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🤖 AI Vending Machines Selling Bullets

A new type of vending machine in the U.S. that sells bullets and uses AI technology is raising several safety and ethical concerns.

• AI and Facial Recognition: American Rounds has developed vending machines that use artificial intelligence to verify the age of customers purchasing bullets. These machines are being installed in supermarkets across Alabama, Oklahoma, and Texas. However, there are concerns about the reliability of facial recognition technology and its ability to accurately assess a customer's age and mental state.

• Safety and Security: The machines are accessible 24/7, but human employees retain the right to deny gun and ammunition purchases if they deem it necessary. This human oversight is crucial, as store clerks can identify unstable or unwell potential buyers, a feature that machines lack. Theft and misuse of these machines are also significant concerns in retail environments.

• Ethical Issues and Future Implications: The introduction of these machines has sparked debates about the ethical use of AI in sensitive areas like ammunition sales. AI's potential to create job displacement, privacy concerns, and misinformation are also part of the broader conversation. Despite these concerns, the company's CEO, Grant Magers, mentioned that they have received over 200 store requests for these machines.

🔖 Today's Cool Story

🚨 AI COPIED Act

A new bipartisan bill, the COPIED Act, aims to protect journalists and artists from unauthorized use of their work by AI models.

• Protection for Content Creators: The COPIED Act seeks to safeguard journalists and artists from unauthorized use of their work by AI models. It mandates the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to develop standards to authenticate and detect AI-generated content. AI tools must allow the attachment of origin information and are prohibited from removing it.

• Enforcement and Legal Actions: The bill empowers broadcasters, artists, and newspapers to sue for unauthorized use of their content. It also enables state attorneys general and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to enforce the bill. There are exceptions for security research, but the bill strongly prohibits tampering with content origin information.

• Broad Support and Concerns: Various groups, including SAG-AFTRA, RIAA, News/Media Alliance, and the Artist Rights Alliance, have expressed their support for the bill. They highlight AI's potential threat to economic and reputational well-being, stressing the need for a transparent and accountable AI supply chain. The bill emphasizes protecting individuals' rights to control their persona and content.

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