Entry into the World of AI and NLP:

  • Noam Shazeer joined Google and worked on a spelling corrector project.
  • Google had a third-party software for spelling correction, but it was not effective for web search.
  • The number one issue with Google's search was spelling correction, so Noam decided to work on improving it.

Model Size or Data Size:

  • The size of the model is more important than the size of the data.
  • Computation plays a crucial role in training models, so training a bigger model for longer periods is essential.
  • Companies need to invest in better hardware and spend more time training models to make them smarter.
  • The value of proprietary data and open-source data both contribute to improving AI models.

The Biggest Barriers:

  • The biggest barrier for Character.ai is building a horizontal product with multiple use cases.
  • Model training is challenging and requires significant investment. Noam mentioned that they spent $2 million worth of compute cycles to train an early model.
  • Releasing a product with many different use cases poses difficulties in terms of development and implementation.
  • The race for AI dominance involves both startups and incumbents, but where the value accrues remains uncertain.

AI's Role on Society:

  • Noam believes that AI can create greater human connections rather than worsen them.
  • He is not concerned about the speed of adoption of AI tools because he sees their positive impact on society.
  • Noam suggests that there are aspects of AI's impact on society that people may not see yet.

Character.ai's Mission and Vision:

  • Character.ai aims to provide useful tools to individuals while respecting their agency and allowing them to decide how they want to use the technology.
  • They believe in launching something general and letting users find innovative use cases for it.

Challenges Faced by Character.ai as a Product Paradigm:

  • Balancing versatility and usability is a challenge when developing products.
  • Character.ai wants to build something that is both versatile and usable, which can be a difficult balance to achieve.

The Future of AI:

  • Noam believes that AI technology will continue to improve rapidly in the next few years.
  • He compares the current state of AI to the early days of electricity or computers, where the full potential has not yet been realized.

Character.ai's Position as a Standalone Company:

  • Noam believes that startups have an advantage over large companies in terms of speed and agility.
  • Being a standalone company allows Character.ai to focus on making their products great and pushing AI technology forward.

Open vs. Closed Approach in the AI Community:

  • Noam sees value in both open and closed approaches in the AI community.
  • Openness allows for more research to be published, while closed systems can be more efficient for serving products at scale.

Misconceptions about AI:

  • Noam wishes people understood that there are still many undiscovered applications for AI technology.
  • The best applications have not even been invented yet, and there is much room for growth and innovation.

Noam's Transition to CEO:

  • Noam enjoys being a CEO because it allows him to make decisions that push the technology forward and have a meaningful impact.
  • He values usefulness over personal enjoyment when it comes to his role as CEO.

Advice for Parents:

  • Noam emphasizes understanding one's responsibilities and focusing on what truly matters.
  • He mentions that parenthood has taught him humility and gratitude for having the opportunity to do something important and meaningful.

The Future of Character.ai:

  • Noam cannot predict where Character.ai will be 10 years from now due to rapid technological advancements.
  • The company aims to remain agile and adapt to future changes.