Disney making $1 billion investment in OpenAI, will allow characters on Sora AI video generator

[MrPromey]

Do we want Skynet? Because this is how you get Skynet.

[reads today's headlines]

Skynet might actually be an improvement to the direction things are heading with humans in charge. At the very least, I'm not sure the outcome would be much different.

 

[flynnibus]

What I wonder is, what happens when everyone in the meeting wants to do that and nobody is willing to engage in the discussion to provide the content that gets transcribe and summarized and repackaged and re-credited? Or are these tools only indented for the "important" people with the thinking all delegated to those they feel are replaceable/expendable?

The TLDR - "over rotate"

It happens with every new enabler that is handed out to the masses. Every shift like this goes through these phases and eventually norms and conventions shift out. A simple example.. establishing convention that AI generated content be labeled as such. Another one.. consent for AI ingestion.. where that will fall. Remember when people had to interject and say "stop replying, pick up the phone"? It's all the same kind of thing... people learning how to evolve with the tools/tech and there always is periods of "over use" and "poor application" or dislike until those norms work themselves out.

A lot of what you describe is fueled by people being encouraged to "participate, preach, or you're outside" scenario that happens with a new bandwagon topic. What is even more powerful this time is this "demand to participate" is from both internal and external.. if you can't tell the market how you are getting stronger with AI, it's perceived as a negative. That kind of pressure migrates right to the top, and downward too.

Focus in meetings will come back... once they solve who really should be in the meeting vs who just wants a debrief. Then that feedback afterwards will eventually reeducate people to focus if they want to interact.

 

[MrPromey]

The TLDR - "over rotate"

It happens with every new enabler that is handed out to the masses. Every shift like this goes through these phases and eventually norms and conventions shift out. A simple example.. establishing convention that AI generated content be labeled as such. Another one.. consent for AI ingestion.. where that will fall.

I see that going over like a ton of bricks. Some of these tricks are about the only way I think a lot of people are appearing to get anything done. I don't think anyone is clamoring to make it overtly obvious to exactly what extent, the voice they are using in most things isn't their own.

Remember when people had to interject and say "stop replying, pick up the phone"? It's all the same kind of thing... people learning how to evolve with the tools/tech and there always is periods of "over use" and "poor application" or dislike until those norms work themselves out.

Not in my company. Without a scheduled meeting, almost nobody answers and that's because other improvements that have made us "leaner" don't allow most the luxury of spontaneously having multiple thirty minute conversations controlled by the calling party throughout the day to solve other people's problems when they have their own projects and deadlines they're working to deliver on.

It's considered general etiquette here to reach out in a chat before the call to make sure the other person is available and able to accept the call unless the person making the call is senior leadership where we're all generally expected to drop whatever we're doing (or whoever we might be talking to) to answer.

A lot of what you describe is fueled by people being encouraged to "participate, preach, or you're outside" scenario that happens with a new bandwagon topic. What is even more powerful this time is this "demand to participate" is from both internal and external.. if you can't tell the market how you are getting stronger with AI, it's perceived as a negative. That kind of pressure migrates right to the top, and downward too.

Focus in meetings will come back... once they solve who really should be in the meeting vs who just wants a debrief. Then that feedback afterwards will eventually reeducate people to focus if they want to interact.

Cool.

I hope I still have a job by the time they figure all that out.

 

[flynnibus]

I see that going over like a ton of bricks. Some of these tricks are about the only way I think a lot of people are appearing to get anything done. I don't think anyone is clamoring to make it overtly obvious to exactly what extent, the voice they are using in most things isn't their own.

Again, this really isn't any different.. the new twist here is simply that generative work LOOKS like individual output at first glance.. and allows people to spew more than before. I say it's not different because you can go back and see the same thing with people using crutches to make them seem busy or productive. This is a human tactic - not a techology thing. The trait just uses new tools as time goes on...

Remember the person who wants to constantly schedule meetings to make it look like they are driving action.. and everyone is like 'this could have been an email'?
Or the person who just creates powerpoints non-stop to make reguritated information look like they actually did something themselves?
Or the person who includes way too many people on every email so they look busy and important?

