AI talent is entering the film and entertainment industry. Eline Van der Velden’s company Xicoia is in the process of making AI performers, the first of which is Tilly Norwood. While the public has brashly criticized the entity, studios and agencies are excited to work with her.
View More AI Actors Enter Hollywood
Apple recently announced the live-translation feature in AirPods, which enables translating conversations in real time. While this technology assumes great potential for global connectivity, it also raises concerns about AI’s translation capabilities and the problems the translation tools might bring.
View More The Cost of “Instant”: AI Translation, Cultural Nuance, and the Human Element
Apple recently debuted its new hypertension detection system for Apple Watches Series 9 and newer. This feature promises to make blood pressure monitoring easier and more accessible for millions of people, which is especially important given how prevalent and underdiagnosed the condition is. However, for some individuals, the benefits of 24/7 hypertension monitoring may be overshadowed by anxieties caused by on-demand health data and the dangers of an increasing reliance on sometimes unreliable technology.
View More An Apple (Watch) a Day: Implications of Apple’s Latest Hypertension Detection Feature
Showrunner’s SHOW-1 AI model creates animated scenes based on the user’s text prompts. It provides great potential for growing multiverses, introducing spinoffs, and exploring what-ifs of popular shows. Filmmakers who leverage AI might see better productivity, creativity, and monetary gains.
View More Showrunner: The Netflix of AI Turns Audiences into Filmmakers
A specific role has been created to maximize the potential for AI adoption: the prompt engineer. Experts are questioning the longevity of this role, and the majority agree that this job has an expiration date. Context engineering was created to resolve the limitations that exist in basic Large Language Models (LLMs) and prompt engineering. Prompt engineering, in its current form, may become obsolete.
View More Taming the Genie: Is Prompt Engineering Dead?
Many researchers who fail to obtain public funding turn to private companies for sponsorship, giving rise to “industry-sponsored research.” In comparison to publicly funded research, industry-sponsored research often displays more bias. More often than not, findings support sales promotions or generate revenue for sponsor companies. This bias raises questions regarding the ethics of industry-funded research. However, acknowledging the difficulty in obtaining public funding may help mitigate the harmful effects of industry-funded research. Several methods to mitigate the bias prevalent within industry-funded research may guarantee the legitimacy of sponsored reports.
View More Ethics Behind Industry-Funded Research
Crunch culture is taking the gaming industry by storm. Crunch refers to a period where developers work compulsory overtime to reach a specific stage of game development. This overtime is often unpaid, leaving employees uncompensated for their extra hours of hard work. It also negatively impacts the quality of games and the health of game developers. Crunch culture is an unethical practice that must be banned in order to provide fair working conditions for all developers.
View More Ethical Challenges with Crunch Culture
Elizabeth Street Garden (ESG) in New York City may be demolished to make room for Haven Green, an affordable housing complex, to ease the city’s housing crisis. The potential destruction of the park has resulted in significant backlash and a decade-long legal debate that has prevented a final decision from being made [2]. It is imperative that the city government helps guarantee the rights of citizens to safe and affordable shelter. However, it is inherently unethical to sacrifice environmental rights, sustainability, and a cherished community space when alternative solutions for affordable housing are available.
View More Elizabeth Street Garden vs. Haven Green: Ethical Dilemmas in Sustainable Development
Cloud computing refers to delivering computing services over the internet. Although it has revolutionized data storage and accessibility, cloud computing presents several ethical challenges regarding privacy, environmental impact, economic stagnancy, and the digital divide. To ensure its ethical practice, engineers must be more cautious about cloud adoption, develop energy-efficient power solutions, and push for legal regulation.
View More Ethical Cloud: Engineering Concerns in the Age of Cloud Computing
Following decades of successful space missions, humanity’s focus is increasingly shifting from short-term exploration to establishing a permanent extraterrestrial base through lunar industrialization. Lunar industrialization is a highly advanced technological endeavor; enabling the technology needed to weld on the Moon marks the first step in actualizing its potential. The lunar environment presents unique conditions that make it more challenging to replicate processes that are easily implemented on Earth, such as welding. Although the Moon lacks an atmosphere or biosphere and won’t experience the same environmental effects as Earth from increased industrial activity, it doesn’t mean that lunar industrialization is environmentally harmless. This debate is complex, with both sides raising valid concerns, balancing the potential for scientific progress against the ethical need for preservation.
View More It Starts With Welding: The Beginning of Lunar Industrialization