Silicon Valley and Its Bad Old Days? You Mean Today Days I Think
May 23, 2024
This essay is the work of a dinobaby. Unlike some folks, no smart software improved my native ineptness.
Sam AI-Man knows how to make headlines. I wonder if he is aware of his PR prowess. The kids in Redmond tried their darnedest to make the “real” media melt down with an AI PC. And what happens? Sam AI-Man engages in the Scarlett Johansson voice play. Now whom does one believe? Did Sam AI-Man take umbrage at Ms. Johansson’s refusal to lend her voice to ChatGPTo? Did she recognize an opportunity to convert the digital voice available on ChatGPTo as “hers” fully aware she could become a household name. Star power may relate to visibility in the “real” media, not the wonky technology blogs.
It seems to be a mess, doesn’t it? Thanks, MSFT Copilot. What happened to good, old Bing, DuckDuckGo, and other services on the morning of May 23, 2024. Oh, well, the consequences of close enough for horseshoes thinking perhaps?
And how do I know the dust up is “real”? There’s the BBC’s story “Scarlett Johansson’s AI Row Has Echoes of Silicon Valley’s Bad Old Days.” I will return to this particularly odd write up in a moment. Also there is the black hole of money (the estimable Washington Post) and its paywalled story “Scarlett Johansson Says OpenAI Copied Her Voice after She Said No.” Her is the title of a Hollywood type movie, not a TikTok confection.
Let’s look at the $77 million in losses outfit’s story first. The WaPo reports:
In May, two days before OpenAI planned to demonstrate the technology, Altman contacted her again, asking her to reconsider, she said. Before she could respond, OpenAI released a demo of its improved audio technology, featuring a voice called “Sky.” Many argued the coquettish voice — which flirted with OpenAI employees in the presentation — bore an uncanny resemblance to Johansson’s character in the 2013 movie “Her,” in which she performed the voice of a super-intelligent AI assistant. “When I heard the released demo, I was shocked, angered and in disbelief that Mr. Altman would pursue a voice that sounded so eerily similar to mine that my closest friends and news outlets could not tell the difference,” Johansson wrote. “Mr. Altman even insinuated that the similarity was intentional, tweeting a single word ‘her’ — a reference to the film in which I voiced a chat system, Samantha, who forms an intimate relationship with a human,” she added.
I am not sure that an AI could improve this tight narrative. (We won’t have to wait long before AI writes WaPo stories I have heard. Why? Maybe $77 million in losses?
Now let’s look at the BBC’s article with the reference to “bad old days.” The write up reports:
“Move fast and break things” is a motto that continues to haunt the tech sector, some 20 years after it was coined by a young Mark Zuckerberg. Those five words came to symbolize Silicon Valley at its worst – a combination of ruthless ambition and a rather breathtaking arrogance – profit-driven innovation without fear of consequence. I was reminded of that phrase this week when the actor Scarlett Johansson clashed with OpenAI.
Sam AI-Man’s use of a digital voice which some assert “sounds” like Ms. Johansson’s voice is a reminder of the “bad old days.” One question: When did the Silicon Valley “bad old days” come to an end?
Opportunistic tactics require moving quickly. Whether something is broken or not is irrelevant. Look at Microsoft. Once again Sam AI-Man was able to attract attention. Google’s massive iteration of the technological equivalent of herring nine ways found itself “left of bang.” Sam AI-Man announced ChatGPTo the day before the Sundar & Prabakar In and Out Review.
Let’s summarize:
- Sam AI-Man got publicity by implementing an opportunistic tactic. Score one for the AI-Man
- Ms. Johansson scored one because she was in the news and she may have a legal play, but that will take months to wend its way through the US legal system
- Google and Microsoft scored zero. Google played second fiddle to the ChatGPTo thing and Microsoft was caught in exhaust of the Sam AI-Man voice blast.
Now when did the “bad old days” of Silicon Valley End? Exactly never. It is so easy to say, “I’m sorry. So sorry.”
Stephen E Arnold, May 23, 2024
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