Latest news with #NotebookLLM
Time of India
4 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
California's statewide AI education push: Is it putting students' academic integrity at risk?
When Governor Gavin Newsom visited Google's San Francisco office last Thursday, the focus was on the next wave set to reshape California's classrooms. Against the backdrop of sweeping layoffs at Microsoft, Alphabet and Salesforce, he announced a series of agreements that would bring free artificial intelligence training to millions of students across the state. The deals, as reported by the Associated Press, bring together California's community colleges, the California State University system, and K-12 districts with some of the largest names in technology including Google, Microsoft, Adobe and IBM. These partnerships will offer access to AI tools, exclusive versions of Google's Gemini chatbot, and the company's Notebook LLM research platform, alongside teacher training programs. In a job market where entry-level positions are disappearing under the weight of automation, this AI training is being framed as a lifeline for students to remain competitive. Yet, beneath the optimism, an undercurrent of concern runs through California's classrooms. A balancing act between innovation and integrity Faculty groups, as AP notes, are questioning how these tools will coexist with the need to uphold academic standards. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like How Effective Are Non-Surgical Treatments for Aging Skin? (Explore Benefits) AskLayers Learn More Undo Stephanie Goldman, president of the Faculty Association of California Community Colleges, called the moment a 'tough situation for faculty.' On one hand, AI literacy is increasingly non-negotiable for future careers. On the other, educators are grappling with how to ensure students develop critical thinking skills without leaning on AI as a shortcut. These concerns are not abstract. According to AP, California districts have already integrated AI in ways that tested the limits of trust. The Los Angeles Unified School District piloted an AI chatbot, only to cancel it within three months without explanation. San Diego Unified teachers experimented with AI-powered grading suggestions, with some board members reportedly unaware the software had been purchased. Meanwhile, the tools designed to guard academic integrity are themselves under scrutiny. Turnitin's AI detection features, deployed by many K-12 and college districts, were found in a CalMatters investigation to sometimes flag legitimate work as AI-generated, a false positive that can be deeply damaging to a student's record. Goldman points out that as AI capabilities are embedded directly into learning management systems like Canvas, districts face a paradox: Investing heavily in AI detection while adopting AI-enabled platforms for instruction. Scaling up with industry partners California's community college system, which educates roughly 2.1 million students across 116 campuses, will lead much of the AI rollout. According to AP, it has already signed agreements with tech giants to integrate AI into both student learning and faculty development. Google's Gemini and Notebook LLM will be accessible to students, while teachers will receive dedicated AI training modules. The Cal State University system is pursuing parallel agreements, expanding its AI programs with partners that include Amazon Web Services, Intel, LinkedIn and OpenAI. Even at the high school level, AI literacy initiatives are being shaped by corporate partnerships, with Adobe's program aimed at helping students and teachers develop both the skills to use AI and the awareness to detect it. These moves, while ambitious, place California's education systems at the forefront of AI adoption nationwide. Yet, they also grant tech companies unprecedented influence over what is taught and how it is delivered. As Justin Reich, an associate professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, told AP, 'We do not know what AI literacy is, how to use it, and how to teach with it. And we probably won't for many years. ' The pressure to act now For Erin Mote, CEO of the nonprofit InnovateEDU, hesitation carries its own risks. 'There are a lot of rungs on the career ladder that are disappearing,' she told AP. 'The biggest mistake we could make as educators is to wait and pause.' The pressure to prepare students for an AI-driven economy is undeniable. But the question remains whether this can be achieved without undermining the very qualities, such as independent thought, analytical reasoning, and originality, that education is meant to cultivate. AP notes that even earlier AI training efforts, such as the California Community Colleges' partnership with NVIDIA, are still too new for meaningful results to be shared publicly. An open chapter in California's classrooms As California's AI education push accelerates, the balance between innovation and integrity is far from settled. The rollout is expansive, touching every level of the state's education system, but the rules for responsible use are still being written. For now, faculty will have to navigate the tension between equipping students for the future and safeguarding the principles that define academic achievement. If this is the first draft of California's AI-in-education story, it is being written with remarkable speed, and the final chapters are still wide open. TOI Education is on WhatsApp now. Follow us here. Ready to navigate global policies? Secure your overseas future. Get expert guidance now!
