
<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Shares of Google parent firm Alphabet fell 3% to a 2024 low on Thursday, after OpenAI launched a test version of SearchGPT, a new artificial intelligence-powered search engine to be implemented into ChatGPT that could enter OpenAI into an internet search market dominated by Google.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>SearchGPT, a new search engine created with OpenAI’s AI models, launched as a temporary “prototype” among a small group of users—<a href="https://www.theverge.com/2024/7/25/24205701/openai-searchgpt-ai-search-engine-google-perplexity-rival" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">reportedly</a>&nbsp;including about 10,000 people—and publishers, the company&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theverge.com/2024/7/25/24205701/openai-searchgpt-ai-search-engine-google-perplexity-rival" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">said</a>.</p>



<p>Alphabet shares fell to a new 52-week low of $167.32 as trading closed on Thursday.</p>



<p>SearchGPT summarizes information from websites and then provides short descriptions with an attribution link instead of linking directly to a website, and allows users to ask follow-up questions or open other relevant links in a sidebar.</p>



<p>In one example, searching for musical festivals in Boone, North Carolina, in August results in a list of each festival and a short description, followed by a link to a website for that festival, with a sidebar with links to other relevant results like event scheduling or ticket sales.</p>



<p>Publishers will be able to “manage how they appear” in search results, according to OpenAI, noting publishers can opt out of having their content used to train OpenAI’s models while still appearing in searches.</p>



<p>OpenAI said it plans to “integrate the best of these features” into ChatGPT in the future, though the company didn’t specify which features would be included.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-we-don-t-know">WHAT WE DON’T KNOW</h2>



<p>It’s not immediately clear how long the testing period will last and when SearchGPT will become more widely available.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>There has been speculation on a new search engine from OpenAI this year, as the company moves to compete with Google in the search market. Bloomberg&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-05-07/openai-is-readying-an-ai-search-product-to-rival-google-perplexity" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">reported</a>&nbsp;in May—citing a person familiar with the matter—that OpenAI was developing a new search feature for ChatGPT intended to compete with Google and the AI search startup Perplexity. At the time, OpenAI was “aggressively trying to poach Google employees” to develop the product,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theverge.com/2024/5/7/24151616/openai-is-entering-the-search-game" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">according</a>&nbsp;to The Verge. OpenAI was&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reuters.com/technology/openai-plans-announce-google-search-competitor-monday-sources-say-2024-05-09/" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">reportedly</a>&nbsp;planning the new search engine in May, before Google announced plans for its Gemini AI products at the company’s annual developer conference. OpenAI has partnered with several publishers over the last year, including the Associated Press, the Financial Times, The Wall Street Journal parent News Corp, and Politico and Business Insider’s parent company Axel Springer, among others. The partnerships allow OpenAI to use content by each publisher to help answer user queries and train the company’s AI models.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tangent">TANGENT</h2>



<p>The New York Times <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/britneynguyen/2023/12/27/new-york-times-sues-openai-and-microsoft-billions-owed-for-ai-copyright-infringement-case-claims/">filed</a> a lawsuit against OpenAI and Microsoft in December alleging “unlawful use” of millions of copyrighted articles by the publisher being used to train AI models. The Times alleges OpenAI and Microsoft’s technology that powers ChatGPT and Bing Chat, now called Copilot, could “Generate output that recites Times content verbatim, closely summarizes it and mimics its expressive style.” OpenAI filed a <a href="https://static01.nyt.com/newsgraphics/documenttools/82a013b9ba852548/9d4b1790-full.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">motion</a> to dismiss parts of the complaint, suggesting users did not use ChatGPT or other products from the company as a “substitute” for a subscription to the Times. The lawsuit is ongoing.</p>


In this photo illustration a Open AI logo is displayed on a

OpenAI Announces AI-Powered Search Engine That Could Challenge Google—And Alphabet’s Stock Drops 3%. Here’s What To Know.


