Are AI Advancements Already Slowing Down?

Summary

In recent times, AI advancements, viewed previously as an unstoppable force, may be experiencing a slowdown. The video from CNBC discusses the eerie calm after the initial storm of rapid AI model progress, highlighting concerns in Silicon Valley about hitting a plateau. With innovations like Claude Three and ChatGPT Five on the horizon, there's an intriguing debate on whether core assumptions about AI's future are faltering. Financial investments from major companies in AI have been enormous, but the anticipated returns may not be materializing as expected. Key insights from industry leaders point toward a period of consolidation and reassessment in the AI landscape, fueled by the challenges of scaling, data limitations, and the emergence of synthetic data usage.

Highlights

• Google's Gemini and Claude Three are emerging as powerful AI models, but progress isn't as expected 🤔
• There's growing anxiety in Silicon Valley about AI's rapid progress losing steam 🌪️
• Major players like OpenAI, Google, and Anthropic may be facing development roadblocks 🚧
• Billions invested in AI with expectations of significant returns, but reality might differ 💰
• Reports suggest that the new AI models aren't significantly out-performing older ones 📊
• Synthetic data is being used to overcome data shortages, but it poses its own challenges ⚠️
• A new focus on improving AI models during the post-training phase is emerging 🎯
• Upcoming AI agents could revolutionize various sectors by acting on behalf of users 🌐
• The upcoming 18 months are critical for the AI race with new models expected from key players ⏳

Key Takeaways

• AI advancements may be hitting a plateau, sparking concern in Silicon Valley 🌄
• Billion-dollar investments in AI may not be yielding the expected returns 💸
• Scaling laws, the empirical belief that more data and compute power improve AI, might be more theory than reality 📉
• The search for new AI applications and use cases becomes crucial 🕵️‍♂️
• Expect a rise in AI agents acting on behalf of users in numerous areas 🤖

Overview

Artificial Intelligence, once considered the burgeoning powerhouse of technological innovation, might be on the cusp of a slowdown. The video from CNBC explores the waning momentum in AI advancements, with once revolutionary models like Claude Three and ChatGPT Five now facing scrutiny. Experts in the field are reassessing strategies as industry giants spend billions, hoping for a breakthrough that may not be forthcoming.

The industry's confidence in scaling laws—the notion that more compute power and data will drive AI advancements—faces new skepticism. As companies like OpenAI and Google try to scale AI further, they confront new challenges: data limitations and the risks associated with synthetic data creation. Meanwhile, there remains a strong push to extract more from existing AI models through improved post-training techniques.

In the face of these potential plateaus, the race for AI-powered solutions is still heating up. AI-driven agents are set to become transformative across sectors, challenging how we interact with technology. The next 18 months are pivotal as companies prepare to release new models that could redefine the industry's trajectory, with significant implications for tech investments and strategic direction.

