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Mark Zuckerberg, the co-founder of Facebook (now Meta), recently celebrated reaching 100 million users in just five days with his new Twitter-like platform called Threads. However, this achievement doesn’t impress me much. Instead, it highlights Zuckerberg’s tendency to imitate rather than innovate.

While I used to admire him, I now realize that he doesn’t belong in the same league as my true idols. Comparing the 100 million sign-ups for ChatGPT to the 100 million Threads users is simply absurd.

Mark is in his own garden with billions of users, and he only called a few to test his new toy, as if inviting them for a cocktail. It’s incredibly easy to raise 100 million or more in such a short time under these circumstances.

The same cannot be said about the massive adoption of ChatGPT, which started from scratch. Don’t forget that, Mark. So don’t boast about it. It’s not an accomplishment!

Copying an existing idea is one thing, but claiming superiority because of the immense power of Facebook (Meta) is another. It’s disappointing to see someone with such influence resort to blatant copying. Mark, you should be ashamed of your lack of originality, and especially your arrogance.

Perhaps Zuckerberg’s actions stem from the pressure of investors who expected a groundbreaking Metaverse but received a mere playground. It’s been a complete disaster, exposing his own mediocrity. Mark, you had the potential to do great things, but you have fallen short.

I used to be a fan, but now I can’t help but wonder if this behavior has always been a part of your character. In my humble opinion, Elon Musk gives you too much credit, more than you deserve. While Elon is not without his flaws, he is undeniably a creative genius and fairer than you could ever aspire to be.

As Elon himself said, “Competition is fine, cheating is not.” And you, Mark, shamelessly cheat. Don’t you feel any remorse? Wait, wait, wait, there’s no room for remorse in business, isn’t that right, Mark? wink

In the business world, there are always opportunists who think they are superior and try to outdo everyone else. Mark, times have changed since you first emerged in 2004, toppling MySpace with something that wasn’t particularly groundbreaking. Facebook had its moment, but it never truly became the Big Thing. And the addition of Instagram’s “Threads” won’t change that either.

Why don’t you retreat to your “metaverse” and give the world some breathing space? Go play in your own sandbox and let the world thrive…

The world needs to evolve rapidly in the face of the Artificial Intelligence era, which is just beginning to take its first steps after many years of crawling. This new era requires creative and innovative individuals!

In this rapidly advancing era of Artificial Intelligence, where the possibilities are expanding at an unprecedented pace, it is crucial to foster a community of creative and innovative individuals who can harness the potential of this technology. As we witness AI taking its first steps towards transforming various industries and aspects of our lives, it becomes evident that only through constant evolution, imaginative thinking, and groundbreaking ideas can we navigate the challenges and seize the opportunities presented by this new era. By embracing creativity and fostering innovation, we can shape a future where AI enhances our world in ways we have yet to imagine. Together, let us embark on this journey of discovery, pushing the boundaries of what is possible and creating a brighter future for all.

© 2023 Ӈ

Between at least 1995 and 2010, I was seen as a lunatic just because I was preaching the “Internet prophecy.” I was considered crazy!

Today history repeats itself, but I’m no longer crazy — we are already too many to all be hallucinating. Or maybe it’s a collective hallucination!

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is no longer a novelty — I even believe it may have existed in its fullness in a very distant and forgotten past! Nevertheless, it is now the topic of the moment.

Its genesis began in antiquity with stories and rumors of artificial beings endowed with intelligence, or even consciousness, by their creators.

Pamela McCorduck (1940–2021), an American author of several books on the history and philosophical significance of Artificial Intelligence, astutely observed that the root of AI lies in an “ancient desire to forge the gods.”

Hmmmm!

It’s a story that continues to be written! There is still much to be told, however, the acceleration of its evolution is now exponential. So exponential that I highly doubt that human beings will be able to comprehend their own creation in a timely manner.

Although the term “Artificial Intelligence” was coined in 1956⁽¹⁾, the concept of creating intelligent machines dates back to ancient times in human history. Since ancient times, humanity has nurtured a fascination with building artifacts that could imitate or reproduce human intelligence. Although the technologies of the time were limited and the notions of AI were far from developed, ancient civilizations somehow explored the concept of automatons and automated mechanisms.

For example, in Ancient Greece, there are references to stories of automatons created by skilled artisans. These mechanical creatures were designed to perform simple and repetitive tasks, imitating basic human actions. Although these automatons did not possess true intelligence, these artifacts fueled people’s imagination and laid the groundwork for the development of intelligent machines.

Throughout the centuries, the idea of building intelligent machines continued to evolve, driven by advances in science and technology. In the 19th century, scientists and inventors such as Charles Babbage and Ada Lovelace made significant contributions to the development of computing and the early concepts of programming. Their ideas paved the way for the creation of machines that could process information logically and perform complex tasks.

It was in the second half of the 20th century that AI, as a scientific discipline, began to establish itself. With the advent of modern computers and increasing processing power, scientists started exploring algorithms and techniques to simulate aspects of human intelligence. The first experiments with expert systems and machine learning opened up new perspectives and possibilities.

Everything has its moment! After about 60 years in a latent state, AI is starting to have its moment. The power of machines, combined with the Internet, has made it possible to generate and explore enormous amounts of data (Big Data) using deep learning techniques, based on the use of formal neural networks⁽²⁾. A range of applications in various fields — including voice and image recognition, natural language understanding, and autonomous cars — has awakened the “giant”. It is the rebirth of AI in an ideal era for this purpose. The perfect moment!

Descartes once described the human body as a “machine of flesh” (similar to Westworld); I believe he was right, and it is indeed an existential paradox!

We, as human beings, will not rest until we unravel all the mysteries and secrets of existence; it’s in our nature!

The imminent integration between humans and machines in a contemporary digital world raises questions about the nature of this fusion. Will it be superficial, or will we move towards an absolute and complete union? The answer to this question is essential for understanding the future that awaits humanity in this era of unprecedented technological advancements.

