Dogs are more popular on the Internet than cats!

Hi, AI enthusiasts! 🥹

Here we are again, ready for another edition of Max's weekly newsletter. Spring is here, hooray! Ok, ok, I know we don’t feel it just yet, but here’s a hint - I bought some tulips 💐 to put on my desk. Use it, and no need for thanks. 

As always, 3 minutes of your time, reader, three pieces of news and a whirligig of prescient issues. Exciting, right? 🤩 Let’s do it!

1. Doompa-dee-woof 🍫

‘Oompa, Loompa, doompa-dee-do

The one I’ll make now cry is you

Oompa, Loompa, doompa-dee-dee

If you are wise, don’t come to me’

That song should have become a hymn to the Willy Wonka experience in Glasgow. “Indulge in a chocolate fantasy like never before”, the website stated. Fair enough. Except for the whimsical Enchanted Garden, getting lost in the surreal Imagination Lab, bracing for the exhilarating Twilight Tunnel, children left in tears at a sparsely decorated warehouse 😵‍💫

The reason? Well, AI. The creators, who charged £35 💷 for tickets, could sell this attraction to eager Chalmette fans only because of beautiful pictures generated by artificial intelligence. In reality, the visitors found themselves in a sparsely decorated warehouse in Whiteinch, an industrial area of Glasgow, with a few plastic props, a modest bouncy castle and backdrops pinned against the walls.

The event was abruptly cancelled midway through (obviously 🙄), leading to demands for refunds and sparking outrage among attendees. Police Scotland confirmed that officers had been called to the venue after complaints. Despite apologies from the organisers and promises of full refunds, the event's failure has left a bitter taste for many 🥲 : on the one hand, it provided the web with endless sources of memes. On the other – raised a question of how to ensure the borderline between AI fiction and reality 🎯

2. Count to 5 (billion) 📱

Active social media users have surpassed 5 billion (5.04 billion), representing 62.3% of the world's population! This figure was announced by We Are Social, a creative agency focused on social platforms and Meltwater, known for their expertise in social and media intelligence, in Digital 2024, their newest annual report of global social media and digital trends 📊 This global total has risen by 266 million in the past year, marking a yearly growth rate of 5.6%.

The average time spent online stands at 2 hours and 23 minutes, exhibiting a decrease of 8 minutes per day compared to 2022. The region with the highest proportion of social media users 🌍 relative to its total population is Northern Europe, boasting 81.7%, followed by Western Europe (80.2%) and Southern Europe (74.8%). In comparison, the lowest percentage is found in Middle Africa (9.6%). 

Primary motives for social media usage include staying connected with friends and family 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 (49.5%), passing leisure time (38.5%), and consuming news stories (34.2%). Regarding the most favoured social platform globally, Instagram has surpassed last year's champion, WhatsApp. According to Digital 2024, 16.5% of internet users aged 16 to 64 now prefer Instagram as their foremost choice, nudging ahead of WhatsApp, which now holds second place with 16.1%.

And of utmost importance: dog-related content now surpasses cat-related content on platforms like Instagram and TikTok. Yee haaa! 🐶 Bonia sends you all the best wishes :)

3. Cure for Cancer? 🔬

Researchers have utilised artificial intelligence to identify two distinct subtypes of prostate cancer. This breakthrough, made possible by analysing DNA data, promises to revolutionise the diagnosis and treatment of the disease. By harnessing AI technology, the team funded by Cancer Research UK 🇬🇧 and Prostate Cancer Research scrutinised DNA samples from 159 prostate cancer patients, revealing previously unrecognised complexities within the disease.

The implications of this finding not only challenge previous assumptions about prostate cancer but also open new avenues for personalised treatment strategies: tailored treatments based on individual genetic profiles could offer more effective interventions and improved prognostic outcomes for patients. This breakthrough underscores the transformative potential of AI ❕, as discoveries like this offer renewed hope for patients and signify a shift towards more personalised and effective approaches to combating cancer.

Though King Charles’ form of cancer is still a secret, maybe Buckingham Palace should contact the scientists, just in case. Long live the King 🤴 

What a wild ride that was 🤠 I guess now you might text your mom on WhatsApp, watch the original version of ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ and take vitamin C or D 🤍

And I’ll enjoy the spring sun and search for new news to share with you next week.

Stay curious! 🦾

Max 

xx