Need to Know News - November 7th, 2024
In this week's Need to Know News edition...AI models are taking over fashion runways...Amazon reveals game-changing plans for a new Alexa...Wendy's uses AI to keep those $1 Frostys flowing...plus, a whole lot more!
AI In Action
Fashion Models Step Aside As AI Glam Bots Join Them In Ads
AI is the new face of fashion ads. Mango was one of the first to use AI-generated "glam bots" in July. The company had record revenues just days later. CEO Toni Ruiz said, "It's about faster content creation." Nike, Louis Vuitton, and Levi's are also jumping on the AI bandwagon.
Why the shift? AI models are much cheaper, costing around $29 per month compared to $35 an hour for humans. Mango's tech chief, Jordi Álex Moreno, said their AI was trained on outfit images to nail the perfect look. Some designers, like Etro's Marco De Vincenzo, are excited about AI's creative potential. However, he stressed that the "human touch" is still key.
Microsoft Expands Copilot AI-Powered Advertising Capabilities
Advertisers will now have a more streamlined ad experience and a performance snapshot to quickly see important campaign insights. Video ads are getting expanded bid strategy and audience targeting options. Advertisers can even import their Google Ads video campaigns into Microsoft Advertising.
Shopping campaigns are getting attention too. Microsoft has simplified the setup process for Shopping Audience campaigns, making it easier for advertisers to get started. They've also added new product group management capabilities for more control.
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Wendy’s Bets on Palantir AI to Keep Up With $1 Frosty Demand
Wendy's is betting on AI from Palantir to keep up with demand for its $1 Frosty deal. The fast-food chain's supply chain co-op is using Palantir's AI to improve how it manages supplies for its 6,000 US stores. The goal is to spot shortages before they happen, so Wendy's has enough ingredients when promotions like the $1 Frosty bring in lots of customers.
Pete Suerken, who leads the co-op, says the AI is "so much better" than the old way of tracking supplies with spreadsheets. He says the return on investment is "significant." Wendy's tested the AI last fall and used it this summer for the $1 Frosty deal. It helped them quickly tell dairy suppliers to make more Frosty mix.
Jeff Bezos’s Washington Post Launches an AI Product After Losing 250K Subscribers
The Washington Post has launched a new AI chatbot called "Ask The Post AI." You can ask it questions, and it will find answers using the newspaper's stories since 2016. The Post says this will "delight and inform readers in new ways." But the newspaper also admits the chatbot "may not always function exactly as we hope."
Many news companies are worried about chatbots like ChatGPT. They think people might use these AI tools instead of visiting news websites. The Post's chatbot only uses the newspaper's own reporting, which should make its answers more accurate. But the Post still says readers should "confirm the results with the published articles."
At the Frontier of AI
From Banners To Generative AI: How Two Digital Revolutions Redefined The Future Of Marketing
On October 27, 1994, the first banner ads went live on the web. Some people thought they would ruin the internet. But Jonathan Nelson of Omnicom Digital who watched it happen, says banner ads changed marketing forever by letting companies reach users directly.
Now, 30 years later, he thinks generative AI is doing the same thing. Banner ads introduced the idea of tracking user clicks to learn what people like. AI takes this even further. It can use huge amounts of data to make content that's perfect for each user. Nelson says AI is "achieving the right message at scale" by developing creative content and automatically generating millions of variations tailored for different platforms and audiences.
How ChatGPT Search Paves the Way for AI Agents
ChatGPT's new search feature marks a crucial step toward more capable AI assistants. Instead of being limited to old training data, ChatGPT can now search the internet for up-to-date information - a key requirement for AI agents that can complete complex real-world tasks.
OpenAI says two main hurdles remain before AI agents become reality. First, models need better reasoning abilities, which OpenAI is addressing through its new "chain of thought" feature in o1. Second, AI needs to reliably connect with and use different tools. The new ChatGPT search tackles this second challenge by letting AI access current information.
Disney Unveils New Business Unit To Explore Opportunities And Risks For AI
Disney is launching a new tech team to tackle the growing impact of AI on entertainment. The Office of Technology Enablement, led by Jamie Voris, will explore how AI can help Disney's movies, TV shows, and theme parks while managing potential risks. This comes after recent Hollywood strikes where AI use was a major concern for writers and actors.
Disney's CEO Bob Iger sees both opportunities and challenges with AI. While the company is already using AI to "create efficiencies" and improve customer service, Iger notes their legal team is working overtime to handle AI's impact on intellectual property rights.
Alibaba's AI Strategy: Massive Ad Spend to Dominate Crowded Market
Chinese tech giants are spending big money to win the AI race in their country. Alibaba and other companies spent over 500 million yuan ($70.2 million) just in three months on AI ads. Alibaba alone put nearly 200 million yuan into promoting Quark, its AI-powered search platform.
There's a big difference in how U.S. and Chinese companies approach AI. While U.S. firms focus on making better products, Chinese companies spend heavily on marketing to stand out. Chinese tech leaders Alibaba, Tencent, and Baidu invested $7 billion in AI tech this year, though they still trail behind U.S. companies like Google and Microsoft, who spent $106 billion.
Amazon's Ceo Dropped A Big Hint About How A New Ai Version Of Alexa Is Going To Compete With Chatbots Like ChatGPT
Amazon's CEO Andy Jassy reveals a new direction for Alexa that could change how we use AI assistants. Unlike ChatGPT and other chatbots that mainly answer questions, the next version of Alexa will focus on taking real actions for users, helping complete tasks rather than just providing information.
This new Alexa is taking longer than planned, with some reports saying it won't launch until 2025. With about 500 million Alexa devices already sold, Amazon knows it has just one chance to get this right. As Amazon executive Panos Panay puts it, the upcoming products will be "pretty awesome," promising more emotional connection with users.
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