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Google parent Alphabet came in above Wall Street’s lofty expectations in its second-quarter earnings report released Tuesday afternoon, as the internet behemoth continues to rake in tens of billions of advertising dollars.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>Alphabet’s $84.7 billion of second-quarter revenue was slightly above average analyst estimates of $84.2 billion, according to FactSet, a 14% year-over-year increase.</p>



<p>The company tallied earnings per share of $1.89, also topping forecasts of $1.84, while its $23.6 billion net income was just shy of Q1’s prior record of $23.7 billion.</p>



<p>Shares of the Silicon Valley kingpin rose slightly immediately after the earnings announcement.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>Alphabet’s report is part of a flurry of second-quarter earnings, with 25% of S&amp;P 500 companies scheduled to report fiscal results this week, according to Bank of America. A digital age conglomerate whose products include leading search engine Google, paid cable alternative YouTube TV, Microsoft Office 365 competitor Google Workspace and generative artificial intelligence chatbot ChatGPT’s rival Gemini, Alphabet is an advertising business at its core. About three-fourths of its Q2 revenues were from ads, including $49 billion from its search business and $9 billion on YouTube ads. Like it has been for many other big tech stocks during the AI boom, it’s been a very nice stretch for Alphabet stock, returning about 50% over the last year and over 100% from its late 2022 low. Alphabet is the fourth-most-valuable company in the world by market value, worth nearly $2.3 trillion as of Tuesday’s stock market closure, trailing only fellow West Coast tech companies Apple, Microsoft and AI golden child Nvidia in market capitalization. Google paid its first ever quarterly cash dividend of $0.20 per share last month.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-big-number">BIG NUMBER</h2>



<p>31%. That’s how much higher Alphabet’s second-quarter adjusted earnings per share was than the same period last year. The company is expected to contribute to the fourth-greatest share of profit growth to the S&amp;P,&nbsp;<a href="https://advantage.factset.com/hubfs/Website/Resources%20Section/Research%20Desk/Earnings%20Insight/EarningsInsight_071924.pdf" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">according</a>&nbsp;to FactSet, trailing only Nvidia, Google Cloud competitor Amazon and advertising foe Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tangent">TANGENT</h2>



<p>Alphabet’s potential <a href="https://www.cbinsights.com/research/google-biggest-acquisitions-infographic/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">largest-ever</a> acquisition, a $23 billion purchase of Israeli cybersecurity firm Wiz, <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/alexkonrad/2024/07/22/google-is-not-buying-wiz-for-23-billion-after-all/">fell through</a> late Monday after the sides were <a href="https://www.wsj.com/business/deals/google-near-23-billion-deal-for-cybersecurity-startup-wiz-622edf1a?mod=article_inline" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reportedly</a> in advanced talks for a deal last week.<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/dereksaul/"></a></p>


FRANCE-ECONOMY-TECHNOLOGY-VIVATECH

Google Earnings Top Estimates With $24 Billion Quarterly Profit


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Google plans to require verified election advertisers to make “clear and conspicuous” disclosures when their advertisements contain AI-generated content, according to a&nbsp;<a href="https://support.google.com/adspolicy/answer/13755910?hl=en&amp;ref_topic=29265" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">blog post</a>&nbsp;from the tech giant, which will institute the changes as artificial intelligence becomes more commonplace in the leadup to the 2024 presidential election.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>The update to Google’s political content policy will arrive in mid-November and will require disclosures to be placed in clear locations on images and videos.</p>



<p>Audio content is included in the disclosure requirements, though AI generated content “inconsequential to the claims made in the ad,” such as color corrections, image resizing and cropping, are exempt.</p>



<p>Videos uploaded to YouTube that aren’t paid advertising are also exempt, even if the content is uploaded by political campaigns.</p>



<p>Election advertisers who want to run election ads through Google are already required to go through a&nbsp;<a href="https://support.google.com/adspolicy/troubleshooter/9973345" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">verification process</a>&nbsp;requiring basic information from applicants.</p>



