We look at some threats posed by Artificial Intelligence (AI).

SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods. This column is a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from JWR. Our goal is to educate our readers, to help them to recognize emerging threats, and to be better prepared for both disasters and negative societal trends. You can’t mitigate a risk if you haven’t first identified a risk. In today’s column, we look at some threats posed by Artificial Intelligence (AI).

“The department is in the process of redesigning its fleet of patrol vehicles, which will now have 360-degree cameras installed in them for constant monitoring of the streets.”

2023: The Year of Deepfake Technology

Cyber security predictions for 2023: the year of deepfake technology and exemption clauses.

Stanford Plans Another Existential Risks Conference

Reader Peter J. sent us this: Third Annual Stanford Existential Risks Conference, April 20-22, 2023. A quote:

“We especially hope to showcase work that explores (1) potential interactions among acknowledged X-risks or (2) how cascades of “merely” catastrophic risks could combine to jeopardize the foundations of human society. For example, nuclear war threatens nuclear winter, a climatic catastrophe that would lead to billions of deaths from famine on top of infrastructure destruction on a probably irrecoverable scale – yet post-Cold War generations seem to readily accept the use of nuclear weapons. AI techniques have already generated recipes for thousands of toxins similar to chemical warfare agents; might armed forces, terrorist groups, or even individuals deploy these tools to construct deadly pathogens by modifying genomes?”

10 AI Predictions For 2023

Published back in December, by the editors of Fortune magazine: 10 AI Predictions For 2023.

ChatGPT May Be Coming for Our Jobs

At Business Insider: ChatGPT may be coming for our jobs. Here are the 10 roles that AI is most likely to replace. A pericope:

“Since its release in November of last year, OpenAI’s ChatGPT has been used to write cover letters, create a children’s book, and even help students cheat on their essays.

The chatbot may be more powerful than we ever imagined. Google found that, in theory, the search engine would hire the bot as an entry-level coder if it interviewed at the company.

Amazon employees who tested ChatGPT said it does a “very good job” of answering customer support questions, is “great” at making training documents, and is “very strong” at answering queries around corporate strategy.”

AI Art Generator Lawsuits Begin

First AI Art Generator Lawsuits Threaten Future of Emerging Tech.

Revolutionizing Industries: The Rise of AI

Published in CodeX: Revolutionizing Industries: The Rise of AI in 2023.

AI May Hit The Singularity Within 7 Years

Artificial Intelligence May Hit The Singularity Within 7 Years, Researchers Claim.

Speer Awarded French Police Duty 9mm Ammo Contract

Speer Awarded French Police Duty Handgun Ammunition Contract. Un petit problème mathématique was included in the press release:

“Speer Ammunition recently landed a French Police 9 mm duty handgun ammunition contract for Speer 124-grain Gold Dot ammo. The duty handgun contract is for up to four years with an expected quantity of 20 million rounds. The Gold Dot ammunition will be fielded by more than 250,000 people from the French National Police, National Gendarmerie, Customs Police and the Penitentiary Administration.”

JWR’s Comment: A simple division equation shows an allotment of just 80 rounds per officer. Their standard issue sidearm is the SIG Sauer SP 2022. That model has a 15-round magazine. So, quite conservatively: 10 rounds to confirm reliable function for each pistol and to confirm the point of impact for the new load (and that assumes no sight adjustment will be required), and 45 rounds to issue to each officer as a daily carry load (15 in the pistol, and two spare loaded 15-round magazines) equals 55 rounds. Thus, that leaves a whopping 25 rounds for familiarization and training. So, they’ll either need to place a large re-order with the Speer company tout de suite, or their officers will be woefully under-trained!

Canada’s C-11 Online Censorship Bill is Pending

Reader D.S.V. flagged this article: Furey: Bill C-11 is closer to becoming law — here’s what’s at stake.

The Military Bases The Chinese Balloon Passed Over

Here’s The Long List Of Military Bases The Chinese Balloon Passed While Biden Did Nothing. An excerpt:

“The recent occurrence of a China spy balloon tracking model over the continental US is a cause for concern, and highlights the inadequate and negligent actions of the current administration. The Biden administration has been accused of attempting to conceal this information from the public, possibly due to an impending visit to China by the Secretary of State.

These developments raise questions about the loyalty and commitment of the Biden administration to the safety and security of the American people. Some individuals have labeled the Bidens as a potential danger to the nation, and believe that their actions suggest a level of compromise within the administration.”