Chapters

• 00:00 - 00:30: Introduction to AI Breakthroughs The chapter discusses the continuous evolution and breakthroughs in the field of AI, highlighting that the question of advancements is a matter of timing rather than possibility. It mentions Google's recent update on its large language model, Gemini, and comments on the impressive capabilities of Claude three, possibly one of the most powerful AI models currently. The chapter also speculates on the potential advancements expected from ChatGPT five, describing it as a significant step forward. However, it raises an intriguing point about the assumption that AI models will continue to grow and improve, questioning if there might be a plateau in progress or a slowdown in these advancements.
• 00:30 - 01:00: Impact on Major Tech Companies The chapter titled 'Impact on Major Tech Companies' examines potential challenges facing major technology companies like Nvidia, Amazon, Google, and Microsoft amidst rapid advancements in artificial intelligence (AI). It highlights skepticism about whether increased GPU production is leading to corresponding advancements in AI capabilities. The discussion raises concerns about the sustainability of current spending levels, as these tech giants seek tangible use cases and transformative applications that justify their massive financial commitments to AI development. The chapter features insights from Deirdre Bosa, questioning whether AI's progress may have reached a plateau.
• 01:00 - 01:30: Concerns in Silicon Valley "Concerns in Silicon Valley" discusses the growing worries within the tech industry about the potential stagnation of AI technology. The chapter highlights that the rapid progress previously experienced is now experiencing a slowdown. There's a discussion about hitting a ceiling in terms of improvements, and the anticipation of reaching an asymptotic limit with scaling AI models. Even major companies like OpenAI are facing these limitations.
• 01:30 - 02:00: Financial Investment and Progress This chapter discusses the financial investments made in technology, particularly focusing on AI and its development by major players like Google and OpenAI. It highlights the significant capital investment required to stay competitive and the expectation of substantial returns. However, it also notes the challenges and potential limits of growth as signs of stagnation start to appear, especially in the progression of AI models such as OpenAI's GPT series. While previous advancements between model generations have been notable, there's concern that future progress may not maintain the same pace.
• 02:00 - 02:30: Challenges Faced by AI Models The chapter 'Challenges Faced by AI Models' discusses the stagnation in the advancement of AI models, which had previously been exponentially improving in understanding, generation, and reasoning capabilities. Reports suggest that progress has halted, contradicting earlier expectations of continually bigger and better AI systems through extended training. The focus is specifically on OpenAI and its anticipated next model 'Orion', highlighting industry concerns about reaching a plateau in AI advancements.
• 02:30 - 03:00: Generational Leap Expectations The chapter discusses the initial high expectations for a new system called Orion, which was anticipated to represent a significant generational advancement towards AGI (Artificial General Intelligence). However, it's mentioned that this vision is now being reduced. Employees involved with Orion reported that its quality improvement was modest and fell short of the significant leap seen between GPT-3 and GPT-4. Furthermore, they noted that Orion is not consistently superior to its predecessor in performing specific tasks, such as coding.
• 03:00 - 03:30: Current Plateau in AI Advancements The chapter discusses the current state of AI advancements, noting a plateau following initial rapid development as exemplified by ChatGPT's release in late 2022. It suggests that performance improvements are tapering off for many new models, including those by leading AI developers like Anthropic, which could be facing challenges in enhancing its capabilities.
• 03:30 - 04:00: Data Limitations and Synthetic Data The chapter discusses the challenges faced by companies in the development of large language models, despite significant financial backing from major corporations like Microsoft and Amazon. A new version of the model, Opus, was announced but reportedly did not show expected improvements, raising concerns about diminishing returns and plateauing progress in AI advancements. The discussion includes Google's observation of similar trends in slowing progress. This highlights the data limitations and financial burdens associated with building and maintaining such advanced systems.
• 04:00 - 04:30: Post-Training Innovations The chapter discusses the current state of large language models (LMs), noting that a few companies have risen to the top in this field. Despite this, these companies are working on their next iterations, which are becoming increasingly difficult to develop. The text mentions that the 'low hanging fruit'—easier advancements—have already been achieved, and future progress will be more challenging. Highlighted in the discussion is the AI model 'Gemini,' which is striving to compete with leading models like those from OpenAI and Anthropic. However, there are reports suggesting that the anticipated update to 'Gemini' is not meeting internal expectations.
• 04:30 - 05:00: Emergence of AI Agents The chapter 'Emergence of AI Agents' discusses the significant investments being made in AI technology, raising questions about whether these expenditures will lead to substantial growth or require time for absorption and integration into existing systems. This concern arises from static or reduced revenue forecasts despite increased spending, as echoed by AI experts like Ilya Sutskever of OpenAI.
• 05:00 - 05:30: Agentic Platforms and Transformations The chapter discusses the dynamics of scaling up pre-training in AI startups, specifically emphasizing on receiving significant seed funding such as $1 billion. It evaluates the observable patterns in AI development, acknowledging that while foundational model pre-training and scaling up have accelerated growth, there's a viewpoint that the pace of progress might have peaked. However, this perspective is contested, and it's acknowledged that the scaling is still much on track. These observations are guided by empirical laws rather than fundamental physical laws.
• 05:30 - 06:00: Nvidia's Role in AI Growth The chapter titled 'Nvidia's Role in AI Growth' discusses the persistent and continuous scaling of AI, with no evident slow down in progress as observed by experts over the past decade. The chapter suggests that although there's an expectation that AI's growth will eventually hit limitations, such a point hasn't been reached yet. Even notable figures in AI like Sam Altman express confidence in sustained growth, with no immediate barriers, though companies like OpenAI and Anthropic declined to comment further on the matter.
• 06:00 - 06:30: Future Model Releases and Implications This chapter discusses the development and potential plateauing of Google's project 'Gemini'. The project has reportedly made significant advancements in reasoning and coding capabilities. The chapter also explores the concept of scaling laws, which suggest that increasing compute power and data leads to better models. However, there is an implication that this progress might reach a plateau.