The point being is this is human behavior - the form just keeps shifting. In a good work environment, those gimmicks eventually are seen for what they are and the culture sours against it.. and people see through it and the person ultimately is dinged for it. But this is a people problem - and is regulated and refined by people.. not tech.

It's considered general etiquette here to reach out in a chat before the call to make sure the other person is available and able to accept the call unless the person making the call is senior leadership where we're all generally expected to drop whatever we're doing (or whoever we might be talking to) to answer.

I'm referring to the time when people got so reliant on email that it became common for conversations to drag on or be unproductive and not reaching the right conclusions/actions because of misundertandings, lost in translation, whatever.. and the proper skill was to identify when the conversation was going downhill and rather than continue the cycle.. you intervene and STOP and instead switch to a live dialog. Be it a meeting, or a phone call, etc.

Don't take the example so literal - I'm alluding to the people skills where people have to recognize the situation and respond accordingly, rather than continue the spiral.

Point being - even tho everyone was using the tool 'right', it still took time and experience for people to learn the correct decorum and tool-specific conventions to make the thing work without frustrating people or being worse.

This is the same with all things.. be it learning what conversations should be live vs online.. in person vs remote.. etiquette in messages.. blah blah blah. Again the point is it takes time for the general population to not only flush these things out, but for people to agree on convention and then socially adopt them. The emergence of AI curated or generated content is no different - there is a learning curve while things evolve and then overtime norms are established and angst/expectations become more consistent.

 

[MrPromey]

Again, this really isn't any different.. the new twist here is simply that generative work LOOKS like individual output at first glance.. and allows people to spew more than before. I say it's not different because you can go back and see the same thing with people using crutches to make them seem busy or productive. This is a human tactic - not a techology thing. The trait just uses new tools as time goes on...

Remember the person who wants to constantly schedule meetings to make it look like they are driving action.. and everyone is like 'this could have been an email'?
Or the person who just creates powerpoints non-stop to make reguritated information look like they actually did something themselves?
Or the person who includes way too many people on every email so they look busy and important?

Sure do because I was in a Teams meeting with many of them this morning and they're still doing it over here. The Powerpoint guy has upped his game by having everyone submit a slide from a template he created with their output on it so he doesn't have to do the making part himself, anymore.

Now he just combines them and reads them to everyone and directs all questions to the person in the meeting who provided that part of the content.

Yay progress!

The point being is this is human behavior - the form just keeps shifting. In a good work environment, those gimmicks eventually are seen for what they are and the culture sours against it.. and people see through it and the person ultimately is dinged for it. But this is a people problem - and is regulated and refined by people.. not tech.

I guess I don't work in what you describe as a good environment. I don't see many companies around me with more than a couple of hundred people doing any better, though.

Maybe your company is just bleeding edge and in a decade or so, the ones who like to include a C-suite in every communication (who will never be seen responding in any of these conversation threads) will knock it off.

 

[flynnibus]

I guess I don't work in what you describe as a good environment. I don't see many companies around me with more than a couple of hundred people doing any better, though.

Every larger business has its own woes - some are common, some are specific. I've been part of both large and small businesses - helped build from a few dozen people to multibillion dollar sales, been acquired by the big guy, left to startups, been acquired again, etc.. so I've seen a lot. But the part I think is most consistent is.. bad people hire more bad people. So good leaders is core to ensuring good practices continue and bad behavior doesn't fester. But even in a huge company like where I am now - Good leaders still have to deal with the bigger overlord.. so it's not all roses.

But I'm also a believer in driving your destiny. When I didn't like how my leaders were treating our people.. I left to go work with people I did respect how they operated. I work to shape our team and our expectations of each other. We have a culture where individuals are allowed to speak up.. and usually deadwood doesn't last long. You still gotta know how to read the room and know the time and place for stuff.. and there is no protection from the next wave of layoffs.. but it is a group of people working - not just people floating. You gotta be on your toes to see whats happening all around and not get blindsided.

My wife often says I hate my job - I don't hate my job, it's just often hard. But that's why they pay me

 

[MisterPenguin]

Flynn won’t see this, but his personal insults against Aiden’s professional abilities are way, way out of line. Calling someone unemployable goes far beyond the usual insults that get thrown around here.

