Fast Snacks 🥡

The Biggest Startup Deals Of 2023

There were eight deals of at least a half-billion dollars or more consummated this year involving AI startups…

$1B Military Startup Is In A Nosedive
Rebellion Defense promised to deliver cutting-edge AI for the U.S.-U.K. alliance, but after losing its founders and shuttering its British arm, the company’s U.S. operation is trying to survive…

The Year AI Conquered Our Imaginations
Generative AI wasn’t invented in 2023, but 2023 was the year it became a hit. Now we’re left to wonder where tech’s first exciting innovation in a while will lead humanity—and the robots themselves…

Build Your First AI Application (sponsored)
Unlock the power of AI without any coding. Watch this free AI course, hosted by MindStudio, and learn how to build custom AI apps for your team. Start learning today…

AI Is Replacing Santa’s Elves 🎁

The elves might still prefer traditional methods, but artificial intelligence has arrived like a high-tech sleigh, revolutionizing the industry in ways even Santa hadn’t imagined.

From the design desks at LEGO to the assembly lines at Hasbro, AI is the new elf on the shelf, overseeing everything from creation to production.

Take LEGO, for example. They’ve employed an AI-powered design tool that’s more efficient than a room full of elves on double espresso by exploring brick combinations faster, and trimming down the time it takes to bring new toys from the North Pole (or the corporate office) to your living room.

Hasbro isn’t far behind, using AI to whip up toy designs faster with tech to help predict which toys will soar off the shelves.

But it’s not all about design…

In the factories, AI has taken over precision tasks by ensuring that each toy is as perfect as the star on top of your Christmas tree. LEGO’s robots and automated systems in their factories work tirelessly, sorting and packing blocks with greater accuracy than the most meticulous elf.

Plus, Toys like Cognitoys’ Dino and Fisher-Price’s Smart Toy Bear are personalizing playtime with internal AI systems.

Maybe one day, even Santa will swap his sleigh for a drone and his list for a database. Until then, we’ll keep marveling at how AI is making the toy world merrier, one smart toy at a time.

Aura: A Powerful New Text-To-Speech API 🔊

In an LLM-centric world, speech-to-text and text-to-speech technologies have become indispensable.

Introducing Aura, a powerful real-time text-to-speech (TTS) API for conversational voice applications. Compared to alternatives, Aura produces human-like speech more quickly and efficiently.

Learn more about Deepgram Aura and how you can join the waitlist.

Join The Waitlist →

Apple’s iPhone Is Getting Waaaay Smarter

Hold onto your bedazzled phone cases because Apple just dropped two research papers that hint at the future of iPhones, and cough cough it looks like they’re built around AI.

Yes, it appears Apple is leaning waaaay into AI, and this isn’t just incremental improvement – we’re talking Siri on steroids and your own customizable digital avatar roaming the web.

Here’s the gist: Apple did research on running powerful AI models on devices with limited memory like you know… an iPhone. It’s an important challenge to overcome because to get the most out of an LLM, you need to be able to power it – that’s what the research aims to do.

They’re also explored a new technology they call HUGS, or Human Gaussian Splats, which essentially allows you to create a digital avatar of yourself that you can animate however you like.

Or in other words – Apple spent time doing what Apple does best – innovating for the future.

But what would this new research really mean for readers like you and me? Well, we predict:

• Supercharged Siri: Forget basic questions and weather updates. Imagine a Siri that writes emails, generates poems, and translates languages on-the-fly, all powered by advanced AI running directly on your iPhone.
• Your Own Digital Mirror: Create a 3D avatar that looks and moves just like you with just a short video clip. Use it to express yourself on social media, immerse yourself in games, or even learn by interacting with virtual worlds in a whole new way.

The research is still in its early stages, but the potential is big. Apple’s iPhone could turn from your pocket paperweight to your AI companion, your creative collaborator, and even your virtual passport.

The bottom line: It’s Steve Jobs’s Apple’s world, and we’re just living in it.

5 Random AI-Powered Tools You Might Like

• Magic Hour: An AI-app for creating video-to-video, animation videos, and face swap videos.
• Rex Nutribot: A Whatsapp tool for tracking calories, workouts, and meals.
• Drawww: A real-time AI drawing tool optimized for iPad.
• Picmojo: Turn your everyday images into professional headshots.
• Magic: An optimization tool that upgrades your AI workflow with integrations with Bard, Claude, Midjourney, & more.

Generations For The Holiday Season

Dropping the hardest Xmas album of the year.

Krampus appearing on the Late Night Show.

He sees you when you’re sleeping.

Grandma got runover by a reindeer.

Share on Pinterest