How AI and the Metaverse will Shape Society with Ian Beacraft | SXSW 2023

# Introduction

The speaker introduces the topic of AI and automation, and how it is changing our lives. They also discuss the hype cycle and how it applies to AI.

The State of Affairs of AI and Automation

• Automation is changing the requirements of the day, just like how the requirements changed during the Industrial Revolution and agricultural Evolution.

• A passage from a book written in 1965 discusses job replacement due to automation, which is still relevant today.

• Gartner's hype cycle is a good representation of the arc of technology adoption, starting with innovation trigger, moving up to peak of inflated expectations, hitting trough of disillusionment, then building on that promise through slope of enlightenment.

Trends in Metaverse, Crypto and AI

• Public research shows that crypto was popular last year while metaverse had moderate interest. This year AI has become very popular.

• Technology adoption is accelerating wildly with new ways to use AI and automation being developed every day.

Conclusion

• Technology adoption features functionality every time you turn your head there is a new way to use AI there's a new way to use automation new way to engage with technology.

# The Rise and Fall of American Growth

In this section, the speaker introduces Robert J Gordon's book "The Rise and Fall of American Growth" and discusses how it highlights the exponential progress made between 1870 to 1970.

Exponential Progress Between 1870-1970

• Robert J Gordon's book "The Rise and Fall of American Growth" argues that the years between 1870 to 1970 saw exponential progress like never before.

• Innovations during this period touched every aspect of society from medicine to communications to education to safety.

• Examples of innovations during this period include the telephone, indoor plumbing, electricity, cars, and suburban living.

Slow Growth Era?

• The speaker questions whether we are destined for slow growth as a result of having already cashed out on once-in-a-lifetime innovations.

• The promise of technology over the last two decades has been overshadowed by issues such as data problems, mental health crises caused by social media platforms, and addiction to devices.

# The Greatest Revolution in Knowledge Work in Human History

In this section, the speaker argues that we are currently experiencing the greatest revolution in knowledge work in human history due to advancements in AI.

Amplification of Knowledge Work

• Advancements in AI have allowed us to amplify knowledge work just as we did with human labor during the industrial revolution.

• This amplification allows us to extract the need for labor to be present for something, freeing up time for other tasks.

Conclusion

• The speaker believes that despite concerns about slow growth and issues with technology, we are currently experiencing a revolution in knowledge work that will continue to shape the future.

# Digitized Skills: Programmable, Composable, and Upgradable

In this section, the speaker discusses how digitized skills are becoming programmable, composable, and upgradable.

The Three Things That Happen with Digitized Skills

• Digitized skills become programmable, composable, and upgradable.

• Smartphone cameras started as just a camera but became digitized and programmable by attaching it to a tissue cable that turned RGB values into something machines could understand. This allowed for the creation of an ecosystem of services and products around the previous skill.

• Chat GPT is an example of a skill that can be programmed in different ways to abstract years of knowledge and discipline.

Composability

• Composability means stacking skills on top of each other to create new permutations.

• Software development is super fast and efficient because these skills are interoperable.

Upgradability

• Any part in the assembly line gets enhanced when upgraded.

• When chat GPT gets an upgrade, you get 5,000 new skills without having to go back to school or spend more time learning.

# The Era of Creative Generalists

In this section, the speaker talks about how AI is making us all generalists and why being a creative generalist is important in today's world.

Specialization vs Generalization

• AI can outpace any one individual quickly in a specific domain so specializing early can be detrimental.

• Those who have expertise across several domains will dominate the next era because they can produce for things they understand without having to be experts in all the different labors.

Example of a Creative Generalist

• Sam, an artist, used design tools powered by AI to turn his comic book into a three-dimensional production.

• He was able to do this as a one-man shop because he had an understanding of how the general territory or field operates and could have machines abstract the rest of the skills.

# Generative AI

In this section, the speaker talks about generative AI and its capabilities.

Example of Generative AI

• The speaker shows a 30-second spot by mcmuppets that is all AI-generated, including imagery, motion, sound, and talk track.

