Bytes: Week in Review — Trump’s bid to delay TikTok ban, OpenAI’s advances and a tech prediction for 2025
Jan 3, 2025
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In this engaging discussion, Paresh Dave, a senior writer at Wired and expert on technology and AI, dives into the implications of President-elect Trump's legal maneuvering to delay the TikTok ban. He sheds light on OpenAI's new AI model, o3, signaling potential strides towards artificial general intelligence. The conversation also raises questions about whether AI assistants will genuinely simplify our lives by 2025. Dave emphasizes the crucial gap between current AI capabilities and true understanding.
OpenAI's introduction of the O3 model signifies a major leap towards achieving artificial general intelligence, raising expectations regarding AI's learning capabilities.
While there's enthusiasm about advancements in AI assistants, skepticism remains regarding their effectiveness and reliability in practical applications.
Deep dives
Puerto Rico as an Innovation Hub
Puerto Rico is highlighted not just as a tropical paradise, but as a thriving innovation hub where startups and international companies thrive side by side. The island boasts a deep pool of talented, bilingual professionals who contribute to its vibrant ecosystem. Additionally, it offers competitive tax incentives that make it attractive for businesses looking to establish their presence in the U.S. This unique combination of resources positions Puerto Rico as an ideal location for businesses that can operate from anywhere.
The Emergence of O3 AI Model
OpenAI has introduced O3, a new family of reasoning models that represents a significant advancement towards artificial general intelligence (AGI). This model is designed to process inputs more thoughtfully, allowing it to tackle complex logic and math problems more effectively than previous iterations. Initial testing has shown that O3 performs at human-level on benchmark evaluations, raising questions about its potential capabilities. However, it is noted that measuring true AGI remains difficult due to a lack of assessments for memory and contextual understanding in AI.
Challenges of Agentic AI in 2025
The podcast discusses the expected advancements in AI technology, particularly the push towards agentic AI that can autonomously complete tasks for users. Despite the optimism surrounding these developments, skepticism is expressed regarding the real-world performance of such AI assistants, drawing on past experiences with technology like Google Assistant and Alexa. These systems have yet to reliably deliver on their promises, especially in areas such as travel planning and online shopping. The speaker remains cautious about the timeline for achieving effective and trusted agentic AI, suggesting it may not materialize as quickly as anticipated.
OpenAI closed the year with a bang, announcing a new, powerful AI model called o3. It could mark a significant step toward artificial general intelligence — an advanced form of AI that can learn or understand anything a human can. Plus, we’re mulling another tech prediction for 2025 — will AI assistants actually make our lives easier this year? But first, President-elect Donald Trump asked the Supreme Court to put the TikTok ban on hold so he might negotiate a deal to save the app in the United States. Marketplace’s Meghan McCarty Carino spoke with Paresh Dave, senior writer at Wired, about all these topics for this week’s Tech Bytes.
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