LLMs on chrislaing.net

High-Code: The Unexpected Path to AI Democratisation

Thu, 01 Aug 2024 15:00:00 +1300

Years ago, I read a blog post called Always Bet on Text that left a lasting impression on me. Not only did it accord with my own experience, but it gave me a good, compact reference frame to think about technology. No recent technology is more suited to this reference frame than Generative AI, for the simple reason that, at its core, modern GenAI is all about text completion.

On the Economics and Ergonomics of LLMs

Tue, 16 Jul 2024 10:00:00 +1300

For all the millions of words that have been devoted to the capabilities of LLMs, the economics and ergonomics of these systems seem to me to be under-discussed. In much the same way that technology changes - from records to CDs to streaming - have been a dominant factor in the evolution of popular music, prosaic matters such as cost structures will have a substantial influence on the development and impact of AI. While it is still early days for LLMs, there are already signs that economic factors are impacting everything from product design and technology choice to adoption and even regulation.

The Decomposition of Large Language Models

Tue, 30 May 2023 09:00:00 +1300

While many AI systems can be very complex, Large Language Models (LLMs) seem to be refreshingly simple to understand. With their ability to generate human-like text, applications like ChatGPT have captured the popular imagination. However, as compelling an experience as chatbots are, the tradeoffs that they make can lead us to misunderstand LLMs as a whole. In this post, we will explore the idea that the functions of LLMs can be thought of as discrete capabilities, and how different composition of these functions leads to a much wider variety of user experiences.

The Large Language Model Iceberg

Sat, 01 Apr 2023 13:30:00 +1300

As the capabilities of Artificial Intelligence (AI) continue to evolve, the term “chatbot” has become synonymous with a new era of digital interactions. What was once a seemingly futuristic concept is now an integral part of our everyday lives. However, it is the Machine Learning models underlying them - Large Language Models (LLMs) - that are the true powers in these waters.