<p>A mix of human and tech tools will be used to enforce the disclosure requirements.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>Google is one of several tech companies that has faced scrutiny over its handling of misinformation. YouTube, which was acquired by Google in 2006, faced backlash after announcing this year it would&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/youtube-will-stop-removing-false-claims-2020-election-fraud-rcna87503" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">stop taking down content</a>&nbsp;containing false claims about the 2020 presidential election—when former President Donald Trump baselessly claimed voter fraud was rampant in an election he still considers rigged. YouTube said in a blog post it made the decision to protect its “community” and provide “a home for open discussion and debate.” The company was also criticized in 2020 for slowly removing or labeling videos with election misinformation.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tangent">TANGENT</h2>



<p>X, formerly known as Twitter, does not have specific guidelines for AI-generated ad content. Meta, the owner of Instagram and Facebook, does not have similar policies either, though it does have a ban against “<a href="https://about.fb.com/news/2020/01/enforcing-against-manipulated-media/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">manipulated media</a>” such as deepfakes—videos that typically use digital alterations to copy someone&#8217;s likeness and convey false information.</p>



<p>Forbes Daily: Get our best stories, exclusive reporting and essential analysis of the day’s news in your inbox every weekday.Sign Up</p>



<p>By signing up, you accept and agree to our&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/terms-and-conditions" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Terms of Service</a>&nbsp;(including the class action waiver and arbitration provisions), and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/privacy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Privacy Statement</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/youtube-will-stop-removing-false-claims-2020-election-fraud-rcna87503" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">YouTube will stop removing false claims about 2020 election fraud</a>&nbsp;(NBC News)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.axios.com/2023/09/06/google-ai-election-ads-disclosure" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Google to require disclosure for AI in election ads</a> (Axios)</p>


In this photo illustration, a woman holds a smartphone with

Google Will Require Advertisers To Add Disclosures For AI-Generated Election Ads


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Google and Universal Music Group are discussing whether to license artists’ melodies and vocals for AI-generated music, <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/6f022306-2f83-4da7-8066-51386e8fe63b?list=intlhomepage" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">according</a> to the <em>Financial Times</em>, following a recent trend of music produced by artificial intelligence that has faced backlash—and support—from music labels and artists.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>Universal Music—which represents artists like Drake, Ariana Grande and Taylor Swift—and Google are working to develop a tool for users to create AI-generated music using an artist’s voice, lyrics or sounds, the&nbsp;<em>Financial Times</em>&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ft.com/content/6f022306-2f83-4da7-8066-51386e8fe63b?list=intlhomepage" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reported</a>.</p>



<p>A deal would pay copyright holders for the right to create the music, while artists would have the choice to opt in.</p>



<p>Warner Music Group is also discussing a similar product with Google, according to the&nbsp;<em>Times</em>.</p>



<p>Neither Google nor Universal Music immediately responded to requests for comment from&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-crucial-quote">CRUCIAL QUOTE</h2>



<p>Warner Music CEO Robert Kyncl&nbsp;<a href="https://investors.wmg.com/events/event-details/q3-2023-warner-music-group-earnings-conference-call" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a>&nbsp;during the company’s earnings call Tuesday that “with the right framework in place” artificial intelligence would be able to “enable fans to pay their heroes the ultimate compliment through a new level of user-driven content.”</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-chief-critic">CHIEF CRITIC</h2>



<p>Drake voiced his opposition to AI-produced music earlier this year after he was featured in several deepfakes,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.billboard.com/music/rb-hip-hop/drake-reacts-ice-spice-munch-ai-1235303454/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">suggesting</a>&nbsp;after one song was released: “This is the last straw.” Sting said there was “going to be a battle” between “human capital” and AI, which he said “doesn’t impress me at all,”&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-65627089" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">according</a>&nbsp;to the BBC.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-contra">CONTRA</h2>



