[AINews] a calm before the storm
This is AI News! an MVP of a service that goes thru all AI discords/Twitters/reddits and summarizes what people are talking about, so that you can keep up without the fatigue. Signing up here opts you in to the real thing when we launch it 🔜
Peace is all you need.
AI News for 9/20/2024-9/23/2024. We checked 7 subreddits, 433 Twitters and 30 Discords (221 channels, and 6206 messages) for you. Estimated reading time saved (at 200wpm): 719 minutes. You can now tag @smol_ai for AINews discussions!
No clear headline story, but lots of minor notables ahead of anticipated big drops from Anthropic and Meta this week:
- CUDA MODE and Weights and Biases (sponsor of this month's inference) hosted successful hackathons this weekend. CUDA MODE celebrated with a rebrand to GPU MODE.
- Berkeley Function Calling Leaderboard shipped V3 (yes, v2 was only last month) focusing on multi-turn/step function calling. O1 mini does surprisingly poorly.
- a couple more notable o1 evals - on test time budget and a formal paper exploring its planning
- Anthropic raising again at up to a $40b valuation
- OpenAI shipped multilingual MMLU (MMMLU).
- Sama calls this the Intelligence Age.
- the Jony Ive phone was confirmed by the NYT and Scale AI deals with a minor crisis.
The Table of Contents and Channel Summaries have been moved to the web version of this email: !
AI Twitter Recap
all recaps done by Claude 3.5 Sonnet, best of 4 runs.
AI Developments and Industry Updates
- OpenAI's New Models: @adcock_brett reported on OpenAI's release of new reasoning models, o1 and o1-mini, designed for complex tasks in science, coding, and math. @JvNixon noted subjective improvements in output quality with these models. OpenAI also increased rate limits for o1-mini to 50 messages per day and o1-preview to 50 messages per week.
- Qwen2.5 Model: Alibaba released Qwen2.5, an open-source model with versions for general use, coding, and math, supporting 29+ languages. @_philschmid compared its performance to GPT-4, noting similar results at a fraction of the cost.
- AI Infrastructure: Microsoft and Blackrock are raising $30 billion to invest in new and existing AI data centers, with potential for $100 billion total investment. Groq partnered with Aramco to build "the world's largest AI inference center" with 19,000 LPUs, eventually growing to 200,000.
- AI in Robotics: Disney Research and ETH Zurich presented 'RobotMDM', combining diffusion-based motion generation with RL for robot movement. Pudu Robotics announced their first generation 'semi-humanoid' robot.
- AI Integration in Tech Products: Slack announced new AI-powered features, including AI agents within channels. Microsoft introduced agents coming to Microsoft 365 Copilot, working across various Microsoft products.
AI Research and Techniques
- Long Context Models: A paper on "Training-Free Long-Context Scaling of Large Language Models" introduced Dual Chunk Attention (DCA), enabling Llama2 70B to support context windows of more than 100k tokens without continual training.
- KV Cache Quantization: The "KVQuant" paper proposed techniques for quantizing cached KV activations, allowing a LLaMA-7B model to be served with a context length of up to 1 million on a single A100-80GB GPU.
- Retrieval Techniques: @_philschmid discussed SFR-RAG, a fine-tuned 9B LLM for RAG that matches larger models in performance on academic benchmarks.
- Synthetic Data: @rohanpaul_ai highlighted the crucial role of synthetic data in training Qwen2.5-Coder, detailing the generation process, validation, and integration with open-source datasets.
AI Tools and Applications
- GitHub File Organizer: @rohanpaul_ai shared a GitHub repo for a file organizer that uses local LLMs to understand and sort files based on their content.
- Financial Research Assistant: @virattt is building an open-source financial research assistant using LangChain, with powerful search tools for financial and web data.
- Perplexity-like Experience: @LangChainAI shared an open-source repo using LangGraph, FastHTML, and Tavily to create a Perplexity-like experience, supporting different models including GPT-4 and Llama3.
AI Ethics and Regulation
- California AI Bill SB 1047: There's ongoing debate about the California AI Bill SB 1047. @JJitsev argued that the bill is deeply flawed, regulating general-purpose technology rather than its applications. Several AI researchers and institutions have expressed concerns about the bill's potential impact on AI research and development.
Miscellaneous
- AI Contributions on GitHub: @rohanpaul_ai noted that AI contributions on GitHub have surged 230% since OpenAI released ChatGPT.
- AI Data Centers: @ylecun suggested that future AI data centers will be built next to energy production sites, particularly nuclear power plants, for efficient, low-cost, and low-emission electricity.
AI Reddit Recap
/r/LocalLlama Recap
Theme 1. Qwen2.5 Emerges as New Open Source SOTA, Replacing Larger Models
- Who replaced a model with Qwen2.5 for a daily setup? If so, which model did you replace? (Score: 42, Comments: 30): Qwen2.5 is reported to achieve state-of-the-art (SOTA) performance across a wide range of tasks, with model sizes ranging from 0.5B to 72B parameters. The post author is inquiring about users who have integrated Qwen2.5 into their daily workflows, asking which specific models they replaced and for what tasks.
- Professional-Bear857 replaced Llama 3.1 70B IQ2_M with Qwen2.5 32B IQ4_XS for code editing/correction and general queries, citing lower GPU power usage and comparable performance to Mistral Large.
- Users are experimenting with Qwen2.5 for various tasks, including article and YouTube video summarization. Matteogeniaccio uses a custom Python setup with llama.cpp server to process different content types and extract key information.
- While some users praise Qwen2.5's instruction-following capabilities, others report mixed results. Frequent_Valuable_47 found Gemma2 2B superior to Qwen2.5 1.5B for YouTube transcript summaries, despite Qwen2.5's larger 120k token context compared to Gemma's 8k.
Theme 2. Safe Code Execution in Open WebUI Using gVisor Sandboxing
- Safe code execution in Open WebUI (Score: 324, Comments: 24): Open WebUI has implemented safe code execution using Docker containers for enhanced security. This feature allows users to run code snippets within isolated environments, preventing potential harm to the host system while enabling interactive coding experiences. The implementation utilizes Docker SDK for container management and includes a timeout mechanism to automatically terminate long-running processes.
- The code execution feature is available on GitHub and uses gVisor for sandboxing. It offers two modes: "Function" for running code blocks in LLM messages and "Tool" for allowing LLMs to autonomously execute code.
