What does a leaked Google memo reveal about the future of AI?
Open-source AI is booming. That makes it less likely that a handful of firms will control the technology
THEY HAVE changed the world by writing software. But techy types are also known for composing lengthy memos in prose, the most famous of which have marked turning points in computing. Think of Bill Gates’s “Internet tidal wave” memo of 1995, which reoriented Microsoft towards the web; or Jeff Bezos’s “API mandate” memo of 2002, which opened up Amazon’s digital infrastructure, paving the way for modern cloud computing. Now techies are abuzz about another memo, this time leaked from within Google, titled “We have no moat”. Its unknown author details the astonishing progress being made in artificial intelligence (AI)—and challenges some long-held assumptions about the balance of power in this fast-moving industry.
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This article appeared in the Leaders section of the print edition under the headline “A stochastic parrot in every pot?”
Leaders May 13th 2023
From the May 13th 2023 edition
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