<p>Several artists have supported the development of AI-generated music, including Grimes, who&nbsp;<a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/grimes-drake-the-weeknd-ai-music-1234726521/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a>&nbsp;anyone could create songs using her voice “without penalty” as long as she receives a 50% split on royalties. Paul McCartney&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2023/06/13/ai-you-need-is-love-artificial-intelligence-helps-create-final-beatles-song-paul-mccartney-says/?sh=4c263c571275">announced</a>&nbsp;in June a new Beatles song would be released later this year, after McCartney said AI was used to “extricate” John Lennon’s voice from an old demo tape to create “the final Beatles record.”</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>Regulations and restrictions for music generated by artificial intelligence have increased in recent months. Universal Music sent a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ft.com/content/aec1679b-5a34-4dad-9fc9-f4d8cdd124b9" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">letter</a>&nbsp;to streaming services in April requesting they prevent AI programs from accessing its platforms to train on copyrighted lyrics and melodies. Universal Music general counsel Jeffrey Harleston&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uoCJun7gkbA&amp;ab_channel=CNBCTelevision" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a>&nbsp;during a Senate hearing last month that “an artist’s voice is often the most valuable part of their livelihood and public persona.” The U.S. Copyright Office noted it will only offer copyright to works “created by a human being” and not “register works produced by a machine.” Google&nbsp;<a href="https://blog.google/technology/ai/musiclm-google-ai-test-kitchen/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">released</a>&nbsp;an experimental AI tool for created music in May, which develops a song based on a text prompt. Meta&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/irenebenedicto/2023/08/02/meta-launches-tool-to-create-music-using-ai-heres-what-to-know/?sh=41419a9e444d">released</a>&nbsp;its own AI tool for creating music earlier this month, which is trained on 20,000 hours of licensed music owned by Meta.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.ft.com/content/6f022306-2f83-4da7-8066-51386e8fe63b?list=intlhomepage" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Google And Universal Music Negotiate Deal Over AI ‘Deepfakes’</a>&nbsp;(<em>Financial Times</em>)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/irenebenedicto/2023/08/02/meta-launches-tool-to-create-music-using-ai-heres-what-to-know/?sh=41419a9e444d">Meta Launches Tool To Create Music Using AI—Here’s What To Know</a>&nbsp;(<em>Forbes</em>)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/ariannajohnson/2023/05/03/ai-generated-music-is-here-sung-by-stars-like-drake-and-ariana-grande-but-it-may-be-very-illegal/?sh=612b5343aa32">AI-Generated Music Is Here—‘Sung’ By Stars Like Drake And Ariana Grande—But It May Be Very Illegal</a> (<em>Forbes</em>)</p>


Headphones, Amplifying Equipment, Studio Audio Mixer Knobs And Faders. Sound Engineering Equipment. Selective Focus. The photo is covered with sand and noise. Wireless and electronic technologies. Equipment in a nightclub, on television, radio studio.

Google And Universal Music Group Negotiating AI-Generated Music Tool, Report Says


<p><strong>TOPLINE</strong> Tech CEOs Mark Zuckerberg, Sundar Pichai and Jack Dorsey will soon have to answer to lawmakers about the rise of misinformation on their platforms and how they plan to address it, as the House Energy and Commerce Committee announced Thursday a hearing with the Facebook, Google and Twitter leaders will take place on March 25.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h3>



<p>Zuckerberg, Pichai and Dorsey—who lead Facebook, Google and Twitter, respectively—will testify at a remote hearing on “misinformation and disinformation plaguing online platforms,” the House committee announced.</p>



<p>The hearing will further the committee’s work of “holding online platforms accountable” for the issues on their platforms, committee chair Rep. Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-N.J.) and subcommittee chairs Reps. Mike Doyle (D-Penn.) and Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) said in a statement.</p>



<p>The lawmakers singled out misinformation on election fraud and the Covid-19 pandemic and vaccine as particular matters of concern.</p>



