2023 has really been one of those years, you know? The ones where events that define entire decades happen in the span of 12 months. From the ruckus at Open AI, Twitter becoming X and the launch of Instagram’s threads to rival Twitter, to the advancement of cutting edge generative AI technology, we take a look back on the year 2023 and all of the major highlights of the tech industry this year.
The Rise of Generative AI’s and LLMs:
2023 was an interesting year for generative AI, particularly with the emergence of large language models such as Google’s Bard and OpenAI’s ChatGPT. The capacity of these models to produce human like text and facilitate language translation, has elicited both enthusiasm and speculation. Generative AI has received quite the hype due to its potential to revolutionise entire industries, enhance cross-cultural interactions, and advance inclusivity by employing assistive technologies for individuals with disabilities.
While generative AI offers numerous advantages, it is not without limitations. One significant concern is the potential for inherited bias and errors from its training data, leading to ethical concerns and fears of potential misuse. Additionally, these AI systems lack genuine comprehension and reasoning abilities. Despite their ability to mimic human communication, they often struggle with true understanding and the application of knowledge in unfamiliar contexts.
The truth however, is that LLMs capabilities will continue to improve and evolve with research and development and as this occurs, conversations around ethical use of AI and public awareness on responsible development of these technologies must occur simultaneously.
The Fall of Silicon Valley Bank and FTX
This crash of the Silicon Valley bank in March of 2023 sent major shock waves through the tech industry. SVB which was the bank of choice for many venture capitalists and startups and played a major role as a financial lifeline, collapsed after a large number of customers fearing speculations that the bank would go under, withdrew over $42 billion, exceeding the bank’s cash reserve, which ultimately led to its demise.
The effects of the SVB collapse could be felt far and wide, with Y-Combinator reporting that over 80 African start-ups on its program were exposed and unable to make payroll that month. Chipper Cash also reported that it had about $1 million of its funds stuck in SVB. The fintech, which is one of Africa’s most valuable startups, said SVB was one of its investors and led its Series C fund raise.
The fall of FTX , one of the biggest crypto exchanges in the world, was one for the history books. Founded by Sam Bankman-Fried, FTX quickly became a major stakeholder in the cryptocurrency space, but its demise exposed an elaborate scam which included misuse of customer money, in which FTX allegedly used customer deposits to fund risky investments and prop up its sister company, Alameda Research, a hedge fund also founded by Bankman-Fried.
FTX filed for bankruptcy in November 2022, and Bankman-Fried was forced to step down as CEO. On Nov. 2, 2023, Bankman-Fried was found guilty of seven federal fraud and money laundering charges. We guess it is safe to say E Don Cast(in Shallipoppi’s voice).
The Controversy At Open AI.
Nigerians say “wahala no dey finish” to describe a situation of never ending drama and 2023 perfectly illustrated this. In November 2023, Sam Altman, the CEO and co founder of Open AI , was ousted by the Open AI board in one of the most dramatic debacles of the year. No detailed reasons were offered by the board for firing Altman, stating at first that he wasn’t “consistently candid in his communications with the board”, but later clarifying that his termination had nothing to do with “malfeasance or anything related to our financial, business, safety or security/privacy practice”.
Some speculations however point to a change in focus from impact for the good of humanity to profit generation. It is important to understand that OpenAI was initially established to be a Non Profit Organisation. In 2019, it morphed into a unique capped-profit model, with a board that was neither accountable to shareholders or investors, including Microsoft, its biggest backer.
In an interesting turn of events, there were reports that Microsoft had extended an offer to Altman and co founder, Greg, to join the company and set up a new AI research team. Even more interesting, was the overwhelming show of support from the Open AI employees which saw 747 out of 770 employees send a scathing letter to the board with an ultimatum to reinstate Altman or they all join Microsoft. This ultimately led to the resignation of majority of the board members at the time.
Five days later, Altman got his job back. In a post on his ‘X’ account , Altman expressed his love for OpenAI and restated his commitment to building even stronger partnerships with Microsoft with the help of the new board.
Out With The Bird, In With The X And Watch Out For the Threads.
For over a decade Twitter was synonymous with the bird logo. We called Twitter the bird app, “tweet” and “retweet” became verbs, and all was well with the world. However, everything changed in June of 2023 when tech billionaire, Elon Musk, decided to swap out the bird logo for an Art Deco inspired X. Prior to this, Musk made numerous infamous decisions from layoffs to the payed verification system, following his acquisition of Twitter in 2022
All of these chaotic changes coupled with the technical issues, as well as comments from Elon that Twitter was in dire financial straits due to declining revenue, led many users to speculate that Twitter’s reign as the upper echelon of social media was finally ending. The last straw was the introduction of tweet limits for non paying twitter users. It was the perfect moment for the launch of Meta’s Threads to rival Musk’s Twitter. In the first 24 hours following the launch, Threads saw over 30 million users within the first few hours of its launch and over 100 million users in the first five days.
In response to the launch of Threads, Twitter (now X) launched a revenue sharing program with verified creators and filed a lawsuit against Threads. Will Threads eventually evolve into a stand alone app and not an instagram app? Will it really be able to rival X? We just might find out in 2024!