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Apple Intelligence, Zoom’s Avatar Future, & Perplexity's Latest Scandal
Explore Apple's new AI suite, Zoom's future avatar meeting attendees, and Perplexity's content controversy.
The Plug
June 10, 2024
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This week’s highlights are lighting up the tech and media world—overhauling our phones, surging through corporate routines with AI avatars, and creating quite a buzz in content creation.
In today’s edition…
A glimpse into WWDC 2024 as Apple unveils Apple Intelligence, supercharging your iPhone and Macs with the latest AI features.
Zoom CEO imagines AI avatars attending your meetings, freeing you up for, well, anything else.
Perplexity AI faces heat for allegedly swiping content from top news outlets without proper credit.
LET’S WIRE IN
AI IN TECHNOLOGY
Image Source: Apple
Apple Introduces 'Apple Intelligence' at WWDC 2024
Apple has unveiled its new suite of AI features, dubbed "Apple Intelligence," which aims to enhance user experience on iPhone, Mac, and other devices.
What to Expect
On-Device Privacy: Processing is done on-device with A17 Pro or M-series chips, ensuring user privacy. When cloud processing is necessary, Apple uses a "Private Cloud" that never stores data.
Semantic Indexing: AI will use a "semantic index" to retrieve personal details as needed, improving inter-app functionality without compromising privacy.
Genmoji & Image Playground: New features allow the generation of custom emojis and images. The Photos app gains enhanced search capabilities and Magic Eraser-like functions.
Siri Gets Smarter: Siri now understands natural speech, lets you type commands, and can perform in-app tasks. Picture this: "Siri, make this photo pop," or autofill forms with your driver's license info—effortlessly.
Coming Soon — Apple x OpenAI
ChatGPT 4o Integration: Later this year, Siri will integrate ChatGPT 4o for enhanced capabilities, requiring user permission to access. More AI models are on the horizon.
We’ll stay plugged into the WWDC stage as more announcements are released.
AI IN TECHNOLOGY
Source: Created with Midjourney
The Future of Work (or Not Working)
Zoom's CEO, Eric Yuan, envisions a future where AI avatars could take your place at your next meeting, totally altering the corporate landscape and giving you a “break.”
Key Updates
AI Doppelgängers: Imagine sending a digital twin to your Zoom calls, handling 90% of the interaction. According to Yuan, this tech could be just five to six years away.
Personalization: These avatars would be powered by large language models that mimic users' speech and behavior, providing highly personalized responses.
The Building Blocks: Gmail's email summaries and Microsoft Teams' automated transcriptions pave the way for these advanced avatars.
Pros & Cons
More Time for You: With AI doing the heavy lifting, Yuan suggests a shorter workweek might give us more personal time.
Skeptics Speak Up: Not everyone is convinced. AI expert Simon Willison calls this idea "pure science fiction," stressing that AI can't yet handle real decision-making. Meanwhile, security concerns loom large, with experts like Steve Won highlighting the complexities of online verification.
Staying Current
Zoom's innovative approach to AI could significantly change how we work, balancing productivity with personal time. However, is it actually feasible and secure? Time will tell.
AI IN MEDIA
Source: Created with Midjourney
AI Startup Faces the Music
Perplexity is in hot water for "directly ripping off" content from major news outlets like CNBC and Forbes without proper credit.
The Details
"Perplexity Pages" Scandal: The feature displayed articles "curated" from third-party sources, closely matching the original content without clear credit. Tiny logos linked back to the sources but were easily overlooked.
High-Profile Copycats: Examples include a near-verbatim lift of a Forbes piece on ex-Google CEO Eric Schmidt’s drone project and similar cases with CNBC and Bloomberg content.
Industry Outcry: Forbes' Executive Editor labeled these actions "little more than plagiarism." Perplexity CEO Aravind Srinivas acknowledged the issue and promised improvements in source attribution.
“Our reporting on Eric Schmidt’s stealth drone project was posted this AM by @perplexity_ai. It rips off most of our reporting. It cites us, and a few that reblogged us, as sources in the most easily ignored way possible.”
Why It Matters
This controversy highlights the ethical challenges of AI in content creation and the need for transparent and fair practices. Like last week’s OpenAI X The Atlantic collaboration, publishers worry that AI involvement only compromises editorial independence.
We’ll stay plugged into this story as it develops—stay tuned.
Till Our Next Circuit Connects
We look forward to supercharging your inbox. Stay wired for our next edition, and thank you for subscribing!
— The Plug