- Users discussed extending support to other languages like Go, with the developer explaining that modifications to the
Sandboxclass and interpreter selection code would be necessary. The tool currently works with Ollama backend and models tagged for tool calling. - Concerns were raised about handling missing dependencies and the need for more robust features like artifacts and increased concurrent requests. The developer confirmed that Open WebUI v0.3.22 includes necessary fixes for the tool to function properly.
Theme 3. NSFW AI Models Optimized for Roleplay Scenarios
- Favorite small NSFW RP models (under 20B)? (Score: 180, Comments: 156): The post compares various small NSFW RP models under 20B parameters, categorizing them as "Good," "Great," and "ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC." The author exclusively uses EXL2 models, with top picks including MN-12b-ArliAI-RPMax-EXL2-4bpw, estopia-13b-llama-2-4bpw-exl2, and Mistral-Nemo-Instruct-2407-exl2-4bpw. Most models listed are 4-4.5bpw (bits per weight) variants, with sizes ranging from 7B to 13B parameters.
- Users discussed various NSFW RP models, with L3-Nymeria-Maid-8B-exl2 and Cydonia 22B highlighted as particularly impressive. Nicholas_Matt_Quail provided extensive insights on model evolution, noting that Cydonia 22B feels like a significant upgrade over 12B models.
- The community shared recommendations for different VRAM capacities, including Sao10K_L3-8B-Stheno for 4GB and L3-Super-Nova-RP-8B for higher capacities. Users emphasized the importance of proper sampling techniques and instruct templates for optimal model performance.
- Discussions touched on the use cases for uncensored models, including explicit sexual content and non-sexual scenarios involving violence or dark themes. The chub.ai website was mentioned as a resource for character cards and RP scenarios.
Theme 4. Jailbreaking and Censorship Testing of Qwen2.5 Models
- Qwen2.5 is able to be jailbroken, but it's not perfect. (Score: 49, Comments: 24): Qwen2.5 models (72b, 32b, 14b) were tested for censorship using Ollama and Open-webui, with initial attempts to ask about Uyghur persecution resulting in 100% rejection. A custom system prompt was developed to encourage unbiased, detailed responses, which successfully bypassed censorship for questions about Uyghurs and Hong Kong, achieving 100% uncensored answers in 20 tests. However, the method proved ineffective for direct questions about the Chinese government, suggesting a persistent "block" on such topics, while questions about other governments (e.g., American) received more critical responses.
- Users discussed the model's responses, with some noting it gave a "well-worded gut punch" about political greed in America while being more restrained on Chinese topics. The 32b model was praised for its performance, with mentions of 128k context capability.
- Debate arose over whether the model's responses indicate censorship or bias from training data. Some argued that the model's pro-China stance might reflect its training rather than deliberate censorship, while others suggested potential "ablation" of certain topics.
- A user tested the 14b model with a prompt about Tiananmen Square, receiving a surprisingly detailed response covering key events and aftermath. This sparked discussion about the model's ability to address sensitive topics and the influence of prompt wording on responses.
Theme 5. Limited Excitement for New Command-R Model Updates
- no love for new command r ? (Score: 33, Comments: 28): The post discusses the recent improvements to the Command-R model by Cohere, noting a lack of public enthusiasm compared to its initial release about six months ago. Despite Cohere's claims of enhanced capabilities in reasoning, RAG, math, and coding, the author observes a notable absence of benchmarks, blog posts, LocalLLaMA adaptations, or YouTube reviews for the updated model. The post concludes by asking if anyone is using the new Command-R and invites users to share their experiences.
- Users compared Command-R to other models like Qwen2.5-32B, Mistral 123b, and Magnum 123b, with mixed opinions on performance. Some found Command-R better for specific tasks like storytelling and document chatting, while others preferred alternative models.
- The non-commercial license of Command-R was cited as a significant factor limiting interest and adoption. Users expressed frustration with the restrictive terms, particularly the prohibition on commercial use of outputs, which some viewed as hypocritical given Cohere's data collection practices.
- The new Command-R was noted to be worse for RP/ERP compared to the original release, which had accidentally excelled in this area. However, improvements in GQA allow for better performance with large context lengths up to 128k, potentially benefiting RAG and tool use applications.
Other AI Subreddit Recap
r/machinelearning, r/openai, r/stablediffusion, r/ArtificialInteligence, /r/LLMDevs, /r/Singularity
AI Research and Techniques
- Google Deepmind advances multimodal learning: A paper on joint example selection demonstrates how data curation can accelerate multimodal learning. (/r/MachineLearning)
- Microsoft's MInference speeds up long-context inference: MInference enables inference of up to millions of tokens for long-context tasks while maintaining accuracy. (/r/MachineLearning)
- Scaling synthetic data creation with 1 billion web-curated personas: A paper on scaling synthetic data creation leverages diverse perspectives within large language models to generate data from web-curated personas. (/r/MachineLearning)
AI Model Releases and Improvements
- Salesforce releases xLAM-1b model: The 1 billion parameter model achieves 70% accuracy in function calling, surpassing GPT 3.5. (/r/LocalLLaMA)
- Phi-3 Mini updated with function calling: Rubra AI released an updated Phi-3 Mini model with function calling capabilities, competitive with Mistral-7b v3. (/r/LocalLLaMA)
- Alibaba launches over 100 new open-source AI models: Alibaba released numerous AI models and a text-to-video generation tool. (/r/singularity)
AI Applications and Experiments
- Flux: Iterative image transformation: An experiment showing what happens when repeatedly feeding an output image back into a transformer block. (/r/StableDiffusion)
- Simple Vector Flux LoRA: A demonstration of vector-based image transformations using LoRA. (/r/StableDiffusion)
- AI-generated desktop icons: Discussion on using AI to create custom desktop icons. (/r/StableDiffusion)
AI Ethics and Societal Impact
- Pope calls for Universal Basic Income: The Pope repeated his call for Universal Basic Income, sparking discussions on AI's impact on employment. (/r/singularity)
- Worldcoin's iris scanning for UBI: Sam Altman's Worldcoin project uses iris scanning for identity verification in a proposed UBI system, raising privacy concerns. (/r/singularity)
AI Humor and Memes
- Circuit board spear: A humorous image of a spear made with a circuit board tip, sparking discussions on post-apocalyptic scenarios and AI's role. (/r/singularity)
- AI's perspective on evil: A ChatGPT conversation where the AI identifies "humanity" as the source of evil, generating debate on AI ethics and human nature. (/r/OpenAI)
AI Discord Recap
A summary of Summaries of Summaries by O1-preview
Theme 1: New AI Model Releases and Updates
- OpenAI Introduces O1 Models: A Leap in Reasoning: The O1 models showcase significant improvements in reasoning, jumping from 0% to 52.8% on challenging benchmarks, hinting at potential synthetic data training.
