AI had a memorable 2021, although not always for the best reasons.
At Neural, we aspire to be likeFox News in its prime: fair and balanced.
In this equitable spirit, weve compiled an even mix of AIs best and worst of 2021.
Bad: Slaughterbots coming to your neighborhood
It was another busy year for AI weaponry.
Good: Turning the tone-deaf into rap stars
40% off TNW Conference!
My favorite iteration was an app thatturns your text into rapsby legendary artists.
One is the potential of quantum AIto fight diseases, war, famine, and aging.
Bad: GPT-3s bigotry
It wouldnt be a worst of AI countdown without a mention of biogtry.
Unfortunately, this year provided a range of horrors to choose from, fromfears of machine-driven segregationtoFacebooks racist AI.
Ive plumped for one GPT-3sarray of prejudices: the models consistent and creativeanti-Muslim bias.
This is one example of computational creativity we could do without.
Good: Searching for future diseases
During COVID-19, AI has promised much but delivered little.
The dream hasnt died just yet, but its now on life support.
There are numerous examples, from BCIs turning paralyzed peoplesthoughts into speechtothis gadgetfor people with hearing loss.
Bad: The Google search algorithm
Sometimes, you gotta experience a problem to truly understand it.
Neural editor Tristran Greene did just that after discovering thatGoogle News thinks hesthe queerest AI reporter in the world.
Tristanlater learnedthat he could somewhat game the system but if he could do it, so could nefarious actors.
The incident sparked concerns about diversity and AI ethics in tech but its also produced positive outcomes.
Heres hoping that 2022 brings more bold and positive AI developments before the slaughterbots kill us all.
Story byThomas Macaulay
Thomas is the managing editor of TNW.
He leads our coverage of European tech and oversees our talented team of writers.
Away from work, he e(show all)Thomas is the managing editor of TNW.
He leads our coverage of European tech and oversees our talented team of writers.
Away from work, he enjoys playing chess (badly) and the guitar (even worse).
Also tagged with