Are AI Advancements Already Slowing Down? Transcription

• 00:00 - 00:30 AI breakthroughs have been a question of when, not if. Google unveiling long awaited new details about its large language model Gemini. Claude three is arguably now one of the most powerful AI models out there, if not the most powerful. Preview, if you will, for us ChatGPT five. I expect it to be a significant leap forward. But what if that core assumption that models can only keep getting bigger and better is now fizzling? Is there really a slowing in progress because that wasn't
• 00:30 - 01:00 expected? It could spell cracks in the Nvidia bull story. We're increasing GPUs at the same like rate, but we're not getting the intelligence improvements out of it. Calling into question the gigantic ramp in spending from Amazon, Google, Microsoft, a rush for tangible use cases, and a killer app. I'm Deirdre Bosa with the TechCheck take has AI progress peaked?
• 01:00 - 01:30 Call it performance anxiety. The growing concern in Silicon Valley that AI's rapid progression is losing steam. We've really slowed down in terms of the amount of improvement. Reached a ceiling and is now slowing down. In the pure model competition, the question is, when do we start seeing a asymptote to scale. Hitting walls that even the biggest players from OpenAI to
• 01:30 - 02:00 Google can't seem to overcome? Progress didn't come cheap. Billions of dollars invested to keep pace, banking on the idea that returns they would be outsized, too. But no gold rush is guaranteed to last, and early signs of struggle are now bubbling up at major AI players. The first indication that things are turning, the lack of progression between models. I expect that the delta between 5 and 4 will be the same as between 4 and 3. Each new generation of OpenAI's flagship GPT models,
• 02:00 - 02:30 the ones that power ChatGPT they have been exponentially more advanced than the last in terms of their ability to understand, generate and reason. But according to reports, that's not happening anymore. There was talk prior to now that these companies were just going to train on bigger and bigger and bigger systems. If it's true that it's top, that's not going to happen anymore. OpenAI has led the pack in terms of advancements, its highly anticipated next model called Orion, it was expected
• 02:30 - 03:00 to be a groundbreaking system that would represent a generational leap in bringing us closer to AGI or artificial general intelligence. But that initial vision, it's now being scaled back. Employees who have used or tested Orion told The Information that the increase in quality was far smaller than the jump between GPT three and four and that they believed Orion isn't reliably better than its predecessor at handling certain tasks like coding.
• 03:00 - 03:30 To put it in perspective, remember ChatGPT came out at the end of 2022. So now it's been, you know, close to two years. And so you had, initially a huge ramp up in terms of what all these new models can do. And what's happening now is you've really trained all these models, and so the performance increases are kind of leveling off. The same thing may be happening at other leading AI developers, the startup Anthropic. It could be hitting roadblocks to improving its most powerful model, the Opus, quietly removing wording
• 03:30 - 04:00 from its website that promised a new version of Opus later this year, and sources telling Bloomberg that the model didn't perform better than the previous versions as much as it should, given the size of the model and how costly it was to build and run. These are startups focused on one thing the development of large language models with billions of dollars in backing from names like Microsoft and Amazon and venture capital. But even Google, which has enough cash on hand to buy an entire country. It may also be seeing progress plateau.
• 04:00 - 04:30 The current generation of LM models are roughly in a few companies have converged at the top, but I think we're all working on our next versions too. I think the progress is going to get harder. When I look at 25, the low hanging fruit is gone. You know the curve that the hill is steeper. Its principal AI model, Gemini, is already playing catch up to OpenAI and Anthropic. Now, Bloomberg reports, quoting sources that an upcoming version is not living up to internal
