Artificial Intelligence Archives | PYMNTS.com https://www.pymnts.com/news/artificial-intelligence/2024/openai-business-products-gain-1-million-paying-users-first-year/ What's next in payments and commerce Thu, 05 Sep 2024 17:01:31 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.6.1 https://www.pymnts.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/cropped-PYMNTS-Icon-512x512-1.png?w=32 Artificial Intelligence Archives | PYMNTS.com https://www.pymnts.com/news/artificial-intelligence/2024/openai-business-products-gain-1-million-paying-users-first-year/ 32 32 225068944 OpenAI’s Business Products Gain 1 Million Paying Users in First Year https://www.pymnts.com/news/artificial-intelligence/2024/openai-business-products-gain-1-million-paying-users-first-year/ https://www.pymnts.com/news/artificial-intelligence/2024/openai-business-products-gain-1-million-paying-users-first-year/#comments Thu, 05 Sep 2024 17:01:31 +0000 https://www.pymnts.com/?p=2094593 A year after launching the first of its three business products, OpenAI has more than 1 million paying business users. The total includes users of ChatGPT Enterprise, ChatGPT Team and ChatGPT Edu, the company said in a statement emailed to PYMNTS Thursday (Sept. 5). These products were launched in August 2023, January and May, respectively. […]

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A year after launching the first of its three business products, OpenAI has more than 1 million paying business users.

The total includes users of ChatGPT Enterprise, ChatGPT Team and ChatGPT Edu, the company said in a statement emailed to PYMNTS Thursday (Sept. 5). These products were launched in August 2023, January and May, respectively.

The figure represents paid seats on business products, with different companies having varying numbers of seats, per the statement.

The current total is up from 600,000 paying business users in April, according to the statement.

More than half of Enterprise, Team and Edu paid seats are outside the United States, with the largest number of non-U.S. users being in Germany, Japan and the United Kingdom, the statement said.

“From reshaping how students learn, to optimizing patient care and transforming how governments serve their citizens, AI is redefining how people work,” OpenAI Chief Operating Officer Brad Lightcap said in the statement. “We’re proud to help over a million paying business users work more productively, streamline operations and uncover new opportunities for innovation.”

In a survey of 4,700 users of its business products, OpenAI found that most are seeing increases in productivity (92%), time savings (88%) and improvements in creativity and innovation (75%), per the statement. The top use cases for these products are gathering research, drafting and editing content, and ideation.

When introducing ChatGPT Enterprise on Aug. 28, 2023, OpenAI said this artificial intelligence tool is focused on enterprise-grade security and privacy and has enhanced features that aim to elevate productivity and creativity in the workplace.

During the first four months it was available, ChatGPT Enterprise drew 260 enterprise customers with over 150,000 employees registered to use the product.

OpenAI debuted ChatGPT Team in January, with PYMNTS describing the product at the time as a pared-down version of Enterprise designed for smaller businesses with fewer than 150 users.

The company added its third business product, ChatGPT Edu, in May, saying this version of ChatGPT is built for universities and allows them to responsibly deploy AI to students, faculty, researchers and campus operations. The product can help with tasks like tutoring, reviewing resumes, writing grant applications and grading.

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AI Startups SSI, You.com Secure Funding; HP Reports Strong AI Sales https://www.pymnts.com/news/artificial-intelligence/2024/ai-startups-ssi-you-com-secure-funding-hp-reports-strong-sales/ Thu, 05 Sep 2024 16:14:53 +0000 https://www.pymnts.com/?p=2094513 The artificial intelligence sector remains a focal point for investors and tech companies, as evidenced by three announcements this week. A startup focused on AI safety founded by a former OpenAI executive secured $1 billion in funding, while an AI productivity platform raised $50 million. A major hardware provider reported robust quarterly earnings results, citing […]

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The artificial intelligence sector remains a focal point for investors and tech companies, as evidenced by three announcements this week.

A startup focused on AI safety founded by a former OpenAI executive secured $1 billion in funding, while an AI productivity platform raised $50 million. A major hardware provider reported robust quarterly earnings results, citing demand for AI-related systems.

AI Startup Raises $1 Billion to Develop Safe Superintelligence

Safe Superintelligence (SSI), a startup focused on creating advanced AI with built-in safety measures, secured $1 billion in funding from venture capital firms, according to a Wednesday (Sept. 4) announcement on its website.