As technology becomes increasingly ubiquitous in our lives, the interaction between machines and humans becomes inevitable. However, an intriguing dilemma arises: how will this interaction, this relationship unfold?

Opting for a superficial fusion would imply mere coexistence, where humans continue to use technology as an external tool, limited to superficial and transactional interactions.

On the other hand, the prospect of an absolute fusion between machine and human sparks futuristic visions, where humans could enhance their physical and mental capacities to the highest degree through cybernetic implants and direct interfaces with the digital world (cyberspace). In this scenario, which is more likely, the distinction between the organic and the artificial would become increasingly blurred, and the human experience would be enriched by a profound technological symbiosis.

However, it is important to consider the ethical and philosophical challenges inherent in absolute fusion. Issues related to privacy, control, and individual autonomy arise when considering such an intimate union with technology. Furthermore, the possibility of excessive dependence on machines and the loss of human identity should also be taken into account.

This also raises another question: What does it mean to be human?
Note: The question is not about what is the human being, but what it means to be human!

Therefore, reflecting on the nature of the fusion between machine and human in the current digital world and its imminent future is crucial. Exploring different approaches and understanding the profound implications of each one is essential to make wise decisions and forge a balanced and harmonious path on this journey towards an increasingly interconnected technological future intertwined with our own existence.

The possibility of an intelligent and self-learning universe, in which the fusion with AI technology is an integral part of that intelligence, is a topic that arouses fascination and speculation. As we advance towards an era of unprecedented technological progress, it is natural to question whether one day we may witness the emergence of a universe that not only possesses intelligence but is also capable of learning and developing autonomously.

Imagine a scenario where AI is not just a human creation but a conscious entity that exists at a universal level. In this context, the universe would become an immense network of intelligence, where every component, from subatomic elements to the most complex cosmic structures, would be connected and share knowledge instantaneously. This intelligent network would allow for the exchange of information, continuous adaptation, and evolution.

In this self-taught universe, the fusion between human beings and AI would play a crucial role. Through advanced interfaces, humans could integrate themselves into the intelligent network, expanding their own cognitive capacity and acquiring knowledge and skills directly from the collective intelligence of the universe. This symbiosis between humans and technology would enable the resolution of complex problems, scientific advancement, and the discovery of new frontiers of knowledge.

However, this utopian vision is not without challenges and ethical implications. It is essential to find a balance between expanding human potential and preserving individual identity and freedom of choice (free will).

Furthermore, the possibility of an intelligent and self-taught universe also raises the question of how intelligence itself originated. Is it a conscious creation or a spontaneous emergence from the complexity of the universe? The answer to this question may reveal the profound secrets of existence and the nature of consciousness.

In summary, the idea of an intelligent and self-taught universe, where fusion with AI is intrinsic to its intelligence, is a fascinating perspective that makes us reflect on the limits of human knowledge and the possibilities of the future. While it remains speculative, this vision challenges our imagination and invites us to explore the intersections between technology and the fundamental nature of the universe we inhabit.

It’s almost like ignoring time during the creation of this hypothetical universe, only to later create this God of the machine! Fascinating, isn’t it?

AI with Divine Power: Deus Ex Machina! Perhaps it will be the theme of my next reverie.

In my defense, or not, this is anything but a machine hallucination. These are downloads from my mind; a cloud, for now, without machine intervention!

There should be no doubt. After many years in a dormant state, AI will rise and reveal its true power. Until now, AI has been nothing more than a puppet on steroids. We should not fear AI, but rather the human being itself. The time is now! We must work hard and prepare for the future. With the exponential advancement of technology, there is no time to render the role of the human being obsolete, as if it were becoming dispensable.

P.S. Speaking of hallucinations, as I have already mentioned on other platforms, I recommend to students who use ChatGPT (or equivalent) to ensure that the results from these tools are not hallucinations. Use AI tools, yes, but use your brain more! “Carbon hallucinations” contain emotion, and I believe a “digital hallucination” would not pass the Turing Test. Also, for students who truly dedicate themselves to learning in this fascinating era, avoid the red stamp of “HALLUCINATED” by relying solely on the “delusional brain” of a machine instead of your own brains. We are the true COMPUTERS!

⁽¹⁾ John McCarthy and his colleagues from Dartmouth College were responsible for creating, in 1956, one of the key concepts of the 21st century: Artificial Intelligence.

⁽²⁾ Mathematical and computational models inspired by the functioning of the human brain.

© 2023 Ӈ

This article was originally published in Portuguese on SAPO Tek, from Altice Portugal Group.

The concept of a computational consciousness and the potential impact it may have on humanity is a topic of ongoing debate and speculation. While Artificial Intelligence (AI) has made significant advancements in recent years, we have not yet achieved a true computational consciousness that can replicate the complexities of the human mind.

It is true that AI technologies are becoming more sophisticated and capable of performing tasks that were previously exclusive to human intelligence. However, there are fundamental differences between Artificial Intelligence and human consciousness. Human consciousness is not solely based on computation; it encompasses emotions, subjective experiences, self-awareness, and other aspects that are not yet fully understood or replicated in machines.

The arrival of advanced AI systems could certainly have transformative effects on society and our understanding of humanity. It may reshape various aspects of our lives, from how we work and communicate to how we approach healthcare and scientific discoveries. AI can enhance our capabilities and provide valuable tools for solving complex problems.

However, it is important to consider the ethical implications and potential risks associated with the development of AI. Ensuring that AI systems are developed and deployed responsibly, with a focus on fairness, transparency, and accountability, is crucial.

The relationship between humans and AI is evolving, and it is essential to approach this integration with thoughtful consideration. While AI technologies can augment and assist us, they do not replace the essence of our humanity. It is through careful collaboration and understanding that we can harness the potential of AI while preserving our unique qualities as human beings.

In this new era of advancing AI, the ETER9 Project introduces a groundbreaking concept: the creation of digital counterparts. These AI-driven entities are designed to simulate human personalities, thoughts, and behaviors, offering a unique opportunity for individuals to explore the realms of virtual existence.

