Dear friends,
I’m pleased to announce my latest course: Introduction to AI, a highly practical, four-week deep dive into the promise and pitfalls of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning 🦾
It follows the success of my How to DAO, The Promise of Decentralisation, Life as Practice & Introduction to web3 courses (4.7/5 from 141 ratings), and will include knowledge I’ve gained from the UC Berkeley Professional Certificate in Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence.
The course is suitable for enthusiastic beginners but will also be of interest to those with some expertise in the area seeking to connect with likeminded others. It will take place 4pm–6pm UK time/5pm–7pm Europe time on four consecutive Thursdays, 28th Sep – 19th October, via Zoom.
Course schedule
The schedule is subject to change to ensure maximal relevance in this fast-changing space.
Session 1: Fundamentals of AI
A brief history of AI
The Deep Learning Revolution, Artificial Neural Networks and Generative Adversarial Networks
Reinforcement Learning and RLHF
Transformers: Attention Is All You Need
GPUs, Big Data and the Triple Exponential
Key players in AI
Recommended podcasts and news sources
Hugging Face, Interactive Python Notebooks and Github Copilot
Session 2: Large Language Models (LLMs) and other text models
Understanding ChatGPT through NanoGPT
Prompt engineering
Embeddings
Character.ai and Replika
Open source LLMs
Session 3: Multimodal AI
Midjourney and AI image generation
Runway, D-ID and AI video
ElevenLabs and AI voice
ELSA, Socratic and AI learning
Session 4: AI Futures
General intelligence (AGI) v Superintelligence (ASI)
The Alignment Problem
Max Tegmark's 12 Scenarios: Libertarian utopia, Benevolent dictator, Egalitarian utopia, Gatekeeper, Protector god, Enslaved god, Conquerors, Descendants, Zookeeper, 1984, Reversion & Self-destruction
If You’re Driving Off a Cliff, Do You Need a Faster Car? AI, Moloch and regulation
Best,
Stephen