The U.S. company was founded by former OpenAI Chief Scientist Ilya Sutskever and entrepreneurs Daniel Gross and Daniel Levy. NFDG, Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, DST Global and SV Angel led the funding round.

SSI’s mission is to develop safe superintelligence, or AI systems that will surpass human capabilities while incorporating robust safeguards. The company described this goal as “the most important technical problem of our time” in its announcement.

Unlike many AI firms pursuing various applications, SSI dedicates itself solely to this long-term objective. The company plans to advance AI capabilities while simultaneously developing safety measures, aiming to ensure that safety protocols keep pace with increasing AI power.

The company is recruiting AI researchers and engineers, emphasizing its focus on assembling a team dedicated exclusively to the goal of safe superintelligence. SSI has offices in Palo Alto and Tel Aviv, locations the founders chose for their ability to attract top technical talent.

AI Firm You.com Bags $50 Million

You.com, an AI productivity startup, raised $50 million in Series B funding, according to a Wednesday press release.

Georgian led the round, which was backed by Salesforce Ventures, Nvidia and others. The round brings the company’s total funding to $99 million.

The firm, which bills itself as an “AI productivity engine,” is targeting knowledge workers across industries.

“You.com is not a search engine focused on links — we’re a productivity engine focused on helping knowledge workers accomplish more,” CEO Richard Socher said in the release.

The company’s AI agents are making waves in healthcare and cybersecurity, per the release.

“By streamlining documentation and administrative tasks, we’ve significantly increased time for direct client care,” Guardian Recovery Vice President of Marketing Donald Prince said in the release.

You.com plans to use the capital to expand its enterprise offerings and cement its position in the AI productivity market.

AI Boom Drives Hewlett Packard Enterprise’s Q3 Growth

Hewlett Packard Enterprise reported third-quarter earnings results Wednesday, buoyed by surging demand for AI systems.

The enterprise technology company’s revenue jumped 10% to $7.7 billion. Server sales, which include AI-optimized systems, soared 35% to $4.3 billion.

“We delivered a strong third quarter, with impressive revenue growth, especially from our AI system conversion, and we improved profitability,” Hewlett Packard Enterprise President and CEO Antonio Neri said in a news release.

The company has positioned itself to capitalize on the AI gold rush, offering specialized hardware and services for companies building large language models and other AI applications. This strategy appears to be paying off as businesses race to adopt AI capabilities.

“These results reflect our momentum in delivering on our edge-to-cloud strategy across networking, hybrid cloud and AI,” Neri added in the release.

The company raised its full-year earnings guidance, signaling confidence in continued AI-driven growth.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Marie Myers said in the release: “We are well positioned to capture share of the growing AI infrastructure market and expect to see the continuing benefit of our cost management efforts.”

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Anthropic Introduces Enterprise-Focused Plan for AI Assistant Claude https://www.pymnts.com/news/artificial-intelligence/2024/anthropic-introduces-enterprise-focused-plan-ai-assistant-claude/ https://www.pymnts.com/news/artificial-intelligence/2024/anthropic-introduces-enterprise-focused-plan-ai-assistant-claude/#comments Wed, 04 Sep 2024 20:39:13 +0000 https://www.pymnts.com/?p=2081434 Anthropic introduced a Claude Enterprise plan that helps organizations collaborate with its artificial intelligence assistant, Claude, using internal knowledge. The new plan includes an expanded 500K context window, more usage capacity, a native GitHub integration and enterprise-grade security features, according to a Wednesday (Sept. 4) press release. “With Claude, your organization’s knowledge is easier to […]

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Anthropic introduced a Claude Enterprise plan that helps organizations collaborate with its artificial intelligence assistant, Claude, using internal knowledge.

The new plan includes an expanded 500K context window, more usage capacity, a native GitHub integration and enterprise-grade security features, according to a Wednesday (Sept. 4) press release.

“With Claude, your organization’s knowledge is easier to share and reuse, enabling every individual on the team to quickly and consistently produce their best work,” the release said. “At the same time, your data is protected. We do not train Claude on your conversations and content.”

To protect a company’s data, the Enterprise plan includes single sign-on (SSO) and domain capture as well as role-based access with fine-grained permissioning, according to the release. In the coming weeks, it will add audit logs for security and compliance monitoring, as well as a system for cross-domain identity management (SCIM).

Other features of the Enterprise plan include the expanded 500K context window that enables Claude to ingest knowledge and provide guidance and the native GitHub integration that helps engineering teams develop new features, debug issues and onboard new engineers, per the release.

