In today’s newsletter:

• News - 🤖📱 Millions of AI Profiles Set to Take Over Instagram!

• Culture - 📜🤖 AI Unveils 2,000-Year-Old Secrets in Ancient Scrolls!

🤖📱 Millions of AI Profiles Set to Take Over Instagram!

Meta is set to roll out millions of generative AI profiles on Facebook and Instagram, designed to interact with users, generate content, and simulate real engagement. These AI bots, each with unique personas and interests, aim to boost activity by following accounts, liking posts, and providing tailored responses. While the idea of artificial engagement may raise eyebrows, it aligns with Meta’s strategy to drive user satisfaction and maintain engagement across its platforms.

The move introduces practical benefits, like AI bots offering personalized advice or recommendations, but it also raises questions about authenticity and value, particularly for influencers and brands. With engagement metrics becoming increasingly driven by AI, users may enjoy the activity boost, but distinguishing between real and artificial interaction could become a new challenge in the evolving social media landscape.

🗞️ In Other News…

• Google has launched a $30 million global open call for nonprofits, civic entities, and academic institutions to join its six-month Google.org Accelerator: Generative AI program, providing funding, mentorship, and technical support to develop AI-powered social-impact solutions in knowledge, scientific advancement, and community resilience.

• Transit systems in major U.S. cities, including New York and San Francisco, are deploying AI-powered cameras to enforce bus-only lane rules, catch violators, and enhance traffic flow and transit reliability.

• Google CEO Sundar Pichai emphasized that 2025 will be a pivotal year for the company, with a primary focus on scaling its AI model Gemini to establish leadership in the competitive AI landscape.

• Generative AI is driving a robotics revolution, with smarter, more adaptable robots stepping out of factories into public spaces like restaurants and museums, promising a 2025 tipping point for innovation and widespread adoption.

• Nvidia is expanding into robotics with its Jetson Thor launch and advancements in generative AI and virtual training to capitalize on a "tipping point" in the robotics market amid intensifying competition in the AI chip industry.

📜🤖 AI Unveils 2,000-Year-Old Secrets in Ancient Scrolls!

AI is transforming the way we uncover ancient texts, with breakthroughs like the Vesuvius Challenge showcasing its potential. Researchers have used advanced neural networks to reveal nearly 16 columns of Greek text from carbonized scrolls buried by Mount Vesuvius in AD 79—texts that had been inaccessible for 2,000 years. These AI tools not only decipher the invisible ink on these fragile scrolls but also help historians interpret the content, offering a glimpse into lost works of philosophy and literature. It’s a historic leap forward, merging cutting-edge tech with timeless human curiosity.

Beyond the Herculaneum scrolls, this technology is poised to unlock other "invisible libraries," such as texts hidden in mummy wrappings or medieval book bindings. Researchers are even exploring unopened scrolls from ancient sites like Petra, with the promise of uncovering vast amounts of previously inaccessible information. With AI accelerating processes like virtual unwrapping and ink detection, we’re on the brink of an unprecedented flood of discoveries, rewriting what we know about ancient civilizations.

VC Fundraising Rounds

• HuLoop Automation, a leader in efficient, fast, and affordable AI-driven intelligent automation, has announced the successful completion of its Series A funding round. (12/23/24)

• Cursor, the AI-powered coding assistant developed by Anysphere, secured $100 million in Series B funding, bringing its post-money valuation to $2.6 billion. (12/20/24)

• Nuritas, a biotech company based in Dublin that focuses on AI-driven peptide discovery, has successfully concluded its $42 million Series C funding round. (12/20/24)

• Perplexity AI Inc., an AI startup developing a search product to rival Google, has raised $500 million in funding, tripling its valuation to $9 billion. (12/18/24)

• SandboxAQ has raised over $300 million at a valuation exceeding $5.6 billion to advance its AI and quantum sensing technologies, focusing on specialized AI model development. (12/18/24)

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