CNBC
08-05-2025
- Business
- CNBC
Alphabet faces 'watershed moment' if AI erodes search dominance, analysts say
Wall Street's more bearish investors believe that Alphabet could be facing an uphill battle of disruption. Shares of Alphabet sank 7% on Wednesday after Eddy Cue, senior vice president of services at Apple, said Apple was "actively looking at" reshaping its Safari web browser to focus on search functions powered by artificial intelligence, according to a report by Bloomberg . GOOGL YTD mountain GOOGL YTD chart Cue's remarks came in testimony in the Justice Department's lawsuit against Apple. The executive added that he believes AI search engines such as OpenAI will eventually replace their historic counterparts, such as Google. In response, many analysts across Wall Street took a "wait-and-see" approach, with some saying the stock decline was overblown. On Thursday, Alphabet shares rebounded as much as 2.5%. More optimistic analysts pointed to Alphabet's own AI innovations, led by Gemini, a strong suite of products, the difference between search queries asked in AI versus traditional search questions and the Apple executive's own self-interest in his Wednesday remarks. But other researchers — albeit a minority — warned that cracks are showing in Alphabet's armor. Wells Fargo's Ken Gawrelski called this a "watershed moment," while Melius Research's Ben Reitzes begged Alphabet to "make a bet already and disrupt yourself before it's too late." Here's how some of Wall Street's more bearish analysts answered the Apple executive's remarks. Wells Fargo "View Apple's remarks indicating search volume declined for the first time in April as a watershed moment. Believe consumer behavior is changing and GOOGL must act to accelerate adoption of AI-powered search to maintain market leadership." Melius Research "The comments from Apple not only back our below consensus long-term estimates for Google Search — but also back downside in 2025. It may be time for Alphabet to make a real bet — instead of just experimenting all the time (Deep Research, Notebook LLM, AI mode, etc.), really confusing the heck out of people … Self-inflicted business model disruptions in the tech elite aren't unheard of … Alphabet — make a bet already and disrupt yourself before it's too late." Citizens "While we acknowledge the value of Google's distribution as it has seven services with 2B+ MAU, the superior search product offered by ChatGPT is taking share of queries. Additionally, while the valuation is increasingly compelling and Google has substantial cost levers to maintain profitability growth if search faces headwinds, we continue to view search estimates as having downside risk, and maintain our Market Perform rating given our view that the risk/reward in shares is currently balanced." MoffettNathanson Research "While the market may have been waiting for a day like today where people's worst fears on search are confirmed, we hate to say that Google investors are out of the woods. Yes, the stock is cheap … and yes, other divisions are growing nicely … and yes, search may be more resilient than people think due to commercial search share and pricing power. Our experience covering other sectors that have been disrupted tell us that this is a long bumpy journey that ultimately becomes smoother when today's worries are long in a mirror of rear view. Unfortunately, we are just starting the ride." — CNBC's Michael Bloom contributed to this report.
