AI could save you billions

Before becoming the character we know today, Sonic the Hedgehog was originally conceptualised as the lead singer of a rock band, with a human girlfriend named Madonna. We need to see it.

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What’s in store:

• Public services enter AI era. 

• Synthetic voices are now available everywhere with ElevenLabs.

• Around the Web: The Acolyte series was cancelled after one season due to low viewership and high costs.

• Learn about the future of ice cream with Dice Cream!

Read Time: 4 minutes

AI POLICY

Can AI really save the government billions?

The Tony Blair Institute (TBI) recently highlighted AI’s potential to transform government operations at its annual conference, just days after Labour’s big win in the July general election.

Tony Blair stressed that the 21st-century tech revolution, especially AI, is key to modern governance.

With the Labour Party back in power after 14 years, Blair’s influence is on the rise once again.

Technology Secretary Peter Kyle has made digital transformation a top priority, and Chancellor Rachel Reeves sees AI as vital for addressing the £3 billion budget gap.

Here’s what you should know:

• TBI claims AI could save £40 billion a year by automating up to 40% of public sector tasks.

• There are worries about AI’s reliability and its impact on how the government interacts with citizens.

• AI is being tested in some government departments, but its broader use is still in the early stages.

The march towards government

While AI is being praised as a transformative force, there are some concerns about its reliability and transparency.

Critics warn against overhyping its potential, especially as some tech firms with ties to Blair’s institute are eager to secure public contracts.

AI is already being used in limited ways by the government, but its widespread adoption is still at an early stage.

The potential for AI to change how the government operates is huge, but so are the challenges that come with it.

AI - saving taxpayer money since ‘22.

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ROBOTICS

Dice Cream: The Future of Ice Cream

Dice Cream is transforming the ice cream industry with its cutting-edge technology.

Their automated parlours, featuring a robotic arm that serves up to 90 customers per hour, operate with higher efficiency and lower costs than traditional ice cream shops.

With the ability to run 24/7 and minimal maintenance required, Dice Cream is designed for maximum profitability.

Don’t miss your chance to invest in this innovative venture before their crowdfunding campaign ends on August 28th.

On This Day

August 21st 1911 - The Mona Lisa is stolen by Vincenzo Peruggia, an employee of the Louvre museum; the painting was missing for two years before being recovered.

Tool of the Week

Village Labs

This AI tool integrates seamlessly with daily business apps like Slack, Jira, and Microsoft, automating routine tasks to enhance productivity for remote teams. Village Labs generates personalised reports tailored to individual work preferences and needs, ensuring team members are always aligned and focused on critical tasks.

Try it out! →

AI APPS

ElevenLabs breaks the language barrier

ElevenLabs, known for its AI tools that create and edit synthetic voices, has made its reader app available worldwide, now supporting 32 languages.

First launched in June in the U.S., and Canada, the app lets users listen to text content, like articles, PDFs, and e-books, in various languages and voices.

Supported languages include Portuguese, Spanish, French, Hindi, German and more.

Here’s what the app can do now:

• ElevenLabs' Reader app now supports 32 languages and includes voices from iconic actors like Judy Garland and James Dean.

• The app uses the Turbo v2.5 model, which offers faster and higher-quality text-to-speech conversion.

• New features like offline support and audio snippet sharing are on the way.

More languages, more possibilities

Earlier this year, ElevenLabs became a unicorn after raising $80 million.

Their API is already used by platforms like the AI search engine Perplexity and audio services such as PocketFM.

The Reader app is the company’s first product aimed at consumers and now offers hundreds of new voices designed for different languages.

With the Turbo v2.5 model, the app promises quicker and better text-to-speech conversion.

Competing with apps like Speechify and Mozilla’s Pocket, ElevenLabs plans to add features like offline support and the ability to share audio snippets.

How long until AI is reading our kids’ bedtime stories.

Mindstream Picks

Gaming: Telegram’s mini-game Whack’em TON pre-launches, offering a unique Web3 gaming experience with competitive rewards.

Space: RFA’s first rocket stage was destroyed in a test, delaying the inaugural launch; no injuries were reported.

Crypto: Yandex bans crypto service ads in Russia, following the new regulations.

Stock: Nvidia shares were up over 30% in August, driven by an AI trade comeback and a six-day winning streak.

Don’t Miss - Disney Plus cancelled The Alcolyte series after just one season, despite its intriguing new characters and lore. The decision was due to the disappointing viewership numbers, high production costs, and Disney’s strategy to cut spending on big-budget projects like Star Wars and Marvel.

AI Art

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Yesterday’s Poll

“Do you think AI is the ultimate co-founder?”

Yes, game-changing for entrepreneurs. - 76% ✅

Not convinced - 26%

Your Views:

“The most exciting thing about AI is that, although it is in its very early stages of adoption it has ready demonstrated enormous potential. Just as the personal computer did when first launched. Applying the huge change in computer capability to the likely change in AI gives us a glimpse into the vast capability that AI is likely to provide in our future.” - lowlandscott

“It’s great as a first pass, prototyping, or to use to bounce ideas off of. It is still full of inaccuracies and I would never use it for final legal documents that may not apply to your area, or production code for products.” - jayme.mcclellan

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