The TfC Ramble: 2023.03.25
NVidia = AI Picks & Shovels. Content disasters that made me think. Red Hulk, Howard the Duck, and Death. 3D printed rockets.
The TfC Ramble is a weekly buffet of content from the intersection of comics and technology.
AI & Machine Learning
We are at the iPhone moment of AI. ~ Jensen Huang
In any technology “gold rush,” there is always someone providing the metaphorical picks and shovels. Arguably, the most influential company in this category regarding AI is NVidia. There were several important takeaways from their GTC event this week.
This is a good summary cut.
And this is the full keynote from the man most likely to be targeted by time travellers and robots from the future.
Highlights
31:39 DGX Cloud - NVidia AI-compatible processing will be offered in the cloud via a browser.
37:55 “Everyone can direct computers to solve a problem.” A good list of companies using AI starts in this section.
39:20 “Some companies need to build custom models, with proprietary data, that are experts in their domain.” NVidia AI Foundations, a cloud service, will allow the creation of custom models trained with a company’s proprietary data for domain-specific tasks. Note: ChatGPT has limited knowledge of events that occurred after September 2021, so it can’t tell you who won the most recent world cup, for example.
42:36 Re. Nemo service. “After putting the model to work, it can continuously improve with reinforcement learning based on user interactions.” Stash this in the back of your brain. I’ll come back to this one in a future post.
42:54 “Picasso is a visual language model-making service for customers who want to build custom models trained with licensed and proprietary content.” Among the highlighted partners is Getty Images which will be using its “rich library of responsibly licensed professional images and video assets.” This explains the OpenAI lawsuit. Can Disney be far behind?
45:40 “… a significant expansion of our long-time partnership with Adobe to build a set of next-generation AI capabilities for the future of creativity.” “To protect artists’ rights, Adobe is developing with a focus on commercial viability and proper content attribution powered by Adobe’s Content Authenticity Initiative.”
46:20 “Our third language domain is biology.” It is easy to focus on the threat to creativity AI seems to pose, but it is important to remember that there aren’t many industries that won’t be affected.
53:58 Snikeys! Don’t miss this demo.
If you haven’t heard of the company before, you likely aren’t a gamer this is a good introduction.
Not NVidia related, but I know some of you are into podcasting: The best AI tools for podcasters: From scriptwriting to audio editing to marketing your show
NFTs
Notable Drops
It was a slow week in NFT sales for big two comics this week, featuring lesser-known characters and modest edition sizes. There were no instant sellouts like we’ve seen over the last few weeks. These issues are all still available for purchase as of 6 am, March 25, 2022.
Death: The High Cost of Living (1993) #1. Edition Size: 4000 $9.99
Hulk #1 - The first appearance of Red Hulk. Edition Size: 7500 $6.99
Adventure Into Fear #19 - The first appearance of Howard the Duck.
Edition Size: 7500 Price: $6.99
Technology & Your Business
These posts are a cautionary tale about digital archiving. The first video from one of my favourite influencers in the camera world has nothing to do with comics, but it definitely made me pause to think about where I am vulnerable!
Similarly, this post from creator Russell Nohelty. Ouch. Just ouch.
Most times, I add things to The Ramble via the web. After seeing these, the info hoarder in me is telling me I should start archiving the finished posts offline!
Writer Accountability
Accounting.
Taxes.
I’m still not done. Enough said.
Thank you to everyone who has sent in their feedback on the first draft of “Lump Dog.” There have been some great comments so far.
Just for Fun
This one is for my fellow space launch geeks. This week we saw the first test launch of a rocket that was 85% 3D printed! Jump to the 1:28:00 mark.
Also, this gem. Be sure to swipe to see all of the examples.