- Aider v0.57.0 Enhances AI Pair Programming: Aider v0.57.0 now supports OpenAI O1 models, improves Windows compatibility, and integrates new Cohere models, with 70% of the release coded by Aider itself.
- Gradio 5 Beta Released with Performance Boosts: The Gradio 5 Beta introduces major performance enhancements, modern design updates, and an experimental AI Playground for quick app testing.
Theme 2: Challenges and Issues with AI Tools and Models
- Perplexity Pro Users Face Subscription Woes: Users reported intermittent loss of Perplexity Pro status, experiencing 'Query rate limit exceeded' errors; temporary fixes like logging out were only partially effective.
- LM Studio Models Hit Loading Snags After Updates: After updating to LM Studio, users faced challenges loading models, with some resorting to rolling back versions to restore functionality.
- OpenRouter Disables Middle-Out Transform by Default: OpenRouter has disabled the middle-out transform, impacting users' workflows and causing confusion over prompt handling.
Theme 3: AI in Creative Fields
- AI-Powered RPG Development Underway: A developer is creating an RPG game integrating AI agents with memory and networking, seeking community contributions due to the complexity of the system.
- Music Production AI Struggles with Music Theory: Discussions reveal that AI models in music production struggle with basic music theory tasks like transposing chords, highlighting limitations due to limited training data.
- Podcast Generation Technology Excites Users: PodcastGen utilizes advanced techniques inspired by Google's NotebookLM to generate podcasts, though some users noted issues with content repetition.
Theme 4: Developments in AI Research and Practices
- μ-Parameterization Guide Simplifies Model Training: EleutherAI and Cerebras released a joint guide to improve the accessibility of μ-parameterization (μP), including step-by-step instructions and a simple implementation in nanoGPT-mup.
- BFCL V3 Evaluates Multi-Turn Function Calling in LLMs: The Berkeley Function-Calling Leaderboard V3 introduces a new evaluation for multi-turn and multi-step function calling, critical for assessing LLM performance in complex tasks.
- SetFit v1.1.0 Released with Enhanced Training Capabilities: SetFit v1.1.0 now uses the Sentence Transformers Trainer for efficient classifier training on both CPU and GPU, with support for MultiGPU and Python 3.11 and 3.12.
Theme 5: Community Events and Collaborations
- Hackathon Showcases Innovative Projects at CUDA MODE: The hackathon saw over 40 projects created in a day, with teams selected for pitches focused on commercial viability and innovation, highlighting the community's collaborative spirit.
- Participants Seek AI Internship Opportunities: Members are actively seeking suggestions on where to find AI internships, reflecting the community's interest in advancing careers within the AI field.
- Open Interpreter Module Proposed for Smart Furniture: A member proposed creating an Open Interpreter module for the Kequel Modular Customizable Bedside Table, seeking collaboration from the community.
PART 1: High level Discord summaries
HuggingFace Discord
- HuggingFace Spaces are down: Users reported significant issues with HuggingFace Spaces, experiencing '500 Internal Error' and file upload failures that lasted several hours.
- This downtime frustrated users who rely on the platform for model access and content uploads, highlighting its impact on productivity.
- Fine-Tuning Models Simplified: A user sought help for fine-tuning a model on a dataset of 350 records concerning OS and hardware issues, finding support through shared resources like SimpleTuner.
- Various users discussed tools for model training, discovering effective solutions, including YouTube video recommendations and community insights.
- 3D Content Creation in Seconds: A member shared the threestudio GitHub repo, claiming 3D objects can be generated in under 10 seconds.
- Another participant recommended using 'stable fast 3D', which reportedly generates objects from images in less than one second, available in Hugging Face space.
- Gradio 5 Beta Released: Gradio 5 (Beta) is officially here, addressing developer feedback with enhancements in performance, design updates, and an experimental AI Playground for quick app testing.
- This beta version promises major performance boosts, especially in server-side rendering, while ensuring improved security through a third-party audit.
- Developing an AI-Powered RPG: A developer is working on an RPG that integrates AI agents with memory and networking, facing complexities in system construction.
- They reached out to the community for contributions, emphasizing the significant challenges in implementing such a sophisticated gaming structure.
aider (Paul Gauthier) Discord
- Aider v0.57.0 Brings Exciting Updates: The launch of Aider v0.57.0 enhances performance with various updates, including support for OpenAI o1 models, improved Windows compatibility, and integration of new Cohere models.
- It also addresses multiple bugs, and users can access the full change log here.
- Aider and OpenRouter Ready but Bumpy: Users shared mixed experiences using Aider with OpenRouter and Claude models, often facing 'overloaded' errors and confusion.
- Some members accessed Anthropic models successfully, while others printed concerns about the reliability of service during current high traffic.
- Doubts on Embeddings Highlighted: A member expressed skepticism about the value of embeddings, advocating for a DIY method instead, which mimics a tree structure approach as seen in llama index.
- This discussion points to broader trends in the AI landscape, with some attributing the surge in RAG tools to VC funding rather than genuine demand.
- Creative Solutions for Aider Optimization: To streamline workflows, a quick search tool using ripgrep was suggested for better integration with Aider, emphasizing the importance of speed in development.
- Users also discussed using lower token counts in Aider's setting to enhance clarity and reduce confusion, particularly when dealing with extensive repositories.
- Enhancements to Git and Chat Handling: Aider’s repository mapping facilitates tracking code changes and interactions, though some configurations prompted users to turn off auto-refresh to maintain efficient search capabilities.
- Integration of HuggingFace models and the use of .env files for managing environment settings enhance Aider's usability for AI pair programming.
Eleuther Discord
- Joint μ-Parameterization Guide with Cerebras: Today, we're excited to drop a joint blog on The Practitioner's Guide to the Maximal Update Parameterization, aiming to improve the accessibility of μ-parameterization (μP) for the training community.
