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Scientists succeed in ‘mind-reading’ using ChatGPT

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With the help of artificial intelligence (AI) powered ChatGPT, neuroscientists believe they have found a way to translate the activity of the brain into words, a major discovery that can help patients with conditions like “locked-in” syndrome, stroke, etc that render them unable to communicate.

The scientists from the University of Texas in Austin used the groundbreaking OpenAI’s human-like chatbot showing its applications in the healthcare sector as AI is on the way to modernisation and advancement, eventually touching every part of our daily lives.

Alexander Huth, assistant professor of neuroscience and computer science at the University of Texas at Austin, told CNN, “so, we don’t like to use the term mind reading. We think it conjures up things that we’re actually not capable of.”

Professor Huth participated in research and spent spending 20 hours in the confines of an fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging)  machine with audio clips he was listening to. Meanwhile, the machine captured detailed snaps of his brain activity.

OpenAIs ChatGPT logo is seen in this illustration. — Reuters/File
OpenAI’s ChatGPT logo is seen in this illustration. — Reuters/File

The AI system analysed his brain activity and the audio he was listening leading the technology to eventually foretell the words he was hearing just by watching his brain.

The technology researchers used was OpenAI’s chatGPT-1 model — which developed a huge database of books and websites.

The researchers found that the AI system accurately predicted what participants were listening to and watching by observing mental activity.

Despite its initial stages, the technology shows promise. It also underlines that AI cannot easily read our minds.

“The real potential application of this is in helping people who are unable to communicate,” Huth explained.

The researchers believed that this technology could be used in the future by people with “locked-in” syndrome, stroke and others whose brains are working but they could not speak.

“Ours is the first demonstration that we can get this level of accuracy without brain surgery. So we think that this is kind of step one along this road to actually helping people who are unable to speak without them needing to get neurosurgery,” he said.

A screen can be seen showing the OpenAI logo with ChatGPT visible behind the phone. — AFP/File
A screen can be seen showing the OpenAI logo with ChatGPT visible behind the phone. — AFP/File

Though the results of the technology are promising, it also raised concerns about how it would be used in controversial areas.

The researchers noted that brain scans “need to occur in an fMRI machine, the AI technology needs to be trained on an individual’s brain for many hours, and subjects need to give their consent.”

If someone resists listening to audio and does not think as per the requirement, it simply won’t work.

Jerry Tang, the lead author of a paper explained: “We think that everyone’s brain data should be kept private. Our brains are kind of one of the final frontiers of our privacy.”

Tang explained that “obviously there are concerns that brain decoding technology could be used in dangerous ways.”

Huth stated: “What we can get is the big ideas that you’re thinking about. The story that somebody is telling you, if you’re trying to tell a story inside your head, we can kind of get at that as well.”

Voicing concerns, Tang told CNN that lawmakers need to take “mental privacy” seriously to protect “brain data” — our thoughts — two of the more dystopian terms I’ve heard in the era of AI.

“It’s important not to get a false sense of security and think that things will be this way forever,” Tang warned.

“Technology can improve and that could change how well we can decode and change whether decoders require a person’s cooperation.”

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Cybersecurity firm reports exposure of sensitive DeepSeek data on the internet.

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The New York-based cybersecurity firm Wiz has discovered a cache of sensitive data from the Chinese artificial intelligence business DeepSeek that was mistakenly exposed to the public internet.

In a blog post released on Wednesday, Wiz reported that examinations of DeepSeek’s infrastructure revealed that the company had inadvertently exposed over a million lines of unencrypted data. The materials were digital software keys and chat logs that seemingly documented prompts transmitted from consumers to the company’s complimentary AI assistant.

The chief technical officer of Wiz stated that DeepSeek promptly safeguarded the data following the notice from his organisation.

“It was removed in under an hour,” stated Ami Luttwak. “However, this was exceedingly easy to locate, leading us to believe we are not the sole discoverers.”

DeepSeek did not promptly respond to a request for comment.

DeepSeek’s rapid success after the introduction of its AI helper has exhilarated China and incited concern in America. The Chinese company’s evident capacity to rival OpenAI’s skills at a significantly reduced cost has raised concerns regarding the viability of the business models and profit margins of U.S. AI behemoths like Nvidia and Microsoft.

By Monday, it surpassed the U.S. competitor ChatGPT in downloads from Apple’s App Store, prompting a worldwide decline in technology stocks.

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WhatsApp launches bulk channel management functionality

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WhatsApp has initiated testing of a bulk channel administration feature on iOS for select beta users, enabling the simultaneous selection of many channels, hence enhancing the efficiency of managing following channels.

This essential update enables users to perform bulk activities, including muting many channels simultaneously, designating them as read, and altering notifications. If the chosen channels are muted, users will now have the option to activate notifications. Users can swiftly silence unmuted channels in one action.

Additionally, this feature enables users to unfollow many channels simultaneously, thereby optimizing the process of decluttering their channel list. This change is particularly beneficial for users that oversee numerous subscriptions, as reported by WABetaInfo.

Previously, users were required to manage each channel individually, rendering tasks such as muting or designating channels as read laborious and time-consuming.

The functionality provides enhanced flexibility and control over channel subscriptions, enabling users to efficiently manage notifications. The solution streamlines laborious operations for consumers who subscribe to numerous channels, hence enhancing their entire experience.

Accessibility
The bulk management feature is presently accessible exclusively to a limited number of beta testers who installed the latest WhatsApp beta for iOS using the TestFlight application. WhatsApp, owned by Meta, plans to expand the feature’s availability to a larger user base in the next weeks.

This update demonstrates WhatsApp’s dedication to enhancing user experience by offering a clear and efficient method for managing channels and notifications.

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Pakistani internet slowdown: ongoing submarine cable issue

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Even after two weeks, the global submarine cable AAA-1 problem that was discovered on January 2 near Qatar has not been fixed, causing sluggish internet connection in several Pakistani towns.

According to a representative for Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL), the issue has affected customers’ capacity to effectively access social media applications and browse the online. Even with initiatives to fix the problem, social networking sites still lag during busy times.

Internet traffic has been redirected via alternate channels to lessen the impact, and more capacity has been set up to stabilize the service.

The PTCL representative promised that “Internet service across the country is operating normally, and there will be no issues with web browsing,” noting that social media applications’ lag is common during

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