AI March 28, 2023
AI Revolution in Music Production: Kanye West and Beyond
AI has the potential to reshape the music industry with users now able to replicate popular artists’ music, including the voice of Kanye West. The industry has undergone significant transformations over the years, thanks to advances in technology.
In the digital age, we have seen the rise of streaming services, virtual concerts, and music production software that have made it easier for both professionals and amateurs to create and distribute their work.
But perhaps the most groundbreaking development in recent times is the integration of AI into music production, and one of the most remarkable examples is the ability to replicate the voice and style of popular artists like Kanye West.
Machine-made artistry
AI-powered music creation platforms are making waves, allowing users to generate music and vocals that mimic the sound and style of their favorite musicians. This technology is not only democratizing music production but also raising questions about creativity, originality, and the future of the music industry.
One such platform gaining attention is OpenAI’s ChatGPT-4, a powerful AI model that can generate human-like text, music lyrics, and vocals based on a vast dataset.
With ChatGPT-4, anyone can write lyrics, suggest melodies, and have the AI model produce vocals resembling the voice of famous artists. This has led to a surge of AI-generated music and content that blurs the line between human and machine-made artistry.
Using AI tools, one can write lyrics and record vocals, uploading them to the AI tool and having a model that’s already trained using sample voices from an artist to alter how the song sounds, so it matches the artist chosen.
An AI Kanye
AI enthusiast Roberto Nickson posted on his Twitter feed the process by which he produced a song that sounds like Kanye West using AI. After writing “8 bars” and using a West-style beat from YouTube, Nickson transforms his own vocals to sound just like Yeezy.
And just like that. The music industry is forever changed.
I recorded a verse, and had a trained AI model of Kanye replace my vocals.
The results will blow your mind. Utterly incredible. pic.twitter.com/wY1pn9RGWx
— Roberto Nickson (@rpnickson) March 26, 2023
“I found this Kanye-style beat on YouTube, I wrote eight bars, I’m gonna record them now and then I’m gonna have AI Kanye replace me,” says Nickson on the video.
In his composition, Nickson includes these lines: “I attacked a whole religion all because of my ignorance. What was I thinking? That was some b***s***. I lost Adidas but I’m still Yeezy.”
Anyone could easily believe it’s Kanye, with the lyrics referring to his controversial comments about Jewish people and the end to his partnership with Adidas.
This isn’t the first time we are witnessing this technology; recently ElevenLabs released a better version of its Prime Voice AI platform, allowing one to input text and choose a voice to turn the text into audio.
Things will move fast
The implications of AI music production are far-reaching. On the one hand, it democratizes music production, empowering creators who may lack formal training or resources to generate professional-quality music.
Aspiring artists can use AI-generated vocals to create demo tracks or experiment with various styles without the need for expensive studio time or collaborations.
Moreover, AI-generated music has the potential to revolutionize the way musicians and producers work, facilitating creative collaboration between human and AI.
Artists can input specific parameters, such as tempo, key, and genre, and have the AI model generate unique compositions, which they can then refine and personalize. This collaborative process can lead to innovative, never-before-heard sounds and styles.
Nickson himself predicts “things will move very fast in the next two years,” while others contend the technology is “insane.”
Another user could not hide their excitement at Nickson’s video and commented:
“This is absolutely mind-blowing. I mean I knew it was possible, but to hear it like this in action, is a whole other ball game. Great work on your end too, bars were fire.”
Unresolved questions
However, this technology also raises ethical and legal concerns. As AI-generated music becomes more prevalent, it challenges our notions of copyright, ownership, and artistic integrity.
Should AI-generated music that replicates a popular artist’s style be considered copyright infringement? Who owns the rights to AI-generated music, the AI creator or the user who provides the input?
These questions remain unresolved and will likely be the subject of ongoing debate and legislation in the coming years.
Furthermore, the ability to replicate popular artists’ voices and styles may lead to an oversaturation of content, making it difficult for original work to stand out.
The music industry could become inundated with AI-generated music that mimics successful artists, potentially stifling creativity and undermining the value of human-generated art.