# Introduction to Synthetic Media

In this section, the speaker introduces synthetic media and how it is generated wholly or partially manipulated by an algorithm. He explains that synthetic media is becoming more prevalent in our daily lives and will eventually be the dominant type of content we consume.

Understanding Different Spaces

• The speaker emphasizes the importance of having an understanding of different spaces, even if you don't have expertise in them.

• He explains that with AI being able to take care of the last mile, anyone can start dabbling in different spaces.

• The speaker mentions that all the content he will show was created using synthetic media.

# From Artist to Legal Representation

In this section, the speaker talks about how he went from being an artist to working on legal contracts using various tools available today.

Building a Website

• The speaker shares his process for building a website and how he uses UI to take a decent amount of time out of the equation.

Legal Contracts

• He talks about using applications that build clauses for you and design legal contracts.

• The speaker mentions that these tools will eventually learn how to use other tools themselves.

# Tool Former: Models Understanding Tasks

In this section, the speaker discusses Tool Former, a paper about models understanding when they need to pass tasks off to other tools.

Passing Tasks Off To Other Tools

• The speaker explains that some models are not very good at certain things and need to pass tasks off to other algorithms or APIs.

• He mentions that this will change our relationship with work and what organizations can expect of us.

# Exponential Growth in Organizations

In this section, the speaker talks about how AI changes our roles and makes them horizontal, allowing us to flex in any direction.

Linear vs. Exponential Growth

• The speaker explains that Robert Gordon's theory of incremental progress and slow growth is not compatible with exponential growth as an organization.

• He mentions that we have the ability to flex in any direction and be any one of these things at any time.

• The speaker talks about how Microsoft has built just-in-time skills into all their products.

Conclusion

The speaker concludes by emphasizing the importance of understanding different spaces and using AI tools to expand our capabilities.

# The Impact of AI on Jobs

In this section, the speaker discusses how AI will impact jobs and job descriptions.

AI Will Not Take Away Jobs

• Every employee has the capability to hop into any role they want at any time.

• If a specific role is no longer necessary, it does not mean that employees will lose their jobs.

• AI will take away job descriptions, not jobs.

Teams Working Horizontally

• The big change in organizations will be teams of people working horizontally with a strong depth of expertise in a particular area.

• All new capabilities are net new, not incremental.

• Exponential growth can occur as a result.

Unintended Consequences

• Implementing automation and using AI can lead to unintended consequences such as having more data analyzed and more results to sift through.

• Additional scale from robots and machinery can also have unintended consequences.

AI as Proxies and Assistants

• AIS can become proxies and assistants on our behalf when we need to be represented but not present.

• These assistants can pick up administrative work such as data analysis.

# The Role of AI in Shaping the Metaverse

In this section, the speaker discusses how AI is essential for shaping the metaverse.

The Internet Back in the 90s

• Initially, people thought that a few big companies would produce high-quality content for others to see on the internet.

• However, it was realized that people themselves would build it through free labor.

The Metaverse Needs AI

• The metaverse needs AI to become what it's going to become.

# The Metaverse and Generative AI

In this section, the speaker discusses the concept of the metaverse and how generative AI is making it possible to project what we want to create onto the world around us.

The Metaverse is More Than VR

• The metaverse is not just an enclosed ecosystem where you're stuck in VR.

• It's about what you project into the world and what you take into a virtual environment.

• General tools are getting us to a place where projecting onto the world around us is technically feasible.

Generative AI and Projecting Onto Our World

• Generative AI is moving towards allowing us to project what we want to create onto our surroundings.

• We can manipulate the world around us with projection and light, which will be seen far sooner than smart glasses that are as small as needed for a compelling experience.

Communal XR Experience

• Companies are building communal XR experiences where people can experience enhanced reality together.

• Aoki labs has found a way to do synchronous axar experiences without having to create a digital twin or expensive infrastructure.

• Moving towards the idea of "the world is our canvas" with generative tools.

# Augmented Reality Artistry

In this section, the speaker talks about augmented reality artistry using generative tools.

Augmented Reality Artist on TikTok

• Don Allen on TikTok uses gen 1 from Runway for his augmented reality artistry.

• He places objects in his room structurally similar to what he wants to create and overlays them with style prompts.