- This guide includes step-by-step implementation instructions and a simple implementation at EleutherAI/nanoGPT-mup, addressing common accessibility issues found in the original materials.
- Using Cosine Similarity with GPT-4: A user is evaluating GPT-4 for a classification task without fine-tuning, considering dynamically selecting examples based on cosine similarity from a test set for improved in-context learning.
- Concerns were raised about the potential for test set leakage by including similar test examples in the prompt, ensuring that the test question itself is not included.
- Debate on Curriculum Learning Effectiveness: There is ongoing discussion about the effectiveness of curriculum learning (CL) in AI, with skepticism about significant improvements over traditional training methods.
- Members pointed out the absence of guaranteed best practices for filtering data, impacting the real-world application of CL.
- MMLU_PRO sampling logic needs attention: The
./leaderboard/mmlu_protask differs from its original implementation as it ignores question categories for few-shot sampling, as can be seen in this code.- Another user suggested an updated sampling logic to improve accuracy based on question categories, available here.
- Activation Functions Documentation Out of Sync: A member pointed out that the available activation functions listed in the documentation do not reflect the full range present in the code, particularly with Swiglu.
- Another member confirmed that the documentation had not been updated, referencing a specific line in the code where these functions are defined.
Unsloth AI (Daniel Han) Discord
- KTO Trainer Needs a Reference Model: Members clarified that the KTO trainer requires a reference model to calculate rewards, suggesting using the untouched base model for comparison during fine-tuning.
- Pre-generating responses from the reference model was suggested to save memory during training.
- Qwen Model Bug Reports Surface: Users noted unexpected behavior from the Qwen 2.5 model post-updates, particularly issues with prompt templates generating incorrect responses.
- It was confirmed that the smaller model is sensitive to prompt formatting, which led to these problems.
- RAG Implementation Catching Attention: Participants discussed using Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) to improve model responses and enhance knowledge retention during analysis.
- One user suggested effectively using existing datasets in RAG to avoid knowledge loss during training.
- SetFit v1.1.0 Out with Enhanced Training Capabilities: The release of SetFit v1.1.0 now employs the Sentence Transformers Trainer for efficient classifier training on both CPU and GPU, addressing previous issues.
- Key updates include MultiGPU support and deprecating 'evaluation_strategy' in favor of 'eval_strategy', alongside new support for Python 3.11 and 3.12.
- Training Classifiers Receives Structured Approach: Training a SetFit classifier model involves two phases: finetuning a Sentence Transformer embedding model followed by mapping embeddings to classes.
- This structured methodology enhances performance and efficiency, particularly with the features in version 1.1.0.
Perplexity AI Discord
- Perplexity Pro Subscription Woes: Several users of Perplexity reported losing their Pro status intermittently, facing error messages like 'Query rate limit exceeded'. Temporary fixes like logging out and back in sparsely resolved the issue but highlighted system-wide lag issues post updates.
- Concerns lingered over ongoing bugs which users fear could severely impact their experience on the platform.
- AI Model Showdown: Llama vs. Perplexity: Discussions revealed that llama-3.1-sonar-large-128k-online underperformed compared to the Perplexity web app, with users noting incomplete responses and inconsistent formatting. Suggestions to improve output were made, emphasizing capturing source references.
- The discrepancy in performance has raised questions about model reliability in practical applications.
- Chemistry of Chain of Thought Reasoning: Members engaged with resources on Chain of Thought reasoning, aimed at boosting AI logic and reasoning skills. A guide detailing implementation was shared, enhancing the toolkit for developing complex AI models.
- Further threads emphasized the ongoing application of this reasoning style in improving AI's functional abilities in real-world scenarios.
- Frustration with Perplexity API Citations: Users expressed disappointment regarding the Perplexity API's erratic citation feature, often failing to deliver consistent references despite explicit requests. The criticisms pointed out how the API's reliability hinges heavily on accurate citation provision.
- This inconsistency risks diminishing the API's reputation within the developer community focused on serious applications.
- Potential Azure Deployment for OCR Services: Curiosity emerged about the feasibility of deploying Perplexity API on Azure for OCR services, reflecting a growing interest in practical applications of APIs in cloud environments. This could open new avenues for integrating OCR capabilities using the API's features.
- The volume of inquiries about Azure deployment indicates an evolving trend towards cloud-based AI solutions.
GPU MODE Discord
- Team Coordination at Hackathon: Participants set up collaboration strategies for the hackathon, recommending self-organization and communication via designated channels to optimize teamwork.
- Members suggested using Uber for transport due to limited parking, emphasizing the importance of logistical planning for a successful event.
- CUDA Mode Event Highlights: The hackathon kicked off with positive feedback, showcasing notable projects and collaborative efforts, inspiring participants regarding future endeavors.
- Ten teams were selected for pitches, with the judges focusing on commercial viability and innovation, reminding teams to finalize their submissions on time.
- KLDivLoss and Kernel Issues: Concerns over the KLDivLoss backward kernel prompted discussions regarding its formula accuracy and potential loop unrolling problems related to larger vocab sizes.
- Participants suggested investigating the relationship between KLDivLoss and Cross-Entropy implementations to enhance model performance and reduce discrepancies.
- WebGPU vs. MPS Performance: Members noted that while MPS outperforms WebGPU on macOS, WebGPU is still in development and hasn't reached peak performance, indicating areas for improvement.
- There’s a collaborative push to optimize kernel comparisons between MPS and WebGPU, with calls for community input on enhancing implementations.
- Compute Credits and Support Needs: Participants clarified how to claim compute credits, confirming that no confirmation emails are sent, but funds are credited shortly after sign-up.
- Support for installing Python packages was confirmed successful across nodes, reflecting the community's resource-sharing mentality in problem-solving.
OpenRouter (Alex Atallah) Discord
- OpenRouter Facilitates Cloud-Based Testing: Subscribers can now test OpenRouter services directly in the cloud without local installations; a smaller demo is available featuring a Loom video.
- This setup makes it easy for users to explore features quickly and efficiently.
- Webinar on Advanced OpenRouter Usage Incoming: An upcoming live webinar is set for 12pm EST, focusing on scaling to thousands of parallel agents and proxies.
