Why is everyone talking about California?

Welcome back! Let’s turn this Tuesday into a crispy adventure with some hot-off-the-press AI insights. 🔥

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CA GOVERNOR NEWSOM SAYS “NO” TO AI SAFETY BILL 🚫

You know you’re in Silicon Valley when street beggars accept Venmo. 📲

What happened? California Governor Gavin Newsom vetoed Senate Bill 1047, a pioneering AI safety regulation bill.

What was the bill? The proposed legislation aimed to establish the nation’s first AI-specific regulations, requiring developers to adhere to clearly defined safety guidelines during model creation. Advocates of the bill argued it was a necessary step toward managing AI risks, especially as Congress has lagged behind and the European Union has taken the lead on AI regulation.

Why was it vetoed? Newsom argued the bill’s broad application of stringent standards to all AI systems, regardless of their risk level, was not the best approach. He stated, “I do not believe this is the best approach to protecting the public from real threats posed by the technology.” He expressed a desire to instead focus on science-based assessments of AI capabilities. However, bipartisan Senators are calling it a “missed opportunity” to lead on tech regulation.

CHINESE COMPANIES CONTINUE TO ABANDON NVIDIA 📉

I went to China to see the grape wall. Needless to say, I was pretty disappointed. 🍇

What’s up? ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, is shifting away from Nvidia and to domestic suppliers like Huawei Technologies to develop its AI models.

Want more details? This change comes in the wake of U.S. restrictions on domestic companies exporting advanced AI chips to China, such as those from Nvidia, for national security reasons. Because ByteDance cannot access Nvidia’s best chips, the company plans to use Huawei’s Ascend 910B chips to train its new large-language AI models instead. But despite ByteDance’s efforts to secure more than 100,000 Ascend 910B chips, it has only received fewer than 30,000 so far, leading to supply constraints.

Why is this significant? Nvidia has long been the major supplier of power for big tech companies in the U.S. and abroad. However, global constraints in chip manufacturing combined with U.S. restrictions on the company’s ability to work with Chinese tech companies is causing a leak in Nvidia’s potential profits and dominant market share.

SAN FRANCISCO EMPLOYS AI SURVEILLANCE TO REDUCE CRIME 👀

Let’s take our discussion back to the coast! 🌊

What’s new? San Francisco has rolled out new AI-powered surveillance cameras aimed at reducing crime in the city.

How do the cameras work? Manufactured by LiveView Technologies, these high-tech units are part of a broader strategy to enhance public safety and are equipped with advanced features like thermal and panoramic views, floodlights, and speakers for broadcasting warnings. Set up in high-crime areas, city officials hope that the cameras will act as both a deterrent to criminal activity and provide critical evidence for investigations and prosecutions.

What’s the crux? This initiative has arisen as urban areas nationwide face rising crime rates and increasing calls for modern policing methods. By integrating cutting-edge technology, San Francisco aims to create safer neighborhoods and address growing concerns about public safety. However, privacy advocates warn that increased surveillance could lead to overreach, raising eyebrows about potential abuses. For instance, Matthew Guariglia, a senior policy analyst at the Electronic Frontier Foundation said, “Subjecting some of the most vulnerable populations in San Francisco to this dragnet surveillance is a ‘kitchen sink’ approach to public safety.” As this program unfolds, balancing public safety with privacy rights will remain a key issue for the city and for AI’s role in surveillance of all kinds.

TWITTER (X) TUESDAY 🐦

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