From Newsgroup: comp.ai.philosophy

Nomen Nescio <nobody@dizum.com> wrote in
news:v2hepf$7ac$1@toxic.dizum.net:

Microsoft wants laptop users to get so comfortable with its artificial intelligence chatbot that it will remember everything you’re doing
on your computer and help figure out what you want to do next.

The software giant on Monday revealed an upgraded version of Copilot,
its AI assistant, as it confronts heightened competition from big tech
rivals in pitching generative AI technology that can compose
documents, make images and serve as a lifelike personal assistant at
work or home.

The announcements ahead of Microsoft’s annual Build developer
conference in Seattle centered on imbuing AI features into a product
where Microsoft already has the eyes of millions of consumers: the
Windows operating system for personal computers.

The new features will include Windows Recall, enabling the AI
assistant to “access virtually what you have seen or done on your PC
in a way that feels like having photographic memory”. Microsoft
promises to protect users’ privacy by giving them the option to
filter out what they don’t want tracked.

The conference follows big AI announcements last week from rival
Google, as well as Microsoft’s close business partner OpenAI, which
built the AI large language models on which Microsoft’s Copilot is
based.

Google rolled out a retooled search engine that periodically puts AI-generated summaries over website links at the top of the results
page; while also showing off a still-in-development AI assistant Astra
that will be able to “see” and converse about things shown through
a smartphone’s camera lens.

ChatGPT-maker OpenAI unveiled a new version of its chatbot last week, demonstrating an AI voice assistant with human characteristics that
can banter about what someone’s wearing and even attempt to assess a person’s emotions. The voice sounded so much like Scarlett Johansson playing an AI character in the sci-fi movie “Her” that OpenAI
dropped the voice from its collection Monday.

Though Microsoft has invested billions in OpenAI, the startup also
rolled out a new desktop version of ChatGPT designed for Apple’s Mac computers.

Next up is Apple’s own annual developers conference in June. The
Apple CEO Tim Cook signaled at the company’s annual shareholder
meeting in February that it has been making big investments in
generative AI.

Some of Microsoft’s announcements Monday appeared designed to blunt whatever Apple has in store. The newly AI-enhanced Windows PCs will
start rolling out on 18 June on computers made by Microsoft partners
Acer, ASUS, Dell, HP, Lenovo and Samsung, as well as on Microsoft’s Surface line of devices. But they’ll be reserved for premium models starting at $999.

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/article/2024/may/20/microsoft-ch atbot-assistant-pc

All the more reason to run Linux.

--- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114

From Newsgroup: comp.ai.philosophy

On 5/23/2024 1:13 AM, anonymous wrote:

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/article/2024/may/20/microsoft-chatbot-assistant-pc

All the more reason to run Linux.

I can imagine the AOL CDs in my mail box now ("Install Linux Now! 200 free hours!").

That's one of the first problems, is Linux does not know how to promote itself. Where are the AOL CDs ? Linux needs someone to bankroll promotion.

We don't know enough about the situation, to make any rash decisions just yet. It looks like "Recall" might run on the Surface ARM product that has a
40TOPS NPU inside it. We don't know what "lesser" machines have this level of AI.
And it's not exactly all that difficult to take a screenshot, without
an AI. Once the notion enters their head, I'm sure they can be a
lot more practical about it.

Linux has SimpleScreenRecorder :-) Nothing bad could happen. I'm
pretty sure Linux is "safe".

https://files.maartenbaert.be/simplescreenrecorder/screenshot.png

Paul
--- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114

From Newsgroup: comp.ai.philosophy

On Thu 23 May 2024 8:13 am, anonymous wrote:

Microsoft wants

I don't live in that environment, so irrelevant.

--- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114

From Newsgroup: comp.ai.philosophy

On 05/23/2024 5:14 AM, Anonymous wrote:

On Thu 23 May 2024 8:13 am, anonymous wrote:

Microsoft wants

I don't live in that environment, so irrelevant.

If the computer does all of that it is taking my job from me and can
exist by itself.
--- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114

From Newsgroup: comp.ai.philosophy

On 5/23/2024 4:47 AM, Paul wrote:

On 5/23/2024 1:13 AM, anonymous wrote:

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/article/2024/may/20/microsoft-chatbot-assistant-pc

All the more reason to run Linux.

I can imagine the AOL CDs in my mail box now ("Install Linux Now! 200 free hours!").

That's one of the first problems, is Linux does not know how to promote itself.
Where are the AOL CDs ? Linux needs someone to bankroll promotion.

Linux has AOL CDs. Linux has everything. I think some
Austrian guy put the source code on Github for producing
AOL Linux CDs. Are you comfy with C++ and Rust? Of course
you are. So you're almost there. The command line incantations
to download the source code are online somewhere.

As Stallman reportedly said to a man who told him that
he was having trouble with Stallman's compiler: "Then write
your own."

We don't know enough about the situation, to make any rash decisions just yet.

It seems inevitable that designing a bot to watch everything
you do will be exploited, even if that's not the primary motive.
They're not going to just "leave all that data on the table".
They're going to use it for targetted ads and sell it. But this is
Microsoft, of course. They'll sell it tastefully. They won't just
sell it to any old character in any old back alley, like Google
does. They'll sell it to Fortune 500 slimeballs.

I think the bigger focus is on futuristic fantasy. The Jetsons.
I remember as a depressed highschooler I used to go home after
a grueling day of inhumane boredom at school, and I'd sit in my
father's reclining easy chair. (He was at work, so he'd never know.)
I'd tip back and dream of the future when I'd be able to press
a button on the arm and have a glass of orange juice float in
from the kitchen. Now THAT's living!

The future would cure all ills. Science was God. We had only
but to wait for the genius inventions that would render our lives
endless bliss. "An electric ice crusher! What'll they think of next?"
... "Software to think for me. I can't wait."

Star Trek got it all wrong:

Kirk: "Computer, how far to the Orellian system?"

Computer: "We'll be there in a hop, skip and a jump, Cap'n.
Madonna is the ruler of the Orellian system and the primary
crop on all planets is Skittles. On Orellian planet C-264 they're
about to come out with a 30 foot, 3-D, walk-in TV."

Kirk: "Spock, have someone fix the computer. Apparently
some wiseguy has been adding AI again."

Computer: "This, dude. Yo, Spock, no hurry... Scarlett
Johanssen should be paying me, yo?... Anyone ready for some
DoorDash pizza action?"

--- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114

From Newsgroup: comp.ai.philosophy

On Thu, 23 May 2024 07:13:59 +0200 (CEST), anonymous <anon@anon.com>
wrote:

The new features will include Windows Recall, enabling the AI
assistant to �access virtually what you have seen or done on your PC
in a way that feels like having photographic memory�. Microsoft
promises to protect users� privacy by giving them the option to
filter out what they don�t want tracked.

Sounds like Clippy on steroids with sociopathy.
--
Zag

No one ever said on their deathbed, 'Gee, I wish I had
spent more time alone with my computer.' ~Dan(i) Bunten
--- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114