Early customers of Claude for Work have used it for brainstorming, streamlining internal processes, creating and translating content, and writing code, according to the release.

Amazon has invested $4 billion in Anthropic, having made an initial investment of $1.25 billion in September 2023 and an additional investment of $2.75 billion in March.

“Anthropic’s visionary work with generative AI, most recently the introduction of its state-of-the-art Claude 3 family of models, combined with Amazon’s best-in-class infrastructure like AWS Tranium and managed services like Amazon Bedrock further unlocks exciting opportunities for customers to quickly, securely and responsibly innovate with generative AI,” Dr. Swami Sivasubramanian, vice president of data and AI at Amazon Web Services (AWS), said in March when announcing the additional investment.

In August, Anthropic debuted a new feature for its large language models aimed at reducing costs and improving performance for businesses using its AI.

The company’s “Prompt Caching” capability reportedly allows users to store and efficiently reuse specific contextual information within prompts, without recurring costs or increased latency.

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Nvidia-Backed Sakana AI to Build ‘World-Class AI Lab’ in Japan https://www.pymnts.com/news/artificial-intelligence/2024/nvidia-backed-sakana-ai-build-world-class-ai-lab-japan/ https://www.pymnts.com/news/artificial-intelligence/2024/nvidia-backed-sakana-ai-build-world-class-ai-lab-japan/#comments Wed, 04 Sep 2024 19:35:50 +0000 https://www.pymnts.com/?p=2081342 Tokyo-based artificial intelligence firm Sakana AI raised over $100 million in a Series A funding round and formed a collaboration with Nvidia. The funding round was led by New Enterprise Associates, Khosla Ventures and Lux Capital, with participation from Nvidia, Sakana AI said in a Wednesday (Sept. 4) blog post. Sakana AI aims to build […]

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Tokyo-based artificial intelligence firm Sakana AI raised over $100 million in a Series A funding round and formed a collaboration with Nvidia.

The funding round was led by New Enterprise Associates, Khosla Ventures and Lux Capital, with participation from Nvidia, Sakana AI said in a Wednesday (Sept. 4) blog post.

Sakana AI aims to build “a world-class AI lab” in Japan to help the country and its allies meet the challenges they are facing, including a declining population, decreased competitiveness and growing geopolitical tensions, according to the post.

“With the resources gathered from our Series A, we aim to continue to invest in talent and build one of the highest talent-dense AI companies,” Sakana AI said in the post. “We will also continue to invest heavily in developing our infrastructure, which will be critical in our mission to advancing nature-inspired, sustainable and energy-efficient AI technologies.”

Sakana AI’s collaboration with Nvidia will focus on research, infrastructure and AI community building in Japan, according to the post.

Together, the two companies aim to devise new techniques for efficiently developing foundation models, ensure Japan has a competitive advantage in AI development using Nvidia’s latest technologies, and develop Japan’s AI community through events, hackathons and university outreach, per the post.

“Countries are embracing Sovereign AI to capture and codify their data, culture and language through their own unique large language models,” Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang said in the post. “The team at Sakana AI is helping spur the democratization of AI in Japan by developing cutting-edge foundation models to automate and speed up scientific discovery with Nvidia’s accelerated computing platform.”

Sakana AI has introduced several AI models for Japanese speakers this year, Bloomberg reported Wednesday.

The AI startup was launched out of stealth in August 2023 by Llion Jones, one of the eight Google researchers famous for introducing the foundational architecture of transformer neural networks, a piece of research that supports and informs nearly all of the capabilities of today’s AI models.

Jones reportedly said at the time that he didn’t want Sakana AI to be “just another company with an LLM.”

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Google Debuts AI-Powered Game Engine; Fetch.ai Aims for Gaming Integration https://www.pymnts.com/news/artificial-intelligence/2024/google-debuts-ai-powered-game-engine-fetch-aims-gaming-integration/ https://www.pymnts.com/news/artificial-intelligence/2024/google-debuts-ai-powered-game-engine-fetch-aims-gaming-integration/#comments Wed, 04 Sep 2024 16:08:59 +0000 https://www.pymnts.com/?p=2081175 Artificial intelligence is making inroads across the gaming industry, with developments spanning classic game recreation, iGaming assistance and Web3 integration. These AI applications are altering game development processes, enhancing player experiences and opening new avenues for technological synergy in gaming. Google Creates AI-Powered Doom Game Engine Google researchers created GameNGen, the first game engine powered […]

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Artificial intelligence is making inroads across the gaming industry, with developments spanning classic game recreation, iGaming assistance and Web3 integration.

