Lifeboat Foundation

Amazon today announced the general availability of Bedrock, its service that offers a choice of generative AI models from Amazon itself and third-party partners through an API.

Bedrock, which was unveiled in early April, allows AWS customers to build apps on top of generative AI models and customize them with their proprietary data. Leveraging these models, brands and developers can also create AI “agents” that automatically execute tasks like booking travel, managing inventory and processing insurance claims.

In the coming weeks, Llama 2, the open source large language model from Meta, will come to Bedrock, Amazon says — joining models from AI21 Labs, Anthropic, Cohere and Stability AI.

OpenAI is in advanced talks with former Apple designer Jony Ive and Japanese tech giant SoftBank to bankroll a $1 billion project to build the “iPhone of artificial intelligence,” the Financial Times.

Ive, who was first reported to be collaborating with Altman by The Information on Tuesday, founded LoveFrom in 2019 after two decades at Apple, where he played a key role… More.

The device is inspired by how the iPhone’s touchscreen transformed mobile internet and aims to give a “more natural and intuitive user experience for interacting with AI,” the Financial Times reported.

Continue reading “OpenAI Reportedly Taps SoftBank For $1 Billion ‘iPhone Of Artificial Intelligence’ Venture” »

Meta announced a major expansion of generative AI capabilities across its family of apps at its 2023 Connect event on Wednesday. This AI expansion comes at a pivotal moment, providing a much-needed boost as Meta’s metaverse ambitions continue to rack up losses.

Among the new offerings is Meta AI, an advanced conversational assistant available in the U.S. on WhatsApp, Messenger and Instagram. The assistant will work similarly to OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Anthropic’s Claude and other conversational AI systems. The moves signal Meta’s ambitions to compete with AI leaders like OpenAI as generative AI takes off.

There are three big differentiators for Meta AI: It can provide real-time web results through a new partnership with Microsoft’s Bing search engine, a ChatGPT feature just introduced Wednesday.

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) presents as an unmet clinical challenge for drug delivery due to its unique hypoxic biology. Vinblastine-N-Oxide (CPD100) is a hypoxia-activated prodrug (HAP) that selectively converts to its parent compound, vinblastine, a potent cytotoxic agent, under oxygen gradient. The study evaluates the efficacy of microfluidics formulated liposomal CPD100 (CPD100Li) in PDAC. CPD100Li were formulated with a size of 95 nm and a polydispersity index of 0.2. CPD100Li was stable for a period of 18 months when freeze-dried at a concentration of 3.55 mg/mL. CPD100 and CPD100Li confirmed selective activation at low oxygen levels in pancreatic cancer cell lines. Moreover, in 3D spheroids, CPD100Li displayed higher penetration and disruption compared to CPD100.

For as long as we’ve been around, human beings have fought against the inevitability of death. This struggle has given rise to religions that have dominated human culture for millennia and has been central to philosophies that have shaped our civilizations.

But might it be the case that a scientific solution to immortality is finally in sight? In recent years, artificial intelligence (AI) has evolved to the stage where it looks set to revolutionize every aspect of our lives. It may just be possible that it’s going to change the way that we think about – and perhaps even experience – death, too.

Science fiction has given us several examples of situations – mostly horrific — where human minds can be uploaded to machines, effectively allowing us to outlast our mortal, fallible bodies.

Summary: Scientists have discovered a direct link between the protein p53 and autism-like behavior in mice. The researchers studied the effects of manipulating p53 levels in the mouse hippocampus.

Reduced levels resulted in repetitive behavior, diminished sociability, and impaired learning, especially in male mice. This pivotal work uncovers the intricate role of p53 in neurodevelopmental disorders like autism.

With office spaces being emptier, companies are using WiFi access points and AI sensors to learn about employees’ behavior in the workplace.

Startup Light Bio has created a bioluminescent petunia using mushroom genes and plans to start shipping the plants next spring.

Founded in 2021, Virginia-based Procyon Photonics is a startup aiming to change the future of computing hardware with its focus on optical computing. What makes the company unique is that their entire team consists of current high school students, and its co-founder, CEO, and CTO, Sathvik Redrouthu, holds the distinction of being the world’s youngest CEO in the photonic and optical computing sector.

Optical computing represents an innovative leap from traditional computing, which relies on electrons moving through wires and transistors. Instead, this relatively nascent field seeks to harness photons — particles of light — as the fundamental elements in computational processes. The promise of optical computing is compelling enough that industry giants like IBM and Microsoft, among others, are heavily investing in its research and development.

Procyon is attempting to differentiate itself in this competitive landscape not just by its youth, but with their technology. The team is pioneering a unique, industry-leading optical chip, and has published a conference paper detailing how a specialized form of matrix algebra could be executed on an optoelectronic chip.