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The Pope's AI advisor says the technology can be worse for kids than cocaine

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Paolo Benanti advises the Vatican on AI issues. Massimo Di Vita/Archivio Massimo Di Vita/Mondadori Portfolio via Getty Images A friar who advises the pope on AI has warned about its effects on young minds. Paolo Benanti said it "could be much, much worse than the addiction of nicotine or sugar or cocaine." Pope Leo has made AI a central concern of his pontificate. AI's impact on young minds can be worse than an addiction to nicotine or cocaine, said a moral theologian who advises the pope. In a Wednesday interview with the BBC's "Newsnight," Paolo Benanti said AI technologies could be "super manipulation tools." "The emotional bending that such a kind of machine can produce in young adults and kids could be much, much worse than the addiction of nicotine or sugar or cocaine," he added. Benanti is a Franciscan friar who teaches at Pontifical Gregorian University with a focus on the ethics of technologies. He has become a go-to advisor for...

Is the AI safety debate about safety or control?

Not everyone agrees with Amodei's call for globally coordinated action for AI safety. from TechCrunch https://ift.tt/ywVBsC0 via IFTTT

Microsoft exec called AI scraping ‘the largest theft of labor in human history,’ new unredacted filings reveal

Newly unsealed court filings show Microsoft privately called OpenAI's data practices "theft" while both companies scraped paywalled Times content, built datasets from it, and warned internally it would gut publishers. from TechCrunch https://ift.tt/dTujkql via IFTTT

Waymo restarts San Antonio service 5 months after flooding troubles

The company suspended service in the city in April after one of its robotaxis got swept away. from TechCrunch https://ift.tt/OlH5iCy via IFTTT

Airplane parts need thorough inspections, and AI can help — but only if data is up to snuff

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Getty Images Safran partners with Loopr AI to enhance defect detection in aviation manufacturing processes. Loopr AI uses synthetic data to improve inspection accuracy and efficiency for Safran's parts. Safran's new AI system reduces inspection time and costly defect recalls. When parts inspectors at the aviation manufacturer Safran received a toilet lid that the company just manufactured, they used to spend 20 to 30 minutes examining it. On airplanes, lavatories need to be perfect, so the inspectors search for consistent colors and smooth surfaces free of paint bubbles and scratches, among other defects. Some inspection professionals have been performing these quality-assurance roles at Safran for more than 10 years and can detect up to 90% of the production defects in cabin galleys, passenger seats, and other parts, said Bindioa Ouali, the senior director and head of digital production, robotics, and automation at Safran. Still, fatigue can set in after hours of inspections...

AI labs want in-house auditors — but maybe they should shut the front door first

There may be a simpler and more effective fix for rogue agents, hiding in plain sight. from TechCrunch https://ift.tt/9bq7cwQ via IFTTT

Tech giants have a new headache: a looming strike by their security guards

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Tech security workers plan to march to Salesforce Tower in downtown San Francisco. Josh Edelson / AFP via Getty Images Security workers staffing California tech offices are planning to strike. As their contract negotiations continue, the strike is planned to begin Friday morning. The work stoppage could affect office operations for a slew of major tech companies. Security workers guarding the California offices of tech companies like Anthropic, Google, and OpenAI are planning to strike this week. The security officers submitted a 72-hour strike notice on Tuesday morning, planning to skip any shift that begins on or after 4:30 a.m. on Friday. The union, SEIU-UWW, said that the officers guard major companies, including Amazon, Microsoft, Salesforce, OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Meta, and Nvidia. A strike could lead to office closures and spark work-from-home orders, though Bay Area tech companies have not announced any yet. Anthropic told San Francisco staff in late August to work remotel...