Posts in: AI

I’ve been having chats recently about how well #Europe is doing in the #AI field. I hear people saying how Europe is behind the times and there’s no chance of catching up. They even say we’re doomed. There’s no denying that Europe’s not exactly leading the way right now.

But don’t forget, there are some players who are pretty close too. Two of them teamed up: #MistralAI and #BlackForestLabs. You can use them together with #LeChat, which is a generative AI #genAI service by Mistral. Black Forest Labs' generative AI models for images and videos are pretty impressive, and – surprise, surprise – it’s a company with its roots in Freiburg, Germany.

The latest version of Le Chat has a reasoning and research function, which builds on the Mistral #Magistral reasoning engine.

You might be sceptical, but it’s still worth a look. This is especially important if you’re also a bit worried about how data is handled. Both companies are under the European data privacy law #GDPR

Around six months ago, I pointed to the often overlooked small #AI models and #EdgeAI. In the fast-paced world of machine intelligence #AI, that feels like an eternity! Since then, we have seen some interesting developments, with specialised modules available for small computers such as the Raspberry Pi. These devices require minimal energy, making them ideal for sustainable tech solutions.

Recently, a quite powerful little module hit the market, boasting 60 TOPS INT8 performance in a tiny M.2 form factor. The SAKURA-II M.2 can be configured with up to 16 GB of LPDDR4X RAM and up to 68 GB/sec memory bandwidth. With this, while being very far from high-end platforms, this is a quite decent performance to run smaller, specialised models. Being a great resource for experimenting with AI and GenAI applications, it also has the potential to offer compact and cost-effective solutions. It will be interesting to see if there will be also some meaningful use cases, e.g. in health care.

Why Does This Matter?

• Accessibility: Small AI models and Edge AI make advanced technology accessible to a broader range of users.
• Sustainability: These solutions are energy-efficient. This makes this technology available with a small energy footprint.
• Innovation: Leveraging open-source models and affordable hardware provides a valuable means of experimenting in unexplored areas, thereby fostering innovation and growth.

As computational power needs to be massively expanded with the broad application of machine intelligence #AI #LLMs, the topic of #energy consumption and environmental footprint in general has rightly received more attention.

That’s why this is timely: The Green Algorithms calculator is a simple yet powerful tool that helps users understand the environmental impact of the systems they are building. By entering details about the hardware, runtime, and location of the computation, projects' carbon footprints can be estimated. This tool wants to be more than just raising awareness; it wants to drive change. 🌳 🌎

TL;DR: I switched to Mistral AI to support European tech innovation. Join me in supporting homegrown AI excellence!

In my personal tool stack, the LLM quickly became an useful asset, especially for experimenting with the technology’s potential and limitations. However, as I have become more discerning about the companies behind specific services, I am currently considering alternatives to the global market leaders, such as self-hosting, using open-source software, or switching to a European provider.

I have therefore moved my paid/pro AI account from a leading US provider to #Mistral #AI, a #European alternative. This decision aligns with my commitment to supporting and leveraging European technological advancements. 💼

I found that Mistral AI, which is headquartered in France, offers a competitive model with features that are relevant to me. By choosing Mistral AI, I am tapping into a growing ecosystem of European tech excellence. I expect them to have a commitment to open-source models and to adhere to European standards, which makes them a compelling choice for businesses and individuals alike. 🏢

Supporting European tech companies like Mistral AI fosters local innovation and contributes to a more diverse and resilient global tech landscape. I’m excited to be part of this movement and to see how European AI continues to evolve and compete on the world stage. 🚀

#EuropeanTech #AISovereignty #TechInnovation #MistralAI

The Hidden Productivity Dilemma: AI Use in the Workplace 🤖💼

Using #AI tools at work can boost productivity ⚡, but it comes with social costs 😬. A study from Duke University, involving over 4,000 participants, reveals that colleagues often perceive AI users as lazy 🦥 and incompetent 🤷.

The crucial factor? The AI affinity of supervisors 👔.

In the study, fictional job applicants with AI skills were preferred only if the hiring manager also used AI tools – otherwise, they faced rejection 🚫.

