ChatGPT introduces boom in AI-written e-books on Amazon

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ChatGPT introduces boom in AI-written e-books on Amazon: Schickler produced a 30-page illustrated children's e-book in a couple of hours using the AI programme on Amazon's self-publishing division.

Key Points

·        Brett Schickler had never before considered the possibility of becoming a published novelist. But, after finding out about the ChatGPT artificial intelligence initiative, Schickler believed he had been given a chance.

·        Schickler produced a 30-page illustrated children’s e-book in a couple of hours using the AI programme, which can produce text blocks from straightforward instructions, and made it available for purchase through Amazon.com Inc.’s self-publishing division in January.

·        After finding a gold coin, Sammy the Squirrel—roughly animated using AI as well—learns from his forest buddies the importance of saving money.

·        He creates an acorn-shaped piggy bank, makes investments in an acorn trading company, and dreams of one day purchasing an acorn mill.

·        According to Schickler, the money he made from selling The Wise Little Squirrel: A Story of Saving and Investing, which is available in the Amazon Kindle store for $2.99 or $9.99 for a printed version, was less than $100. Even while it may not seem like much, it gave him the motivation he needed to use the software to write more novels.

·        Schickler is at the forefront of a movement examining the potential and constraints of ChatGPT, which made its debut in November and has shocked Silicon Valley and beyond with its astounding capacity to produce coherent blocks of text quickly.

·        The Power of Homework, “How to Write and Generate Content With ChatGPT,” and the poetry collection “Echoes of the Universe” are just a few of the more than 200 e-books that name ChatGPT as an author or co-author on Amazon’s Kindle store as of mid-February. And it keeps growing every day. Books totally authored by ChatGPT on utilising ChatGPT have even become a new subgenre on Amazon.

ChatGPT’s quick consumer adoption

·        ChatGPT’s quick consumer adoption has sparked a frenzy of activity in the tech community as investors pour money into startups with an AI focus and have given technology companies a new purpose in the shadow of large layoffs. After showcasing an integration with ChatGPT, Microsoft, for example, garnered adoring attention this month for their otherwise dormant Bing search engine.

·        Yet, since ChatGPT learns to write by scanning millions of pages of previous material, there are already doubts about its veracity. Before the tech news site, CNET’s AI experiment produced many corrections and what appeared to be plagiarism. A few of the largest technology companies have already expressed concern over the software’s emergence, leading Alphabet Inc (GOOGL.O) and Microsoft Corp to rapidly introduce new AI-infused features in Google and Bing, respectively.

ChatGPT a threat to real authors?

·        When aspiring authors and self-help experts eager to make a quick buck turn to ChatGPT to help develop bot-made e-books and sell them through Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing division, the staid book industry now appears ready to be upended. Such debut authors choose to write picture books for kids.

·        There are hundreds of tutorials showing how to build a book in a few hours on YouTube, TikTok, and Reddit. Get-rich-quick scams, nutrition ideas, software coding assistance, and recipes are among the topics covered.

·        In a YouTube video, an author who goes by the name Frank White demonstrates how he wrote the 119-page novella “Galactic Pimp: Vol. 1,” which is about alien groups battling over a human-staffed brothel in a distant galaxy, in less than a day.

·        Because Amazon’s standards do not mandate it, many authors, like White, feel no obligation to mention in the Kindle shop that their great American work was written entirely by a computer.

UAE and India launch the UAE Chapter of the Business Council

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The UAE India Business Council - UAE Chapter (UIBC-UC) was launched on February 18, 2023 by the UAE’s minister of state for foreign trade Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi.

Key Points

·        India and the UAE are celebrating the first anniversary of their Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, signed on February 18, 2022.

·        As part of continued efforts to boost bilateral trade, the UAE India Business Council – UAE Chapter (UIBC-UC) was launched on February 18, 2023 by the UAE’s minister of state for foreign trade Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi.

·        Others present at the signing of the agreement included India’s ambassador to the UAE Sunjay Sudhir, general counsel of India in Dubai Aman Puri, and founding members of the UIBC- UC.

·        India and the UAE are targeting increasing bilateral trade to total $100 billion. The counsel is also keen to attract $75 billion in investments from the UAE to India.

·        “This includes investments in large infrastructure projects in India, advancements in manufacturing and technology, and providing Indian manufacturers with the ability to use the UAE as a base for their global expansion,” said KEF Holdings’ chairman Faizal Kottikollon, who has been appointed as the chairman of the UAE India Business Council – UAE Chapter (UIBC-UC).

Significance of The UAE India Business Council:

·        The UIBC-UC is poised to play a crucial role in supporting both governments in achieving these objectives and maximising the potential of the UAE-India relationship.

·        By leveraging the strong bond between the two nations, the council brings together key partners and stakeholders from both nations and will serve as a valuable source of policy guidance, fostering innovative collaboration between Emirati and Indian businesses.

UN names Indo-Canadian Afshan Khan in Key post for drive to end malnutrition

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Afshan Khan, an Indo-Canadian, has been named the coordinator of the "Scaling Up Nutrition Movement," according to UN Secretary-General António Guterres.

Key Points

·        Afshan Khan, an Indo-Canadian, has been named the coordinator of the “Scaling Up Nutrition Movement,” according to UN Secretary-General António Guterres.

·        According to Stephane Dujarric, a spokesperson for the secretary-general at the UN headquarters in New York, the Scaling Up Nutrition or SUN Movement is a country-driven project headed by 65 nations and four Indian states who are committed to ending all types of malnutrition by 2030.

·        In her new assignment, Ms Khan will work to ensure the execution of the Scaling Up Nutrition strategy at the global level by building partnerships, and galvanizing engagement and commitment to end malnutrition in all its forms.

·        Indian-born Ms. Khan will oversee the SUN Movement Secretariat and manage the network of SUN Government Focal Points as well as the movement’s stakeholders and backers, according to Dujarric.

·        She is a citizen of both Canada and the UK. Ms. Khan has a bachelor’s in political science from McGill University and a master’s degree in public policy from the Johns Hopkins School for Advanced International Studies.

·        Ms Khan started her work for the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in Mozambique in 1989 and is currently serving as the regional director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia.

·        She also has extensive knowledge of international civil society organisations, having served as the CEO of Women for Women International.