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The Uproar Over Vogue's AI-generated Ad Isn't Just About Fashion

3 weeks ago
Longtime Slashdot reader SonicSpike shares a report from TechCrunch: Sarah Murray recalls the first time she saw an artificial model in fashion: It was 2023, and a beautiful young woman of color donned a Levi's denim overall dress. Murray, a commercial model herself, said it made her feel sad and exhausted. The iconic denim company had teamed up with the AI studio Lalaland.ai to create "diverse" digital fashion models for more inclusive ads. For an industry that has failed for years to employ diverse human models, the backlash was swift, with New York Magazine calling the decision "artificial diversity." "Modeling as a profession is already challenging enough without having to compete with now new digital standards of perfection that can be achieved with AI," Murray told TechCrunch. Two years later, her worries have compounded. Brands continue to experiment with AI-generated models, to the consternation of many fashion lovers. The latest uproar came after Vogue's July print edition featured a Guess ad with a typical model for the brand: thin yet voluptuous, glossy blond tresses, pouty rose lips. She exemplified North American beauty standards, but there was one problem -- she was AI generated. The internet buzzed for days, in large part because the AI-generated beauty showed up in Vogue, the fashion bible that dictates what is and is not acceptable in the industry. The AI-generated model was featured in an advertisement, not a Vogue editorial spread. And Vogue told TechCrunch the ad met its advertising standards. To many, an ad versus an editorial is a distinction without a difference. TechCrunch spoke to fashion models, experts, and technologists to get a sense of where the industry is headed now that Vogue seems to have put a stamp of approval on technology that's poised to dramatically change the fashion industry. Amy Odell, a fashion writer and author of a recently published biography on Gwyneth Paltrow, put it simply: "It's just so much cheaper for [brands] to use AI models now. Brands need a lot of content, and it just adds up. So if they can save money on their print ad or their TikTok feed, they will."

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ChatGPT Nears 700 Million Weekly Users, Up 4x From Last Year

3 weeks ago
OpenAI's ChatGPT is on track to hit 700 million weekly active users, "up from 500 million in March, marking a more than fourfold year-over-year surge in growth," reports CNBC. From the report: The figure spans all ChatGPT artificial intelligence products -- free, Plus Pro, Enterprise, Team, and Edu -- and comes as daily user messages surpassed three billion, according to the company. The growth rate is also accelerating, compared with 2.5 times year-over-year growth at this time last year. "Every day, people and teams are learning, creating, and solving harder problems," said Nick Turley, VP of product for ChatGPT, in announcing the benchmark. OpenAI now has five million paying business users on ChatGPT, up from three million in June, as enterprises and educators increasingly integrate AI tools. [...] OpenAI's annual recurring revenue is now at $13 billion, up from $10 billion in June, with the company on track to surpass $20 billion by year-end. Even at a $300 billion valuation and $20 billion revenue run rate, OpenAI will need massive capital to support its global push.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

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