‘A lot worse than expected’: AI Pac-Man clones, reviewed

Video Friday is your weekly selection of awesome robotics videos, collected by your friends at IEEE Spectrum robotics. We also post a weekly calendar of upcoming robotics events for the next few months. Please send us your events for inclusion.European Robotics Forum: 25–27 March 2025, STUTTGART, GERMANYRoboSoft 2025: 23–26 April 2025, LAUSANNE, SWITZERLANDICUAS 2025: 14–17 May 2025, CHARLOTTE, NCICRA 2025: 19–23 May 2025, ATLANTA, GALondon Humanoids Summit: 29–30 M

Sam Altman, the OpenAI boss, has declared its new model ‘good at creative writing’. We asked writers including Tracy Chevalier, Kamila Shamsie and David Baddiel if they agreeThis week has seen writers divided over a story written by an AI model that is “good at creative writing” – at least according to Sam Altman, the CEO of ChatGPT company OpenAI, which is developing the new model. Author Jeanette Winterson, writing in the Guardian on Wednesday, agreed with him, ca

My freedom of information request revealed the inane use of ChatGPT by the tech secretary. Is this the future? I hope notTwo tech-related things made me laugh this week. One was Donald Trump’s childlike exuberance at seeing the dash panel of a Tesla on the White House lawn, and his wondrous exclamation that “everything is computer”.The other was equally hilarious, also tied to politics. Keir Starmer stood up yesterday in Hull and said waste would be thrown by the wayside and th

Use of Freedom of Information Act to reveal Peter Kyle’s ChatGPT queries has shocked experts and left journalists wondering what to request nextTechnology secretary Peter Kyle asks ChatGPT for science and media adviceWhen Tony Blair looked back on his time in power, he had a simple assessment of his decision to introduce the Freedom of Information Act: “You idiot.”While the technology secretary, Peter Kyle, is a fan of the former prime minister, he may be inclined to agree with

Union says staff will have been left reeling after surprise news that body will be scrappedStarmer is now talking about regulatation, and giving examples of where he thinks it has gone too far.l give you an example. There’s a office conversion in Bingley, which, as you know, is in Yorkshire. That is an office conversion that will create 139 homes.But now the future of that is uncertain because the regulator was not properly consulted on the power of cricket balls. That’s 139 homes. N

Strong advocate of AI use in government asks chat tool which podcasts to appear on and to define ‘quantum’Peter Kyle, the science and technology secretary, has asked ChatGPT for advice on a range of work-related issues, including why British businesses are not adopting artificial intelligence and what podcasts he should appear on.Information provided to the New Scientist magazine in response to a freedom of information request showed that Kyle, an advocate for AI within the governmen

Union says staff will have been left reeling after surprise news that body will be scrappedStarmer is now talking about regulatation, and giving examples of where he thinks it has gone too far.l give you an example. There’s a office conversion in Bingley, which, as you know, is in Yorkshire. That is an office conversion that will create 139 homes.But now the future of that is uncertain because the regulator was not properly consulted on the power of cricket balls. That’s 139 homes. N

Ukraine’s young tech entrepreneurs think that a combination of robots and lessons from war-gaming could turn the tide in the war against Russia. They are developing an intelligent operating system to enable a single controller to remotely operate swarms of interconnected drones and cannon-equipped land robots. The tech, they say, could help Ukraine cope with Russia’s numerical advantage. Kyiv-based start-up Ark Robotics is conducting trials on an embryo of such a system in cooperatio

In a speech on changes to the civil service, Keir Starmer announced NHS England would be abolished to 'cut bureaucracy' and bring management of the health service 'back into democratic control'. The prime minister said decisions about billions of pounds of taxpayers' money should not be taken by an 'arm's-length' body, as he promised sweeping changes that the government says will deliver better care for patients. He also said AI provided an opportunity to make £45bn in efficiency savings a

The new digital ‘mantra’ prompts unions to warn PM to stop blaming problems on Whitehall officialsAI should replace the work of government officials where it can be done to the same standard, under new rules that have prompted unions to warn Keir Starmer to stop blaming problems on civil servants.As part of his plans for reshaping the state, the prime minister will on Thursday outline how a digital revolution will bring billions of pounds in savings to the government. Continue readin

