A little off topic this one but interesting how AI is starting to blur the line between simulation and reality
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Link: TED Talks
Rafiq Annadel, a media artist, takes to the TED 2023 stage to discuss the innovative ways in which he and his team are using generative AI. Their mission is to capture, preserve, and reflect the collective memories of humanity, especially as the natural wonders like coral reefs and glaciers face existential threats. By collaborating with indigenous tribes and harnessing vast datasets, Annadel envisions a future where AI not only remembers nature for us but also helps us experience its essence in a rapidly digitizing world.
Key Points and Ideas
- The urgency to remember and preserve nature’s wonders, such as glaciers and coral reefs.
- Rafiq Annadel’s work with AI aims to jog humanity’s collective memories.
- The potential future where only virtual simulations of natural wonders like corals might exist.
- The “dreams” project uses AI to create artificial realities while preserving disappearing nature.
- Generative AI is seen as a collaborator in the realm of art.
- The concept of visualizing humanity’s collective memories spanning nature, urban landscapes, and culture.
- The transformative potential of generative AI in enhancing and immortalizing our memories.
- The idea of a living archive, constantly reimagining forms, patterns, colors, and scents.
- The blurring boundaries between the digital and physical worlds.
- The potential of AI to map the complex history of human wisdom and consciousness in nature.
- Collaborative projects with indigenous tribes to preserve and learn from their deep-rooted knowledge.
- The aspiration for AI to serve as a mirror, reflecting the collective memories of all humanity.
Key Statistics
- The artificial corals credit PageRank algorithm was trained with over 100 million coral images.
- Sea water’s habitability is decreasing due to climate change, leading to rapid coral reef death.
- Rafiq and his team have been using generative AI for seven years.
- The “full dreams” algorithm was trained with over 75 million floral images spanning 16,000 species.
- Over half a million scent molecules were utilized to create the scent of the dreams.
Key Take Aways
- AI has the potential to play a pivotal role in preserving the memories of disappearing natural wonders.
- Collaboration between artists and AI can lead to the creation of new, immersive realities.
- The importance of harnessing large, focused, and publicly available datasets for AI training.
- The potential of generative AI goes beyond visual memories, encompassing sound, scent, and more.
- The digital age offers opportunities to blend the boundaries between reality and virtual simulations.
- Generative AI can help project new realities onto our existing world.
- The significance of original data in AI-driven art projects.
- The value of collaborating with indigenous communities in AI projects.
- AI can potentially reconstruct extinct flora and fauna based on deep-rooted tribal knowledge.
- The importance of respectful co-creation in AI projects.
- AI can serve as a bridge, connecting ancient wisdom with modern society.
- The overarching hope that AI can inspire, bring joy, and offer hope to people across ages and cultures.
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