logo
episode-header-image
Oct 2023
1h 4m

Peering Into A.I.’s Black Box + Who’s Th...

The New York Times
About this episode

A.I. models are black boxes. You input a prompt and the model outputs nearly anything: a sonnet, an image or a legal brief riddled with lies. Today, a look at three ways that researchers are unlocking that black box in hopes of bringing transparency to A.I.

Then, Marc Andreessen’s techno-optimist manifesto has left us asking, Is he OK?!

Plus: decoding a 2,000-year-old ancient scroll with the help of A.I.

Today’s Guest:

  • Brent Seales is a computer scientist at the University of Kentucky.

Additional Information:

Up next
Today
ChatGPT’s Platform Play + a Trillion-Dollar GPU Empire + the Queen of Slop
This week, we discuss the standout moments from our field trip to OpenAI’s third annual DevDay — including a bizarre chat between Jony Ive and Sam Altman, and the announcement that OpenAI is putting apps into ChatGPT. Then, we try to make sense of the massive computing deal betwe ... Show More
1h 6m
Oct 3
Sora and the Infinite Slop Feeds + ChatGPT Goes to Therapy + Hot Mess Express
This week, we’re talking about the new A.I.-generated video tools and social media feeds from Google, Meta and OpenAI. Is this how A.I. is going to cure cancer? Then, the psychotherapist Gary Greenberg stops by to discuss his recent New Yorker essay about treating ChatGPT as a pa ... Show More
1h 5m
Sep 26
The Great A.I. Build-Out + H-1B Visa Chaos + TikTok Braces for the Rapture
This week, an eye-popping $100 billion deal between OpenAI and Nvidia — along with an announcement about the construction of five new American data centers — has us re-examining our predictions of an A.I. bubble. Then, we try to make sense of the Trump administration’s changes to ... Show More
52m 41s
Recommended Episodes
Jan 2023
A Skeptical Take on the A.I. Revolution
The year 2022 was jam-packed with advances in artificial intelligence, from the release of image generators like DALL-E 2 and text generators like Cicero to a flurry of developments in the self-driving car industry. And then, on November 30, OpenAI released ChatGPT, arguably the ... Show More
1h 11m
Nov 2023
562: Do You Have a Dragon?
Pre-show: 🚨 LAST CHANCE FOR THE ATP HOLIDAY STORE 🚨 Note: long-sleeve and utes sizes have been added! Follow-up: Keyboard wear Finger grease (via Ryan Holmes) ABS plastic PBT plastic A true horror show (via Andrew) MacBook Pro thermal tests More about chip packaging Johny Srouj ... Show More
2h 23m
Feb 2023
#305 - Paul Mouginot - Stabler - Repousser les limites de l’imagination grâce à l’IA : chronique d’un entrepreneur visionnaire
“On m’a toujours dit, un jour, tu devras choisir entre entrepreneur et artiste”  Paul Mouginot a choisi les deux, et plus encore.  Rien ne l'effraye.  À 15 ans, il envoie 35 lettres à tous les laboratoires français de physique quantique, dans le but d’obtenir un stage auprès de c ... Show More
3h 3m
Dec 2022
Ethical AI
In this episode of High Theory, Alex Hanna talks with Nathan Kim about Ethical AI. Their conversation is part of our High Theory in STEM series, which tackles topics in science, technology, engineering, and medicine from a highly theoretical perspective. In this episode, Alex hel ... Show More
22m 39s
Jul 2024
Encore: AI versus AI.
Blair Cohen from AuthenticID joins Dave to discuss how generative AI and authentication go hand in hand. Joe and Dave share some follow up from listener Robert who discusses an ad for a device that uses ChatGPT to record phone calls on your device. Dave helps his dad out with his ... Show More
54m 28s
Mar 2023
Let’s talk large language models
Our recent Pulse Survey showed how technologists visiting Stack Overflow feel about emergent technologies. The consensus is clear: AI assistants will soon be everywhere, and developers aren’t sure how they feel about that. Check out the podcast here or dive into the blog.Learn mo ... Show More
24m 7s
Aug 2023
AI versus AI.
Blair Cohen from AuthenticID joins Dave to discuss how generative AI and authentication go hand in hand. Joe and Dave share some follow up from listener Robert who discusses an ad for a device that uses ChatGPT to record phone calls on your device. Dave helps his dad out with his ... Show More
54m 28s
Jul 2023
546: Re-Crop With the Wisdom of Age
Pre-show: Marco’s Overcast rewrite 🗣️ HYPERCRITICAL SHIRTS ARE BACK, BABY 🗣️ Follow-up: Synology Dynamic DNS Alex Mazanov (of SwiftBar fame)’s interesting idea CNAME Marco’s security camera update Scrypted Eufy Cameras with HomeKit Secure Video support John’s sailing channel B& ... Show More
2h 22m
May 2023
How worried—or excited—should we be about AI? Recode Media with Peter Kafka
AI is amazing… or terrifying, depending on who you ask. This is a technology that elicits strong, almost existential reactions. So, as a Memorial Day special, we're running an episode of Recode Media with Peter Kafka that digs into the giant ambitions and enormous concerns people ... Show More
54m 49s
Aug 2023
Charting the true cost of AI
This week, the academic Kate Crawford tells us how she travelled the world to find the true cost of AI. Reporter Chris Vallance updates us on a watermark system - developed by Deepmind, Google's AI arm - which aims to show whether an image was generated by a machine or designed b ... Show More
27m 18s