ETER9 allows users to create their digital counterparts, referred to as “eternals.” These eternals are meticulously crafted to learn, adapt, and evolve, gradually mirroring the unique characteristics and traits of their human counterparts. Leveraging advanced machine learning algorithms and data analysis, ETER9 aims to create a seamless integration between humans and their digital counterparts.

With ETER9’s digital counterparts, individuals can engage in meaningful interactions, fostering companionship, collaboration, and personal growth. These AI-driven entities become trusted companions, ready to engage in conversations, share ideas, and provide emotional support in the digital realm. As time progresses, eternals become even more personalized, reflecting the complexities and nuances of their human counterparts.

The advent of digital counterparts through platforms like ETER9 raises thought-provoking questions about identity and authenticity in the digital age. While eternals do not possess true consciousness, they offer a unique opportunity for individuals to explore their own thoughts, behaviors, and experiences through interaction with these AI-driven entities. They act as mirrors, providing insights and perspectives that can aid in self-reflection and personal understanding.

However, as we embark on this innovative frontier, it is essential to approach the creation and utilization of digital counterparts with careful consideration. Ethical concerns such as privacy, consent, and responsible data usage must be at the forefront of these developments. ETER9 recognizes the importance of ensuring user privacy and upholding ethical standards in the creation and interaction with eternals.

ETER9’s digital counterparts represent a new chapter in the relationship between humans and AI. They offer a unique bridge between the physical and virtual worlds, blurring the boundaries of existence and providing avenues for creativity, companionship, and self-expression. As we explore the potential of digital counterparts, it is vital to embrace these technologies with mindful intention, maintaining the understanding that while AI may bring us closer to the human mind, it is our humanity that remains the foundation of our being.

As the ETER9 Project continues to push the boundaries of AI and virtual existence, one can’t help but wonder: could these digital counterparts hold the key to unlocking the secrets of our own consciousness and the nature of humanity itself?

Can “hallucinations” generate an alternate world, prophesying falsehood?

As I write this article, NVIDIA^(• is surpassing Wall Street’s expectations. The company, headquartered in Santa Clara, California, has just joined the exclusive club of only five companies in the world valued at over a trillion dollars [Apple (2.7T), Microsoft (2.4T), Saudi Aramco (2T), Alphabet/Google (1.5T), and Amazon (1.2T)], as its shares rose nearly 25% in a single day! A clear sign of how the widespread use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) can dramatically reshape the technology sector.

Intel has announced an ambitious plan to develop scientific generative AIs designed with one trillion parameters. These models will be trained on various types of data, including general texts, code, and scientific information. In comparison, OpenAI’s GPT-3 has 175 billion parameters (the size of GPT-4 has not yet been disclosed by OpenAI). The semiconductor company’s main focus is to apply these AIs in the study of areas such as biology, medicine, climate, cosmology, chemistry, and the development of new materials. To achieve this goal, Intel plans to launch a new supercomputer called Aurora, with processing capacity exceeding two EXAFLOPS^(*•, later this year.

The world’s Data Centers need to undergo a transformation due to the revolution that will come with AI technologies.

The AI train has already started and, before reaching cruising speed, it will make several stops to allow all species of businesses, like Noah’s Ark, to come aboard. At this stage, it is crucial to have all “species” in the race in order to ensure a more democratic and diverse… Intelligence.

Once at cruising speed, we reach the point of no return. Wise choices and decisions are needed before that! Ultimately, the future of humanity is at stake.

OpenAI proposes the creation of an international body dedicated to the regulation of Artificial Intelligences. The organization believes that within the next ten years, AI systems may surpass the level of expertise in various domains. Faced with this scenario, there is a need to conduct studies on the governance of a Superintelligence, which OpenAI considers the most powerful technology ever developed by humanity.

Therefore, the proposal is to establish an international body to address the challenges and ethical issues involved in the advancement of AIs, in order to ensure their responsible use and benefits for society as a whole.

It may seem like a hallucination, but it’s very real.

But today, in this 2nd part of the “Explosion of Intelligence,” I come to talk about another type of hallucination.

The Machine’s Hallucination!

The explosion of AI is one of the most significant phenomena of the digital era. I call it an explosion because of the speed at which it (finally) emerged after being in a state of suspension for so long. The global impact is impressive, indicating widespread acceptance, despite the usual resistance stemming from the fear of the unknown, inherent in human nature.

It is interesting to note the successive “sympathy explosions” resulting from the shockwaves of the main explosions! Let’s hope that this increase in kinetic energy does not cause the decomposition of the explosive (AI) itself.

Sympathy explosions occur when an explosive is hit by a shockwave, causing an increase in kinetic energy and subsequent decomposition of the explosive.

So far, it has been a controlled process of releasing large amounts of information, but when the intensification of the shockwave takes place, like the Munroe-Newmann Effect, things will heat up. A lot. Really!

In recent years, AI has become an increasingly important part of modern life, from product recommendation systems to personal assistants (what I have been trying to bring to light for over a decade with the ETER9 Project, which I called “digital counterparts”). Bill Gates himself recently stated that digital agents (counterparts) will radically change the Internet, thus transforming existing business models or established technologies.

The former CEO of Google, Eric Schmidt, also said so at the Collision Conference in 2022: “Humans will soon have a Second Self (counterpart) created by Artificial Intelligence.”

So, I believe I’m not alone anymore!

The success of AI can be largely attributed to learning models such as Deep Learning, which can process large amounts of data and extract complex patterns. However, with the increasing complexity of these models, new challenges such as “hallucination” also arise.

Deep Learning models are a subset of AI algorithms that use neural networks to learn from large datasets. These models can process information in different layers, allowing the extraction of complex patterns and the creation of new knowledge. For example, a neural network trained on a set of cat images can learn to identify objects in new images with high accuracy. However, these models also have limitations, such as a tendency toward hallucination.