<p>The tech leaders have previously&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2020/11/17/facebook-twitter-ceos-senate-judiciary-committee-prepared-testimony.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">testified</a>&nbsp;before lawmakers in recent months, including an October&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2020/10/28/facebook-google-and-twitter-ceos-testify-in-congress-over-section-230-live-updates.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">hearing</a>&nbsp;with all three CEOs before the Senate Commerce Committee on Section 230, which shields tech companies from legal liability for the content their users post.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-crucial-quote">CRUCIAL QUOTE</h3>



<p>“For far too long, big tech has failed to acknowledge the role they’ve played in fomenting and elevating blatantly false information to its online audiences. Industry self-regulation has failed,” Pallone, Doyle and Schakowsky said in a statement. “We must begin the work of changing incentives driving social media companies to allow and even promote misinformation and disinformation.”</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-big-number">BIG NUMBER</h3>



<p>93%. That’s the percentage of Americans who say they are either very or somewhat about the spread of misinformation on the internet, according to a Gallup/Knight Foundation&nbsp;<a href="https://knightfoundation.org/articles/most-americans-would-believe-social-media-misinformation-warnings/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">study</a>&nbsp;conducted in September.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tangent">TANGENT</h3>



<p>The House Judiciary Committee also separately announced plans to investigate big tech Thursday, unveiling a series of antitrust hearings aimed at curbing tech giants’ market dominance as it develops antitrust legislation. The renewed investigation will continue the antitrust subcommittee’s ongoing work probing the tech giants and their monopolistic power, which included a July&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/rachelsandler/2020/07/29/republicans-use-tech-antitrust-hearing-to-rail-against-anti-conservative-bias/?sh=6f7e186855aa">hearing</a>&nbsp;with Dorsey, Pichai, Apple CEO Tim Cook and Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h3>



<p>Online misinformation and its spread on major social networks has come under significant scrutiny in recent months, particularly amid the Covid-19 pandemic and around the November election. Social media companies have taken significant&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/isabeltogoh/2020/01/31/heres-how-facebook-twitter-and-tiktok-are-battling-coronavirus-misinformation/?sh=2dfca99c6651">steps</a>&nbsp;to curb the spread of false information, such as Twitter&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/alisondurkee/2020/10/09/twitter-new-rules-try-to-prevent-election-and-trump-related-chaos-misinformation/?sh=262d250f6840">adding safeguards</a>&nbsp;to limit sharing posts that have been flagged for misinformation and Facebook&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/tommybeer/2021/02/18/facebook-continues-fight-against-misinformation-plans-to-debunk-climate-change-myths/?sh=7cac8aee4804">announcing</a>&nbsp;Thursday new efforts to combat misinformation around climate change. Despite their efforts, however, misinformation still continues to persist: an October study by the German Marshall Fund of the United States&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/alisondurkee/2020/10/12/facebook-users-interacting-with-misinformation-way-more-now-than-in-2016-study-finds/?sh=403d34415973">found</a>&nbsp;that engagement with false content producers on Facebook had gone up by 102% since 2016, for instance, while a September&nbsp;<a href="https://www.oii.ox.ac.uk/news/releases/covid-related-misinformation-videos-spread-primarily-through-facebook-as-its-fact-checkers-fail-to-spot-false-information-finds-new-oxford-study/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">study</a>&nbsp;from the University of Oxford found Facebook’s third-party fact checkers had only caught less than one percent of Covid-19 misinformation videos on the platform.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h3>