You missed the ones that called the one they disagreed with "stupid" and "low IQ."

Remember, it can always get worse.

 

[Ayla]

Oh we're seeing it, in electricity usage and bills going way up, fresh water being used for AI datacenters instead of people, the cost of computer hardware going up exponentially, the loss of jobs by CEO's who think AI can replace everyone...

If I didn't know better, I'd think you live in Wisconsin, where data centers are demolishing our communities, energy and water sources.

 

[HauntedPirate]

If I didn't know better, I'd think you live in Wisconsin, where data centers are demolishing our communities, energy and water sources.

It's not limited to Wisconsin.

 

[Ayla]

It's not limited to Wisconsin.

I know, but there are 4 or 5 currently being built within 100 miles of me.

 

[HauntedPirate]

I know, but there are 4 or 5 currently being built within 100 miles of me.

It could be worse, it could be 3-4 miles. With a Meta data center less than 10 miles away.

 

[AidenRodriguez731]

So at 22… and just entering the workforce… during a transition where entry level work is being choked out by new tech… you’re going to refuse to get savvy in the stuff that is going to be part of every interview?? (because every person will be expected to find the best use of it for their role)

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Maybe you went to school for game development… but you won’t be employed for long as one with that attitude (if ever)

I didn't go to school for game development, it's a side hobby of mine. I have many side hobbies and interests. I run a successful business as well. I don't need any crutches because my skill speaks for itself. But I guess we'll just have to wait and see AI is going to take over most of that grunt work stuff and ruin our economy even worse but hey atleast you don't have to think anymore! AI Corp will get the computer to do all the thinking for you.

I'm a registered nurse. My job is in the humanity sector and I can tell you I would not trust AI to tell me how to put a bandaid on much less replace anything I do, my job is going to be around whether I use AI or not. AI is trash with anything medical and they wouldn't even dream of the lawsuits that would come up when AI makes its first mistake trying to take my job.

 

[flynnibus]

I didn't go to school for game development, it's a side hobby of mine. I have many side hobbies and interests. I run a successful business as well. I don't need any crutches because my skill speaks for itself. But I guess we'll just have to wait and see AI is going to take over most of that grunt work stuff and ruin our economy even worse but hey atleast you don't have to think anymore! AI Corp will get the computer to do all the thinking for you.

Well since it's just a hobby you probably don't have the exposure and experience to know what the tools are really used for. Unless you like spending time creating docs and diagrams from scratch.. and can convince your boss to let you take several times longer than your peers to do so... you can be using AI to help create the required documentation. Or you could be using it to help improve your test coverage without all the manual code generation. Or could be using it to research a library you need or implement a simple reference design of it so you can quickly mock up the PoC. Or you could be using it to create the items for your kanban board so the team has all the items up to tackle.

You have this notion it's about 'thinking' or not.. and you're completely wrong. In the field of software development it's about accelerating and improving your efficiency. There simply is a ton of work that is done that simply can be offloaded combined with being your aid for things that you DO have to think through. Or in areas where the tools perform well you can simply be the reviewer saving you days.

You're delusional if you think you're gonna get someone to keep an employee that can only output 1/4 or half of their peers because their "skills speak for themselves". These are the skills you are having to master if you want to be relevant in software going forward. Just like in the prior generation, people learned that IDEs and plugins can speed up and improve development. You'd be an idiot to advocate that built in code analysis plugins or aids like ReSharper are somehow negatives vs making developers do the work manual.

This is what happens in the real world... not the hobby world. In the real world, you perform or you are sent away. Religion is never a winning strategy in development - you have to always be willing to learn new things and absorb new approaches.

I'm a registered nurse. My job is in the humanity sector and I can tell you I would not trust AI to tell me how to put a bandaid on much less replace anything I do, my job is going to be around whether I use AI or not. AI is trash with anything medical and they wouldn't even dream of the lawsuits that would come up when AI makes its first mistake trying to take my job.

Medical has it's own limitations for numerous reasons - most of which are liability more than fears of accuracy. Yet, so much of the work is already offloaded in similar ways. Notes are automatically transcribed or offloaded to scribes. Treatments are proposed by junior roles, but must be reviewed and approved by the qualified role. Knowledge is commonly retrieved from databases and prior work rather than from fresh discoveries.

