CEO Rob Meadows and co-founder Lars Buttler discuss the benefits and concerns surrounding artificial intelligence. Executives behind the American artificial intelligence (AI) company AI Foundation are cautioning against implementing kill switches in machine systems, arguing that such a move could increase the chances of a superintelligence that is hostile toward human civilization. According to a new Yale CEO Summit survey, 42% of polled CEOs agreed that AI could potentially end humanity within five to ten years. In citing the study, AI Foundation CMO and Chair Lars Buttler said the debate around AI needs to be elevated and suggested that people react emotionally to the new technology because of a lack of understanding about what is happening behind the scenes. However, both Buttler and CEO Rob Meadows warned of several concerns surrounding the advancement of AI and the possible creation of an artificial general intelligence (AGI) capable of reasoning and decision-making equal to or beyond that of a human. "With AI, you will always have this accidental danger, these accidental problems, you know?

In the months leading up to the pandemic, 73 year old best-selling author Deepak Chopra uploaded his "consciousness" to the AI Foundation to ensure he would be around to chat with future generations. Virgin Galactic founder Richard Branson, Twitter co-founder Biz Stone, and venture capitalist Cyan Bannister did the same. Now they see a future filled with personalized AI for all. In an interview with Chopra, the meditation guru told me his goal is to help a billion people with his AI. Stone messaged that he is training his AI to tell jokes as it has been speaking at conferences for him, and Bannister lets her AI vet founders' pitches.

In the months leading up to the pandemic, 73 year old best-selling author Deepak Chopra uploaded his "consciousness" to the AI Foundation to ensure he would be around to chat with future generations. Virgin Galactic founder Richard Branson, Twitter co-founder Biz Stone, and venture capitalist Cyan Bannister did the same. Now they see a future filled with personalized AI for all. In an interview with Chopra, he told me his goal is to help a billion people with his AI. Stone messaged he's been sending his AI to conferences and training it to tell jokes, and Bannister has been letting her AI vet founders' pitches.

Artificial intelligence is top of mind for many in the marketing and communications world. Many Marcom departments already use AI to analyze consumer behavior and try to predict future needs. Many brands use algorithms to recommend personalized content, show personalized ads, as well as power customer service chatbots. But what if AI can help brands take their brand voice to the next level? Brands usually spend thousands, if not millions of dollars, fine-tuning their brand voice, which describes a company's personality.

The AI Foundation, which ambitiously hopes to develop "ethical," trainable AI agents to complete tasks, today closed a $17 million financing round. A spokesperson said the proceeds will be used to scale the company's platform that allows people to create personas mirroring their own. As the pandemic makes virtual meetups a regular occurrence, the concept of personal AI -- AI that's tailored around one's life or that replicates personalities -- is rising to the fore. Startups creating virtual beings, or artificial people powered by AI, have raised more than $320 million in venture capital to date. As my colleague Dean Takahashi points out, these beings are a kind of precursor for the Metaverse -- the universe of virtual worlds that are all interconnected, like in novels such as Snow Crash and Ready Player One.

Heather Chmura '16 launched her career at the age of 14 as the youngest franchise owner of a Wetzel's Pretzels in Las Vegas, managing more than 50 employees. Busy with her business, she went to high school online. But she decided to attend college in person. After searching for a small school with overseas programs and a good religious studies department, she joined her sister, Becky Chmura '14, at Westmont. She majored in economics and business, participated in the Westmont in Northern Europe semester, took Emmaus Road trips to Japan, South Korea and Taiwan and studied Business at the Bottom of the Pyramid with professor Rick Ifland to help establish microfinance businesses in Haiti.

Artificial intelligence is top of mind for many in the marketing and communications world. Many Marcom departments already use AI to analyze consumer behavior and try to predict future needs. Many brands use algorithms to recommend personalized content, show personalized ads, as well as power customer service chatbots. But what if AI can help brands take their brand voice to the next level? Brands usually spend thousands, if not millions of dollars, fine-tuning their brand voice, which describes a company's personality. Now, AI in digital marketing has a whole new face - literally, as digital avatars and synthetic beings enter the digital marketing world.

What if AI can help brands take their brand voice to the next level? Artificial intelligence is top of mind for many in the marketing and communications world. Many Marcom departments already use AI to analyze consumer behavior and try to predict future needs. Many brands use algorithms to recommend personalized content, show personalized ads, as well as power customer service chatbots. But what if AI can help brands take their brand voice to the next level? Brands usually spend thousands, if not millions of dollars, fine-tuning their brand voice, which describes a company's personality.

What if AI can help brands take their brand voice to the next level? Artificial intelligence is top of mind for many in the marketing and communications world. Many Marcom departments already use AI to analyze consumer behavior and try to predict future needs. Many brands use algorithms to recommend personalized content, show personalized ads, as well as power customer service chatbots. But what if AI can help brands take their brand voice to the next level? Brands usually spend thousands, if not millions of dollars, fine-tuning their brand voice, which describes a company's personality.

What if AI can help brands take their brand voice to the next level? Artificial intelligence is top of mind for many in the marketing and communications world. Many Marcom departments already use AI to analyze consumer behavior and try to predict future needs. Many brands use algorithms to recommend personalized content, show personalized ads, as well as power customer service chatbots. But what if AI can help brands take their brand voice to the next level? Brands usually spend thousands, if not millions of dollars, fine-tuning their brand voice, which describes a company's personality.