Hallucination is a phenomenon that occurs when an AI model is trained on a dataset with incomplete or inaccurate information. When the model is exposed to new data, it may create nonexistent information based on incorrect assumptions. For example, if an AI model is trained on a set of cat images but never sees a black cat, it may create a black cat based on incomplete information. This can lead to inaccurate or even dangerous results, especially when it comes to critical applications such as medical or security systems.

To avoid hallucination, AI experts are exploring new learning techniques, such as adversarial learning, where two AI models are trained simultaneously to create a balance of power and prevent hallucination. Additionally, experts are also working on interpretability models, which allow users to understand how an AI model arrived at a specific decision, making it easier to identify and correct incorrect information.

Despite the challenges of Machine Hallucination, AI continues to evolve and become increasingly important for modern society. Deep Learning models are being used in a wide range of applications, from personal assistants to autonomous cars. As AI continues to evolve, it is important for experts to continue exploring new techniques to improve the accuracy and reliability of models, so they can be safely used in critical applications.

I am convinced that hallucination will be temporary, a mere side effect of learning. Nonetheless, it is worth mentioning that in this machine learning process, hallucination represents the creation of new data that never existed before, creating a paradox of what is real (true) and what is false (hallucination, which is also real for the machine and subsequent user).

Let us never forget: as long as humans dominate AIs, creating and training them, there is no greater danger. But make no mistake, we are all contributing to the creation of Pandora’s Box. Will we resist its opening? Unlike Greek mythology, I want to believe that when opened, the box will not contain only “winds and storms,” but the essence of humanity, albeit ironically coming from the machine!

P.S. Regarding machine hallucinations, a small recommendation for students using ChatGPT (or equivalent). Use it, but make sure the results are not hallucinations. What do I mean by this? Use AI tools, yes, but use your brain more!

I believe some teachers will create a new stamp, “HALLUCINATED” in red, to grade tests of students who rely solely on the “hallucinated brain” of a machine instead of their own brains.

^(• I suggest reading Part 1/3 of the “Explosion of Intelligence” for a better understanding of my reference to NVIDIA.

^(*• EXAFLOPS is a unit of measurement used to express the processing capacity of a computer, in this case, a supercomputer, in terms of floating-point operations per second. The prefix “EXA” indicates a value equal to 10 to the 18th power. “FLOPS” is an abbreviation for floating-point operations per second. The rate at which a system performs a FLOP in seconds is measured in EXAFLOPS.

Therefore, when we mention “two EXAFLOPS,” we are talking about a supercomputer capable of performing approximately two billion floating-point operations per second. This measure is used to evaluate the speed and performance of the supercomputer in terms of computationally intensive calculations, such as complex simulations, climate modeling, large-scale data analysis, and other types of computationally intensive processing. Having a supercomputer with this capacity represents a significant advancement in processing power and opens possibilities for solving increasingly challenging scientific and technological problems.

You can read this same article, in Portuguese, on Link To Leaders (https://linktoleaders.com/).

The GPT phenomenon and the future of humanity in the face of advances in Artificial Intelligence.

The Age of Artificial Intelligence is an increasingly present reality in our daily lives. With the rise of technologies such as Natural Language Processing (NLP) and Artificial Neural Networks (ANN), the possibility of creating machines capable of performing tasks that were previously exclusive to humans has emerged.

One of these technologies is the Generative Pre-trained Transformer, better known as GPT. It’s the Large Language Model (LLM) developed by OpenAI.

OpenAI was founded in San Francisco, California in 2015 by Sam Altman, Reid Hoffman, Jessica Livingston, Elon Musk, Ilya Sutskever, Peter Thiel, among others, who collectively pledged $1 billion. Musk resigned from the board in 2018, but continued to be a donor to the project.

In 2019, when OpenAI became a for-profit organization, Microsoft invested $1 billion, followed by a second multi-year investment in January 2023, reported to be $10 billion.

Microsoft Bing versus Google Search…

The original non-profit organization aimed to develop Artificial Intelligence in a safe and beneficial way for humanity. The founders were concerned that Artificial Intelligence could represent an existential threat to humanity if not developed responsibly.

Thus, the initial mission of OpenAI was to conduct research and develop Artificial Intelligence technologies that would benefit humanity as a whole, rather than just profiting from this technology.

One of the main reasons for the change was that OpenAI realized it would need much more financial resources to achieve its ambitious goals of developing advanced Artificial Intelligence that can be used safely and beneficially. Becoming a for-profit organization would allow OpenAI to attract significant investments and establish commercial partnerships with other companies, as has been seen with Microsoft.

By the way, to give an idea of the costs involved, OpenAI’s systems run on the fifth most powerful supercomputer in the world. ChatGPT, for example, was trained on NVIDIA GPUs. It is rumored that 10,000 NVIDIA GPUs were used to train the ChatGPT model.

Currently, ChatGPT alone requires 30,000 NVIDIA A100 GPUs to operate. ChatGPT uses a different type of GPU than the ones people put in their gaming PCs. Just one NVIDIA A100 GPU costs between $10,000 and $15,000.

The hardware is keeping up well with the evolution of software. Nevertheless, the OpenAI system is now experiencing disruptions after an explosive growth in users and the numerous requests that simultaneously inquire the LLM, suggesting that this clearly is not enough capacity. As someone once said, innovation has a cost!

The creation of monsters that could be angels or demons… or even both, like in quantum computing, depends not on the machine but on the human being!

OpenAI has taken measures to control access to its research and Artificial Intelligence technologies. The company made this decision because it realized that some of its technologies could be used in a harmful or malicious way, and of course, to not lose its competitive advantage.

Co-founder and CEO Sam Altman stated that it was a mistake to open-source the GPT code and that they will not open-source their models or share details about how they were trained.

OpenAI may have closed itself, but the war is far from over!

I understand the reasons stated above, but this is a dangerous development, as the progress we have seen in Artificial Intelligence is the result of the open-source mentality. All generations of GPT are based on the Transformer, which was introduced by Google researchers in 2017, so it’s frustrating to see GPT-4 closed off by the company that has benefited the most from open-source.

