News/Europe
Meta’s EU Restrictions Highlight Regulatory Challenges Amid Rapid Advancements
Meta's decision to restrict EU access to its multimodal AI model highlights the challenges of navigating differing regulatory environments as AI technologies advance rapidly. Key developments: Meta has announced it will not release its upcoming multimodal AI model, capable of handling video, audio, images, and text, in the European Union due to regulatory uncertainties: The decision comes shortly after the EU finalized compliance deadlines for AI companies under its strict new AI Act, which requires compliance by August 2026 on issues like copyright, transparency, and certain AI use cases. Meta's move follows similar decisions by Apple to potentially exclude the...
read Jul 18, 2024Ukraine Deploys AI Drone Swarms, Reshaping Battlefield and Raising Ethical Questions
Ukraine leverages AI and drone swarms to combat Russian forces: Swarms of AI-powered drones are being developed by Ukrainian tech startups like Vyriy and Swarmer to strike Russian targets and evade signal-jamming attacks in the ongoing war: The drones can be deployed in fleets of dozens flying simultaneously, adapting to each other's movements and completing strikes or surveillance missions with minimal human involvement. Swarmer's AI system plans each drone's movements and behavior, and can predict other drones' actions, potentially managing "hundreds" at a time compared to a human struggling to operate five. AI drones provide key advantages on the battlefield:...
read Jul 17, 2024French AI Startup Mistral Launches Groundbreaking Open-Source Models for Coding and Math
Mistral, a well-funded French AI startup, has launched two new large language models (LLMs) based on the Mamba architecture, which aims to improve upon the efficiency of transformer-based models. Codestral Mamba for developers: Mistral's code-generating model, Codestral Mamba 7B, offers faster response times and longer input handling compared to other models: The model can handle inputs of up to 256,000 tokens, double that of OpenAI's GPT-4. In benchmarking tests, Codestral Mamba outperformed rival open-source models like CodeLlama 7B, CodeGemma-1.17B, and DeepSeek in HumanEval tests. Developers can modify and deploy the model from its GitHub repository and through HuggingFace, with an...
read Jul 16, 2024Microsoft’s AI Hiring Spree Sparks UK Antitrust Probe
The UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has formally launched an investigation into Microsoft's hiring of executives from AI startup Inflection to determine if the move could undermine competition in the UK market: In March, Microsoft hired two Inflection AI co-founders, Mustafa Suleyman and Karén Simonyan, to lead its new Microsoft AI division, along with several other Inflection staff members. The CMA's preliminary investigation, started in April, aimed to assess whether these hires and Microsoft's partnership with French AI startup Mistral could shield the tech giant from competition. The formal "merger inquiry" will conclude by September 11, when the CMA...
read Jul 16, 2024EU Sanctions Target Arkady Volozh Stages Comeback with New AI Venture
Arkady Volozh, the cofounder of Russian internet giant Yandex, is making a comeback with a new European AI company called Nebius Group, aiming to become a leading provider of AI infrastructure. Key developments in Volozh's journey: Volozh, once known as the architect of "Russia's Google," faced significant challenges following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022: He was targeted by EU sanctions and forced to step down from Yandex, which was valued at $30 billion at its peak. Volozh and his team spent two years negotiating with the Kremlin to sell off parts of Yandex still based in Russia, including the...
read Jul 12, 2024UK Aims to Boost University Spinouts, Emulating US for AI Edge
The UK government is exploring ways to boost funding for university startups to capitalize on the AI revolution and strengthen the country's tech industry. Here is a summary of the key points: The UK's push to commercialize academic research: UK universities are urging the new Labor government to significantly increase funding for startups spun out of academia to £108 million ($140 million) per year: The UK has a strong tech industry and world-class universities, but the process of spinning out companies from academia remains challenging compared to the US. An independent government review found that technology transfer offices (TTOs) at...
read Jul 12, 2024EU’s AI Act Compliance Deadlines Set, Ushering in New Era of AI Regulation
The EU's landmark AI Act sets compliance deadlines for tech companies, beginning the countdown to a new era of AI regulation. The sweeping set of rules aims to protect citizens' rights and ensure transparency in the development and use of AI systems. Key compliance deadlines: The AI Act will come into effect on August 1st, 2024, with several compliance deadlines tied to this date: By February 2nd, 2025, companies must comply with bans on AI applications that pose an "unacceptable risk," such as biometric categorization, emotion recognition in sensitive settings, social scoring systems, and certain predictive policing tools. By May...
read Jul 10, 2024Ukraine Deploys AI to Expose Russian Disinformation, Safeguarding Democracy
The AI-powered War of Words tool, launched by Ukraine's former minister of culture Volodymyr Borodiansky, analyzes vast amounts of Russian media content to expose pro-Kremlin propaganda and fake news narratives that can influence public opinion and democratic processes. Key details of the AI tool: War of Words harnesses artificial intelligence to scrutinize thousands of hours of video content across Russian TV and Telegram channels dating back to 2012, providing users with a searchable archive updated daily: The tool tracks and analyzes all content aired on Russian media since 2012, generating hundreds of units of propaganda every second. It aims to...
read Jul 10, 2024Spanish Teens Sentenced for AI-Generated Nude Images, Sparking Debate on Deepfake Abuse
A Spanish court has sentenced 15 teenagers to a year's probation for creating and sharing AI-generated naked images of their female classmates, sparking a debate on the harmful uses of deepfake technology and the need for proper education on gender equality and responsible technology use. Case details and court ruling: The investigation began after parents in the town of Almendralejo reported that fake nude pictures of their daughters were circulating on WhatsApp groups: The teenagers, aged between 13 and 15, used AI applications to superimpose the girls' faces from social media profiles onto naked female bodies. The manipulated photos were...