Mixed feedback
Responding to Nickson’s tweets, CVV Entertainment said: “My prediction: This type of AI feature will eventually be governed by piracy & copyright infringement laws. Remember back in the day with Napster, etc., that evolution of implementing piracy laws. Same concept here. Give it 5 years, laws go live. Not a catch all of course.”
Another user commented “I’m all for AI but Jesus Christ this freaks me out.”
Markus Karner thinks the development is “repugnant” and authorities should quickly move in to protect artists’ “unique voice.”
Despite these concerns, AI-generated music is gaining traction and will likely continue to play a significant role in the future of music production.
To navigate this new landscape, artists, producers, and industry professionals may have to adapt and embrace the potential of AI while addressing the ethical and legal challenges it presents.
AI
Nvidia Debuts AI Tools in an Era Where “Anyone Can Be a Programmer”
The world’s most valuable chip maker Nvidia has unveiled a new batch of AI-centric products, as the company rides on the generative AI wave where anyone can be a programmer.
Nvidia announced a new supercomputer and a networking system, while the company also aims to make video game characters more realistic.
The wide range of products include robotics design, gaming capabilities, advertising services, and networking technology, which CEO Jensen Huang unveiled during a two-hour presentation in Taiwan on Monday.
Also read: Google Claims its AI Computer Outperforms Nvidia’s A100 Chip
Most notable of the new products is the AI supercomputer platform named DGX GH200 that will help tech companies create successors to OpenAI’s ChatGPT.
According to the company, the new DGX GH200 supercomputers combine 256 GH200 superchips that can act as a single graphics processing unit (GPU). The result is a system that boasts nearly 500 times the memory of a single Nvidia’s DGX A100 system.
“Generative AI, large language models, and recommender systems are the digital engines of modern economy,” said Huang.
“DGX GH200 AI supercomputers integrate Nvidia’s most advanced accelerated computing and networking technologies to expand the frontier of AI.”
So far, Microsoft Corp., Meta Platforms Inc., and Alphabet’s Google are expected to be among the first users, according to Nvidia.
The DGX GH200 supercomputers are expected to be available by the end of 2023.
The GH200 superchips which power the new supercomputer work by combining Nvidia’s Arm-based Grace GPU and an Nvidia H100 Tensor Core GPU in a single package.
The chipmaker also revealed that it’s building its own supercomputer running four DGX 200 systems at the same time to power its own research.
Nvidia also released its ACE generative AI model for video games, enabling gaming companies to use generative AI for large games with multiple non-player characters, giving them unique lines of dialogue and ways to interact with players that would normally need to be individually programmed.
Easy ad content
Alongside the hardware announcement, the company said it has partnered with advertising giant WPP to create a content engine that uses its Omniverse technology and generative AI capabilities to help build out ad content.
The move is intended to cut down the time and cost of producing ads by enabling WPP’s clients to lean on Nvidia’s technology.
Electronics manufacturers such as Foxconn, Pegatron, and Wistron are using Omniverse technology to create digital twins of their factory floors, so they can get a sense of how best to lay them out before making any physical changes.
A new computing era
Presenting at the forum, Huang acknowledged that advancements in AI are ushering in a new era in computing. He says anyone can be a programmer simply by speaking to the computer.
According to the Nvidia boss, gone are the days when programmers would write lines of code, only for it to display the “fail to compile” response because of a missing semicolon.
“This computer doesn’t care how you program it, it will try to understand what you mean, because it has this incredible large language model capability. And so the programming barrier is incredibly low,” said Huang.
“We have closed the digital divide. Everyone is a programmer. Now, you just have to say something to the computer,” he added.
Huang said his company has managed to bridge the digital gap, and the tech giant will continue to capitalize on the AI frenzy that has made Nvidia one of the world’s most valuable chipmakers.
Nvidia’s stock price is rising
Nvidia’s major announcements came as shares of the tech giant jumped last week on news that the company anticipated second quarter revenue above Wall Street’s expectations, based on the strength of its data center business.
The company hit the $1 trillion market cap just before the US markets opened on Tuesday. Its shares are trading at $407 in the pre-market, nearly 5% up from Monday.