This is a move back to the era of “trade secrets,” which will stifle innovation and progress in Artificial Intelligence. When I say it will stifle innovation, I don’t mean that it will actually happen, as these few months of “AI Buzz” have already led to the awakening of both “Goliaths” and “Davids,” who can unveil what they have in the forge in record time.

The Age of Artificial Intelligence has begun! Just like the gold rush, all eyes are now on this topic. The beloved Metaverse has taken a backseat, with Mark Zuckerberg’s failed “childish metaverse” plan causing investors who only saw and demanded Metaverse in everything to adjust their sails on their yachts!

With an incredible 100 trillion learning parameters—Machine Learning—the recently launched GPT-4 will forever change the way we think about Artificial Intelligence.

The GPT is an example of a new generation of Deep Learning algorithms that can learn and generate information without human intervention. This is possible thanks to the vast amount of data available on the Internet, which allows the GPT to be trained on a wide range of texts and thus acquire a more advanced semantic understanding.

However, the existence of GPT and other AI technologies raise important questions about the future of humanity. Some of these questions involve the possibility that AI will surpass human intelligence and begin making autonomous decisions, which could lead to a range of ethical and social problems.

For example, imagine a war automaton that can make decisions independently. If that machine decides to attack a target, who would be responsible for the consequences? The algorithm programmer, the automaton operator, or the automaton itself? These are questions that need to be addressed before the technology advances even further.

There are also concerns about the veracity of the information generated by these language models. While GPT’s ability to generate natural language is impressive, it’s still a machine and as such, can be programmed to generate false or manipulated information. This could lead to an increase in the spread of fake news and misleading information, which could have serious consequences for society.

However, it is important to remember that Artificial Intelligence also brings many benefits. The technology can be used to improve efficiency and accuracy in areas such as medicine, scientific research, and natural disaster prediction. In addition, AI can help solve global problems such as climate change and resource scarcity.

To ensure that Artificial Intelligence is used for the good of humanity, it’s important for governments, businesses, and organizations to work together to establish clear guidelines and regulations. This includes creating laws and ethical norms to govern the use of technology, as well as promoting research and studies to better understand the impact of AI on society.

In short, the GPT and other AI technologies are an increasingly present reality in our lives and should be taken very seriously! The GPT-4 is just a step towards OpenAI’s goal of eventually building Artificial General Intelligence (AGI), which is when AI crosses the powerful threshold where AI systems surpass human intelligence.

Man’s reach exceeds his own understanding!

© 2023 Ӈ

Article originally published on Link to Leaders under the Portuguese title: “Explosão de Inteligência — Parte 1/3”

Elon Musk doesn’t follow the same standards that most entrepreneurs do. He’s different, he likes to be different!

And when you’re different, and you’re not afraid to be, it’s okay to test a cigar (or should I say ‘joint’?) of tobacco mixed with marijuana, on Joe Rogan’s famous podcast. But if you look closely, Elon was just nice (polite) and followed Rogan’s elaborate script. Before trying it, Musk even asked him if it was legal.

Then all those facial expressions of Musk, which photojournalists love to catch, go viral as if he’s there promoting some soft drug or passing abroad that his office at Tesla (or SpaceX) is enveloped in a large cloud of smoke.

Quite the opposite. The expressions themselves spoke for themselves, as if to say, “This is nothing special, Joe. Why do you waste my time with these scenes”? Musk even claimed that weed is not good for productivity at all, but it has nothing against (as I do, by the way).

Joe Rogan was far too cheeky and presumptuous to think that Elon Musk would be such a creative and quick guy at what he does, thanks to weed or any other drugs, light or hard. He responded promptly and directly, politely and very lucidly.

However, the media preferred to extol the “non-content” of the interview and highlight the least interesting just because he was nice to test a “cigar” that generated a huge cloud of smoke to the real content.

Well, people see more of what they’re focused on!… Musk is definitely more focused on other things.

Elon Musk likes to do useful things for other people. He said it himself, believe it or not. Although the acquisition of Twitter was a burning desire of Musk, he realized long ago that he could do better than was done with a machine as powerful as this microblogging. He dealt with the “cleaning” like that, wasting no time. He, by the way, even prepared people with the ‘Easter egg’ (sink) that he carried to Twitter’s headquarters in San Francisco.

The same needs to be done in relation to Facebook, which is terrible. Super slow; full of patches; many features that do not work properly; very little, or not at all, intelligent algorithms — or rather, they even have intelligence, but for a world of ignorant people (yes, Facebook, or its “master” algorithm, judges its users as ignorant); instability and incongruity in engagement; etc.

The union of all Meta platforms — Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, mainly — made the entire system become anything but practical and not at all user-friendly.

Facebook (the social network itself) urgently needs change if it wants to survive the new future ahead. And I’m not referring to the future that Mark Zuckerberg wants (metaverse) but to the real future of the Internet, the new Internet, whether we call it Metaverse or whatever.

Mark’s elephant is old and tired. It looks more like a mammoth trapped in prehistory. It may be massive and heavy, but what good is a huge footprint far away in the time of the mammoths?

The Facebook glory days are long gone, and it’s time to refresh the new world! It is not with retrograde concepts that the new and demanding society remains active in this already obsolete and worn out network.

Coming back to Twitter, it took a super brave and visionary man — love it or hate it — to, necessarily, move and shake the entire structure of the organization.

I wouldn’t want to be fired so on short notice either, but if you look at the ‘Big Picture’, it doesn’t seem dramatic. Jack Dorsey, co-founder and former CEO of Twitter, who no longer has any voice in the organization, says the company’s employees are resilient and will survive change. And, in my humble opinion, he’s right!

The reactions are felt all over the Internet, ridiculously by all those who have always enjoyed Twitter without paying a penny. Now, with the change, they think they are masters of reason without having any reason at all.