read Jul 10, 2024Suspiciously Smooth-Skinned Politician Denies Being an AI Bot, Blames Pneumonia and Photoshop
Mark Matlock, a candidate for the far-right Reform UK party, has confirmed he is a real person despite suspicions that he might be an AI-generated bot. Background and speculation: Matlock's absence from key campaign events and his unusually smooth skin in a campaign image led to speculation on social media that he might not be a real person: A thread on X (formerly Twitter) questioned Matlock's existence, suggesting a potential scandal if he turned out to be an AI bot. While an AI-generated candidate ran for UK Parliament this election, the possibility of Matlock being AI-generated seemed plausible given the...
read Jul 10, 2024Russian AI Disinformation Campaign Disrupted, Highlighting Evolving Threat to U.S. Democracy
The U.S. Justice Department announced the disruption of a Russian propaganda campaign that spread disinformation in the United States using artificial intelligence technology, underscoring the ongoing threat of foreign influence operations and the growing role of AI in these efforts. Key details of the Russian disinformation campaign: The Justice Department provided insights into the sophisticated and Kremlin-backed nature of the Russian disinformation operation: The campaign was organized in 2022 with the help of a senior editor at RT, a Russian state-funded media organization registered as a foreign agent in the U.S. It received support and financial approval from the Kremlin,...
read Jul 10, 2024Russian AI Spam Farm’s Fake Ukraine Story Tops Google, Erodes Online Trust
A Russian AI-powered spam farm spread a fake story about Ukraine's first lady buying a luxury car with U.S. aid, which quickly topped Google search results. Key details of the disinformation campaign: The fake story originated from an unknown French website, Vérité Cachée, which is part of a network of sites linked to the Russian government that spreads propaganda and disinformation: Vérité Cachée and similar sites in the network use generative AI to create and manipulate content, publishing thousands of articles attributed to fake journalists. The story was quickly picked up by Russian media outlets, shared on pro-Kremlin Telegram channels,...
read Jul 9, 2024Tony Blair: Embrace AI to Boost UK Economy, Productivity and Public Services
Tony Blair is urging the UK government to fully embrace artificial intelligence to boost growth and productivity in the country. In a major speech, the former prime minister will argue that the modern technological revolution means there has never been a better time to govern. Key initiatives proposed by Blair: The former Labour leader is proposing a package of measures to fuel growth and generate savings, including: Widespread adoption of AI in both the private and public sectors A focus on preventative healthcare Implementation of digital ID Embracing technology in education Britain's strong starting position in AI: In an interview...
read Jul 7, 2024Tony Blair Says AI Is Crucial for UK Economic Revival Under Starmer Government
Prime Minister Keir Starmer must embrace artificial intelligence as a transformative technology to boost economic growth, according to former Labour leader Tony Blair. Overcoming economic challenges through AI: Britain faces a difficult economic situation of high taxes, spending, and debt, but advances in AI present an exciting opportunity for the new government: AI is the only "game-changer" that can significantly improve Britain's productivity and accelerate economic growth over time. Spreading AI adoption in the private sector, encouraged by appropriate government policies, is crucial to addressing the productivity challenge. Potential benefits across sectors: AI could drive improvements and savings in various...
read Jul 3, 2024AI Chatbot Controversy Ignites Leadership Turmoil at European Geosciences Union
A controversy over an AI chatbot developed in China has caused a rift at the European Geosciences Union (EGU), resulting in the firing of its president: AI chatbot sparks concerns: GeoGPT, an AI-powered chatbot being developed by Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba as part of the Deep-time Digital Earth (DDE) initiative, has raised concerns about transparency, potential state censorship, and copyright infringement: Paul Cleverly, a visiting professor, highlighted "serious issues" with GeoGPT regarding lack of transparency, potential state censorship, and copyright infringement in an editorial. A group of publishers argued that GeoGPT was built off unlicensed literature and lacked transparency by...
read Jul 3, 2024AI-Powered Russian Fake News Network Increasingly Targeting 2024 US Election
A Russia-based network of fake news websites, powered by AI, is increasingly targeting the US election with viral disinformation stories aimed at sowing distrust among American voters. Key figures and tactics: The network is run out of Moscow by John Mark Dougan, a former US police officer, and uses sophisticated AI to generate fake articles and videos masquerading as legitimate local US news: Dozens of websites with American-sounding names like "Houston Post" and "DC Weekly" post a mix of rewritten real news and completely fabricated stories, often blending US political issues with pro-Russia narratives. AI-generated "reporter" profiles and fake whistleblower...
read Jun 20, 2024Europe’s AI Sovereignty at Risk as US Tech Giants Dominate
Europe struggles to maintain cultural relevance and economic competitiveness as American companies dominate the development of AI, raising concerns about a cultural flattening and the need for European AI sovereignty. Regional nuances at risk: As US-developed chatbots and large language models become ubiquitous, there are fears that the understanding of normal conversation will converge toward an American style, erasing subtle cultural differences across Europe: Finnish people, known for their blunt approach to dialog, find that chatbots are often overly courteous in a way that feels unnatural. If the core "digital infrastructure" behind the AI boom is controlled by private American...
read Jun 20, 2024Europe’s AI Uprising: French Funding Soars, London Startups Lead the Charge
Europe is emerging as a major player in the rapidly evolving generative AI landscape, with France leading the charge in terms of funding and London boasting the highest number of GenAI startups, according to a new report from Accel and Dealroom. London's startup scene thriving: The British capital has proven to be a hotbed for GenAI innovation, with 27% of the 221 startups analyzed in the report being founded in London, followed by Tel Aviv at 13% and Berlin at 12%. Despite Paris being widely recognized as a major AI development hub, it ranked in the middle of the city...
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