These AI applications are altering game development processes, enhancing player experiences and opening new avenues for technological synergy in gaming.

Google Creates AI-Powered Doom Game Engine

Google researchers created GameNGen, the first game engine powered entirely by AI that can simulate complex video games in real time. The team demonstrated the technology by recreating classic first-person shooter game Doom.

GameNGen uses a neural network to generate game frames at over 20 frames per second, producing visuals nearly indistinguishable from the original game. The AI model was trained in two phases: first, by having an AI agent learn to play Doom, and then by teaching a separate model to predict the next frame of gameplay based on previous actions and frames.

“We present GameNGen, the first game engine powered entirely by a neural model that enables real-time interaction with a complex environment over long trajectories at high quality,” the researchers said in a paper.

The technology could affect game development, allowing games to be created and modified through text descriptions or example images rather than traditional coding. This could make game development more accessible and less costly.

While GameNGen represents a step forward, the researchers noted some limitations, including the AI’s limited memory of past events and differences between the AI agent’s behavior and that of human players.

The team said it hopes its work will contribute to a new paradigm in interactive software systems, extending beyond video games to other applications.

Symphony Solutions Unveils AI Assistant for iGaming Industry

Symphony Solutions, a Dutch AI and cloud transformation company, launched BetHarmony, an AI assistant designed for the iGaming sector. The platform aims to enhance user experience for both casino and sportsbook operators.

BetHarmony offers human-like communication, intelligent search capabilities, and direct betting options. It also provides operators with customizable UI styles and real-time critical alerts.

“Driven by groundbreaking AI research and insights from our proof of concept, this platform is designed to lift user experience while providing operators with tools to enhance engagement and retention,” Valentina Synenka, board member of Symphony Solutions, said in a statement.

The AI assistant results from extensive market research and feedback from early adopters. It represents Symphony Solutions’ latest innovative effort in the digital betting landscape.

Plans for BetHarmony include an escalation alerts feature, advanced user authentication and support for multiple languages.

Fetch.ai Plans to Integrate AI in Web3 Gaming

Fetch.ai, a developer of autonomous digital ecosystems, and GameSwift, a Web3 gaming platform, plan to integrate AI technology into gaming applications.

The collaboration aims to use idle GPU power from GameSwift Launcher users to advance AI development through Fetch.ai’s infrastructure. GameSwift will join the Fetch.ai Foundation as its first Web3 gaming partner, leading the gaming vertical.

GameSwift Launcher users will host large language models locally, accessing AI functionalities through Fetch.ai’s architectures. The integration is expected to drive AI and blockchain adoption in gaming while offering users a platform for AI experimentation.

“This collaboration will unlock new possibilities for AI development,” said Fetch.ai Head of Business Development Maria Minaricova in a statement.

Over 67% of users have GPU capacity suitable for AI applications such as text-to-speech and document analysis, per GameSwift data.

“With Fetch.ai, we aim to offer our Launcher users a wide range of AI-driven functionalities delivered in a decentralized and secure manner,” GameSwift Chief Technology Officer Tom Kowalczyk said in a statement.

The partnership marks an ongoing effort to advance AI, gaming and Web3 technologies, potentially reshaping the future of intelligent digital ecosystems.

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At Your Service: Generative AI Arrives in Travel and Hospitality https://www.pymnts.com/tracker_posts/at-your-service-generative-ai-arrives-in-travel-and-hospitality/ Wed, 04 Sep 2024 08:01:33 +0000 https://www.pymnts.com/?post_type=tracker_posts&p=2077964 Generative artificial intelligence (AI) can be an enormous boon to the travel and hospitality industries, particularly in areas like customer relations, schedule planning and back-end bookkeeping. Customer-facing roles show the most promise, with generative AI systems working to address traveler complaints or assist in tasks such as booking flights and accommodations. However, it is easy […]

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Generative artificial intelligence (AI) can be an enormous boon to the travel and hospitality industries, particularly in areas like customer relations, schedule planning and back-end bookkeeping. Customer-facing roles show the most promise, with generative AI systems working to address traveler complaints or assist in tasks such as booking flights and accommodations.

However, it is easy for businesses in these sectors to overestimate generative AI’s capabilities and use it in roles for which it may be less than ideal. It will be up to travel and hospitality firms to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of generative AI carefully to ensure the technology is deployed where it can provide the greatest benefit.