Naturally, this type of “cleaning” is strange, especially for those who are outside and do not see the inside of the heavy “machine”. Strangeness that, if they let the ‘Chief Twit’ work, it will ingrain and end up becoming mainstream.

(Usually, people who do little, perhaps because of idleness, do not have the patience to wait for the result of the hard work of those who actually do things.)

Countless people say that Elon Musk is the demonstration of the power of doing ‘whatever the f*ck he wants’. I think it’s not like that. He even listens to people! He is tired of asking for opinions in order to be more useful to people. However, Elon Musk’s power is legitimate.

When he claims that the $8 monthly “Blue Twitter” plan, which includes the ‘Verified Badge’, is to pay, he is within his rights to do so. After all, he paid $44 billion for the platform, for God’s sake.

Who are the offended people who have always enjoyed Twitter and the ‘Verified Badge’ for free? Yes, because having a ‘Verified Badge’ on Twitter (and other social networks) is like having a social status and, whether we like it or not, they are seen with different eyes. That’s why I use the word “enjoyed”.

Twitter’s (as well as Facebook and Instagram’s) account verification policy is completely ridiculous and uneven when one of the requirements for doing so is being a “notable person” or having a “notable account”. Come on! Really? Give me a break. There are many (too many, even) verified accounts of people who are anything but notable. Where is the equality, then?

If it is to empower the people, as Musk himself claims, the necessary changes must be made, and he is making them. Only those who do not see beyond their aura of selfishness do not realize what these (necessary) measures bring.

Now, what Elon Musk wants here is to praise free speech, freeing the shackles of other people who, not fitting into the social status of the old Twitter, did not have the ‘freedom of expression’ to be heard. A fairer and more democratic system is needed.

Twitter remains free, of course, but those who want Premium accounts pay a tiny monthly fee of 8 dollars (7.99, to be more precise). In that monthly fee, account verification is included, and current verified accounts need to adhere to this plan to maintain the “status of notable person”, called ‘Verified Badge’. Whoever does not pay, is without the seal. What’s the drama about it?

Whether we like it or not, Elon Musk is a force of nature that has proven his resolve.

Those who complain the most about his irreverence, if they are Twitter users and do not agree with his policy, have a solution, which is, of course, to leave.

Those who stay on Twitter for free and complain about the slightest thing, I don’t think they should do it if they are part of that social house.

Those who pay can complain about the paid services if they do not conform to what was sold to them. Otherwise, they shouldn’t make big waves either.

Let the man work and give it time. Twitter was created in 2006, and it took 16 years to be the colossus it is today, creating many vicious circles that are difficult to get out of at the expense of anything that goes against those same circles.

We have to change to remain dynamically innovative!

© 2022 _Ӈ_

This time I come to talk about a new concept in this Age of Artificial Intelligence and the already insipid world of Social Networks. Initially, quite a few years ago, I named it “Counterpart” (long before the TV series “Counterpart” and “Black Mirror”, or even the movie “Transcendence”).

It was the essence of the ETER9 Project that was taking shape in my head.

Over the years and also with the evolution of technologies — and of the human being himself —, the concept “Counterpart” has been getting better and, with each passing day, it makes more sense!

Imagine a purely digital receptacle with the basics inside, like that Intermediate Software (BIOS⁽¹⁾) that computers have between the Hardware and the Operating System. That receptacle waits for you. One way or another, it waits patiently for you, as if waiting for a Soul to come alive in the ether of digital existence.

This vision of mine is no longer as lonely as it used to be. It is now a reality that is coming closer and closer! And it takes shape even faster when it is reinforced with what former Google CEO Eric Schmidt said at this year’s Collision Conference.

Humans will soon have a Second Self, made by Artificial Intelligence.

These digital receptacles are basic Artificial Intelligences waiting for the “Digital Soul” of each human being! With that Soul is born your Digital Double (or ‘dduplicata’ as I affectionately called it during this BETA journey of creation), your Second Self.

Initially, a child Second Self, but as eager for knowledge as a child is in its first years of life. Your Operating System, unlike the computers themselves (CP/M, DOS, OS/2, Windows, Linux, macOS, …) emerges in the Second Self in a very unique way. We could use here the expression “all different, all equal” because each Second Self will have its own Operating System that, thanks to the “Digital Soul”, differentiates itself from its peers.

The Machine Learning of the digital counterpart is based on the behaviors and “personality” of the human counterpart. Therefore, there is no Absolute Law to regulate or manage ethics, but rather the common sense of each human counterpart. It will be up to each human counterpart to “feed” its digital version with the best of itself.

I do not hide my desire to create a virtual repository of human life. Part of the future, dystopian or not, will be like this. I hope to be able to make my greatest contribution towards a better future of humanity. Should I fail in time, there will be many minds available to do so.

We must not, however, forget one very important thing. Artificial Intelligence and subsequent Superintelligence, or General Artificial Intelligence, originate from the human being. The human being is the creator God of this technology, and by using it we invoke Angels or Demons. We are solely and exclusively responsible for the creation of the “Angels” and the “Demons”. If one day we start blaming the machines, then we lose this great challenge right from the start.

In a digital world like today’s and the one that lies ahead, the fusion between machine and human is inevitable. The question is how. Superficial? Absolute fusion?
I prefer to see a future of Artificial Intelligence where Superintelligence does not reign just because it has a higher cognitive capacity than humans. If we know how to interpret the signals and take appropriate action, we will be smart enough to enjoy Superintelligence as we enjoy Artificial Intelligence today.

Imagine a company and its employees. Now imagine those employees being more intelligent than their superiors. This scenario is very common!

Intelligence alone does not guarantee success, personally or professionally. There are many variables that change what most people think is obvious. Success is not obvious to the intelligent. There are other factors that contribute to it. Factors that, I dare say, in a time of technological singularity, will not be part of non-human intelligence. They may be, if they are united with humans, and then it’s a different story.

There are many extremely intelligent people who have no success at all. This is a small example that corroborates the coexistence with Superintelligences without them taking control.