I think of AI as alternative intelligence – and its capacity to be ‘other’ is just what the human race needsChatGPT firm reveals AI model that is ‘good at creative writing’‘A machine-shaped hand’: Read a story from OpenAI’s new creative writing modelI think of AI as alternative intelligence. John McCarthy’s 1956 definition of artificial (distinct from natural) intelligence is old fashioned in a world where most things are either artificial or

Posting the piece online, OpenAI’s Sam Altman said this is the first time he has been “really struck” by AI writingChatGPT firm reveals AI model that is ‘good at creative writing’Jeanette Winterson: OpenAI’s metafictional short story about grief is beautiful and movingBefore we go any further, I should admit this comes with instructions: be metafictional, be literary, be about AI and grief and, above all, be original. Already, you can hear the constraints humm

Generative AI models are getting closer to taking action in the real world. Already, the big AI companies are introducing AI agents that can take care of web-based busywork for you, ordering your groceries or making your dinner reservation. Today, Google DeepMind announced two generative AI models designed to power tomorrow’s robots. The models are both built on Google Gemini, a multimodal foundation model that can process text, voice, and image data to answer questions, give advice, and g

As tech firms battle creative industries over copyright, OpenAI chief Sam Altman says he was ‘really struck’ by product’s outputThe company behind ChatGPT has revealed it has developed an artificial intelligence model that is “good at creative writing”, as the tech sector continues its tussle with the creative industries over copyright.The chief executive of OpenAI, Sam Altman, said the unnamed model was the first time he had been “really struck” by the

Since pontiff was hospitalised conspiracy theories have swirled online claiming he has diedWhile Pope Francis was being treated for double pneumonia, Italian TikToker Ottavo made his way unchallenged into a ward at Gemelli hospital in Rome, followed by a camera. His aim was to bolster a conspiracy theory circulating on social media for weeks: that the 88-year-old pontiff was dead “and the Vatican refuses to tell us”.“There’s no security at all – nothing whatsoever,&

The belief that technology will usher in a golden age for humanity is in vogue once more with billionaires. But can the left offer its own vision for the future?Techno-optimism – the belief that technology will usher in a golden age for humanity – is in vogue once more.In 2022, a clutch of pseudonymous San Francisco artificial intelligence (AI) scenesters published a Substack post entitled “Effective Accelerationism”, which argued for maximum acceleration of technological

Microsoft and Google have both recently released new generative AI models that simulate video game worlds – with notable limitations. What can they do?Another month, another revolutionary generative AI development that will apparently fundamentally alter how an entire industry operates. This time tech giant Microsoft has created a “gameplay ideation” tool, Muse, which it calls the world’s first Wham, or World and Human Action Model. Microsoft claims that Muse will speed u

After January’s Southern California wildfires, the question of burying energy infrastructure to prevent future fires has gained renewed urgency in the state. While the exact cause of the fires remains under investigation, California utilities have spent years undergrounding power lines to mitigate fire risks. Pacific Gas & Electric, which has installed over 1,287 kilometers of underground power lines since 2021, estimates the method is 98 percent effective in reducing ignition threats.

We live in dark, depressing and – frankly – terrifying times. Will technology push us over the edge or help us exit our many crises?Today we live in an era defined by crisis. Indeed, we are facing multiple overlapping threats at once: from accelerating climate breakdown to the rise of authoritarianism across the world, we are in a situation that the historian Adam Tooze calls “polycrisis”. It is no wonder that hope is scarce, pessimism is high and despair is pervasive. As

We live in dark, depressing and – frankly – terrifying times. Will technology push us over the edge or help us exit our many crises?Today we live in an era defined by crisis. Indeed, we are facing multiple overlapping threats at once: from accelerating climate breakdown to the rise of authoritarianism across the world, we are in a situation that the historian Adam Tooze calls “polycrisis”. It is no wonder that hope is scarce, pessimism is high and despair is pervasive. As

Autonomous digital assistants are being developed that can carry out tasks on behalf of the user – including ordering the groceries. But if you don’t keep an eye on them, dinner might not be quite what you expect …I’m watching artificial intelligence order my groceries. Armed with my shopping list, it types each item into the search bar of a supermarket website, then uses its cursor to click. Watching what appears to be a digital ghost do this usually mundane task is str

Users may have difficulty once they arrive on real-life dates, without their phone to help them, say academicsAI bots will soon be rolled out on dating apps to flirt with people, craft messages on users’ behalf and write their profiles for them.But depending on artificial intelligence to foster budding relationships risks eroding what little human authenticity is left on dating platforms, experts have warned. Continue reading...