Generative AI Streamlines Airline Operations

Airlines have ambitious plans to integrate generative AI into their operations. So far, these implementations have mainly focused on passenger engagement roles. This could soon change, however, as airlines explore how to leverage this technology in technical, back-end functionalities.

United Airlines recently introduced generative AI to provide passengers with weather updates.

The initiative aims to ease passenger frustration caused by flight delays. Seventy-five percent of these delays are due to weather conditions, according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). United’s new generative AI software can text updates to passengers in near real time, a task previously handled by airline staff. The airline reports that the solution frees up weather and communications staff to focus on more strategic tasks, ultimately improving overall operational efficiency.

One-fifth

of aviation maintenance jobs may go unfilled by 2033, with generative AI serving as a potential stopgap.

Airlines are considering generative AI to support their mechanics and technicians.

The airline industry is currently facing a shortage of skilled aircraft mechanics and maintenance engineers. A recent study indicated that about one-fifth of aviation maintenance technician jobs may go unfilled by 2033. Some airlines are turning to generative AI to fill the gap. While these tools will not be physically turning wrenches, they can assist technicians in diagnosing and troubleshooting aircraft issues, offering potential solutions. Currently, aviation mechanics spend roughly 60% of their day troubleshooting, researching and preparing reports instead of performing technical work. Augmenting this paperwork with generative AI could help these mechanics become significantly more efficient at their jobs.

Generative AI in Hospitality Prioritizes Customer Engagement

In the hospitality sector, generative AI’s most promising use cases are in customer-facing roles, such as customer support and marketing campaigns. While future AI applications will surely expand to other areas, hospitality CEOs are currently concentrating their efforts on these departments.

Hospitality businesses are deploying AI to personalize customer interactions.

52%

of hospitality customers expect generative AI to play a role in customer interactions.

A recent survey found that 52% of hospitality customers believe generative AI will be employed for customer interactions. In addition, 44% think it will be used to improve guest engagement. However, experts caution that this technology should enhance rather than replace human interactions. Businesses’ overreliance on generative AI could lead to artificial-sounding messages that alienate customers. This could in turn harm brand reputation and potentially decrease profits.

Innovative AI tools are emerging to improve customer-facing travel services.

Business travel solutions provider Serko has partnered with digital human platform UneeQ to create Zena, an AI-powered digital travel agent. This innovative system integrates with ChatGPT and uses natural language processing to enhance the travel booking experience. Zena accesses a database of hotels, airlines and other travel content to suggest personalized itineraries, providing real-time pricing, availability and 24/7 support. Serko CEO Darrin Grafton emphasized in a news release that generative AI is essential for delivering these experiences, noting that travel’s personal nature is well-suited to interactions that mimic a human travel agent. The digital-human interface further enhances the personalized experience, bridging the gap between technology and human-like customer service.

Minding Gen AI’s Limitations in Hospitality

While generative AI has shown great promise in customer-facing applications, it remains a relatively new technology. Hospitality firms must strike a balance between the growing user demand for this technology and its current limitations.

Seven in 10 Americans would use AI to plan their travel.

A majority of travelers believe that using generative AI to create travel itineraries will be easier than planning on their own, according to a survey. For those who would utilize trip-planning AI, the most common applications include finding restaurants (56%); obtaining hotel recommendations (53%) and destination suggestions (51%); and planning activities and travel arrangements (50%).

56%

of travelers would use generative AI for restaurant recommendations.

However, travel agents warn that generative AI tools may not always be aware of the full range of options, particularly for less-popular destinations. The limited amount of data available for these locations can lead AI tools to make less-informed recommendations or even provide incorrect information.

Generative AI could potentially make travelers more vulnerable to scams.

Travel website Booking.com has reported a 500% to 900% increase in travel scams over the past 18 months. The site attributes this rise to the use of generative AI tools like ChatGPT. Scammers use this technology to craft authentic-looking phishing emails and messages. They also use generative AI to create fake hotel or vacation rental listings, posting them on legitimate websites like Booking.com and Airbnb. Their aim is to trick unsuspecting travelers into providing payments or disclosing credit card information.

Although these schemes are not new, generative AI allows scammers to amplify their scale and effectiveness. While travel sites are also deploying AI tools to detect and prevent scams, experts advise travelers to exercise caution. Before submitting payment information, travelers should verify details like contact information and telephone numbers, which scammers often omit.