Let's not forget most medical care is far more about accepted science (aka previously agreed upon data) than creative. Which is why it will be well suited for medical once the legalities are sorted. My middle daughter is a doctor and she's totally against anything AI in her work, but its because she focuses on what she knows she can trust -- knowing the source and credibility -- because ultimately the consequence falls on her shoulders. Probably in the next 5 years we'll have alexa like solutions sitting like a fly on the wall auditing medical care in real time... trying to do things like make sure mistakes are not made or checks are not missed.

There are so many ways this technology will shift how work is done -- digging in thinking it is only dead-end is dense.

 

[AidenRodriguez731]

Well since it's just a hobby you probably don't have the exposure and experience to know what the tools are really used for. Unless you like spending time creating docs and diagrams from scratch.. and can convince your boss to let you take several times longer than your peers to do so... you can be using AI to help create the required documentation. Or you could be using it to help improve your test coverage without all the manual code generation. Or could be using it to research a library you need or implement a simple reference design of it so you can quickly mock up the PoC. Or you could be using it to create the items for your kanban board so the team has all the items up to tackle.

You have this notion it's about 'thinking' or not.. and you're completely wrong. In the field of software development it's about accelerating and improving your efficiency. There simply is a ton of work that is done that simply can be offloaded combined with being your aid for things that you DO have to think through. Or in areas where the tools perform well you can simply be the reviewer saving you days.

You're delusional if you think you're gonna get someone to keep an employee that can only output 1/4 or half of their peers because their "skills speak for themselves". These are the skills you are having to master if you want to be relevant in software going forward. Just like in the prior generation, people learned that IDEs and plugins can speed up and improve development. You'd be an idiot to advocate that built in code analysis plugins or aids like ReSharper are somehow negatives vs making developers do the work manual.

This is what happens in the real world... not the hobby world. In the real world, you perform or you are sent away. Religion is never a winning strategy in development - you have to always be willing to learn new things and absorb new approaches.



Medical has it's own limitations for numerous reasons - most of which are liability more than fears of accuracy. Yet, so much of the work is already offloaded in similar ways. Notes are automatically transcribed or offloaded to scribes. Treatments are proposed by junior roles, but must be reviewed and approved by the qualified role. Knowledge is commonly retrieved from databases and prior work rather than from fresh discoveries.

Let's not forget most medical care is far more about accepted science (aka previously agreed upon data) than creative. Which is why it will be well suited for medical once the legalities are sorted. My middle daughter is a doctor and she's totally against anything AI in her work, but its because she focuses on what she knows she can trust -- knowing the source and credibility -- because ultimately the consequence falls on her shoulders. Probably in the next 5 years we'll have alexa like solutions sitting like a fly on the wall auditing medical care in real time... trying to do things like make sure mistakes are not made or checks are not missed.

There are so many ways this technology will shift how work is done -- digging in thinking it is only dead-end is dense.

I'll give you credit, atleast your fruit seem riper than the tree

There will be no actually good doctors or nurses entrusting their license to a computer. Full stop. It is our legal responsibility to assess and use OUR judgement, its what we went to school for YEARS to do. Computers are limited by a lot of things right now and even in the future, I just don't see myself feeling comfortable reading off a computer. But let's see of course, I'm sure the NFT/crypto bros were also saying that no one will be using money in a few years for quite a while as well.

One bad lawsuit is all it takes for the medical community to trash any concept of AI used in their field. Your limits in knowledge of the medical field really show based on your comments, as I'm sure mine do in software development as I do not develop typical software, I use game development as a hobby. I have no interest in "streamlining" it or taking any easy ways out because it's something I enjoy. Public perception of AI is in the gutter and anything with the label slapped on gets panned. Good. Let these AI companies go broke as they realize how absurd the cost to run this stuff is when consumers will barely pay $20 for it. It's a high cost/high energy field that sucks away resources from the average person, increases cost of living and destroying jobs for large chunks of our society.

What do you think happens next? Maybe you got some old war bonds and pennies stashed away from when we had a good economy but my generation is screwed and now being told by someone closer to retiring than ever looking for a new job that a system being "governed" by a shambling nursing home that can't figure out what Wifi means is the future... and we're all screwed if we don't use it.

