The Metaverse: wishful thinking or $800 billion opportunity?
Happy Sunday everyone!
I hope you’re loving Machine Learnings! If so, I’d like to invite you to another newsletter that I am writing called Top of the Stack.
Every Sunday evening I’ll send you 5 great indie newsletters that I have discovered recently. My goal is twofold:
1. make it easy to discover awesome newsletters.
2. help authors grow their audiences.
Check it out and let me know what you think 👇
Awesome, not awesome.
#Awesome
“Texas A&M AgriLife Research scientists are using artificial intelligence to set a new world record for producing algae as a reliable, economic source for biofuel that can be used as an alternative fuel source for jet aircraft and other transportation needs.” - Learn More from ScienceDaily >
#Not Awesome
“Law enforcement’s use of facial recognition technology during investigations has blossomed in recent years thanks in no small part to a booming surveillance industry built on the back of an ever-expanding buffet of publicly available biometric data. The limits on where and how that technology can be used though remain legally murky and are constantly evolving. Now, it appears at least some law enforcement agents are flirting with the idea of using facial recognition at otherwise seemingly benign traffic stops, a potential loosening of the tech’s use that has legal and privacy experts on edge.” - Mac DeGeurin, Reporter Learn More from Gizmodo >
What we're reading.
1/ AI is being used in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine both in the form of autonomous missiles as well as information-related things like deepfakes and other disinformation campaigns. Learn More from Fortune >
2/ The metaverse could be a market worth $800 billion, according to Bloomberg Intelligence research team. Learn More from Bloomberg >
3/ MIT researchers have created a technique that introduces more fairness into a machine learning data model. This will allow a model to produce more fair outputs even if being trained on unfair data, which traditionally leads to bias and faulty responses. Learn More from MIT News >
4/ Governments around the world are increasing their budgets for AI and machine learning research. Learn More from Analytics Insight >
5/ Walmart launches a new tool called Choose My Model that uses computer vision and artificial intelligence to virtually see how clothes will fit someone. Learn More from PYMNTS.com >
6/ [INTERVIEW] How the AI Startup Experience Has Evolved. Learn More from a16z Future >
7/ [FUNDING] Autonomous robot delivery startup Starship Technologies has raised an additional $42 million in funding as it hopes to bring city and college campus deliveries to the masses. Learn More from TechCrunch >
Newsletters and products from our friends.
Want to discover awesome indie newsletters before your friends? Top of the Stack 🥞 introduces you to 5 indie newsletters and the talented writers behind them every Sunday morning. Check out Top of the Stack 🥞 >
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Hey everyone!
If you're curious in trying out a machine learning enabled product, I'd love to hear your feedback on, Heyday, a new app that I've been working on. Heyday is a browser extension that uses machine learning to boost your memory when you're browsing the web and doing research.
Here’s a piece that Fast Company wrote about Heyday.
-Sam