- Mindstream
- Posts
- China playing AI catch up
PRESENTED BY |  |
Happy Friday, folks!
China is pulling out all the stops to help it win the AI war. And we might have seen the biggest AI image fail yet.
Also, we’ve cooked up a master prompt to help you get to grips with
DALL-E.
Shoutout to HubSpot, who are providing you all with a free guide today! Thanks guys!
Read time: 5 minutes
AI IN CHINA
China is levelling the playing field for AI start-ups, addressing the challenge of big tech companies using up valuable AI resources.
Cities like Shanghai are introducing "computing vouchers" to help these start-ups afford data centre costs, now rising due to a chip shortage caused by US restrictions.
These vouchers, worth between $140,000 and $280,000, will let start-ups access data centres to develop AI models for various tasks.
The situation got tougher as US controls led to a scramble for graphics chips, with major firms like Alibaba, Tencent, and ByteDance keeping these vital resources for themselves.
Building their own playground
This has forced companies to find alternative ways to get these chips, even turning to the black market.
While these subsidies are a step in the right direction, they don't fully solve the problem of chip scarcity.
Beijing plans to offer more support for using domestic chips to reduce reliance on foreign technology.
Additionally, China is building its own network of data centres and platforms to offer computing power for AI firms, aiming to improve resource efficiency and reduce costs.
These efforts include a plan to build 10 data centre clusters to support AI workloads efficiently.
Government-run data centres could cut computing costs for AI companies by 40 to 50%, although there are still strict eligibility criteria.
China is also pushing for wider AI adoption while keeping a tight grip on its use, including managing how computing resources are distributed.
Our View:
China can try, but they just don’t have the tech knowledge to make AI chips.
Can China catch up on AI? |
Vote for live results and see results + opinions from yesterday at the bottom of the email.
PRESENTED BY HUBSPOT
Revolutionise your workday with the power of ChatGPT! Dive into HubSpot’s guide to discover how AI can elevate your productivity and creativity.
Learn to automate tasks, enhance decision-making, and foster innovation, all through the capabilities of ChatGPT.
Download the offer for actionable insights and tips on harnessing AI for a more efficient, impactful professional life.
Prompt to Try Today
Every Friday we give you a powerful prompt to try over the weekend to get awesome results.
DALL-E Masterclass
Struggling with image generation in ChatGPT?
Then get ChatGPT itself to write you a masterclass on image gen! Use this prompt:
“Generate me a masterclass on learning how to use DALL-E inside ChatGPT. Give me a crash course with example prompts to try, and include all the variables that can be tweaked, as well as masterful insight. Make it actionable and easy to understand.”
AI FAIL
The Queensland Symphony Orchestra (QSO) recently faced criticism for a Facebook ad featuring an unrealistic AI-generated image of a couple at a concert.
The ad, intended to be unique, instead highlighted oddities like overly large and numerous fingers, leading to a backlash for its lack of authenticity.
The Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance (MEAA) called it the worst AI artwork they've seen, criticising it for disrespecting audiences and musicians.
Clearly, these guys used DALL-E for the very first time.
Playing a sour note?
The dodgy artwork in question.
Photographer Daniel Boud pointed out that while AI can help draft concepts, real art requires genuine execution.
He argues for a balance between using AI for initial ideas and maintaining the authenticity of final creations.
The controversy underscores the challenge of integrating AI into creative practices without diminishing human creativity's value.
Our View:
I remember my first image gen too.
Mindstream Picks
Universal is planning to introduce wearable digital maps for its theme parks.
Nvidia is launching a program to certify the top generative AI experts.
The UK Government has partnered with tech experts to bring innovations to agriculture and farming.
Tesla is no longer amongst the most valuable companies, after a deep slide in stock price.
An RNA sequencing startup based in Edinburgh has bagged £8.5M in funding.
AI Art
Artwork submitted by Mindstream reader Jan M: “A giant temple carved into desert Sandstone”
Get art inspiration by trying this prompt in your image generator of choice.
The amazon rainforest during a solar eclipse
Happy with the result, or have some other artwork you’re proud of?
You can send in your artwork and we will feature it, with credit to you.
We get a lot of submissions, but we do look at every single one! So please don’t hesitate to send us your art.
Yesterday’s Poll
“Who do you side with in the AI showdown?”
Team OpenAI: Keeping AI safe and responsible 72% ✅
Team Musk: Open Source AI for All! - 38%
Reader’s Opinions
“It’s either fully open or fully closed.” - livethedream
“Whoever tasks control of a platform for development should allow for open source development licensing.”- collecticmedia
“The definition of safety is subjective and at the discretion of those who control the company. There is also a lack of transparency at openAI, beyond just the source code. So many things can go wrong.” - vicmgil
Submit your opinions in our daily poll for the chance to be featured!
 | Join us here tomorrow for more more more! And hey, don't be shy—tell us how you're feeling about the journey so far! ❤️ We need your feedback to make our newsletter better. 📣 Refer our newsletter to your friends! 🚀 Advertise in our newsletter to reach 120,000+ founders, engineers, and content creators. |
Today's Mindstream: Hit or Miss? |