Welcome to The Week in Generative AI, a new weekly column for marketers from Quad Insights that quickly sums up emerging developments surrounding tools such as ChatGPT and Bard, while also offering the latest details on how generative AI tools are being incorporated into advertising products and workflows.
OpenAI CEO goes to Washington
On Tuesday, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman testified in front of a Senate Judiciary subcommittee regarding the role of government as AI technology advances. Altman was there to make the case that regulations will be necessary to make sure that AI is used responsibly. Politico’s Mohar Chatterjee notes that “CEO hearings can be pure political theater,” but “the Senate quickly delved into the nitty-gritty of policymaking.” You can watch the video of Altman’s testimony courtesy of PBS NewsHour if you’ve got three hours to spare. (An IBM executive and a New York University professor also testified as a part of the session.)
Additional takes:
- “OpenAI chief concerned about AI being used to compromise elections” (Reuters)
- “AI technology ‘can go quite wrong,’ OpenAI CEO tells Senate” (Ars Technica)
Amazon embraces AI in search
Bloomberg did some snooping around on Amazon job boards and found that the e-commerce giant is planning on “reimagining Amazon Search with interactive conversational experiences.” For users, this might mean more automated dialogue during their shopping journey. And for marketers, it means keeping tabs on how product discovery changes shape on Amazon’s shopping platforms.
Additional takes:
- “Amazon is building an AI-powered ‘conversational experience’ for search” (The Verge)
- “ChatGPT is coming to your Alexa” (Bloomberg)
Putting organizational guidelines in place for generative AI
Computerworld’s Johanna Ambrosio offers some advice to business leaders in a new column headlined “Prepare for generative AI with experimentation and clear guidelines.” She cautions that “Generative AI comes with plenty of risks — including incorrect, biased or fabricated results; copyright and privacy violations; and leaked corporate data — so it’s important for IT and company leaders to maintain control of any generative AI work going on in their organizations.” And then she lays out next steps, including deciding which use cases to pursue and developing internal guardrails “based around corporate values and goals.” It’s worth reading in full if you’ve been grappling with how to manage the deployment of generative AI in your organization.
ICYMI: Google AI meets Adobe AI
As we continue to dig into the shiny new things from last week’s Google I/O announcements, one content production tool looks particularly promising, especially for Adobe users. “In the coming months,” according to the company, Adobe Firefly (which was released in beta in March) will be integrated into Google Bard, which will allow users to generate and edit AI images using Firefly and then modify them further in Adobe Express.
Further reading
- “Apple AI-driven text-to-speech can mimic your voice” (Gizmodo)
- “When Generative AI Refuses To Answer Questions, AI Ethics And AI Law Get Deeply Worried” (Forbes)
- “5 Legal Pitfalls to Avoid If You Use Generative A.I. for Your Business” (Inc.)
Thanks for checking in. We’ll see you next Friday.
Previously: “The Week in Generative AI: May 12, 2023 edition”
