AI is changing our world

Louis XIX became king of France for 20 minutes—yep, just 20. That awkward Zoom meeting you sat through last week? Longer than this guy’s entire reign. Imagine handing over the crown before your coffee even gets cold.

What’s in store:

• According to the UN, we can build the future with AI.

• Everyone’s favourite design tool is getting a bit pricier.

• Around the web: Snapchat is testing Sponsored Snaps, which will appear in the Chat tab alongside friend messages.

• Village Labs is the ultimate productivity hack!

Read Time: 5 minutes

AI POLICY

AI is changing our world - for better or worse?

The UN’s annual AI for Good conference has begun, focusing on the benefits and risks of AI.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres highlighted AI’s potential in education, healthcare, and disaster prevention, especially for remote areas.

The conference in Geneva covers various AI applications, from robotics to sustainable development.

Key speakers include Sam Altman from OpenAI, Tristan Harris from the Center for Human Technology, and Azeem Azhar from Expotential View.

AI has grown rapidly, with OpenAI’s ChatGPT driving competition from companies like Google, Microsoft, and Amazon.

It’s like whacky races, but tech companies.

Here’s what you should know:

• AI has great potential but must be managed to prevent bias and misinformation.

• There’s a focus on helping developing countries benefit from AI.

• The fast pace of AI development is creating fierce competition among tech giants.

Thrilling, terrifying and everything in between.

Despite the opportunities, concerns remain over AI’s role in spreading disinformation, making it harder to separate truth from fiction online.

Although Guterres highlighted the opportunities, concerns remain over AI’s role in spreading disinformation, making it harder to separate truth from fiction online.

Guterres stressed the need to reduce these risks and ensure AI helps connect underserved areas globally.

If the UN is positive on AI, then you should be too!

Vote for live results and see results + opinions from yesterday at the bottom of the email.

PRODUCTIVITY HACKS

Automate all your status updates with this new AI

Village Labs connects to all the apps your team lives in every day, like Slack, Jira, Google Workspace and Microsoft to generate automated, personalised reports based on what you care about, who you work with, and what you need to know to do your job.

On This Day

September 5th 1958 - The first colour video recording on magnetic tape is presented in Charlotte, North Carolina, marking a significant advancement in television technology.

GPT of the Week

Copywriter GPT

Copywriter GPT is designed to guide users through a structured and streamlined process of creating effective ad copy. It asks targeted questions, helping refine campaign goals, target audience, and platform selection while offering suggestions for tone and key messages.

Check it out! →

CANVA

Canva upgrades its payment methods

Canva will raise the prices of some subscriptions in 2024, citing new generative AI features.

The biggest changes affect Canva Teams, with some prices increasing by more than 300%. That’s not a typo.

Canva says this reflects the added value of its AI tools.

In the US, Canva Teams will rise from $120 per year for five users to $500.

In Australia, the price shifts from $39.99 AUS monthly for five users to $13.50 AUS per user, meaning a 68% increase for a team of five.

Existing customers on lower rates will move to the new pricing in September, though there is a discount for the first year.

Here’s what’s happening to Canva:

• Prices will rise by over 300% for some customers.

• US Teams customers face an increase from $120 to $500 per year.

• The new prices reflect Canva’s new AI features like the Visual Suite and Magic Studio.

Perks that come with a hefty price tag

New AI tools like Magic Media and Magic Expand have turned Canva from a design platform into a broader workspace.

While past price hikes were public, this one was mostly shared through emails. Pro and Enterprise plans are not affected.

Some users are now cancelling and moving to Adobe after the sharp rise, which comes after Canva's purchase of the company behind Affinity and ahead of a possible public listing in 2026.

Even you, Canva?

Mindstream Picks

Space: Collimate Space offers a tool to predict satellite downlink success, improving accuracy for operators by considering weather and ground antennas.

Crypto: Lazarus Group escalates crypto cyberattacks, deploying malware through fake apps and targeting browser extensions, reports cybersecurity firm Group-IB.

Games: A former Philippine mayor, Alice Guo, accused of running an illegal online gaming scam for Chinese clients, was arrested near Jakarta, Indonesia, and is awaiting deportation.

Music: The Cure will release live recordings of two new songs, "And Nothing Is Forever" and "I Can Never Say Goodbye," on eco-vinyl on October 1.

Don’t Miss - Snapchat will begin testing Sponsored Snaps, allowing brands to send sponsored messages that appear alongside users' friend chats in the app's main Chat tab. These ads won’t trigger notifications, and opening them will be optional. This move is aimed at boosting Snapchat's advertising business, which still trails behind larger competitors.

AI Art

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Yesterday’s Poll

“Are you worried about AI taking jobs?”

Yes, some will get left behind. - 58% ✅

No, it will make new jobs. - 42%

Your Views:

“I do feel strongly that AI will automate and therefore eliminate a lot of job functions, but I also believe that that it will create new jobs in new fields.” - berj.kazanjian

“Those who are building AI now are sowing the seeds of their own unemployment. They'll share the unemployment line with many others who also were displaced by AI.” - dyioulos

Submit your opinions in our daily poll to be featured!