- Find more details by checking the Live tab on the associated YouTube channel.
- Middle-Out Transform Disabled as Default: OpenRouter has officially disabled the middle-out transform by default, which affects many users' workflows.
- This change has raised concerns, highlighting the importance of the feature for various frontend and backend systems.
- Speculations Rise Around New Anthropic Model Launch: Rumors suggest an impending launch of a new model from Anthropic, with hints indicating an announcement during a Google event.
- This announcement may coincide with extensive free token offers, stirring discussion among developers.
- Exploration of Private LLM Servers: A member raised questions about whether participants are running private LLM servers themselves or utilizing third-party services.
- The inquiry sparked engagement regarding the management and operation of these servers.
Nous Research AI Discord
- Music Production AI struggles with music theory: Discussions revealed that large models in music production face challenges with basic music theory tasks like transposing chords, with experimentation ongoing using a feline AI to generate MIDI files.
- Participants agreed that music notation remains a significant barrier due to limited training examples.
- Bittensor raises ethics concerns: Members voiced concerns regarding Bittensor seemingly replicating Nous Research’s distributed training algorithm without proper acknowledgment, calling into question ethical practices in AI.
- The dialogue suggested that innovation in distributed training must be prioritized over simply increasing parameter counts.
- New Medical LLMs on the scene: Several new models have been introduced, including HuatuoGPT-II and Apollo, aimed at enhancing medical AI capabilities, particularly in gene-phenotype mapping and multilingual applications.
- HuatuoGPT-Vision was also showcased for its multimodal processing strength, enhancing accessibility in medical data handling.
- LLMs Transform Clinical Trials: LLMs are being utilized to improve clinical trials, particularly seen with AlpaPICO which generates PICO frames, streamlining the process for clinical reporting.
- These advancements aim to enhance the quality of medical documentation and improve workflows in clinical settings.
- Exploring RL environments for reasoning: There are ongoing discussions about creating specialized RL environments tailored for reasoning tasks, emphasizing the need for diverse setups similar to open source fine-tuning.
- Members indicated that successful training depends heavily on the selection of quality datasets and environments.
Cohere Discord
- AI's Role in Mental Health Support: Members discussed that people with mental health issues may prefer talking to chatbots due to stigma, making ethical AI usage crucial in healthcare.
- While AI can aid in mental health diagnostics, it must comply with data privacy regulations and not replace professional care.
- Addressing Bias in AI Systems: The group emphasized the importance of teaching motivated reasoning and confirmation bias to improve critical thinking in AI usage.
- They agreed that AI recommendations should be grounded in scientific advice with strong ethical standards.
- Cohere's Research Focus is Diverse: Cohere works on various topics including language models, efficiency, safety, and AI policy, with resources available on their research papers page.
- Members were encouraged to explore these topics as part of their ongoing professional development.
- Embedding Call Parameter Update: A user encountered errors with the embedding call stating '
embedding_types parameter is required,' indicating a recent requirement change.- This prompted clarification from the Cohere team, as the documentation previously stated it was optional.
- AI-Telegram-Chatbot Project Launch: A member shared their AI-Telegram-Chatbot GitHub repository demonstrating Cohere AI in action.
- The bot aims to enhance user interaction through AI-driven responses, reflecting broader interest in practical applications of Cohere technologies.
Modular (Mojo 🔥) Discord
- Last Call for Mojo Feedback: Join a quick 30-minute call to share your thoughts about Magic; participants receive exclusive swag for input. You can book your slot here.
- Engagement is vital to improve Magic and gather a broader range of experiences from the community.
- Mojo's Python Integration Woes: Members debate the feasibility of integrating Python libraries into Mojo, expressing concerns over potential GIL conflicts impacting performance. They ponder whether creating direct Mojo files for Python classes could simplify usage.
- The community remains cautious, highlighting that while integration is beneficial, it may affect Mojo's efficiency and objectives.
- MAX Custom Ops Need Clarity: A query on the status of MAX custom ops sparked concern regarding changes noted on the modular documentation. Members are looking for updates on recent alterations or function removals.
- Community members are eager for clearer documentation, expressing a pressing need for guidance on properly utilizing MAX operations.
- Bit Packing and Structs in Mojo: Discussion revolved around the absence of native bit packing in Mojo, with members considering alternatives like manual packing and variable width types to optimize struct sizes. Concerns regarding struct alignment's impact on performance surfaced during this conversation.
- The potential for LLVM enhancements to manage varying bit widths was mentioned, indicating a route to address these efficiency issues.
- Mojo Evolves Towards General Purpose: Users express optimism about Mojo becoming a full-fledged general-purpose language, asserting its capability extends beyond mere AI applications. Integration with platforms like MAX is viewed as essential for broader usability.
- This sentiment shows a collective eagerness to see Mojo evolve while keeping its performance snappy and competitive.
LM Studio Discord
- LM Studio Models Hit Loading Snags: Users face challenges loading models after updating to LM Studio, especially post the CUDA Llama.cpp v1.1.9 update, triggering various fixes such as clearing cache.
- Many resorted to rolling back versions, sharing solutions that reinstated functionality amidst ongoing frustrations.
- Image Generation Models Not Supported: Discussions revealed that LM Studio does not support image generation models like Flux, resulting in 'unknown model architecture' errors.
- Users clarified that these models are meant for other platforms, specifying clear usage boundaries for LM Studio.
- DDR6 Release Timeline Uncertainty: Concerns about the availability of DDR6 surfaced, with users speculating that broad adoption might not happen until late next year.
- Ongoing discussions reflect a waiting period for clear specifications before consumer hardware can adequately utilize this technology.
- Mixed Results with RTX 4090 Performance: Mixed performance metrics for RTX 4090 emerged, with test results jumping from less than 20t/s to disputed claims of 60t/s.
- Inconsistencies indicated challenges in setup and measurement in relation to different model configurations, raising questions about performance consistency.
- ROCm Support Streamlined: Users interested in ROCm support learned that the latest LM Studio version simplifies the process by auto-detecting ROCm installations.
- This update is expected to facilitate easier installations for users relying on AMD GPU setups.
Stability.ai (Stable Diffusion) Discord
- Exploring Stable Diffusion Features: Users discussed various aspects of Stable Diffusion, including Dalle3 functionality and limitations of Flux in terms of VRAM utilization.