Forbes
25-04-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Talking Baby AI Meme, Arcana's $5.5 Million AI Movie Pipeline, IR's Secret Backers Revealed
The talking baby meme below took the social media world by storm after Canadian comedian Jonathan Lajoie posted it on Instragram Monday. There is a serious side to this hilarious meme, writes technology consultant and influencer Shelly Palmer. 'We're just months away from living in a world where any given image (especially in media, marketing, ecommerce, and presentations) has a high likelihood of being AI-generated.' He writes. 'The political, cultural, economic, and creative implications will be massive.' WESTWOOD, CA - SEPTEMBER 08: Actor Jon Lajoie attends the premiere of FXX's "The League" final ... More season and "You're The Worst" 2nd season at Regency Bruin Theater on September 8, 2015 in Westwood, California. (Photo by Paul Archuleta/FilmMagic) I wrote to Lajoie for comment, but have not heard back yet. It looks like a clever combination of Google's Notebook LLM podcast maker and one of the realistic avatars created by app like Captions, but that's speculation on my part. Lisbon , Portugal - 12 November 2024;c John Acunto, Co-founder & CEO, Infinite Reality; on Marketing ... More Summit Stage during day one of Web Summit 2024 at the MEO Arena in Lisbon, Portugal. (Photo By Carlos Rodrigues/Sportsfile for Web Summit via Getty Images) Infinite Reality's $3B Mystery Deepens Amid Lawsuits and Scrutiny. In a follow-up to its January funding announcement, Infinite Reality now says its $3 billion investment came through Sterling Select, though confusion, lawsuits, and denials persist. A Forbes investigation reveals mounting skepticism about the Florida-based metaverse startup's financial claims, valuation, and governance. The company has faced SEC subpoenas, unpaid vendor lawsuits, and murky investor disclosures. Questions remain about whether Sterling Select controls sufficient capital and why multiple entities cited in IR's press materials—such as Ashcroft Law and Google—distanced themselves. The company has acquired over a dozen firms in all-stock deals, boosting its self-reported valuation to $15.5 billion despite only $75M in 2024 revenue. Former partners, investors, and insiders expressed confusion or disbelief about IR's scale, while a former board member sued for financial documents. Infinite Reality says funds are arriving from offshore accounts and insists the valuation is justified. Trading on Nasdaq Private Markets is planned but hasn't begun. MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA - SEPTEMBER 20: Executive Producer Jonathan Yunger attends the "EXPEND4BLES" ... More Miami Premiere at Regal South Beach on September 20, 2023 in Miami Beach, Florida. (Photo by) Arcana Labs has emerged from stealth with $5.5 million in funding led by SEMCAP AI, introducing Arcana AI—a comprehensive AI-powered content production platform. Founded by industry veterans including CEO Jonathan Yunger, known for producing blockbuster franchises like Expendables and Hellboy, Arcana AI offers over 21 integrated tools for image, video, and audio creation, aiming to streamline the filmmaking process. The platform is designed to address real-world production challenges, providing features such as hyperrealistic rendering, character consistency, and seamless integration with models like DALL·E and Stable Diffusion. Currently, Arcana Labs has over 20 films in development, including a fully AI-generated sci-fi epic featuring SAG actors and the first entirely AI-produced horror movie. The company is also launching Arcana Productions to assist with content creation and Arcana Academy to educate filmmakers on AI-driven production techniques. Riffusion, a San Francisco-based AI startup, has launched a free web platform that enables users to create original music using artificial intelligence. The platform features a new AI model named Fuzz, capable of generating complete songs from text descriptions, audio clips, or visual prompts. Fuzz distinguishes itself by learning individual users' musical preferences over time, offering a personalized creative experience. Co-founder and CEO Seth Forsgren emphasizes the platform's aim to democratize music creation, stating that everyone has inherent creativity. Unlike competitors that charge subscription fees, Riffusion's platform is freely available worldwide, appealing to both professional musicians and casual enthusiasts. The technology builds upon the company's previous work in applying image diffusion techniques to audio spectrograms. Industry professionals, including The Chainsmokers' Alex Pall, have joined Riffusion's advisory board, highlighting the platform's potential in the music industry. With a small