<p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2021/02/18/house-antitrust-amazon-apple-facebook-google/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">House to grill Facebook, Google, Twitter CEOs as Washington seeks to crack down on disinformation, antitrust</a>&nbsp;(Washington Post)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/tommybeer/2021/02/18/facebook-continues-fight-against-misinformation-plans-to-debunk-climate-change-myths/?sh=7cac8aee4804">Facebook Continues Fight Against Misinformation, Plans To Debunk Climate Change Myths</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/isabeltogoh/2020/01/31/heres-how-facebook-twitter-and-tiktok-are-battling-coronavirus-misinformation/?sh=2dfca99c6651">Here’s How Facebook, Twitter And TikTok Are Battling Coronavirus Misinformation</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/alisondurkee/2020/10/12/facebook-users-interacting-with-misinformation-way-more-now-than-in-2016-study-finds/?sh=403d34415973">Facebook Users Interacting With Misinformation Way More Now Than In 2016, Study Finds</a> (Forbes)</p>



<p><em>By Alison Durkee, Forbes Staff</em></p>


US-politics-computers-internet

Facebook, Google, Twitter CEOs Set To Testify About Misinformation


<p>Africa is joining the global race in quantum technology to
solve certain everyday problems, faster. This next era of computing is opening
up new industries and opportunities.</p>



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



<p>You may never own one in your home. The likelihood of a quantum computer in your office? Also slim. Yet the next ‘big thing’ in computing technology is unlike the everyday machines we know – quantum computers are extremely fragile and have to be kept in rooms where the temperature is a few degrees away from zero. </p>



<p>The idea of quantum technology is intriguing&#8230; yet quantum computers are already here and capable of such complex calculations (and at such a rapid speed) that it’s worth getting excited about the potential of quantum technology and what it means for Africa. </p>



<p>“It is important for Africa to be competitive in the field of quantum information science, and that the necessary skill-sets are transferred to the next generation of students so that a quantum technology environment can be established,” says Dr Yaseera Ismail, a lecturer at the University of KwaZulu–Natal (UKZN) in South Africa.</p>



<p>READ MORE |  <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="From Medicine To Nanotechnology: How Gold Quietly Shapes Our World (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wealth/2019/04/08/from-medicine-to-nanotechnology-how-gold-quietly-shapes-our-world/" target="_blank">From Medicine To Nanotechnology: How Gold Quietly Shapes Our World</a></p>



<p>UKZN’s Quantum Research Group is the largest quantum group
in Africa, comprising both theoretical and experimental physicists working in
the fields of quantum computing, communication, machine learning, biology and
open quantum systems. </p>



<p>“By exploiting the fundamental processes of quantum
mechanics, quantum computers show potential exponential speed-up for certain
applications such as factoring large numbers, solving optimization problems or
simulating quantum systems,” says Ismail.</p>



<p>Quantum computing is currently a mix between fundamental
research and early-stage technology. It holds the promise of solving complex
problems that are insurmountable today with our most powerful supercomputers. </p>



<p>“That’s because unlike conventional computers that are based on transistors and require data to be encoded into binary digits (bits), quantum computers use quantum bits (qubits), that can exist in multiple states simultaneously,” explains Jim Clarke, the Director of Quantum Hardware at Intel Corporation. </p>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow"><p>“As a result, operations on qubits can amount to many calculations in parallel, which could make certain kinds of computing problems much faster to solve.”</p></blockquote>



<p>Intel is heavily invested into quantum research and development. Partnering with QuTech (a global quantum computing and internet research lab), the computing giant have also explored silicon spin qubits, an alternative quantum computing technology that resembles Intel’s advanced transistors and may offer a better path to large-scale systems. </p>



<p>Intel ships roughly 400 quadrillion transistors per year so it is to their advantage to explore quantum technologies based on transistor infrastructure. But Intel is not alone – Google AI are also developing quantum processors and algorithms to help researchers and developers solve near-term problems. </p>



<p>“We need to cater to the curiosity of young scientists and offer local centers of excellence where they can dive into exciting research fields,” adds Dr Maria Schuld, also a part of UKZN’s Quantum Research Group. Schuld, however, isn’t convinced that quantum computers are perfectly suited for the African research landscape. </p>