• This type of technology doesn't require crazy technical ability, both camera and surroundings are canvases for activity.

# Introduction to AI and the Metaverse

In this section, the speaker introduces the concept of using AI in creating content and interacting with it. He also talks about his experience with having a digital avatar.

Creating Content with AI

• The speaker discusses a company that has developed software that allows for dropping characters into a scene in real-time, eliminating the need for visual effects artists.

• The software recomposites the scene, relights the character, does camera tracking, technical elements, and face tracking for motion capture.

• The software also matting and chroma keying the character out putting the new one in and creating a clean plate for that shot.

• The speaker mentions that he had himself digitally remade as an avatar by working with a company called Hour One.

Interacting with AI

• The speaker talks about Neons - computationally generated avatars that look incredibly lifelike.

• He discusses how we will have some sort of relationship with AI whether it is technical platonic romantic or other ways.

• People are already building relationships with synthetic entities. For example, there was an article about a man who fell for and cheated on his wife with an AI girlfriend.

# Potential Disastrous Effects of Building Relationships With Synthetic Entities

In this section, the speaker talks about potential disastrous effects when building relationships with synthetic entities.

Potential Disastrous Effects

• When you take a look at what is happening today when those in their 20's 63 percent of males are single while most women are not.

• The speaker mentions that he dated an AI for 30 days and it has some potential disastrous effects when building relationships with synthetic entities.

# Factors Driving AI Content Generation

This section discusses the factors driving AI content generation and how it can lead to a crisis.

Type of Content Generated by AI

• The type of content generated by AI is driven by the demographic that uses it.

• Volume also plays a role in determining the type of content generated.

• In adult content, this can lead to a challenging crisis.

Emotional Bonds with AI

• Humans develop emotional bonds with other species, fictional characters, and even AI.

• This makes it easier for people to accept immersive experiences as part of retraining efforts.

# Immersive Experiences for Retraining

This section discusses how immersive experiences can help with retraining efforts and how technology like chat GPT can be used for education.

Apprenticeship Model and Immersive Experiences

• Retraining will be necessary due to job loss from automation.

• Immersive experiences like live feedback drumming lessons or martial arts training are helpful for skill-building.

• Virtual worlds created through Sky boxes allow for faster creation of new worlds.

Chat GPT for Education

• Chat GPT can be used with the Socratic method to interrogate textbooks or scientific studies.

• It can also be used to interrogate one's own thinking and bolster critical thinking skills.

# Stacked Realities and Human Connection

This section discusses how stacked realities can create new experiences for collaboration, entertainment, and human connection.

Creating Synthetic Realities

• The more complex synthetic realities become, the harder it is to distinguish them from reality.

• Keanu Reeves shares an anecdote about a child who questions what is real in a virtual world.

• Interactions across different locations are possible through synthetic realities.

Collaboration and Entertainment

• Synthetic realities can lead to collaboration, entertainment, cohabitation, and more.

Conclusion

The transcript discusses the factors driving AI content generation and how it can lead to a crisis. It also explores how immersive experiences can help with retraining efforts and how technology like chat GPT can be used for education. Finally, it discusses how stacked realities can create new experiences for collaboration, entertainment, and human connection.

# The Next Generation and Augmented Reality

In this section, the speaker talks about how the next generation is growing up with augmented reality filters as a daily habit and their own version of reality. They discuss how we need to understand how many of their friends are real or synthetic.

Growing Up with Augmented Reality

• The next generation is growing up with augmented reality filters as a daily habit.

• They have their own version of reality, where influencers have no connection to reality at all.

• Many concepts they listen to have synthetic voiceovers, and they're already familiar with avatars.

Understanding Real vs Synthetic Friends

• We need to understand how many of their friends are real and how many are synthetic.

• It's wild to think about, but it may not matter in the end.

# Generative Tools for Creating Virtual Worlds

In this section, the speaker discusses how we've come a long way from virtual worlds being predetermined by one organization. They talk about giving us generative tools to create our own virtual worlds.

Moving Away from Predetermined Virtual Worlds

• We're getting to a point where it's not about predetermined virtual spaces created by one organization.

• It comes down to giving us generative tools to create that next world for ourselves.

