

• The AI wars might have an armistice deal sooner than expected. (Link)

• Google identifies 6 real-world AI attacks with complex attack vectors, highlighting AI system vulnerabilities. (Link)

• Generative AI and web3: Hyped nonsense or a match made in tech heaven? (Link)

💸 Funding & Partnerships

• Spiritt raises $13.5M in seed funding for an AI platform that builds apps through verbal descriptions. (Link)

• Gushwork.ai raises $2M to outsource business tasks to workforces trained in AI. (Link)

• Eyeball Games raises $1.5M for blockchain pool game. (Link)

• Web3 utility coin LPX secures $1.1M in funding for its new trading Alpha platform. (Link)

• GrowthLoop launches partnership with Google Cloud to propel marketing with data cloud and generative AI. (Link)

• Arway.ai secures $500K annual license agreement for its AR spatial computing navigation platform. (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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