<p>READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/technology/2019/06/18/how-google-is-using-ai-to-make-voice-recognition-work-for-people-with-disabilities/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="How Google Is Using AI To Make Voice Recognition Work For People With Disabilities (opens in a new tab)">How Google Is Using AI To Make Voice Recognition Work For People With Disabilities</a></p>



<p>“Fundamental research has few near-term benefits to society…
early-stage technology is risky, very costly and has an ultra-fast turnover.
With these thoughts of caution, I am still very happy that quantum computing is
getting more traction on the continent. We need to be involved in developing
the technologies of tomorrow, in order to contribute our perspectives,
influence power structures in future markets and to have knowledge readily
available.”</p>



<p>IBM are working closely with the University of the
Witwatersrand (Wits) in Johannesburg to expand their IBM Q network and make it
available to academics across South Africa as well as the 15 universities who
form part of the African Research Universities Alliance (ARUA).</p>



<p>“Because Wits are in the education space, they know that
they have to ready the next generation of computer scientists and physicists,”
explains IBM’s Dr Ismail Akhalwaya. “Quantum computing offers amazing new
opportunities for a wide range of industries. This is the time to get everyone
excited. This is the time to start learning how to use a quantum computer.”</p>



<p>Akhalwaya believes that beneficiating our own natural resources – in this case, scientific data – is imperative. The exponential nature of quantum technology means that Africa won’t be left behind when it comes to developing Africa-specific solutions. In the pharmaceutical industry, for example, new classes of medication are developed daily with billions of dollars going into research. The result? Only a handful are relevant to African medical conditions. </p>



<p>READ MORE | <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="3D Printing: From Spaceship Engines To Personalized Orthotics (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/technology/2018/12/28/3d-printing-from-spaceship-engines-to-personalized-orthotics/" target="_blank">3D Printing: From Spaceship Engines To Personalized Orthotics</a></p>



<p>“What about the diseases endemic to Africa and not the rest
of the world?” asks Akhalwaya. “HIV C is prevalent in Africa and the third
world but pharmaceutical companies are not investing as much into finding drugs
to cure this strand.”</p>



<p>&nbsp;Ultimately, the
promise of quantum is about greater efficiency and performance when it comes to
handling certain problems, but will quantum computers eventually replace
emerging technologies like neuromorphic computing?</p>



<p>“The intent of quantum computers is to be a different tool to solve different problems,” explains UKZN’s Ismail. “Quantum computers will be good for solving optimization problems, however, they cannot replace certain tasks of classical computers such as emails. Quantum computers will also change the way we ensure the security of information.”</p>



<p>READ MORE |  <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Big Data And Smart Farmers For Africa’s Agricultural Transformation (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/focus/2018/10/30/big-data-and-smart-farmers-for-africas-agricultural-transformation/" target="_blank">Big Data And Smart Farmers For Africa’s Agricultural Transformation</a></p>



<p>&nbsp;The industries that
will truly reap the benefits of quantum computing technology are those that
have high-performance computing workloads. IBM’s African research lab, at
first, will focus on HIV drug discovery, cosmology and molecular biology. The
team will also join a study in quantum teleportation, a field pioneered by IBM
fellow Charles Bennett. </p>



<p>“There are Africa-specific problems like HIV/AIDS and
developing drugs for malaria resistance, urgent problems that need to be solved
in order to save lives. As soon as we have technology that will help us solve
these problems, there’s almost a moral obligation on us to try. And
fortunately, quantum computers fit exactly that bill,” adds Akhalwaya. </p>



<p>“Classical computers changed the world. We as Africans should be paying attention. We want to be part of the next revolution, we don’t want to be left behind.”</p>



<p>&#8211;<em>Tiana Cline</em></p>


prototype of quantum processor

Africa Takes Quantum Leap In Computing


<p>Want to schedule an appointment? Just ask your phone. Need to turn on your bedroom lights? Google Home has you covered.</p>



