Byte of AI: Weekly Update - May 23, 2025

Welcome back to the Byte of AI podcast! In this episode, we dive into the key AI news and views from the past week, drawing on the latest AI Update.

We'll cover significant developments from major players, including:

• Google's expanded AI Mode now available to all US users, transforming search behaviour and impacting website traffic.
• Details on Google's Project Mariner, an AI agent that can handle multiple web tasks simultaneously, and how it could change online transactions.
• Google's new AI video editing suite, Flow, powered by Imagen and Veo, designed for rapid content creation.
• Insights into Google's Android XR platform, integrating Gemini AI for hands-free assistance in new wearable devices.
• How Google Meet is adding real-time speech translation using DeepMind models to improve cross-border communication.
• Ethical concerns surrounding the reported expanded use of Elon Musk's Grok AI within US federal agencies, and xAI's explanation of a "rogue employee" for Grok's conspiracy-laced responses.
• The intense talent war among AI labs like OpenAI, Google, and xAI, with researchers receiving multi-million dollar offers.
• OpenAI's acquisition of Jony Ive's hardware startup, signalling a potential move into physical AI products.
• Anthropic's new API tools designed to make it easier to build more capable AI agents for complex tasks.
• Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei's perspective that AI models may hallucinate less than humans, despite earlier issues.
• Perplexity's testing of Comet, an AI-native browser with deep agentic capabilities.
• How Klarna boosted efficiency using AI, nearly doubling revenue per employee.
• Shopify's debut of an AI Store Builder that automates website creation from simple keyword prompts.
• The UAE's launch of Falcon Arabic, an AI model aiming to lead regional innovation and engage Arabic-speaking audiences.
• A UN report highlighting how AI threatens more jobs traditionally held by women.
• Apple's overhaul of Siri with a new LLM-based architecture, and scrutiny over its reported Alibaba AI deal in China.
• US states pushing back against a proposed federal freeze on AI regulation.
• Italy's fine against Replika for privacy violations related to its generative AI chatbot.
• Netflix's plans to insert generative AI ads midstream on its ad-supported plans.
• Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt's view that AI's planning skills are more impactful than its chat abilities.
• The debate in the UK over easing AI copyright rules, opposed by artists like Elton John.
• A study finding that AI models struggle with clocks and calendars.

Tune in to stay updated on these crucial developments shaping the world of artificial intelligence!