team of 10 artists, engineers, and researchers, Riffusion aims to make music creation more accessible and enjoyable for all. Numidia Valley is focused on creating a infrastructure for education, gaming, entertainment, and IP ... More ownership in an economy that skipped many of the analog systems of the 20th century. Numidia Valley Taps Lamina1 for Web3 Creative Economy Pilot. In a bid to accelerate digital transformation, Algeria's Numidia Valley is launching a pilot with Lamina1, the blockchain platform co-founded by Neal Stephenson. The project aims to establish a regional Web3 creative economy by providing infrastructure and support for local artists, storytellers, and developers. Built on Lamina1's decentralized protocol, the initiative will include training, NFT marketplaces, and smart contract frameworks for media rights and distribution. It's part of a broader strategy to position Algeria as a center for blockchain innovation in North Africa. Asteria Launches AI-Enhanced Animated Series 'The Odd Birds Show.' Asteria, a generative AI film and animation studio, has launched The Odd Birds Show, a short-form adult animated series created by Swedish animator Arvid Tappert. The series debuts across Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and follows a dysfunctional bird family hosting their own talk show. Tappert developed a hybrid production pipeline combining hand-drawn art, 3D modeling, LoRA fine-tuning, VR puppeteering, motion tracking, and AI-assisted animation. Asteria says the approach enables high-quality output with small teams. The studio is also expanding the project into a longer-form series. Asteria's proprietary AI model, Marey, was trained on ethically licensed content. SANTA MONICA, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 19: Evan Spiegel, CEO of Snap Inc., speaks onstage during the Snap ... More Partner Summit 2023 at Barker Hangar on April 19, 2023 in Santa Monica, California. (Photo byfor Snap, Inc.) Snap CEO Evan Spiegel to Keynote AWE 2025 Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel will deliver a keynote at AWE USA 2025 on June 10 in Long Beach, marking his first appearance at the XR industry's flagship event. Spiegel is expected to outline Snap's distinct approach to augmented reality, centered on Spectacles smart glasses and its in-house tools, Snap OS and Lens Studio. Unlike Meta's gaming focus or Apple's productivity push, Snap emphasizes social, location-based AR experiences. The keynote comes as AWE expands its programming with new initiatives like the Builders Nexus and AWE Gaming Hub to support XR creators. The 2025 conference will feature over 6,000 attendees, 400 speakers, and 300 exhibitors, including Qualcomm and XREAL. Snap's ecosystem has often placed it outside mainstream XR circles, but Spiegel's presence at AWE signals growing engagement. Full event details and ticket information are available on the AWE USA 2025 website. The 2025 Tribeca Festival, presented by OKX, today announced its Immersive program, titled In Search ... More of Us, a genre-defying exhibition spotlighting 11 groundbreaking projects—including six world premieres—by visionary artists working at the forefront of immersive storytelling. Tribeca Festival Announces 2025 Immersive Lineup 'In Search of Us.' Tribeca Festival has unveiled its 2025 immersive program, In Search of Us, featuring 11 XR and AI-driven projects, including six world premieres. Presented in partnership with Onassis ONX and Agog, the exhibition explores themes like memory, identity, and collective imagination. Projects range from a haptic VR experience about electroshock therapy to an AI-generated installation on media violence. Notable creators include Jakob Kudsk Steensen, Cameron Kostopolous, Idris Brewster, and Meghna Singh. The works will be presented at Water Street Projects at WSA, a Lower Manhattan arts hub. General admission tickets go on sale April 29 at Stay: Forever Home for the Quest 3 was created by Windup Minds, a team led by Bernard Yee, the ex-Meta lead who was responsible for all the first-party Quest showcase apps you know and love like First Steps and First Contact. Using an AI-powered personality engine, Ember will react and learn from your interactions and develop a unique bond with their owner over time This column serves as the script for the news segment of our weekly AI/XR Podcast, co-hosted by former Paramount futurist and co-founder of Red Camera, and Rony Abovitz, founder of Magic Leap, Mako Robotics, and Synthbee AI. This week's guest is Sam Liang, CEO of Otter AI. You can find us on Spotify, iTunes, and YouTube. What We're Reading The 50 Best Selling Titles on Meta Quest Store (Road to VR). The top five titles might not surprise you, but the rest of them might.