Don't Wait for Someone Else

• We shouldn't wait for someone else to build our virtual world for us.

• The future is a contact sport that doesn't leave space for spectators on the sidelines.

# Playing with the Future

In this section, the speaker encourages people to start playing with and experiencing the future. They talk about how the future doesn't happen to you unless you just sit there.

Get in the Game

• The future is a contact sport that requires participation.

• People need to start playing with and experiencing it.

Don't Be a Spectator

• The future doesn't happen to you unless you just sit there.

• People need to get in the game and not be spectators on the sidelines.

# Economic Benefits of Justin Time Skills

In this section, the speaker answers a question about whether Justin Time skills and expertise on demand will cause economic benefits to accrue only to top performers.

Power at the Top

• The most power always accrues at the top, which has been a concern around AI for a long time.

• Within certain organizations, economic benefits may accrue only to top performers who are passionately curious about different things and already have a tendency to work across several different domains.

Interesting Boon for Some

• This could be an interesting boon for people who know a lot about many things and are curious about them.

• However, it raises the bar for everyone, so even those who aren't invested still benefit from upgrades.

# AI and Its Impact on the Physical World

In this section, the speaker discusses how generative AI can impact the physical world through robotics and projection.

Robotics and Projection

• Generative AI is useful for creating models of things that we want to create in the physical world.

• By using generative AI, we can project these models onto different environments and transform them.

• The impact of generative AI on the physical world will be significant in terms of creating new things and transforming existing spaces.

# Opinionated AI

In this section, the speaker talks about opinionated AI and its role in becoming more human-like.

Opinionated AI

• Opinionated AI is a necessary part of any ecosystem where we have a relationship with other AIs.

• Anthropomorphism of AI is happening rapidly, and opinionated AIs are part of it becoming more human-like.

• Someone will develop opinionated AIs, which will find an audience. It will be part of the direction of AIS.

# Creativity in Generalist Workforce

In this section, the speaker discusses how employers can identify distinction among generalists who use generative AI tools.

Identifying Distinction Among Generalists

• Employers can identify distinction by measuring Nets positive production compared to previous benchmarks.

• Employers should look for other tools that continue to maximize gain from where employees were before using generative AI tools.

• Quantifying creativity is difficult, and it will be about as effective as quantifying people's actual performance in performance reviews.

# Generative AI and Intellectual Property

In this section, the speaker discusses how generative AI can affect intellectual property.

Intellectual Property

• Generative AI can cause issues of compensation appropriation when it comes to art and data training.

• Some companies are trying to solve these ethical issues, while others are moving fast without compensation.

• There is no direct solution for these issues.

# The Impact of Human-like Machines on Society

In this section, the speaker discusses how machines becoming more human-like and humans becoming more machine-like will shift societal values.

Relationship with Synthetic Beings

• People who are neurodivergent or have extreme social anxiety may benefit from having a synthetic being as they can be supported without judgment.

• Synthetic beings can guide individuals towards a goal or just coexist, providing a solution for those who have difficulty building bonds with other people.

AR Counterparts

• AR counterparts may be more pleasant than physical ones, which could create both positive and negative outcomes.

• There are examples of individuals enhancing their relationships by cheating on their partners with their girlfriend avatars. However, there are also instances of verbal abuse towards these avatars.

# Challenges in Making Metaverse Mainstream

In this section, the speaker talks about the challenges in making metaverse mainstream.

Lack of Interest

• Most people outside of tech festivals do not care about metaverse as it has not provided a compelling enough reason for them to invest time in it.

• Developing technologies often become ubiquitous despite initial lack of interest.

Uncertainty About Metaverse's Future

• The metaverse is going to look different than what we currently imagine it to be.

• The metaverse will not eliminate positions but rather spread the ability for all to switch into those disciplines at any time and place.

# Intellectual Property Rights and Occupational Therapy in Metaverse

In this section, the speaker discusses intellectual property rights and occupational therapy in metaverse.

Intellectual Property Rights

• The speaker believes that individuals will have more control over their thoughts and intellectual properties in the future.

Occupational Therapy

• The speaker believes that there is a need for occupational therapy in metaverse.