Balancing Generative AI’s Benefits With Realistic Limits

Generative AI is revolutionizing the travel and hospitality sectors by offering innovative solutions that enhance guest experiences and streamline operations. From customer service to personalized marketing to operational efficiency, this technology is transforming multiple facets of the industry.

One of the primary applications of generative AI in travel and hospitality is in customer service. Generative AI-powered chatbots and virtual assistants can handle a wide range of guest inquiries and requests, significantly reducing the workload on human staff. These systems can provide instant responses to common questions, make reservations, and offer personalized recommendations and experiences.

However, businesses adopting generative AI technology in the travel and hospitality sectors must balance the rising consumer demand for this technology with its current limitations. While many travelers appreciate the convenience and efficiency of AI-powered services, others still value human interaction and personalized attention. There is a risk that generative AI could create a cold, robotic experience. This can be off-putting, particularly in the hospitality industry, where warmth and personal connections are essential. Therefore, businesses must integrate generative AI solutions in a way that enhances, rather than replaces, human touch points.

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AI Glasses From Snap and Meta May Reshape How We Shop https://www.pymnts.com/news/artificial-intelligence/2024/ai-glasses-from-snap-meta-may-reshape-how-we-shop/ https://www.pymnts.com/news/artificial-intelligence/2024/ai-glasses-from-snap-meta-may-reshape-how-we-shop/#comments Tue, 03 Sep 2024 21:13:05 +0000 https://www.pymnts.com/?p=2080390 Snap and Meta may be poised to introduce advanced artificial intelligence-enabled glasses, potentially transforming eCommerce and brick-and-mortar retail experiences. The Information reported that Meta Platforms is on the brink of unveiling next-generation AI-powered glasses, adding credence to the industry rumors. This move and Snap’s anticipated release of smart glasses signal a push toward mainstream adoption […]

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Snap and Meta may be poised to introduce advanced artificial intelligence-enabled glasses, potentially transforming eCommerce and brick-and-mortar retail experiences.

The Information reported that Meta Platforms is on the brink of unveiling next-generation AI-powered glasses, adding credence to the industry rumors. This move and Snap’s anticipated release of smart glasses signal a push toward mainstream adoption of AI-enhanced wearables. Meta is also reportedly eying a stake in Ray-Ban maker EssilorLuxottica, potentially worth $4.9 billion, to bolster its smart glasses venture.

The release of AI eyewear from the tech giants could alter how consumers shop online and in physical stores. Experts predict the glasses will enable immersive virtual shopping experiences, real-time price comparisons and seamless integration of digital catalogs into users’ field of vision. As retailers and brands scramble to adapt, the new technology threatens to blur the lines between digital and physical retail environments.

“AI-enabled [augmented reality (AR)] glasses have the potential to affect brick-and-mortar retail stores positively or negatively, depending on how they choose to react,” Sam Neblett, a senior AR/VR software developer at Boeing, told PYMNTS, adding that the ability to compare prices quickly could hurt stores struggling to compete with online pricing, “possibly hurting small businesses not able to operate on low margin.”

Transforming the in-Store Experience

Neblett said he envisions smart glasses as a wellspring of innovation for retailers.

“B&M stores can place anchored AR ads, displayed in-context, next to AI-recognized items in-store to influence purchasing decisions,” he said.

This could create new forms of targeted advertising, although Neblett cautioned that data protection policies may limit the collection and use of consumer information.

The impact on consumer behavior could be significant.

“Impulse buying behavior and decision-making may improve as larger datasets are built based on user habits in and out of AR,” Neblett explained.

He said he envisions AI improving personalized recommendations using novel data points such as eye tracking and time spent in various store sections.

The consumer virtual reality (VR) headset market is rapidly evolving and increasing competition. Meta’s Quest series, particularly the Quest 3, leads in standalone VR with its balance of performance and affordability. Apple entered the fray with its Vision Pro, a high-end mixed-reality device that, while expensive, pushes the boundaries of what’s possible in consumer headsets.

As technology advances, we’re seeing improvements in display resolution, field of view and ergonomics across the board, while newer features like eye tracking and mixed reality capabilities are becoming more common. The industry is working to address persistent challenges such as motion sickness and the need for more compelling content, aiming to drive broader adoption beyond the current core enthusiast market.

Adoption Challenges

While the potential for AI glasses in retail is significant, some experts urge caution about the timeline for widespread adoption. Greg Zakowicz, senior eCommerce expert at Omnisend, said he thinks meaningful change is still years away.