• 04:30 - 05:00 expectations. It has to make you think, okay, are we going to go through a period here where we're going to need to digest all this hundreds of billions of dollars we've spent on AI over the last couple of years? Especially if revenue forecasts are getting cut or not changing, even though you're increasing the spending you're doing on AI. The trend has even been confirmed by one of the most widely respected and pioneering AI researchers, Ilya Sutskever, who co-founded OpenAI and raised
• 05:00 - 05:30 $1 billion seed round for his new AI startup. As you scale up pre-training, a lot of the low hanging fruit was plucked. And so it makes sense to me that you're seeing a deceleration in the rate of improvement, but. Not everyone agrees the rate of progress has peaked. Foundation model pre-training. Scaling is intact and it's continuing. You know, as you know, this is an empirical law, not a fundamental physical law.
• 05:30 - 06:00 But the evidence is that that it continues to scale. Nothing I've seen in the field is, is, you know, out of character with what I've seen over the last ten years or leads me to expect that things will slow down. There's no evidence that the scaling has laws, as they're called, have begun to to stop. They will eventually stop. But we're not there yet. And even Sam Altman posting simply, there is no wall. OpenAI and Anthropic. They didn't respond to requests for comment.
• 06:00 - 06:30 Google says it's pleased with its progress on Gemini and has seen meaningful performance gains in capabilities like reasoning and coding. Let's get to the why. If progress is in fact plateauing. It has to do with scaling laws, the idea that adding more compute power and more data guarantees better models to an infinite degree. In recent years, Silicon Valley has treated this as
• 06:30 - 07:00 religion. One of the properties of machine learning, of course, is that the larger the brain, the more data we can teach it, the smarter it becomes. We call it the scaling law. There's every evidence that as we scale up the size of the models, the amount of training data, the effectiveness, the quality, the performance of the intelligence improves. In other words, all you need to do is buy more Nvidia GPUs,
• 07:00 - 07:30 find more articles or YouTube videos or research papers to feed the models, and it's guaranteed to get smarter. But recent developments suggest that may be more theory than law. People call them scaling laws. That's a misnomer. Like Moore's law is is a misnomer. Moore's law, scaling laws. They're not laws of the universe, they're empirical regularities. I am going to bet in favor of them continuing, but I'm not certain of that. The hitch may be data. It's a key component of that scaling equation, but there's only so much of it in the world.
• 07:30 - 08:00 And experts have long speculated that companies would eventually hit what is called the data wall that is run out of it. If we do nothing, and if you know at scale, we don't continue innovating, we're likely to face similar bottlenecks in data like the ones that we see in computational capability and chip production, or power or data center build outs. So AI companies have been turning to so-called synthetic data. Data created by AI fed back into AI, but that could create its own problem. Ai is an industry which is garbage in, garbage out.
• 08:00 - 08:30 So if you feed into these models a lot of AI gobbledygook, then the models are just going to spit out more AI gobbledygook. The information reports that Orion was trained in part on AI generated data produced by other OpenAI models, and that Google has found duplicates of some data in the sets used to. Train Gemini. The problem? Low quality data. Low quality performance. This is what a lot of the research that's focused on synthetic data is focused on.
• 08:30 - 09:00 Right. So if you if you if you don't do this well, you don't get much more than you started with. But even if the rate of progress for large language models is plateauing, some argue that the next phase post-training or inference will require just as much compute power. Databricks CEO Ali Ghodsi says there's plenty to build on top of the existing models. I think lots and lots of innovation is still left on the AI side. Maybe those who expected all of the ROI to happen in 2023, 2024, maybe they, you know, they should