- The conversation highlighted specific tools, like boorutag autocompletion, aimed at enhancing prompts.
- FLUX Model Utilization Faces VRAM Challenges: Members shared experiences with FLUX models, detailing the challenges of using LoRAs and managing VRAM during image generation.
- Techniques such as keeping text encoders on DRAM were suggested to optimize model performance.
- Training LoRAs for Character Consistency: Discussion focused on the need for precise prompts and training LoRAs to maintain consistent character generation in projects like comics.
- Participants mentioned using IP adapters for improved character coherence during image creation.
- Inpainting Techniques for Image Completion: Users sought advice on inpainting techniques to effectively fill missing parts of images while preserving style and coherence.
- Tools like Fooocus and RuinedFooocus UI were recommended to enhance the inpainting process.
- Consistency in AI Art Generations: Conversations revolved around ensuring consistency in AI art by using the same prompts and settings.
- Maintaining consistent seeds and settings was emphasized, along with tools that aid in maintaining style across generated images.
OpenAI Discord
- o1-mini flounders in creative writing: o1-mini struggles with clichés and predictable structures in poetry, making it less suitable for creative depth compared to Claude Opus 3. Users agree that prompt specificity could enhance results.
- Improved prompting could potentially unlock better creativity, but current performance limitations remain a setback.
- Efficient embedding storage practices shared: A member discussed efficient storage solutions for embeddings from a 12-13k text collection, highlighting S3 and OpenAI's vector store as key options. The goal is effective clustering and retrieval.
- This conversation reflects ongoing interest in optimizing AI data management methodologies.
- AI tools tackling PDF analysis: A user requested tools that can analyze PDFs, including converting images to text for AI knowledge bases, with many RAG solutions noted for supporting PDF integration. Yet, there remains a gap in converting images accurately.
- The community acknowledges the necessity of advancing multimodal models to handle such tasks more effectively.
- Examining AI chatbot model performance: Participating members compared AI chat models, emphasizing how o1-mini falls short against Claude Opus 3 in creative writing tasks. The discussions highlighted the critical role of prompting in maximizing model output.
- There's a strong interest in upcoming models promising improved performance in creative endeavors.
- Insights on gpt-o1-preview quota for enterprises: Discussion revealed speculation that the gpt-o1-preview quota for enterprise accounts may align with tier 5 limits, as cited in a rate limits guide.
- Members look for clearer documentation to unlock these enterprise features.
Latent Space Discord
- OpenAI Device Development Confirmed: Jony Ive confirmed the creation of an OpenAI AI device, with Sam Altman securing a distribution deal with Apple to potentially reshuffle the smartphone market.
- The community reacted mixedly to rumored subscription models linked to this forthcoming device.
- AI SDK 3.4 Enhances Tool Execution: The release of AI SDK 3.4 introduces automatic multi-step tool executions, facilitating backend developments in various programming languages.
- Noteworthy applications utilizing the SDK include postgres.new for SQL translation and a versatile web development agent, v0.
- Elicit.org Wins Accolades for Research: Elicit.org earned praise among members for its capabilities in streamlining academic literature reviews, making research processes more efficient.
- Users emphasized the importance of community recommendations in discovering relevant AI tools and developments.
- Gorilla Leaderboard V3 Challenges LLMs: The rollout of BFCL V3 aims to evaluate how LLMs manage multi-turn workflows and function calling, critical for complex AI tasks.
- This leaderboard addresses performance metrics crucial for real-world AI applications.
- Anthropic Poised for Significant Funding: Anthropic is engaging in discussions that could value the company between $30 billion and $40 billion, potentially doubling its previous valuation.
- This funding maneuver occurs in a competitive AI market, reflecting substantial investor confidence.
Interconnects (Nathan Lambert) Discord
- O1 model's reasoning leap: Recent discussions unveiled that O1's improved reasoning capabilities saw a jump from 0% to 52.8% on a challenging benchmark, hinting at potential synthetic data training.
- This suggests significant advancements, possibly tied to utilizing effective training methodologies for complex tasks.
- Anthropic aims for valuation boost: News surfaced that Anthropic seeks to raise capital that could propel its valuation to $30 billion to $40 billion, potentially double its previous worth.
- This reflects rising investor enthusiasm in the AI startup ecosystem amidst fierce competition.
- Shampoo trains Gemini, sparks gatekeeping talks: It was confirmed that Shampoo was utilized for training Gemini, which raised conversations about information gatekeeping within the community.
- Despite the paper's availability, many expressed surprise at the implications of Shampoo's role in this context.
- GameGen diffusion model makes a sudden exit: Discussions focused on the rapid rise and unexpected disappearance of the GameGen diffusion model from GitHub, causing confusion among users.
- This incident echoed concerns about 'rug pulls' within the AI game development space.
- Twitter security woes escalate: Numerous Twitter accounts have recently been hacked, leading to meme coin scams impacting high-profile users, as reported in a community alert.
- Questions were raised whether the security issues stemmed from SIM swapping or inherent vulnerabilities, especially when accounts with 2FA security still faced compromises.
LlamaIndex Discord
- Building RAG Applications with NVIDIA NIM: A great tutorial on NVIDIA NIM guides users in creating a full-stack RAG application, connecting Llama 3, an ArXiv dataset, Milvus as the vector database, and Gradio for the app interface.
- This project showcases effective integration of key components necessary for robust RAG functionalities.
- Nudge Fine-Tuning Improves Embeddings: NUDGE offers a non-parametric method for embedding fine-tuning that accelerates the process from hours to minutes.
- This innovation highlights a significant boost in operational efficiency for model finetuning.
- Multimodal RAG Tackles Product Manuals: Discussion centered on the construction of multimodal RAG systems to simplify the understanding of complex product manuals, like those for IKEA furniture assembly.
- The approach signifies a need for intricate setups to efficiently index, search, and retrieve data, enhancing the user experience.
- Cleanlab's TLM Enhances Trust: An article discusses how Cleanlab's TLM improves RAG systems in LlamaIndex, focusing on enhancing AI output reliability in critical applications like law.
- It emphasizes the importance of dependable AI systems that yield accurate responses, combating prevalent issues of incomplete and overconfident outputs.
- Local Model Serving with LitServe: LitServe from LightningAI provides a framework to serve and scale LLM models using FastAPI, as shown in a demo with LlamaIndex.