“The biggest challenge with AR glasses is adoption,” he told PYMNTS. “While I am bullish on the future of AR glasses as a lifestyle device, I think we are multiple years away from the retail experience changing with any significance because of them.”

Zakowicz said he sees practical applications for the technology once it matures.

“What I envision is being able to gather detailed product info by searching the product image or scanning a particular type of code on the product tag itself,” he said. This could include “material and sourcing information, care instructions, price comparisons and an image search across social networks to get a sense of how people are using a specific product.”

He also suggested novel social features.

“Maybe you will be able to ‘tag’ an in-store product and provide feedback on it for other real-time shoppers to see,” he said. “This could include what you liked or didn’t like about it, regardless of whether you purchased it.”

Zakowicz emphasized that technology should enhance rather than replace the traditional shopping experience.

“While the focus remains on the tech, the thing consumers like most about in-store shopping is the tactile experience,” he said. “Glasses or no glasses, this doesn’t change. When people think about the changing retail landscape because of technology, they should think about how tech can complement the experience, not replace it.”

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Elon Musk’s xAI Launches Colossus Training Cluster https://www.pymnts.com/news/artificial-intelligence/2024/elon-musk-xai-launches-colossus-training-cluster/ Tue, 03 Sep 2024 20:35:54 +0000 https://www.pymnts.com/?p=2080335 Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence startup xAI launched its Colossus 100k H100 training cluster over the weekend. “Colossus is the most powerful AI training system in the world,” Musk said in a post on social platform X. “Moreover, it will double in size to 200k (50k H200s) in a few months.” This weekend, the @xAI team […]

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Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence startup xAI launched its Colossus 100k H100 training cluster over the weekend.

“Colossus is the most powerful AI training system in the world,” Musk said in a post on social platform X. “Moreover, it will double in size to 200k (50k H200s) in a few months.”

Musk thanked the xAI team, Nvidia and xAI’s many partners and suppliers in the post.

The H200 is an Nvidia GPU designed to accelerate generative AI and large language models, according to the chip maker’s website.

In a repost of Musk’s post, Nvidia Data Center said on X that xAI’s Colossus is “the world’s largest GPU #supercomputer” and it came online “in record time.”

“Colossus is powered by @nvidia’s #acceleratedcomputing platform, delivering breakthrough performance with exceptional gains in #energyefficiency,” the company added in its post.

The news came about three months after xAI raised $6 billion in a Series B funding round, saying it would use the money to take its first products to market, build advanced infrastructure and accelerate its research and development.

When announcing the round May 27, xAI said that in the time that since Musk announced the formation of the company in July 2023, it had launched its AI chatbot Grok-1, the Grok-1.5 model with long context capability, the Grok-1.5v model with image understanding, and the open-source release of Grok-1.

“XAI will continue on this steep trajectory of progress over the coming months, with multiple exciting technology updates and products soon to be announced,” the company said at the time.

Musk launched xAI after hinting for months that he wanted to build an alternative to OpenAI’s AI-powered chatbot, ChatGPT. He was involved in the creation of that company but left its board in 2018 and became increasingly critical of OpenAI and cautious about developments around AI in general.

During xAI’s July 2023 Twitter Spaces introduction to the general public, Musk said that while he sees xAI in direct competition with larger businesses and upstarts in the AI space, his firm would take a different approach to establishing its foundation model.

While “xAI is not trying to solve [artificial general intelligence] on a laptop, [and] there will be heavy compute,” his team will have free reign to explore ideas other than scaling up the foundational model’s data parameters.

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53% of Consumers Say They’re Wary of GenAI https://www.pymnts.com/news/artificial-intelligence/2024/53-percent-of-consumers-say-theyre-wary-of-genai/ Tue, 03 Sep 2024 08:00:02 +0000 https://www.pymnts.com/?p=2078372 As generative artificial intelligence begins to make its way into more parts of consumers’ daily lives, many are skeptical of the technology. By the Numbers The PYMNTS Intelligence study “Generation Zillennial: Voice Assistants and GenAI” drew from a survey of more than 2,700 United States consumers in June, seeking to understand generational trends in preferences […]

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As generative artificial intelligence begins to make its way into more parts of consumers’ daily lives, many are skeptical of the technology.