• 09:00 - 09:30 readjust their horizons. The place where the industry is squeezing to get to get that progress is shifted from pre-training, which is, you know, lots of internet data, maybe trying synthetic data on huge clusters of GPUs towards post-training and test and compute, which is more about, you know, small amounts of data but is very high quality and very specific. Feeding data, testing different types of data, adding more compute. That all happens during the pre-training phase when models
• 09:30 - 10:00 are still being built before it's released to the world. So now companies are trying to improve models in the post-training phase. That means making adjustments and tweaks to how it generates responses to try and boost its performance. And it also means a whole new crop of AI models designed to be smarter in this post-training phase. OpenAI just announced an improved model their AI model. They say it has better reasoning. This had been reportedly called strawberry, so there's been a lot of buzz around it. They're called reasoning models, able to think before they answer. And the newest leg in the AI race.
• 10:00 - 10:30 We know that thinking is oftentimes more than just one shot, and thinking requires us to maybe do multi plans, multiple potential answers that we choose the best one from. Just like when we're thinking we might reflect on the answer before we deliver the answer. Reflection, we might take a problem and break it down into step by step by step, chain of thought.
• 10:30 - 11:00 If AI acceleration is tapped out, what's next? The search for use cases becomes urgent. Just in the last multiple weeks, there's a lot of debate. Or have we hit the wall with scaling laws? It's actually good to have some skepticism, some debate, because that I think will motivate, quite frankly, more innovation because. We've barely scratched the surface of what existing models can do. The models are actually so powerful today and and we've
• 11:00 - 11:30 not really utilized them to anywhere close to the level of capability that they actually offer to us and bring true business transformation. OpenAI, Anthropic and Google. They're making some of the most compelling use cases yet. OpenAI is getting into the search business. Anthropic unveiling a new AI tool that can analyze your computer screen and take over to act on your behalf. One of my favorite applications is notebook LM. You know, there's this Google Google application that came out. I used the living daylights out of it just
• 11:30 - 12:00 because it's fun. But the next phase, the development and deployment of AI agents, that's expected to be another game changer for users. I think we're going to live in a world where there are going to be hundreds of millions of billions of different AI agents, eventually, probably more AI agents than there are people in the world. I spoke with with I spoke with Nvidia after the call. They said, Jim, you better start thinking about how to use the term agentic when you're out there, right? Because agentic is the term. Benioff's been using it for a while.
• 12:00 - 12:30 He's very agent. You can have health agents and banking agents and product agents and ops agents and sales agents and support agents and marketing agents and customer experience agents and analytics agents and finance agents and HR agents. And it's all built on this Salesforce. Platform, meaning it's all powered by software. Everybody's talking about when is AI going to kick in for software? It's happening now. Well, it has to be. It's not a future thing. It's now it's something the stock market is already taking note of. Software stocks seeing their biggest outperformance versus semis in years.
• 12:30 - 13:00 And it's key for Nvidia, which has become the most valuable company in the world and has powered broader market gains. It's hard for me to imagine that Nvidia can grow as fast as people are modeling, and I see that probably as a problem as at some point when you get into next year and Nvidia shipping Blackwell in volume, which is their latest chip, and then the vendors can say, okay, we're getting what we need, and now we just need to digest all this money that we've spent because it's not scaling as fast as we thought. In terms of the improvements.
• 13:00 - 13:30 The sustainability of the AI trade hinges on this debate. OpenAI, xAI, Meta, Anthropic, and Google they're all set to release new models over the next 18 months. Their rate of progress, or lack of it, could redefine the stakes of the race.