#35. Random Acts of Random
Sony has all of the answers. And I'm pretty much done with discussing new products in the "Sora Category."
Without Fanfare, Let’s Go.
I have a trove of stories and headlines that have been unable to see the light of day. Here is a cavalcade of some of it.
1. Sony Will Cut Film Costs, Says CEO Tony Vinciquerra. Blame AI. For Everything.
Lemmings here. Lemmings there. Lemmings, Lemmings everywhere are taking turns tossing out plaudits about AI, and how it will make all things better. Well, it’s Sony’s turn. Sony Pictures Entertainment.
“We are very focused on AI. The biggest problem with making films today is the expense,” Vinciquerra said at Sony’s Thursday (Friday in Japan) investor event.
“We will be looking at ways to…produce both films for theaters and television in a more efficient way, using AI primarily.”
It’s always great to toss a financial bone to investors at an event.
Here is my question: What’s the Plan?
Here is a possible answer: Who needs a plan? I’ve been assured AI can make the frigging plan too!
He did add that upcoming agreements from last year’s strikes and future negotiations will shape AI usage in the industry.
My buzzkill comment:
I personally like an approach of determining to pursue smarter ways of working all of the time. No point in stopping, right? New tools and technologies should aggregate into the work mainstream in any business in an iterative manner and on a ongoing basis. Well, at least that’s what I believe. Stay ahead of the problem. Don’t reinvent. Iterate.
EDIT TO CLARIFY: If they are looking at new ways to evolve their business, shouldn’t they have been already doing this constantly as part of running a business?
I’m sure Mr. Vinciquerra must know that, as a result of last year’s strike regarding items that included AI, stating this might be upsetting to some people. Like actors. And everybody else.
SPE will look to "produce both films for theaters and television in a more efficient way, using AI primarily,” he said.
For more, read the article.
2. Next, the Alpacas
The Google AI Test Kitchen allows you to screw around with chunks of their tech. AI music, imagery, and waitlist for Veo as well. These fabulous alpacas are “Powered by Veo.” You’ll need a gmail or some other sort of Google creds to log in.
Source: Google
Source: Google
3. Toss Another onto the Sora Pile
I use “Sora” as a category descriptor since odds are you’ll know what I’m talking about. “AI video generator” will elicit additional questions until you finally say, “Sh-t like Sora.” So there is one more to discuss and then we’re done discussing “Sh-t like Sora” until performance breakthroughs start happening.
So this final product is Luma.ai with Lumalabs Dream Machine. And you can use it now with a Google log in. It’s 2am and The Stones concert on PBS is almost over so I had one shot it this.
I thought of a cafe in Buenos Aires I visited where you can smoke cigarettes, pretend to write awful stories or poetry, and people watch. So my prompt was:
A man and woman having lunch at a corner bistro seated outdoors in Buenos Aires, Argentina. A waitress is serving them.
It rendered for a couple of minutes.
It was free so I got my money’s worth. It’s low-res; looks like it was lifted from a commercial, travel, or industrial video. Or a chunk of LLM training material. Google Translate could not help with subtitles.
Check out Luma’s demos on their site. But I’ll pass on what I got. I’ll credit them in trying to beat everyone to get this in-market.
4. Inside the Campaign: How US Bank Used Artificial Intelligence to Fast-Track Its Latest Ads
I was intending on cutting this. Not a strong ending but it is AI that put creative in-market so I’m sure someone must find value here.
It's the first work under CMO Michael Lacorazza and agency Supernatural AI. They evidently slapped “AI” onto their name, reminiscent of the “.com” craze of re-branding. Like getting a trendy tattoo from 2005 that you’re stuck with. Here’s good news on that front.
U.S. Bank has been around for 161 years, but its latest campaign is as modern as it gets, utilizing artificial intelligence to get it to market in less than four months.
It’s an Adweek article avec paywall. I believe Adweek is included with Apple News.
Thanks for hanging out with Edition 34.
Passez un bon moment à Cannes. J'ai hâte de voir mon flux LinkedIn regorger de photos. Safe travels.