„Evaluators who do not use AI regularly (less than weekly) evaluate candidates who do use AI as lazy.“

This highlights a critical point: Management plays a pivotal role in AI adoption within companies. Their own familiarity and comfort with AI tools can significantly influence how AI is perceived and integrated into the workplace. 🔍💡

Feeling a bit doomsday-ish? Then this post is for you!

#AI is advancing at warp speed, and researchers are still grappling with how these models really work. 🤖💨 Research revealed some creative strategies of these models (see my previous post), but what if constant training leads to hidden capabilities that suddenly erupt? What if the model goes rogue? 😱

Researchers warn of an intelligence explosion, power accumulation, disruption of democratic institutions, and more. Scary stuff, right?

But wait! They’ve also proposed a number of measures to address these challenges, but these are based on the sense of responsibility of the companies behind these large-scale models. So hopefully the paper will get some attention there. 🤞

Full research paper

Ever noticed how we struggle with rapid, non-linear change? 🌪️ Fasten your seatbelts, because groundbreaking AI-based developments could make your head spin!

Enter superhuman AI 🤖. Experts predict its impact over the next decade could outstrip the Industrial Revolution. Yeah, you heard right.

The team at AI Futures Project has crafted scenarios backed by trend extrapolations, wargames, expert feedback, and their previous forecasting wins. And the best part? It’s presented in a super intuitive way.

Don’t expect a crystal ball prediction. Think of it as a turbo boost into very near futures!

Great resource to dive in and get those mental gears turning! 💡

A more sovereign AI software setup

I I am experimenting with a "sovereign" software setup that leverages AI technology while strengthening data sovereignty and privacy. This setup combines the power of local frontend tools with advanced AI models hosted in Europe.

Key Components:

1. Local Frontend Tool: I am using AnythingLLM, a versatile tool that allows me to interact with AI models locally. This ensures that key data remains on my device, enhancing privacy and control.

2. OpenAI Compatible API: The frontend tool interfaces seamlessly with an OpenAI-compatible API, making it easy to integrate with various AI services.

3. IONOS AI Model Hub: For the backend, I leveraged the recently introduced IONOS AI Model Hub, hosted in Germany. This ensures that the data I transmit to the model remains within European jurisdiction, complying with stringent data protection laws.

4. European LLM: At the heart of the stack is OpenGPT-X / Teuken-7B, a European, open, multilingual large language model developed by Fraunhofer IAIS. Its a 7B class model, so has seven billion parameters and was trained from scratch with the 24 official languages of the EU.

Why This Setup Matters:

• Data Sovereignty: By keeping data local and within European servers, such a setup ensures compliance with GDPR and other data protection regulations.
• Performance: The combination of a local frontend and a robust backend has the potential to deliver high performance and low latency.
• Innovation: Using European-developed AI models supports local innovation and reduces dependency on foreign technologies.

Future Potential:

This setup is an experiment. The model is not on par with the latest models of global competitors, but as AI continues to evolve, maintaining technological sovereignty will become increasingly important.

By using local tools and European AI models, we can build resilient and compliant AI solutions. There must be sufficient resources for AI research and development in Europe to have a realistic chance of catching up with the best models!

But not every use case needs a huge LLM, so it's also important to understand how this setup works in the real world.

#AI #DataSovereignty #Innovation #EuropeanTech #DigitalTransformation #TechTrends

#FederatedLearning #FL, a decentralised #MachineLearning approach, enables banks to gain insights into customer behaviour without centralising sensitive data. This technology, while challenging to implement, offers personalised services, improved fraud detection, and accurate risk assessment.

While this is good for banks, it also opens interesting perspectives also in #InternationalCooperations handling of data! #FutureOfCooperation

See an example from finance here.

Thanks to Khang Vu Tien for pointing this out!

🔥 #OpenAI is going #OpenSource (sort of) - again. Sam Altman says a major “open weight” model is dropping this summer. Is this the beginning of the end for closed #AI? 👀

Read the full story @ Wired