AI-powered Book Ghostwriter, More Discounts, and more | AITX Newsletter #10

Hello everyone! AITX Team here with more updates this week.

If you’re new here, welcome! 👋 At AITX, we aim to:

• Connect you with like-minded peers passionate about AI.

• Provide a space for sharing ideas and receiving feedback on AI projects you’re building.

• Share helpful tools and invaluable resources.

UPCOMING EVENTS

AI Co-Working Meetup @ Antler VC 🌐 

• When: Tuesday, March 26 | 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM CST

• Where: Antler Offices on the 4th floor of the Scarbrough building at 522 Congress Ave

• What: A gathering at the Antler ATX Offices located at 522 Congress Ave, Suite 400 to get some work done. This is your chance to connect with fellow AI enthusiasts, share ideas, and build in an environment surrounded by peers.

Caffeinated Conversations in AI ☕️ 

• When: Saturday, March 23 | 2:00 PM - 3:30 PM CST

• Where: Mozart's Coffee Roasters 3825 Lake Austin Blvd · Austin, TX

• What: The first kickoff event, come grab a cup of your favorite coffee, and let’s discuss All things AI. Whether you're an AI pro or just curious, this get-together is perfect for sharing, learning, and having a good time

Artists & the Age of AI: March 2024 Meetup 🖼️ 

• When: Wednesday, March 20 | 6:30 PM - 8:00 PM CST

• Where: 701 Brazos St 701 Brazos St · Austin, TX

• What: March meetup for an informative presentation and Q&A session, led by Austin-based motion designer Jason Fletcher. Jason will give an overview of the workflows for several different AI tools, including StyleGAN2+3, SD Stop Motion, ZeroScopeV2 Txt2Vid, and AnimateDiff. Jason will also share examples how each tool has been used within his concert visuals and various experiments using 3D animation, video compositing, and siphoning renders from one AI tool into another AI tool

Gen AI & ML in the Enterprise + Startup Showcase 🤖 

• When: Wednesday-Thursday, March 20-21, | 8:00 AM (Wed) - 4:00 PM (Thurs) PDT

• Where: Oracle 2300 Oracle Wy · Austin, TX

• What: Data Science Salon ATX is a two-day 250 person conference focused on AI and machine learning applications in the enterprise. You can learn more about Data Science Salon here.

How to Integrate ChatGPT Into Your Small Business 💼 

• When: Monday, March 18 | 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM CDT

• Where: The Meteor 2110 S Congress Ave · Austin, TX

• What: A roundtable event designed to spark a conversation about how small business owners are adapting and utilizing AI.

COMMUNITY STORIES

Texas Leads the Way in AI Education Revolution

Texas is at the forefront of integrating Artificial Intelligence (AI) into higher education.

The University of Texas at San Antonio announcing plans to launch a pioneering college dedicated to AI, cybersecurity, computing, and data science by fall 2025. This initiative addresses the urgent demand for AI competence across various industries, acknowledging a projected 27% increase in AI and data science jobs in Texas over the next decade.

The state's higher education institutions are not only focusing on creating new programs and degrees to equip students with necessary AI skills but are also ensuring faculty are supported and up-to-date with this rapidly advancing technology.

By fostering collaboration between universities, industry partners, and students, Texas aims to cultivate a workforce ready to navigate and shape the future of AI.

Read more here.

Navigating the Ethical Landscape of AI at SXSW 2024

The 2024 SXSW Conference showcased the latest in Artificial Intelligence (AI), focusing on both its advancements and the ethical questions it raises:

• AI in the Spotlight: Highlighting AI-generated content, self-driving cars, and more.

• Human vs. AI Tasks: Discussions differentiated tasks suited for AI (e.g., data organization, code writing) from those better suited for humans (e.g., creative work, decision-making).

• Combating Deepfakes: Reality Defender's session emphasized the need for AI-based tools to detect deepfakes and combat fraud, particularly in voice cloning.

• Ethics and Privacy: Sony AI's presentation explored ethical considerations, including the balance between privacy and inclusion in AI datasets, and introduced the concepts of being "seen," "unseen," and the risk of "missing" demographics.

• Ethical Standards: The discussions highlighted the need for ongoing dialogue and stronger ethical standards in the AI community to address these challenges effectively.

Read more here.

AI’s Mixed Reception at SxSW 2024

At the 2024 SXSW Conference in Austin, Texas, discussions about artificial intelligence (AI) drew varied responses, highlighting the technology's potential and concerns among attendees:

AI Highlights and Backlash: SXSW's daily sizzle reel, showcasing AI discussions and panels, was met with vocal disapproval from audiences, particularly film and TV enthusiasts, indicating a skepticism of AI's benefits within creative industries.

• Key Voices on AI:

  • Peter Deng of OpenAI suggested AI enhances our humanity, a view that faced resistance.

  • Josh Constine remarked on AI as a significant aspect of digital culture, drawing jeers.

  • Amy Webb and Sandy Carter advocated for embracing AI's impact on business and innovation, despite mixed audience reactions.

  • Rony Abovitz advised leveraging AI ethically, amidst concerns over its influence.

• Creative Concerns: Filmmakers Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert (Daniels) expressed apprehension about AI's potential to disrupt traditional storytelling and creative processes.

Read more here.

COMMUNITY HIGHLIGHT

This week, we’d like to introduce you to Fernando Labastida, a book ghost writer leveraging AI in his workflows.

He was kind enough to be a speaker at a recent AITX co-hosted event, where we talked about:

• His creator flywheel

• Category design

• Where you can leverage AI in your content flywheel process

Fernando is currently in the process of writing his second book so follow him on LinkedIn if you want to follow along with his journey.