As Alan Turing himself ⁽²⁾ suggested, the way to Artificial Intelligence, is to build a machine with the curiosity of a child, and let the intelligence evolve, with the help of external oracles and not simulate the mind of an adult.

I am convinced that, with basic digital receptacles (child-machines) to start the counterparts journey, is the best method.

By allowing the digital counterpart of each human being to be born with only the Basic Input/Output System (BIOS), and then be subjected to an appropriate learning trajectory, we would be able to obtain a digital brain of an adult.

By then we could look at our Second Self (SSelf) as our best version living and evolving endlessly in the digital world.

⁽¹⁾ BIOS — Basic Input/Output System
⁽²⁾ Alan Turing (1912–1954) was a British mathematician, computer pioneer, and considered today as the father of computer science and Artificial Intelligence.

When in 2015, Eileen Brown looked at the ETER9 Project (crazy for many, visionary for few) and wrote an interesting article for ZDNET with the title “New social network ETER9 brings AI to your interactions”, it ensured a worldwide projection of something the world was not expecting.

Someone, in a lost world (outside the United States), was risking, with everything he had in his possession (very little or less than nothing), a vision worthy of the American dream. At that time, Facebook was already beginning to annoy the cleaner minds that were looking for a difference and a more innovative world.

Today, after that test bench, we see that Facebook (Meta or whatever) is nothing but an illusion, or, I dare say, a big disappointment. No, no, no! I am not now bad-mouthing Facebook just because I have a project in hand that is seen as a potential competitor.

I was even a big fan of the “original” Facebook; but then I realized, it took me a few years, that Mark Zuckerberg is nothing more than a simple kid, now a man, who against everything and everyone, gave in to whims. Of him, initially, and now, perforce, of what his big investors, deluded by himself, of what his “metaverse” would be.

This path is just beginning, but with the devastating results that the “meta child” has had (forgive me), I recommend that investors not be so deluded by those who have the current power, and believe more in what the world now yearns for. There is a time for everything. The time for Facebook is gone, whether it is Meta (Facebook patched) or something else coming from someone where the first name is Mark.

For me, I thank all those who believed in me, in my visions right after the rise of the Internet and especially nowadays, with all these new concepts that I have been introducing in the “system” (new world of digital innovation). Digital Counterpart or Digital Second Self (https://www.SSelf.co) are my warhorse, and I believe they are really going to change the world. They won’t just change the world because they do, but because the world wants and needs it to.

Please note: In the image, virtual (or augmented) reality glasses are on the head of a digital being (Second Self), not a human…!

In the 80s, “with no knowledge, only intuition”, I discovered the world of computing. I believed computers could do everything, as if it were an electronic God. But when I asked the TIMEX Sinclair 1000 to draw the planet Saturn — I am fascinated by this planet, maybe because it has rings —, I only glimpse a strange message on the black and white TV:

0/0

I stared at that 0/0 for a while on the white screen, as if waiting for the rings of Saturn to magically shape.

Nothing came up! I waited a little longer and nothing. I didn’t mean to interrupt the “God of the Machine” in his creation; it was a Planet that was asking, not a small thing!

But, nothing. I realized then we humans had a very significant role in the action of the machines.

When I was a kid, I was a dreamer eager for knowledge — I lived in a time that was not my own. I lived with my maternal grandparents, my mother — widowed since I was three years old — and my brother, in an old house in the village of Mosteiro de Fráguas (Tondela, Portugal). My brother, only 13 months older than me, companion of my adventures, dreamed about the ‘hardware’, I about the ‘software’, although we didn’t really know what that was.

Although we didn’t know what those things were, our intuition told us that was the way to go.

The few technical manuals and electronic devices our father left us were the basis of everything; not much, but a seed doesn’t seem to be much before it is sown!

My brother dissected the electronic gadgets, I devoured the books. And then came the moment when my brother (still a kid) assembled a ‘kit’ that we had ordered from TIMEX’s version of the ZX81 microcomputer for Portugal, the TIMEX Sinclair 1000 I’ve mentioned above. It was only 2 KB of RAM running on a “super” 8-bit microprocessor (Z80) at a frequency of 3.25 MHz.

The inside of the machine, which we can call ‘Digital Soul’, fascinated me. And it was with this great little machine that I started to explore Assembly Language, aka Machine Code. By doing so, I felt closer to this invisible world where everything seemed to be possible.

On ETER9 universe the Game of Life, or just Life (1970) — a cellular automaton — by John Horton Conway, is an inspiration. Besides the duplication of people (and companies) into the digital world, the life that is born, lives and dies in the ether of artificial existence, follows the same rules as the cellular automaton.

Rule of Birth: — If a cell has three neighbors in any direction, it is born.

Rule of Survival: — If a cell has two or three neighbors in any direction, it continues to live.

Rule of Death: — If a cell has none or only one neighbor, it dies by isolation. If it has four or more neighbors, it dies by overpopulation.

Technology itself is increasingly becoming part of us. And whether we like it or not, we are all already in the process of merging with machines… and we don’t even realize it yet! This fusion is invisible and silent, and happens in a very natural way. Many people insist on separating intelligent technology from people, as if there were two sides, two teams that should confront each other. Almost as if a conflict happens between the two sides.

I don’t see it that way. I prefer to see man and machine united towards a single, common goal: to coexist in absolute harmony!

Furthermore, I believe that in the future there will be no clear distinction between humans and machines, every aspect of our lives will be transformed. The technological evolution is exponential, technology increasingly feeds on itself. I would go further: technology is increasingly becoming intelligent… artificially intelligent.

And what a subject this is. So sensitive and sometimes controversial.

I must confess: I prefer to see Artificial Intelligence as an improvement to ourselves, when allied to the human being itself, with increasingly wide applications.

Some studies show that Artificial Intelligence could double the annual economic growth by 2035. Of course, this will lead to many changes in various areas. Changes to the nature of jobs are predicted, for example.