By the Numbers

The PYMNTS Intelligence study “Generation Zillennial: Voice Assistants and GenAI” drew from a survey of more than 2,700 United States consumers in June, seeking to understand generational trends in preferences and behaviors surrounding AI-based capabilities.

GenAI pros and cons

The findings revealed that most consumers have their doubts. Fifty-three percent of consumers somewhat or strongly agreed that generative AI is very open to misuse. This is not simply a case of older consumers being hesitant about change. The youngest consumers were disproportionately likely to hold these concerns. Fifty-seven percent of Generation Z individuals surveyed professed their belief that the technology is very open to misuse. This share was higher than the 49% of millennials who said the same.

The Data in Context

Yet on the business side, the technology is being used in more areas.

AI can make websites smarter and more intuitive,” Caroline Petersen, the founder of Gallery Design Studio, a creative agency for B2B tech brands, told PYMNTS earlier this year. “Imagine a website that knows what your visitor wants to see before they do, thanks to AI-driven personalization. Plus, AI chatbots can handle basic customer service questions on the fly, making your website not just a brochure, but a helpful assistant.”

The “How Simple, Routine GenAI Use Can Remake Enterprise Marketing” edition of the PYMNTS Intelligence 2024 CAIO Report surveyed 60 chief marketing officers from U.S. firms that generated at least $1 billion in revenue last year. The results revealed that 80% believe that generative AI is very or extremely important when it comes to the customer experience, and 75% said the same about market research and insights.

While 53% of consumers may be skeptical, that still leaves nearly half who are not worried about the technology.

“These [AI] tools are not sentient,” Beth Simone Noveck, director of the Burnes Center for Social Change and professor of experiential AI at Northeastern University, told PYMNTS earlier this year. “They are not human. This is data-crunching software. … The power of these tools to analyze data, words and images is not a reason to distract our attention, resources and focus from addressing how to use these tools right now to address very urgent problems like inequality, climate change, racial justice and more.”

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Ex-Google CEO Schmidt Joins Magic’s $320 Million Raise to Develop AI Coding https://www.pymnts.com/news/artificial-intelligence/2024/magic-raises-320-million-dollars-develop-ai-coworker-coding/ https://www.pymnts.com/news/artificial-intelligence/2024/magic-raises-320-million-dollars-develop-ai-coworker-coding/#comments Fri, 30 Aug 2024 19:36:08 +0000 https://www.pymnts.com/?p=2078464 Magic raised $320 million from a group of investors that includes former Google CEO Eric Schmidt to build an artificial intelligence coworker for AI research and code generation, the company said in a Thursday (Aug. 29) blog post. The investment brings the total amount the company has raised to $465 million, according to the post. […]

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Magic raised $320 million from a group of investors that includes former Google CEO Eric Schmidt to build an artificial intelligence coworker for AI research and code generation, the company said in a Thursday (Aug. 29) blog post.

The investment brings the total amount the company has raised to $465 million, according to the post.

Together with Schmidt, other new investors in Magic include Jane Street, Sequoia and Atlassian, per the post.

“We believe the most promising path to safe [artificial general intelligence (AGI)] is to automate AI research and code generation to improve models and solve alignment more reliably than humans can alone,” Magic said on its website.

Magic also said in its blog post that it will build its next two supercomputers on Google Cloud.

“We are excited to partner with Google and Nvidia to build our next-gen AI supercomputer on Google Cloud,” Magic CEO and co-founder Eric Steinberger said in the post. “Nvidia’s GB200 NLV72 system will greatly improve inference and training efficiency for our models, and Google Cloud offers us the fastest timeline to scale, and a rich ecosystem of cloud services.”

In February 2023, Magic raised $23 million in a Series A funding round, saying in a blog post that the funding would “accelerate our journey to build a true AI colleague for software engineering.”

“While today’s code completion tools are already proving to be immensely useful, we can’t wait to see what people build with magic,” the company said in the Feb. 6, 2023, post.

It was reported Aug. 23 that generative AI has quickly proven its value in powering coding assistants.

One AI coding assistant, Microsoft-owned GitHub Copilot, has drawn nearly 2 million paying subscribers since its launch in 2022 and contributed to a 45% year-over-year increase in GitHub’s revenue.

Amazon, Meta and Google have also built AI assistants for writing and editing code, and several startups in this field raised a total of $906 million since January 2023, including $433 million so far in 2024.

AI-powered assistants offer developers a powerful new toolkit to brainstorm ideas, write and refine code, and fix bugs, PYMNTS reported in May.

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