The US gives Intel a $20bn boost

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Chips are one of the most hotly-contested resource in the geopolitical battle for AI supremacy — and the US has been reliant on offshore production for its supply. But the US administration is waking up to the risks and trying to revive domestic chip production, starting with a $20Bn investment in Intel.

TODAY’S MENU

• US looks to turn chip reliance into revival with Intel backing

• How to upscale and enhance blurry images with AI

• Google’s new ‘head of search’ has big AI plans

• Chart: America’s attitude to AI-generated movies and TV

• 5 new AI tools to boost your productivity

• AI Generated Images: Best of both worlds

NEWS

Today in AI & Tech

• Goal Guru: Google DeepMind has partnered with Liverpool FC to develop an AI model that can give coaches tactical insights, including recommendations for different types of corner kicks.

• Glass Half Full: During a Tuesday Q&A, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said he believes it’s possible to get rid of AI hallucinations by teaching LLMs how to check their sources.

• Code Poachers: Top AI startups in Europe say both Canada and the UAE have been trying to woo them with the offer of tax breaks, subsidies, and other incentives.

• Instability AI: Stability AI, which created the innovative text-to-image platform Stable Diffusion, is reportedly on the brink of collapse after three founding researchers announced their resignation.

• Rogue Chatbots: A TechCrunch analysis revealed that OpenAI’s GPT Store is filled with spam, including GPTs that purport to get around AI-detection software and others that impersonate former presidents and Disney characters.

NEXT IN AI

From reliance to revival: US looks to boost domestic chip production with $20Bn Intel backing

The US wants to produce one-fifth of the world’s advanced logic chips by 2030. But it’s a long way away from reaching that goal…Today, it only produces about 10% — and virtually none of the most powerful ones. 

Intel Inside: In an effort to get closer to its ambitions (and to level the playing field), the US government is hoping a $20 billion cash infusion can take tech giant Intel to new heights (Read: Finally catching up to competitors like Nvidia). The award will allow the California-based company to build and remodel chip plants in four states, with at least one fab site — essentially a semiconductor factory — for AI chips.

What you need to know:

• President Joe Biden stopped by Intel’s Arizona campus Wednesday to make it official. 

• It’s the largest grant so far tied to the 2022 CHIPS Act, which aims to lure semiconductor developers back to the US. 

• The award could create up to 30,000 new construction jobs and nearly 10,000 manufacturing jobs.

• Intel expects to invest about $100 billion into the expansion, including into AI initiatives.

Why now? The US is especially worried about China’s growing influence in Taiwan, where 90% of today’s AI chips are manufactured. “It’s an economic security problem, it’s a national security problem, and we’re going to change that,” Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo told reporters.

That’s where Intel comes in: The California-based company has struggled to keep up with its rivals, including Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company and Samsung, in terms of technological innovation. But it has a unique superpower: While most chip producers outsource their manufacturing overseas, Intel builds all of its components in-house. That means it can keep chugging along no matter what happens between the US and its adversaries.

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AI AT WORK

How to upscale and enhance blurry images with AI

Got a blurry old family photo that you want to enhance? Or maybe you’ve got a tiny pixelated image you’d like to upscale for work? Here’s how to do it in just a few clicks:

• Go to the Krea AI website and log in with your email account

• Click on the Upscale and Enhance option

• Upload any image that you want to upscale or enhance from the menu on the left of your screen

• After uploading the image, set the Upscaling Factor parameter and click on the Enhance button

In our tests, we found that Krea works best with blurry images like old family photos. For pictures that were extremely pixelated, the results were somewhat mixed.

SEARCH WARS

Google’s plan to win us back with AI

Once upon a time, "googling it” was the only way to find something online. But over the past few years, internet users have complained that Google’s results are getting worse, with spam and ads now crowding out quality content.

What are people doing instead? Some are still using Google, they're just tacking on "Reddit" at the end of their search to find more practical or accurate results. Meanwhile, others have turned to you.com, BingAI, or the Jeff Bezos-backed Perplexity — which can all give nuanced, well-sourced responses in seconds.

How is Google responding? 

• The tech giant just appointed Liz Reid as its new “Head of Search.”

• Reid, who has been with the company since 2003, reportedly plans to integrate more AI functionality into Google’s search results.

• Reid said Google has also made recent adjustments to its spam and ranking systems.

How can Google stand out? The company is testing several new features that could one day change the way we search for things online. You can try out some of those tools on Google’s Search Labs page (labs.google.com).

There's also Circle to Search, which lets users on some smartphones circle to find things online. They’re also cooking a new app that lets Google hold your place in line while waiting to speak to customer service.

CHART

Can AI write movies that are more interesting than humans?

Deloitte’s annual digital media trends survey found that 22% of Americans — including three in 10 millennials — think generative AI might be able to write TV shows and movies that are more interesting than those written by humans.

But most Americans remain skeptical: 70% think humans are better at writing entertainment content. More than four in 10 say AI and humans are both capable of creating quality content.

PRODUCTIVITY

5 AI Tools to Supercharge Your Productivity

Blobr: An AI-powered business assistant that discovers new customer patterns and insights across multiple apps.

IBM: IBM’s Watsonx platform can help businesses train, tune, and deploy AI models and scale workloads with proprietary data.

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AI GENERATED IMAGES

Best of Both Worlds

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Until next time!

Zain

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