Where do you expect all those jobs will go? What happens to our economy when all those "entry level" positions are taken up and people who are already in the job market get cut due to massive layoffs? When energy prices go nuclear and water prices skyrocket? Ah but don't worry! Corporate saved a pretty penny and they can still up the prices of everything, ungoverned, because they need the extra funding due to "innovation/technological demands"

 

[flynnibus]

Good luck living in analog land... And if you paid attention to details.. you'd notice by having a daughter who is a doctor, you can expect I've been following the medical field and their longer than you've been a nurse or school. But you're gambling on candles and the dark ages.. so I'm confident on my assessment.

 

[AidenRodriguez731]

Good luck living in analog land... And if you paid attention to details.. you'd notice by having a daughter who is a doctor, you can expect I've been following the medical field and their longer than you've been a nurse or school. But you're gambling on candles and the dark ages.. so I'm confident on my assessment.

Eh, I’m okay with that gamble. I don’t ditch my morals for money. When I know something is wrong, I won’t do it. I sleep well at night knowing that.

I became a successful business owner at 21 (first official collaboration with various multi million fan franchises being announced shortly)

I completed nursing school and I’m a nursing supervisor because of my own merit.

I developed multiple games and have my actual game that I’ve been working on for years coming out this year.

These are all things I did myself. No shortcuts, no easy ways. I did it. And it worked out well for me.

To the generation who never stood a chance because tech bros decided that slop is better than giving people actual jobs, I feel for you and I’m grateful I was able to get into the market before the tsunami that’s going to happen. Hopefully things stay that way for a long time but who knows, that’s why I’ve developed so many skill over the year. Jack of all trades

 

[Alice a]

I know, but there are 4 or 5 currently being built within 100 miles of me.

I live in Charleston, SC where the cost of living is quite high.

Yesterday I was in line at the DMV and all 8 guys behind me, plus 3 in front of me, were temp laborers in town building multiple data centers… on expensive land, where energy and water costs are already high and rising.

Our grid fails repeatedly in the summer when people are running their ACs and a new energy plant is badly needed.

It makes no sense to build data centers here.

Locals, including many influential voices in the community, have been vocal in their unhappiness about this, but the powers that be in our state capital don’t care.

 

[Ayla]

I live in Charleston, SC where the cost of living is quite high.

Yesterday I was in line at the DMV and all 8 guys behind me, plus 3 in front of me, were temp laborers in town building multiple data centers… on expensive land, where energy and water costs are already high and rising.

Our grid fails repeatedly in the summer when people are running their ACs and a new energy plant is badly needed.

It makes no sense to build data centers here.

Locals, including many influential voices in the community, have been vocal in their unhappiness about this, but the powers that be in our state capital don’t care.

Totally OT, but we love Charleston and the surrounding areas, but the cost of living is why it was crossed off our 'places to retire' list.

 

[HauntedPirate]

Good luck living in analog land... And if you paid attention to details.. you'd notice by having a daughter who is a doctor, you can expect I've been following the medical field and their longer than you've been a nurse or school. But you're gambling on candles and the dark ages.. so I'm confident on my assessment.

I have someone in the medical field as well, and obviously they have opinions about how AI may or may not help, and reading your comments and your daughters experiences around that are good food for thought. I think there may be a medical use for AI, but using it for actual diagnostics would basically become the oft-used "Doctor Google" so many patients use to try and usurp the knowledge of doctors and NPs. That starts down a dark path I'd rather not ponder yet.

For the record, I've been following the medical field longer than many around here have been alive. (Not a knock or "I'm better" at all, just commenting that I'm in the same boat!)

 

[_caleb]

I’ve been following this discussion, and I get the sense that many of you don’t have a great understanding of what AI does or how it works.

Refusing to use AI is like refusing to use Google.

Most of us have seen the results of bad AI text, image, and video output. That’s not all it’s capable of.

Most of you who are against AI are using it way more than you might think (and in ways that have likely benefited you): recommendations, social media algorithms, spell check, search results, YouTube videos, fraud detection, etc. are largely built on AI now.