The reality is that AI companies have a ton of choices when it comes to how they build their models and what data they use. (Whether they care is another thing.) Courts could force the companies to share how they’ve built their models and what kind of data has gone into their data sets. Increasing the transparency around AI models is a welcome move and would help burst the myth that AI is somehow magical. 

Strikes, investigations, and court cases could also help pave the way for artists, actors, authors, and others to be compensated, through a system of licensing and royalties, for the use of their work as training data for AI models.

But to me, these court cases are a sign of a bigger fight we are starting as a society. They will help determine how much power we are comfortable giving private companies, and how much agency we are going to have in this brave new AI-powered world. 

I think that’s something worth fighting for. 

Deeper Learning

Bill Gates isn’t too scared about AI

Bill Gates has joined the chorus of big names in tech who have weighed in on the question of risk around artificial intelligence. TL;DR? He’s not too worried—we’ve been here before.

No fearmongering here: In the AI risk hyperbole spectrum, Gates lands squarely in the middle. He frames the debate as one pitting “longer-term” against “immediate” risk, and chooses to focus on “the risks that are already present, or soon will be.” He also urges fast but cautious action to address all the harms on his list. The problem is that he doesn’t offer anything new. Many of his suggestions are tired; some are frankly facile. Read more from Will Douglas Heaven here. 

Bits and Bytes

ChatGPT can turn bad writers into better ones
What if ChatGPT doesn’t replace human writers, but makes less skilled ones better? A new study from MIT, published in Science, suggests it could help reduce gaps in writing ability between employees. The researchers found that AI could enable less experienced workers who lack writing skills to produce work similar in quality to that of more skilled colleagues. It’s an intriguing glimpse at how AI could change the workplace. (MIT Technology Review)