- This framework allows users to build efficient RAG servers and host them locally, improving operational workflows.
DSPy Discord
- DSPy 2.5.0 Launches Quietly: The long-awaited DSPy 2.5.0 has been released, streamlining the migration process and deprecating all pre-2.4 LM clients, encouraging users to transition to supported providers through
dspy.LM(model_name, **kwargs).- Feedback is actively sought as users adapt to the new version, with documentation and support readily available to assist in the transition.
- Chat Adapter Improvements Address Repetitive Responses: Members discussed the need for custom chat adapters due to lower LLM models (<7B) producing repetitive responses in 'chat complete' mode, a solution now in testing.
- This enhancement is aimed at improving user experience, and feedback from early adopters is crucial to fine-tuning the new architecture.
- Synthetic Data Generation Speeds Surge: A report highlighted impressive improvements in synthetic data generation speeds after fine-tuning a lower model, achieving from 30 to 2500 tokens per second.
- This improvement positions DSPy as a promising tool for generating large volumes of synthetic training data efficiently.
- TrueLaw Makes Waves with DSPy Insights: In a recent episode of the MLOps Podcast #260, CTO of TrueLaw Inc., Shiva Bhattacharjee, discussed leveraging DSPy for specialized domain problems.
- The conversation underscored the importance of domain-specific models to enhance performance, particularly in the legal sector.
- Text Classification Challenges and Inquiries: A member raised questions about the possibility of extending docstrings for complex text classification tasks, seeking ways to improve LLM understanding.
- There was also a request for available Chain of Thought (COT) methods with Groq, indicating active interest in expanding testing capabilities.
Torchtune Discord
- Curious Minds at the CUDA Hackathon: One member inquired if anyone was attending the upcoming CUDA Mode IRL hackathon, prompting interest in gathering insights from the event.
- It could be a great opportunity to discuss latest developments in GPU programming and optimization strategies.
- Optimize CPU Offloading to Enhance Performance: Concerns arose regarding the absence of CPU offloading in the optimizer, particularly seen in the full_finetune_single_device.py, hinting at potential performance degradation due to legacy issues.
- Members suggested adopting PagedAdam by default for improved memory efficiency and highlighted the ongoing transition to more optimized approaches.
- KV Caching Under Fire: Discussions centered around experiencing OOM issues with the qwen2.5 1.5B model when using KV caching and batch sizes of 8 on 40GB machines.
- Members proposed troubleshooting by examining the KV cache shape to determine if it’s initialized properly to maximum length, aiming to mitigate issues.
- Batch Size Quandaries in Model Evaluation: A debate emerged about the impact of increasing batch sizes on model evaluation, particularly during multi-task scenarios.
- Participants leaned toward analyzing trade-offs related to cache initialization and the interaction of weights and gradients between CPU and GPU.
- Evaluation Recipe Bug Fix Adventures: Key discussions highlighted a PR addressing bugs in the evaluation recipe for group tasks, indicated by the need for timely patches as changes are implemented, seen at PR #1642.
- There was general agreement on tackling identified fixes promptly while awaiting the most recent updates to the evaluation recipe.
LAION Discord
- CLIP Retrieval Alternatives Lacking: Members discussed the scarcity of alternatives to CLIP Retrieval, noting it may not be revived by rom1504.
- One user expressed the need for a backend solution compatible with LAION 400M for their research projects.
- AI Internship Leads Wanted: A user requested suggestions on where to find AI internship opportunities, emphasizing community guidance.
- This inquiry reflects a growing interest in advancing careers within the AI field.
- Dataset Sharing for Model Training: A dataset was uploaded to Hugging Face for training Llama-3.1, with a call for feedback on its coding effectiveness.
- The shared dataset includes detailed application descriptions, sparking discussion on best practices.
- Summarizer AI in Need of Feedback: A user shared their newly developed summarizer AI and sought community testing and feedback.
- Acknowledgment of its potential was met with suggestions for message length customization to improve usability.
- Playlist Generator Project Introduced: A user showcased Adify, a playlist generator that creates Spotify playlists based on user prompts.
- The project garnered positive reception, indicating a strong interest in innovative music generation tools.
tinygrad (George Hotz) Discord
- VGA Reclaims GPU Connection Glory: A user confirmed that their GPU connected via VGA only, overcoming problems related to an incorrect displayed password.
- This work-around allowed them to power their setup successfully using an older VGA connection.
- ShapeTracker Mergeability Bounty Inquiry: There's a query regarding the bounty status for ShapeTracker mergeability in Lean, with an interest expressed for an undergraduate thesis.
- The unresolved status has piqued the curiosity of students eager to explore this complex topic.
- Answer AI Talks Cost Efficiency: Discussions revolved around the cost-effectiveness of Answer AI boxes, which might offer better pricing than current solutions, including potential bulk discounts.
- Participants hope to showcase benchmarks from this affordable setup, aiming to prove its financial viability.
- Tinygrad's Cloud Integration Concept Flourishes: The CLOUD=1 option for integration into tinygrad garnered attention, aiming to streamline functionality without relying on AWS-style virtualization.
- Members discussed how this device option would enhance usability while keeping performance intact.
- Metal Tutorials Offer Insights: A GitHub link to a tutorial on Metal was shared, expanding knowledge on tinygrad integration.
- The tutorial serves as a resource for contributors keen on improving their Metal-related skills within tinygrad.
LangChain AI Discord
- Agents face issues with Local AI integration: Users reported that Agents do not work with local AI after a six-month gap, suggesting Ollama as a better alternative.
- This showcases the ongoing search for compatible local AI solutions in a dynamic development environment.
- Debate on Best Vector Store Options: Discussion heated up about whether Hugging, OpenAI, or Ollama is the best vector store for their projects.
- Choosing the right vector store could critically affect both performance and scalability.
- Optimizing PDF processing in chatbot project: A user sought ways to efficiently split and store PDF content in their vector database without a redundant intermediate step.
- This improvement would streamline workflows, enhancing overall processing performance.
- Challenges with Text Generation Inference Parameters: A query arose regarding the unexpected appearance of the <|end|> token in outputs, despite setting
return_full_textto false.- This points to a need for improved clarity around inference parameters for better user control.
- Portfolio Chatbot Helps Users with Queries: A user launched a chatbot assistant for their portfolio, facilitating answers to client inquiries about their services.