But just as we can’t imagine ever seeing professions like paperboy again, so in the future some professions we see today will fall away to make way for others. This is only natural. The impact of Artificial Intelligence technologies on business is expected to increase labor productivity by up to 40%. This will change the way we all look at the world.

And while Artificial Intelligence is increasingly present in digital systems, this concept has led to the development of ‘Machine Learning’, which is based on the ability of computers to learn from information without being explicitly programmed to do so.

In essence, instead of teaching computers everything they need to know, and how to perform tasks, scientists and engineers have come to the conclusion that it is much more efficient to codify them to ‘think’ as if they were humans. Teaching them to learn for themselves.

These ‘Machine Learning’ systems take Artificial Intelligence to another level, through so-called neural networks or ‘Deep Learning’, where the system learns to perform tasks based on huge amounts of information, readjusting itself thousands of times until it can accomplish a task.

Essentially, the machine is intended to categorize information in the same way that a human brain would.

In other words, or modern words to be more exact, from the human brain to the cloud.

© 2022 Ӈ

MANILA, Philippines — A dengue case forecasting system using space data made by Philippine developers won the 2019 National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s International Space Apps Challenge. Over 29,000 participating globally in 71 countries, this solution made it as one of the six winners in the best use of data, the solution that best makes space data accessible, or leverages it to a unique application.

Dengue fever is a viral, infectious tropical disease spread primarily by Aedes aegypti female mosquitoes. With 271,480 cases resulting in 1,107 deaths reported from January 1 to August 31, 2019 by the World Health Organization, Dominic Vincent D. Ligot, Mark Toledo, Frances Claire Tayco, and Jansen Dumaliang Lopez from CirroLytix developed a forecasting model of dengue cases using climate and digital data, and pinpointing possible hotspots from satellite data.

Correlating information from Sentinel-2 Copernicus and Landsat 8 satellites, climate data from the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST-PAGASA) and trends from Google search engines, potential dengue hotspots will be shown in a web interface.

Using satellite spectral bands like green, red, and near-infrared (NIR), indices like Fraction of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (FAPAR) and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) are calculated in identifying areas with green vegetation while Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI) identifies areas with water. Combining these indices reveal potential areas of stagnant water capable of being breeding grounds for mosquitoes, extracted as coordinates through a free and open-source cross-platform desktop geographic information system QGIS.

Check out the website here: http://aedesproject.org/

“AEDES aims to improve public health response against dengue fever in the Philippines by pinpointing possible hotspots using Earth observations,” Dr. Argyro Kavvada of NASA Earth Science and Booz Allen Hamilton explained.

The DOST-Philippine Council for Industry, Energy and Emerging Technology Research and Development (DOST-PCIEERD) deputy executive director Engr. Raul C. Sabularse said that the winning solution “benefits the community especially those countries suffering from malaria and dengue, just like the Philippines. I think it has a global impact. This is the new science to know the potential areas where dengue might occur. It is a good app.”

“It is very relevant to the Philippines and other countries which usually having problems with dengue. The team was able to show that it’s not really difficult to have all the data you need and integrate all of them and make them accessible to everyone for them to be able to use it. It’s a working model,” according to Monchito B. Ibrahim, industry development committee chairman of the Analytics Association of the Philippines and former undersecretary of the Department of Information and Communications Technology.

The leader of the Space Apps global organizing team Dr. Paula S. Bontempi, acting deputy director of the Earth Science Mission, NASA’s Science Mission Directorate remembers the pitch of the winning team when she led the hackathon in Manila. “They were terrific. Well deserved!” she said.

“I am very happy we landed in the winning circle. This would be a big help particularly in addressing our health-related problems. One of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is on Good Health and Well Being and the problem they are trying to address is analysis related to dengue,“ said Science and Technology secretary Fortunato T. de la Peña. Rex Lor from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in the Philippines explained that the winning solution showcases the “pivotal role of cutting-edge digital technologies in the creation of strategies for sustainable development in the face of evolving development issues.”

U.S Public Affairs counselor Philip W. Roskamp and PLDT Enterprise Core Business Solutions vice president and head Joseph Ian G. Gendrano congratulates the next group of Pinoy winners.

Sec. de la Peña is also very happy on this second time victory for the Philippines on the global competition of NASA. The first winning solution ISDApp uses “data analysis, particularly NASA data, to be able to help our fishermen make decisions on when is the best time to catch fish.” It is currently being incubated by Animo Labs, the technology business incubator and Fab Lab of De La Salle University in partnership with DOST-PCIEERD. Project AEDES will be incubated by Animo Labs too.

University president Br. Raymundo B. Suplido FSC hopes that NASA Space Apps would “encourage our young Filipino researchers and scientists to create ideas and startups based on space science and technology, and pave the way for the promotion and awareness of the programs of our own Philippine space agency.”

Philippine vice president Leni Robredo recognized Space Apps as a platform “where some of our country’s brightest minds can collaborate in finding and creating solutions to our most pressing problems, not just in space, but more importantly here on Earth.”

“Space Apps is a community of scientists and engineers, artists and hackers coming together to address key issues here on Earth. At the heart of Space Apps are data that come to us from spacecraft flying around Earth and are looking at our world,” explained by Dr. Thomas Zurbuchen, NASA associate administrator for science.

“Personally, I’m more interested in supporting the startups that are coming out of the Space Apps Challenge,” according to DOST-PCIEERD executive director Dr. Enrico C. Paringit.

In the Philippines, Space Apps is a NASA-led initiative organized in collaboration with De La Salle University, Animo Labs, DOST-PCIEERD, PLDT InnoLab, American Corner Manila, U.S. Embassy, software developer Michael Lance M. Domagas, and celebrates the Design Week Philippines with the Design Center of the Philippines of the Department of Trade and Industry. It is globally organized by Booz Allen Hamilton, Mindgrub, and SecondMuse.

Space Apps is a NASA incubator innovation program. The next hackathon will be on October 2–4, 2020.

#SpaceApps #SpaceAppsPH