AI is a new entrant gaining attention in the competitive world of startups. Computer scientist and Stanford University professor Fei-Fei Li, known as the “godmother” of AI, is building a new company “that would use human-like processing of visual data to enable AI to perform advanced reasoning” according to a Reuters report.
The startup’s investors include Andreessen Horowitz and Radical Ventures, which has also funded LLM model builder Kuhir, self-driving car company Wabi, and AI search engine You.com, the report said. and which Lee joined as a scientific partner last year. The new startup’s name, funding amount and valuation have not yet been made public.
Lee is co-director of the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered AI and was previously chief scientist for AI and machine learning at Google. But arguably his biggest claim to fame was the 2006 launch of ImageNet, a huge collection of labeled images — such as “dogs” or “cars” — needed to teach computers to recognize objects in images. was done. Six years later, neural network research based on the ImageNet dataset led by AI “godfather” Jeffrey Hinton helped launch the deep learning revolution and led directly to today’s creative AI boom.
In a TED talk in Vancouver last month, Lee reportedly said that advances in “spatial intelligence,” or the ability to predict and derive insights from the relationships of objects to each other — such as AI that recognizes 3D structures can, or robots that can navigate their environment. It will enable robots and computers to learn from the real world. While a representative of Radical Ventures said good fortune “We’re not commenting at this time,” it’s clear that Lee’s reputation as well as the industry’s strong interest in spatial computing (which is considered a major step toward human-level AI) is driving the startup’s investment. Makes it attractive.
Of course, the new company will be up against many others in the race for increasingly human-like intelligence, including the potential for artificial general intelligence, or AGI. Most experts say AGI is a long-term goal that will still take years or decades to achieve.
Still, it’s interesting that Lee is jumping into the profit-seeking startup space, describing herself as a “new member” on her LinkedIn. This is to ensure that top academic AI researchers can keep up with industry giants.
Last month, the The Washington Post reported That Lee asked President Joe Biden to fund “moonshot investments” in computing power and data sets to ensure that the high cost of AI models doesn’t compromise independent studies of the technology.
“The public sector lags significantly in resources and talent compared to industry,” Lee said. The Washington Post Interview “This will have profound consequences as industry focuses on profit-driven technology development, while public sector AI goals focus on creating public goods.”
Considering his track record of inventing the deep learning foundations that underpin today’s creative AI models, it’s no surprise that Lee’s new company is gaining attention. However, it remains to be seen whether she will be able to add to her already remarkable success in the very tough startup arena.
Newsworthy
Invest in twins. The Biden administration is appropriating. $285 million in CHIPS Act funding to establish research on digital twins, among other topics, TechCrunch reported. Digital twins, which are virtual models of physical objects and systems used for testing, can reduce the cost of designing and manufacturing chips, said Laurie Locasio, director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology. Access to these semiconductor chips, which are essential to developing artificial intelligence, is a top priority for government officials as it competes with China in tech innovation.
Robots for everyone. Hugging Face, known for its large library of open source AI models, has launched a collection of models, datasets and other tools. Help people build robots., reported VentureBeat. Former Tesla scientist Remy Cadin, who joined Hugging Face in March, created a toolkit called LeRobot.
The IPO moment. General Motors-backed Momenta, a Chinese autonomous driving company, has secretly… Filed for initial public offering. In the US, Bloomberg reported, citing sources familiar with the matter. Momenta could reportedly raise $200 million to $300 million from the share sale. GM will invest $300 million in the company in 2021.
Another OpenAI deal. OpenAI has Partnering with Stack Overflow, A question-and-answer site for software developers, to improve how its larger language model answers questions about programming, TechCrunch reported. Fifteen years of responses from developers on the Stack Overflow platform will train OpenAI’s ChatGPT to answer software and coding questions. After originally banning ChatGPT replies on its site, Stack Overflow will also begin integrating AI into its platform.
This day in tech history
May 6, 1998
At an event, Steve Jobs announced Apple’s first major consumer product, the iMac, since his return as the company’s CEO a year earlier. Marketed as a way to quickly access the Internet, the iMac was an instant success, and more than 25 years later, it’s still a core product for Apple.
Credit : fortune.com