Can AI Be Safe?

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Happy Tuesday, Future Party. For all you Taco Bell diehards out there, the Kevin Hart-hosted Taco Bell’s Live Más Open in Laguna Beach this November has the best prize imaginable — the chance to bring back a discontinued Taco Bell item. The competition will pit teams of celebrities, pro athletes, creators, and nine lucky fans against each other for nine holes. The winners will get to choose which menu item returns for a limited time at stores next year. The pick here would be the Boss Wrap, the greatest midnight snack of the college years.

On Saturday, four of the most powerful leaders in AI collectively agreed that they need to slow down frontier-AI development.

The Big Picture: Anti-AI fervor has reached a fever pitch in recent months, fueled by everything from job-replacement fears and increased energy and water costs from data-center construction to general doomsday scenarios. Many of those concerns are justified… and AI CEOs know public sentiment (and even the sentiment of former employees) has turned against them, and that they need to slow down before others force them to.

Between The Calls: When four bitter rivals all agree with each other on needing to innovate slower, it’s clear things have gotten weird.

Final Warning: AI regulation is a hot mess right now. Congress refuses to take the lead, saying that AI CEOs know best (that’s one way to deflect). And the White House sees any slowdown as capitulation to China, which is closing the gap with American AI innovation.

AI CEOs are seemingly answering Congress’s call while also sharing the White House’s concerns — they admit self-regulation could backfire if Chinese companies don’t agree to a similar framework. Notably, some inside the Chinese Communist Party are also worried about AI development.

This is the inflection point where politicians are supposed to step in… but the question is whether diplomacy is up for the challenge.

The Future: It’s wild that some of the biggest companies in AI all decided to slow down simultaneously… so don’t be surprised if a whistleblower eventually reveals that one of their models broke containment in a way that set off alarm bells among insiders.

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Creator Steven Bartlett is collabing with Authentic Brands Group on a new venture that plans to invest $400 million in creator-led businesses.

Why It Hits: Creator startups are some of the hottest new businesses in the industry, with a leg up thanks to a popular personality leading the charge. Still, the infrastructure to support their growth is only now being built. Bartlett and Authentic believe they have the right mix of skills to turn viral creators into successful CEOs.

Behind The Venture: The new venture, dubbed OBSN, hopes to put itself at the center of the creator-business economy.

Final Check: Bartlett will co-run the venture through his holding company, Steven.com, which calls itself the “operating system for the creator economy.” Bartlett says he sees OBSN as a way to develop the holistic business identity of creators — an intersection of two worlds he knows a lot about.

Meanwhile, Authentic will focus on the operation’s brand-building, product development, IP licensing, strategic partnerships, and global distribution. That’s Authentic’s bread and butter — the company manages more than 50 brands, ranging from established retailers to celebrity labels.

Prediction: Combining the powers of Bartlett and Authentic could help build a sustainable roster of creator companies without the influencers at their centers needing to be part of the social-media A-list.

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58.6% of you voted Natural vocals, even if they’re imperfect in yesterday’s poll: When you pay to see a musical artist live, what matters most to you?

“Isn’t imperfection and authenticity the entire point of live performances???”

“If I want perfect vocals, I’ll stay home and listen to the recording.”

“I want a good performance, but it’s more about the overall experience — the energy, the people, etc.”

“Something unique from the artist, not just a replication of the album.”

“For the price of tickets these days, I don’t think it’s too much to expect natural, perfect vocals.”

“I don’t have a problem with Auto-Tune, but I’ve been to live concerts where the singer is blatantly lip-syncing. That’s where I draw the line.”

Let’s keep the conversation going. Join Poll Of The Day, so your opinions can shine. Discover how your views line up with your peers’, check out cool insights, and have some fun. It’s data with personality.

🏆 Katie Dippold’s horror-comedy series, Widow’s Bay, took home the most Emmys ever for a comedy season, scooping up 14 awards.

🎤 Oprah Winfrey is launching a three-day, multimedia, immersive experience at the Sphere next April.

🎸 Stagecoach announced the headliners for its 2027 fest — Garth Brooks, Riley Green, and Zach Top.

🤖 Michael Polansky, Lady Gaga’s husband, launched an AI startup that’s training its model on collected human skin.

👀 WordPress founder Matt Mullenweg was ousted… and then quickly reinstated… as CEO of Automattic. Talk about 2023 Sam Altman vibes.

🧠 Apple stores are getting a design refresh… and bringing back the Genius Bar (oh, how we’ve missed you).

🏠 Airbnb has created a $250 million fund to invest in housing construction, with its first grant going toward a development in Austin.

👕 Kai Cenat debuted his fashion brand, VIVET, at New York Fashion Week.

☕ Pharrell and Pusha T are launching a coffee company, Grindin’ Coffee, in collaboration with Italian roaster Lavazza.