Nvidia’s shares were up more than 165% year-to-date as of Friday afternoon, with the S&P 500 (^GSPC) just 9.5% higher in the same frame.
Rival chip maker AMD has experienced a similar boost in share price, rising 93%. However, Intel (INTC) is lagging behind with shares up just 8%.
According to Yahoo Finance tech editor Daniel Howley, while analysts see Nividia well ahead of its chip rivals in the AI processing space, how long that continues to be the case is anyone’s guess.
AI
ChatGPT’s Bogus Citations Land US Lawyer in Hot Water
A lawyer in the United States is facing disciplinary action after his law firm used popular AI chatbot ChatGPT for legal research and cited fake cases in a lawsuit.
Steven A. Schwartz, who is representing Roberto Mata in a lawsuit against Colombian airline Avianca, admitted to using OpenAI’s ChatGPT for research purposes, and that the AI model provided him with citations to cases that did not exist.
Mata is suing Avianca for a personal injury caused by a serving cart in 2019, claiming negligence by an employee.
Also read: Opera Unveils GPT-Powered AI Chatbot Aria
Bogus all the way
According to a BBC report, the matter came to light after Schwartz, a lawyer with 30 years experience, used these cases as precedent to support Mata’s case.
But the opposing counsel flagged the ChatGPT-generated citations as fake. US District Court Judge Kevin Castel confirmed six of them as non-existent. He demanded an explanation from Schwartz, an attorney with New York-based law company Levidow, Levidow & Oberman.
“Six of the submitted cases appear to be bogus judicial decisions with bogus quotes and bogus internal citations,” Judge Castel wrote in a May 4 order.
“The court is presented with an unprecedented circumstance.”
The supposed cases include: Varghese v. China South Airlines, Martinez v. Delta Airlines, Shaboon v. EgyptAir, Petersen v. Iran Air, Miller v. United Airlines, and Estate of Durden v. KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, none of which did not appear to exist to either the judge or defense.
Lawyer claims ignorance
ChatGPT is a large language model developed by OpenAI. Launched in November, the AI is trained on billions of data from the Internet and can perform a variety of tasks like generate text, translate languages, and even write poetry, and solve difficult math problems.
But ChatGPT is prone to “hallucinations” – tech industry speak for when AI chatbots produce false or misleading information, often with confidence.
In an affidavit last week, Schwartz said he was “unaware of the possibility that its [ChatGPT] content could be false.” He also said that he “greatly regrets” using the generative AI and will only “supplement” its use with absolute caution and validation in future.
Schwartz claimed to have never used ChatGPT prior to this case. He said he “greatly regrets having utilized generative artificial intelligence to supplement the legal research performed herein and will never do so in the future without absolute verification of its authenticity.”
A lawyer used ChatGPT to do "legal research" and cited a number of nonexistent cases in a filing, and is now in a lot of trouble with the judge 🤣 pic.twitter.com/AJSE7Ts7W7
— Daniel Feldman (@d_feldman) May 27, 2023
The career attorney now faces a court hearing on June 8 after accepting responsibility for not confirming the authenticity of the ChatGPT sources. Schwartz was asked to show cause why he shouldn’t be sanctioned “for the use of a false and fraudulent notarization.”
ChatGPT’s confident lies
According to the BBC report, Schwartz’s affidavit contained screenshots of the attorney that confirmed his chats with ChatGPT.
Schwartz asked the chatbot, “is varghese a real case?”, to which ChatGPT responded “yes, [it] is a real case.” When asked for sources, it told the attorney that the case could be found “on legal research databases such as Westlaw and LexisNexis”.
Again, the attorney asked: “Are the other cases you provided fake?” ChatGPT responded “No”, adding that the cases could be found on other legal databases. “I apologize for the confusion earlier,” ChatGPT said.
“Upon double-checking, I found the case Varghese v. China Southern Airlines Co. Ltd., 925 F.3d 1339 (11th Cir. 2019), does indeed exist and can be found on legal research databases such as Westlaw and LexisNexis. I apologize for any inconvenience or confusion my earlier responses may have caused,” the chatbot replied with confidence.