<p>Now a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cbinsights.com/research/facebook-amazon-microsoft-google-apple-voice/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">$49 billion market</a>, voice-activated systems have gained popularity among consumers, thanks to their ability to automate and streamline mundane tasks. But for people with impaired speech, &nbsp;technologies that rely on voice commands have proved to be far from perfect.</p>



<p>That’s the impetus for Google’s newly formed Project Euphonia, part of the company’s AI for Social Good program. The project team is exploring ways to improve speech recognition for people who are deaf or have neurological conditions such as ALS, stroke, Parkinson’s, multiple sclerosis or traumatic brain injury.</p>



<p>Google has partnered with nonprofit organizations&nbsp;<a href="http://als.net/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ALS Therapy Development Institute</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="http://www.alsri.org/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ALS Residence Initiative (ALSRI)</a>&nbsp;to collect recorded voice samples from people who have the neurodegenerative disease, one that often leads to severe speech and mobility difficulties.</p>



<p>For those with neurological conditions, voice-activated systems can play a key role in completing everyday tasks and conversing with loved ones, caregivers or colleagues. “You can turn on your lights, your music or communicate with someone. But this only works if the technology can actually recognize your voice and transcribe it,” says Julie Cattiau, a product manager at Google AI.</p>



<p>The company’s speech recognition technology utilizes machine learning algorithms that require extensive data training. “We have hundreds of thousands, or even millions, of sentences that people have read—and we use them as examples for the algorithms to learn how to recognize each,” says Cattiau. “But it’s not enough for people with disabilities.”</p>



<p>With Project Euphonia, the team will instead use voice samples from people who have impaired speech in the hope that the underlying system will be trained to understand inarticulate commands.</p>



<p>While the goal is to create technology that is more accessible for people with speech impediments, the end result is still unclear.</p>



<p>“It’s possible that we will have models that work for multiple people with ALS and other medical conditions,” says Cattiau. “It’s also possible that people, even just within ALS, sound too different to have such a machine learning model in place. And in that case, we may need to have a level of personalization so that each person has their own model.”</p>



<p>Google’s speech recognition technology can comprehend virtually any voice command for people&nbsp;<em>without</em>&nbsp;speech impairments, due to the large data set that has been available for training. But some uncertainty exists about how broadly speech technology will be able to understand and act on directives from those who have difficulty speaking. The Project Euphonia team has only a limited number &nbsp;of voice samples from people with speech impediments, which allows it to focus only on specific-use words and phrases such as “read me a book” or “turn off the lights.”</p>



<p>Though Cattiau’s team has collected tens of thousands of recorded phrases, she says it needs hundreds of thousands more. That’s partly why Google CEO Sundar Pichai unveiled this project at the company’s annual developer conference in May.</p>



<p>“We are working hard to provide these voice-recognition models to the Google Assistant in the future,” he said, calling on people with slurred and impaired speech to&nbsp;<a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeu8eBOUwzs7PdH25v4lTXjzOVO8rfmfNIoUovLForMmYRipA/viewform" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">submit their voice samples</a>.</p>



<p>“Impaired speech is a very difficult data set to put together. It’s not as simple as asking people to record phrases, and there’s no data set just lying around,” Cattiau says. “We have to first put it together, and that’s a lot of work.”</p>



<p>Perhaps the most groundbreaking of Project Euphonia’s initiatives is its work on new interactive AI systems for people who are completely nonverbal. Also in its early stages, these systems are being trained to detect gestures, vocalizations and facial expressions, which can then trigger certain actions like sending or reading a text message.</p>



<p>“We want to cover the full spectrum of people—and not only those who can still speak,” says Cattiau. Although Project Euphonia is still in its infancy, it could eventually have a great impact on those with disabilities, giving them the freedom and flexibility to live independently.Follow me on&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.twitter.com/ruthumohnews" rel="noreferrer noopener">Twitter</a>.</p>



<p><em>-Ruth Umoh; Forbes Staff </em></p>


Tag: google ai