- They welcome community feedback to refine this tool further, signaling a collaborative spirit in development.
OpenInterpreter Discord
- Open Interpreter Module for Bedside Table: A member raised the idea of creating an Open Interpreter module for the Kequel Modular Customizable Bedside Table, inquiring about group interest in collaboration.
- This initiative aims to enhance smart home technology integration, inviting fellow developers to contribute ideas and development.
- User Interface Challenges with Open Interpreter: Concerns were raised about screen visibility when using command line inputs, prompting a proposal for solutions to enhance visual clarity.
- Members discussed potential workarounds to improve user experience while the Open Interpreter processes external inputs.
- LiveKit Blocks Cleartext Connections on Android: A user noted that newer Android phones block the 01 mobile app from connecting to a local LiveKit server over HTTP, indicating 'CLEARTEXT communication not permitted'.
- They suggested using ngrok for an HTTPS endpoint which effectively resolves connection issues for users who expose their servers.
- GitHub Solutions for Cleartext Communication: A GitHub issue detailed a proposal to enable cleartext communication strictly for local networks, ensuring user notifications regarding security.
- This addresses connection challenges while balancing network security for developers interacting with local devices.
- Investigating Backend Request Loops: A member questioned the frequent backend requests sent by Open Interpreter, suspecting an infinite loop scenario.
- Clarification on backend response expectations was sought to help determine accurate request conclusions.
OpenAccess AI Collective (axolotl) Discord
- Qwen 2.5 wins praise over Llama 3.1: A member noted strong positive feedback for Qwen 2.5, revealing it marginally outperforms Llama 3.1 in benchmarks, as highlighted in a Reddit comparison.
- This raised community awareness around the importance of verified performance metrics in the latest model comparisons.
- Long context challenges in Axolotl: Discussion arose around Axolotl's capabilities in handling conversations longer than max_seq_len in ShareGPT, reflecting the community's interest in context management.
- Clarity on these training intricacies remains a hot topic as members dive into model training protocols.
- Rope Scaling Debate for Llama 3.1: A member questioned the necessity of rope_scaling when training Llama 3.1 8B on long context CoT traces of approximately 120K tokens while facing memory issues at sequence_len beyond 40K.
- Despite using multiple GPUs with deepspeed zero3, the complexity of handling long contexts continues to spark discussion among engineers.
- Fine-tuning spikes inquiry: Users reported unexpected spikes during fine-tuning on a 100K row dataset, prompting a quest for correlations with specific data points.
- Efforts to enable more extensive logging proved insufficient, leaving fine-tuning mechanics under scrutiny.
Alignment Lab AI Discord
- Sentx.ai Ventures into Consciousness Development: Sentx.ai is pioneering work in consciousness development, still at its early stages. They are actively seeking general opinions particularly regarding their alignment approach.
- Members are encouraged to assess the pragmatic impacts of consciousness development on future AI alignment.
- Self-Adjustment for AI Alignment Proposed: Sentx.ai introduces a strategy for models to self-adjust their alignment to human values, avoiding hard caps. This approach aims to cultivate ongoing dialogue around effective alignment practices.
- Community members are discussing the implications of self-adjusting models in real-world scenarios and their potential benefits.
- Call for Collaboration on Alignment Projects: An open invitation was extended for sharing information about similar projects to promote collaboration on alignment development. Members are encouraged to exchange insights and connect privately.
- This collaborative spirit aims to enhance collective contributions toward more effective AI alignment strategies.
Mozilla AI Discord
- SQLite Full-Text Search Enhanced: A new meetup will explore combining SQLite’s builtin full-text search engine with sqlite-vec for improved efficacy.
- This session promises to deliver more complete and accurate search results, catering to developers looking for effective search capabilities.
- Mozilla Launches AI Builders Accelerator: Mozilla's inaugural AI Builders Accelerator cohort has been announced and will kick off shortly.
- Program specifics can be found here, supporting cutting-edge AI projects.
- SoraSNS: A New Fediverse Client: An ex-Apple Engineer unveiled SoraSNS, a Fediverse client integrating local AI to learn about user interests.
- This client aims to enhance user experience by providing an adaptive 'For You' timeline.
- Open Source AI to Address Challenges: Mark Surman discusses the potential of defining Open Source AI to tackle various challenges in the field, as highlighted in The New Stack.
- The conversation stresses how such definitions can assist in solving a million headaches for developers and organizations.
Gorilla LLM (Berkeley Function Calling) Discord
- BFCL V3 Revamps LLM Evaluation: The Berkeley Function-Calling Leaderboard (BFCL) V3 introduces a fresh evaluation method for assessing multi-turn function calling, enhancing agentic system capabilities.
- This version allows models to manage complex interactions crucial for LLMs during intricate tasks.
- State Management is a Must: State Management in LLMs is vital, enabling systems to validate task outcomes like checking if a stock purchase was successful.
- This highlights how internal state queries through APIs are key post-task execution.
- Goodbye Short Context Models: With the launch of BFCL V3, reliance on short context models is discouraged, as tasks require more extensive context to be effective.
- This is especially critical for complex tasks, such as sorting through hundreds of files.
- Leaderboards Set New Standards: BFCL V3 establishes a gold standard for evaluating LLM functionality, particularly in function invocation, driven by community insights.
- This reflects ongoing collaborations with enterprises and open-source contributors to refine evaluation practices.
- Deep Dive into BFCL V3 Performance: A new blog post details the BFCL V3 evaluation method, discussing how models are assessed on cost and latency in real-world applications.
- For more insights, check the full post at Berkeley Function Calling Blog.
The LLM Finetuning (Hamel + Dan) Discord has no new messages. If this guild has been quiet for too long, let us know and we will remove it.
The MLOps @Chipro Discord has no new messages. If this guild has been quiet for too long, let us know and we will remove it.
The DiscoResearch Discord has no new messages. If this guild has been quiet for too long, let us know and we will remove it.
The AI21 Labs (Jamba) Discord has no new messages. If this guild has been quiet for too long, let us know and we will remove it.
PART 2: Detailed by-Channel summaries and links
The full channel by channel breakdowns have been truncated for email.
If you want the full breakdown, please visit the web version of this email: !
If you enjoyed AInews, please share with a friend! Thanks in advance!