My TED talk on AI
Remember a few months ago when I spoke at the 2019 TED conference in April (and kinda used a classic machine learning reward function hack on Simone Giertz’s robot workshop)? Well the video is UP! Watch it, share it with your friends, train an AI to predict the next frame, throw a plush giraffe at it, use another AI to replace me with a giraffe—or All Of The Above??
Of course I decided to find out how a neural net would finish my TED talk. I prompted GPT-2 with the beginning of my talk (in bold) via talktotransformer.com and, um, here’s how it predicted how it would end. Thanks, neural net. I hate it.
AI is disrupting all kinds of industries.
What about… ice cream?
What kind of mindblowing new ice cream flavors could we develop using the power of AI?
How about the flavor of “Noodle”.
This might seem like the worst of the worst, but the reality is that when you think about it, there’s a lot more in the world of food than just the ice cream and food processor category.
For instance, we could create new and exciting ways to eat protein foods, we could create delicious protein foods that you can’t buy anywhere else, and food companies could sell protein foods. These are just a few ways we’ll be able to use AI to create novel and exciting new products and also offer a bigger variety of ingredients!
In addition to protein, we could explore creating flavor combinations for new foods and desserts, something called “soups”, “baked goods”, “pasta,” and “snack food” - all of these new product categories are ripe for the picking!
And then there’s the food processor business itself.
What if you could mix different types of foods together, from proteins and fats to spices and beverages? Imagine a kitchen that’s better than any kitchen you’ve ever seen, where you can make almost any kind of food at home, and all to your own specifications.
We’re not there yet - we’re just at the beginning of exploring how we can apply AI in such a wide-scale way - but this is just what we’ve got going for us. As we continue working this out, we’ll be sure to share the next great advances.
Thank you.
A bunch of the drawings I used for the talk appear in various places in my book! Did I mention I have a book coming out on November 5th? I have been working on it for two years and I’m kinda totally incandescently excited about it!
More on the book, including rejected titles!
What neural nets are saying about the book!
Events!
If you live in Denver, or Seattle, I’m coming to your city for a book event!
Denver - Wed, Nov 6 - Tattered Cover Colfax - Book launch, followed by traditional Irish music at the Irish Snug
Seattle - Tues, Nov 12 - Elliot Bay Book Company - Reading & signing! My first time in Seattle!
Bonus content!
I generated a few more ways that GPT-2 thought my TED talk could end. AI Weirdness supporters get them as bonus content. Or become a free subscriber to get new AI Weirdness posts in your inbox!
Here are some links for ordering my book You Look Like a Thing and I Love You! It’s out November 5 2019. Preordering now is one of the best ways to help my book do well - it’s like a super duper order. Plus, US orders can get greeting cards and stickers as a perk!
Amazon - Barnes & Noble - Indiebound - Tattered Cover - Powell’s