AI
Sandbox Founder Remains Bullish on Metaverse ‘Marathon of Many Sprints’
Sandbox founder Sebastian Borget has described the metaverse race as a ‘marathon of many sprints,’ as the industry moves beyond the hype cycle to build real value.
Borget remains bullish on the sector and sees opportunities for AI to play its role in building the metaverse stronger, better, and faster.
Raising funds
In November 2021, during the height of metaverse mania, Sandbox raised $93 million at an undisclosed valuation. Today Borget and the company he leads must contend with more challenging macroeconomic conditions, as well as the new technology hype trend – AI.
But Borget remains bullish despite tech’s shifting focus. The co-founder and COO is confident that the company can raise more capital if required, though it may take a little longer given current market conditions.
“Running the Sandbox is like a long marathon of many sprints,” an unfazed Borget told Forbes last week.
Borget firmly believes that the metaverse is poised to become a multi-billion dollar sector. Multiple industries are now finding real value in the metaverse and metaverse-related products, extracting profits from their forays into the virtual plane. As Borget sees it, this augurs well for Sandbox.
“We’ve been very attached to showing concretely what is possible in the metaverse as early as possible. We’ve showcased that it’s not just about gaming, but a new format of entertainment that lies between social interaction and gamification,” said Borget.
“And we’re going to showcase that the Sandbox is resilient and not depending on tech or crypto market crash,” he added.
🔷 @BBC is joining The Sandbox! 🔷
In partnership with @RealityPlusWeb3, favorite brands like @BBC_TopGear and @DoctorWho_BBCA will be bringing immersive new experiences to our community playing around the world! 🌐https://t.co/mpAPLj3ru5
— The Sandbox (@TheSandboxGame) May 25, 2023
That resilience will come down to Sandbox’s popularity and whether it can build critical partnerships and establish a thriving community of users. Since its launch in 2018, the virtual world has enticed 23,500 users to buy virtual land plots. The corporation has further signed 400 brand partnerships.
While these figures paint an optimistic picture of the future for Sandbox, there are still some challenges that lay ahead.
More to do
Sandbox has more to do if it is to be a long-term success story with usage of the platform in decline from last year. Sandbox had 100,000 players in the first quarter of 2023, representing a 72% drop from a comparable 10-week period that ended in November of 2022.
Active wallet addresses are also down 90% from their peak a year ago, according to data from CoinGecko and DappRadar.
Borget remains philosophical about the figures, pointing to the fact that users can visit the platform without making transactions. As for the transactions that were made, these amount to sales of $1 million.
“We have more creators than ever, more users than ever and more brands than ever,” said Borget. “It’s because there’s real utility behind virtual lands and avatars. People see that they can play, engage, and monetize their lands and creations.”
The co-founder is now predicting double-digit growth throughout the rest of the year. The next sprint cycle should see Sandbox fully open to the public as it moves beyond the beta phase.
Beyond that, the company plans to launch the metaverse project on smartphones next year. That would see Sandbox tap into the mobile gaming market, accounting for half of the gaming industry’s $183 billion revenue last year.
-
CryptocurrenciesWed 31 May 2023 07:03 GMT
Floki Inu (FLOKI) Volumes Surge 300% on China Metaverse Game Plans
-
AITue 30 May 2023 15:07 GMT
Nvidia Debuts AI Tools in an Era Where “Anyone Can Be a Programmer”
-
BusinessTue 30 May 2023 10:43 GMT
Chinese City Pledges $1.42bn to Boost Metaverse Industry Growth
-
AITue 30 May 2023 06:40 GMT
ChatGPT’s Bogus Citations Land US Lawyer in Hot Water
-
AIMon 29 May 2023 20:30 GMT
Sandbox Founder Remains Bullish on Metaverse ‘Marathon of Many Sprints’
-
CryptocurrenciesMon 29 May 2023 17:00 GMT
Hong Kong Police Launch Metaverse Platform to Fight Cyber Crime
-
BusinessMon 29 May 2023 13:45 GMT
Microsoft Accuses CMA of Irrationally Blocking $68.7bn Activision Takeover
-
BusinessMon 29 May 2023 10:04 GMT
‘Google Manipulating Search to Favor Liberals and Influence Elections’