Everyday in the world of technology there are new AI buzzwords being used. Are you confused by what they all mean? For example, what is the “metaverse?” What is meant by ChatGPT, OpenAI, Midjourney, DALL-E, and Bard? In fact, what is AI? This blog post is a quick primer on some commonly used AI buzzwords.
AI.
Artificial Intelligence or AI is a term invented by computer scientist and former Stanford Professor, John McCarthy. He defined AI as “the science and engineering of making intelligent machines”. For years, machines have been able to “Do” things, but Professor McCarthy discovered that with proper programming, machines could also learn like humans.
Meta Platforms, Inc.
When people refer to “meta” in the context of Facebook in general, they are usually talking about a rebranding effort by Facebook’s parent company, that was done In October 2021. Meta Platforms, Inc. is the new name for the parent company that owns Facebook, which is focusing on building the metaverse, as well as continuing to operate existing products and services.
Metaverse.
The “metaverse” is a concept that refers to a collective virtual shared space. Tech companies like Meta Platforms, Inc. (formerly Facebook), Epic Games (creator of the popular game Fortnite), and others are investing heavily in the development of the metaverse. They envision it as the next evolution of the internet, where digital experiences become more immersive, interconnected, and integral to our daily lives. Nobody owns the metaverse, since it is collectively shared. They just contribute to it.
AI Meta Platforms.
“AI Meta Platforms” refers to advanced technology platforms that leverage artificial intelligence (AI) to improve various aspects of online experiences. These types of platforms leverage AI to understand user behavior and preferences, leading to more tailored and engaging online interactions. An example would be Google Cloud AI, which offers a wide range of AI services and tools for developers and businesses.
Conversationally Saying “That’s so Meta”.
Meta means something that is self-referential. When in any form of art; whether it be a story, video game, picture, movie, etc., the story is explaining itself. Meta is when you create new layers of abstraction between the thing or event. In literature, an example would be a footnote that is needed to explain another footnote. In conversation, it would be like saying “I would like to have a conversation with you about how we have conversations” and the other person might say back “That is so Meta!”
OpenAI: (without the space).
OpenAI is an organization that is an AI research lab and company. They developed ChatGPT. OpenAI states that its mission is to ensure that artificial general intelligence (AGI) benefits all of humanity. The focus is on conducting research, developing AI models, and promoting responsible AI use.
Open AI: (with the space).
When not referring to the specific company above, the general term “open AI” typically refers to the concept of open artificial intelligence. In this context, “open” implies that AI technologies, or data are made accessible, transparent, and available for use, study, and collaboration by the broader community, rather than being proprietary or closed off.
ChatGPT.
ChatGPT is an advanced language model developed by OpenAI. It has been trained on vast amounts of text data, which enables it to learn patterns, grammar, etc from the data. This learning process is a fundamental aspect of AI because it can improve over time as it is exposed to more and more datasets. People use ChatGPT by typing in “prompts” or questions, and ChatGPT responds with generated text. At the time of this blog, ChatGPT 4 has been released.
Midjourney.
Midjourney is an artificial intelligence program that generates images from submitted “prompts.” A user can enter specifics of what they are trying to create, called “prompts”, and Midjourney will display the “output” as a final work of art. Midjourney also can create short videos based on image grids.
DALL·E.
Like ChatGPT, DALL·E is a transformer language model, but this one creates images instead of text. DALL·E is also owned by OpenAI.
Stable Diffusion.
Stable Diffusion is a deep learning, text-to-image model released in 2022 based on diffusion techniques that allow it to create videos and animations based on images.
Deepfake.
The term “deepfake” is a combination of “deep learning” and “fake.” People make deepfake images or videos by teaching AI algorithms with tons of data, which often include images or videos of a particular person’s face and voice. These clever algorithms then mix and match those features onto someone else’s body or into different scenarios. It looks like the person in the video or audio is saying or doing things they’ve never actually done.
AI is Expanding at Rapid Speed.
Be aware these are not the only platforms and programs out there. These are some of the most well-known today but more are being launched all of the time.
Bard.
Bard is a conversational AI tool by Google. Its chatbot can access and process information from the real world through Google Search to answer questions, generate creative text formats, translate languages, and help with creative writing tasks.
Conclusion.
The world of intellectual property and technology is growing at the speed of light. Pandora’s Box has been opened and we are in for the ride of our lives. Daily, we are introduced to new technologies and how we define them. What the words mean today may not be what they will mean tomorrow. Moving forward, be mindful of how you define terms. Do your due diligence. Check things out and confirm your sources. In the meantime, enjoy the technology ride, because what you see and know today will be gone tomorrow.
Francine D. Ward
Attorney-At-Law, Author, Speaker
Follow Francine:
Don’t miss Francine’s Latest Blogs:
- What is a Habit?As we enter springtime, you may feel far away from your New Year’s resolution. That may be because of the success rate of NYE resolutions. In fact, January 17 is… Read more: What is a Habit?
- Common Contract MistakeCommon Contract Mistake #1. Not Having Written Agreements with EVERYONE You Do Business With. Common contract mistake. Without question, the most common contract mistake is not having the terms of… Read more: Common Contract Mistake
- AI and PatentsAI and Patents. Understanding Patent Law in the Age of AI. Patents, along with Copyrights, Trademarks, Trade Secrets, and Rights of Publicity, are one of the five areas of practice… Read more: AI and Patents
- Effective Goal SettingSetting Goals. It’s that time of year, time to plan for effective goal setting. A time when some of us start thinking about goals for the upcoming year. If you… Read more: Effective Goal Setting
- Indemnify AI UseBeware of companies that say they will indemnify AI use, that they will pay ALL the legal costs incurred by customers using Generative AI services (like ChatGPT, CoPilot, or Bard).… Read more: Indemnify AI Use
