☕ AI for robotics

How to train smarter robots.

November 11, 2024 Presented By It's Monday. Robotics, it turns out, has a bit of a data problem, and researchers at MIT are using AI to help solve it. Tech Brew's Patrick Kulp talked to one of those researchers about their findings. In today's edition: AI visuals can help train smarter robots, MIT research says What EV startup Revoy has learned running long-haul routes for its first customer AI agents are coming to your workplace —Patrick Kulp, Jordyn Grzelewski, Annie Saunders AI Training grounds MIT CSAIL For a robot learning parkour, practice makes perfect. Lifelike mechanisms of the sort made famous by viral Boston Dynamics videos are often trained through simulations that mimic a range of real-world environments and situations, according to researchers at MIT's Computer Science and AI Lab (CSAIL). But available virtual training data is hard to gather in the sheer quantities needed for such a process. A team of researchers at the lab are proposing a new system that taps generative AI to solve this problem. LucidSim combines a visual generator, physics simulator, and text-generated prompts to scale up the amount of diverse and realistic simulations on hand to train robots. "Roboticists are trying to replicate the success of text-to-image models or language models like ChatGPT, but ChatGPT is trained on tens of trillions of tokens," Ge Yang, a CSAIL postdoc fellow and author on the paper, told Tech Brew. "We're nowhere close to that amount of data, so that's the problem—robotics has a data problem." Keep reading here.—PK Presented By Nasdaq Prepare for takeoff We're about to take a journey into the center of it all—the nexus of the global financial system. All tray tables must be stowed. Introducing Journey Across the Financial System, Nasdaq's deep dive into the forces that shape the global financial system and how Nasdaq connects it all. The financial system is highly complex and ever evolving, comprising roads and intersections that propel the flow of capital across the globe. From investors to worldwide markets, from banks to businesses, every interaction shapes the future of our financial system. This interactive digital destination explores the data, services, and technology Nasdaq provides to over 130 global market infrastructure organizations and 3,500+ banks. See how Nasdaq helps companies big and small meet the needs of their stakeholders, advance market modernization across the globe, safeguard capital, and reduce complexity in regulatory environments. See how they're doing it. FUTURE OF TRAVEL Wanna swap? Revoy Electrifying the entire US commercial truck fleet is a massive undertaking that could, per one estimate, require hundreds of billions of dollars in infrastructure investments alone. California-based EV startup Revoy is betting on the idea that fleet operators working to meet decarbonization targets will buy into what it touts as a simpler solution: electric units that can be seamlessly and quickly swapped in and out of semi trucks, essentially converting them to hybrid vehicles and thereby reducing diesel usage. Revoy now has some insights into how well its solution works; the startup in October announced its first customer, logistics and leasing provider Ryder System. The companies have been working together since last December, with Revoy supplying its solution to Ryder along a route that starts in Memphis and spans portions of Arkansas and Texas. Tech Brew recently caught up with Revoy's founder and CEO, Ian Rust, who told us that the deployment is "really showing off our critical application, which is long haul, but also showing how we can get started at smaller scales." Keep reading here.—JG AI Agents at work Yuichiro Chino/Getty Images Those AI copilots that tech companies have dispatched to join the office are getting a promotion. Agents—autonomous systems that can perform tasks beyond the scope of a chatbot—are fast replacing copilots as the buzzword du jour in the race to outfit generative AI for the workplace. Salesforce has retooled its Einstein Copilot into a new product called Agentforce, which became generally available late last month. Microsoft Copilot isn't going anywhere, but the tech giant recently added a studio to create agents, as well as a cast of 10 pre-built agents to serve functions like sales, finance, and supply chain. Plenty of others, from Palantir to Asana, have thronged to the build-your-own-agent space as well. "In contrast to now-outdated copilots and chatbots that rely on human requests and struggle with complex or multi-step tasks, Agentforce offers a new level of sophistication by operating autonomously, retrieving the right data on demand, building action plans for any task, and executing these plans without requiring human intervention," Salesforce touted in its announcement. ("Outdated copilots" could be read as a swipe at Microsoft; Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff derided his rival's Copilot product and its foray into agents in an X missive last month. Microsoft and Salesforce did not immediately respond to requests for comment.) A new role: Agents essentially aim to shift the AI from the copilot's chair to the driver's seat. Rather than just answering questions or spitting out bits of copy at a human's behest, they can perform multi-step tasks on their own. Keep reading here.—PK a message from IBM Get an AI assessment. Everyone is asking how organizations can harness the potential of AI. And that's exactly what Shobhit Varshney, VP & Sr. Partner, Americas AI Leader at IBM Consulting, discussed in a recent interview. He explores the importance of creating AI models, building an AI roadmap, and more. Check out the interview. Level up your career with these resources from our sponsors! Off-roading: See how EV manufacturers use tech to test vehicles—without driving them Go to AWS re:Invent 2024 Dec. 2–6 to learn about generative AI innovations + grow your technical skills BITS AND BYTES Stat: 26%. That's how much smartphone prices could rise as a result of president-elect Donald Trump's proposed 60% tariff on imports from China, Ars Technica reported, citing data from the Consumer Technology Association. Quote: "Tonight, the crypto voter has spoken decisively—across party lines and in key races across the country…Americans disproportionately care about crypto and want clear rules of the road for digital assets. We look forward to working with the new Congress to deliver it."—Brian Armstrong, the CEO of Coinbase, in a post on X, as reported by the Associated Press in a story on cryptocurrency prices jumping after President-elect Donald Trump's victory last week Read: Election denial conspiracy theories are exploding on X. This time they're coming from the left (Wired) Deep dive: Prepare to take a trip into Nasdaq's unique digital experience. Travel through the critical infrastructure that powers global finance and how Nasdaq connects it all. Check it out.* *A message from our sponsor. SHARE THE BREW Share Tech Brew with your coworkers, acquire free Brew swag, and then make new friends as a result of your fresh Brew swag. We're saying we'll give you free stuff and more friends if you share a link. One link. Your referral count: 0 Click to Share Or copy & paste your referral link to others: emergingtechbrew.com/r/?kid=b3968dba Written by Patrick Kulp and Jordyn Grzelewski Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up here.   Guide → What is AI?   Guide → What is 5G? Take The Brew to work Marketers: Marketing Brew Corporate: CFO Brew   HR Brew Tech: IT Brew   Retailers: Retail Brew Healthcare: Healthcare Brew Get smarter in just 5 minutes Business News: Morning Brew Money & Career: Money With Katie   Bossy   Brew Markets   The Playbook Interested in podcasts? Check out ours here ADVERTISE // CAREERS // SHOP // FAQ Update your email preferences or unsubscribe here. View our privacy policy here. Copyright © 2024 Morning Brew. All rights reserved. 22 W 19th St, 4th Floor, New York, NY 10011