Happy Tuesday!

Hope your week is off to a great start. By popular request, we’re testing out an evening issue. We’ll be back on our normal morning schedule on Thursday, unless there’s overwhelmingly positive results.

Here’s what we have for you in today’s block:

• 📰 Headlines → ElevenLabs expands AI Reader app globally with 32 languages; Story Protocol secures $80M to revolutionize IP ownership using blockchain in the AI era.

• 🔥 Trending Today → The potential for "model collapse" in generative AI raises concerns about the long-term quality and diversity of AI-generated content.

• 🍳 AI Spotlight → Uncover the intricacies of AI model training and the risks of recursive learning from synthetic data.

• 🧰 AI Toolbox → Explore tools that transform your content creation process with AI-driven writing assistance, and revolutionize household management with an AI-powered cognitive assistant.

[ 7 minute read ]

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📰 Headlines

IN THE NEWS

• Ideogram launches its 2.0 AI image model, boasting enhanced realism and new features to compete with rivals like Flux and Midjourney (Decrypt).

• Story Protocol secured $80 million in funding to revolutionize intellectual property ownership using blockchain technology in the age of AI (Decrypt).

• While AI may enhance education, history suggests it's unlikely to replace human teachers due to students' preference for human connection and inspiration (Fast Company).

• CNN analyst Van Jones and will.i.am are launching the Dream Machine Innovation Lab to encourage AI innovation in underrepresented communities, aiming to "Make Wakanda Real" (Fast Company).

• Researchers discovered a vulnerability in Slack's AI assistant that potentially allowed access to private channel data without coding (Decrypt).

• Venture capitalists are eagerly investing in AI startups through special purpose vehicles (SPVs), even at premium prices (TechCrunch).

• Keanu Reeves stars in a cinematic B2B campaign for Palo Alto Networks, showcasing their new AI-powered cybersecurity solutions in a sci-fi setting (Adweek).

• Despite AI stocks outperforming the market, Vanguard's global chief economist warns that artificial intelligence won't immediately boost economic growth or justify current high stock valuations (Fast Company).

• Musician Dustin Ballard's project "There I Ruined It" uses AI to create parody songs, sparking debate over the line between fair use and copyright infringement in AI-assisted music creation (Fast Company).

• Chinese entities are exploiting cloud services from Amazon and others to access advanced U.S. AI chips and capabilities, circumventing export restrictions (Fast Company).

• The environmental impact of AI is debated, with concerns about data centers' energy consumption balanced against potential benefits in scientific discovery and efficiency (New York Times).

• Samsung's Family Hub refrigerators will soon feature AI-generated wallpapers, allowing users to create custom designs based on themes and art styles (The Verge).

• Stephen Wolfram argues for philosophers' role in addressing crucial AI questions as the technology rapidly advances ( TC )

🔥 Trending Today

FEATURED

ElevenLabs’ AI Reader app can now narrate text in 32 languages

What's going on here?

Those of you who are not as familiar with AI audio, ElevenLabs launched Reader App globally, now supporting text-to-speech narration in 32 languages, allowing you to read anything from PDFs to books.

What does this mean?

The AI Reader app, which converts written text into spoken audio, is now available worldwide after an initial limited release. Users can have PDFs, articles, newsletters and other text content read aloud in languages ranging from Spanish and French to Arabic and Mandarin. The app leverages ElevenLabs' advanced AI voice technology, including some impressively natural-sounding celebrity voice clones. While currently free, the company plans to eventually introduce premium features while maintaining a generous free tier.

Why should I care?

Audio has been on the rise for a while now, from the prominence of podcasts, ebooks, and even voice chatrooms like Clubhouse. This global expansion significantly broadens access to AI-powered text-to-speech technology. For many, it could transform how they consume written content, making it easier to multitask or overcome reading difficulties. Separately, the use of AI-generated celebrity voices, even with apparent heir approval, raises interesting questions about voice rights and the posthumous use of a person's likeness.

Source:The Verge