This week, we're diving into Alex Van Halen's AI venture for unfinished tracks and students being falsely accused of using AI to cheat. Plus, learn about the man who lost 25k from an AI voice scam phone call and the latest scoop on AI news around the world. Let’s get into it!

In today’s newsletter:
🎸 Van Halen’s unreleased music may live on
📝 Students face anxiety from AI detectors
💰 AI recovers $1 billion for the US Treasury
📞 Man loses $25,000 in AI voice scam
📚 Penguin Random House updates copyright to protect from AI
🍦 Get the scoop on the latest news

AI Detectors Causing Students Anxiety and Disrupting Education 📝

In a troubling trend, AI detection tools used by educators to identify artificially generated content are falsely flagging students for cheating, leading to severe consequences and widespread anxiety in classrooms across the United States. As approximately two-thirds of teachers now regularly employ these AI checkers, even small error rates can result in significant numbers of false accusations.

The impact on students has been profound. Some, like Moira Olmsted, a 24-year-old aspiring teacher with autism spectrum disorder, have been given grades of zero and warnings that threaten their academic standing. Others, such as Ken Sahib, a multilingual student, have experienced damaged relationships with professors due to false AI-generation claims.

While AI detection companies claim high accuracy rates, independent tests reveal concerning flaws:

1. A Bloomberg Businessweek analysis found that leading AI detectors falsely flagged 1% to 2% of pre-ChatGPT college application essays as AI-generated.

2. Students who are neurodivergent, non-native English speakers, or those who write in a more straightforward style are particularly vulnerable to false accusations. This was confirmed in a 2023 Stanford study.

3. Some AI humanizer tools can trick detectors, potentially leading to an arms race between technologies.

The situation has led to a climate of fear and distrust in educational institutions. Students are resorting to extreme measures to prove their work's authenticity, including screen-recording themselves writing assignments and avoiding helpful tools like grammar checkers.

Alex Van Halen's Bold Plan for Unreleased Van Halen Music 🎸

In a surprising turn of events, Alex Van Halen, co-founder of the iconic rock band Van Halen, has revealed plans to potentially use AI to complete unreleased music featuring his late brother, Eddie Van Halen. The drummer disclosed that the band has a significant amount of unfinished material in their vaults, consisting mainly of guitar parts and incomplete songs.

AI-Generated Guitar Solos
Alex has reached out to OpenAI, exploring the possibility of analyzing Eddie's playing patterns to generate new guitar solos in his brother's signature style. This ambitious project aims to breathe new life into the band's legacy, following Eddie's passing in 2020 at the age of 65.

A Dream Collaboration
In a surprising revelation, Alex expressed interest in having Led Zeppelin's Robert Plant contribute vocals to the completed tracks. Although the two haven't spoken since 1993, Alex maintains a positive outlook, stating, "When conditions are right, things will manifest” in a Rolling Stone interview.

Controversy and Family Reaction
This initiative may face opposition from some quarters. Eddie's son, Wolfgang Van Halen, who played bass with the band in its later years, has previously stated there is "no chance" of any kind of reunion, emphasizing, "I don't want to play that music without my dad.”

As the music industry continues to grapple with the implications of AI in creative processes, Van Halen's venture into this territory could set a precedent for the completion of unfinished works by legendary artists.

Bests and Busts

Here's a look at this week's AI highlights and lowlights:

⭐ Best: AI Boosts Treasury's Fraud Detection, Recovering $1 Billion
The U.S. Treasury Department has significantly enhanced its fraud detection capabilities using AI, recovering $1 billion in check fraud alone in the 2024 fiscal year. This marks a nearly threefold increase from the previous year. Overall, AI-assisted efforts helped prevent and recover more than $4 billion in fraud and improper payments, a six-fold increase from 2023. The Treasury's use of AI, which began in late 2022, focuses on analyzing vast amounts of data to detect patterns and anomalies indicative of fraudulent activity.

💩 Bust: AI Voice Cloning Scam Costs Man $25,000 in Fake Emergency
A man named Anthony fell victim to a sophisticated scam using AI-cloned voice technology, losing $25,000. Fraudsters impersonated Anthony's son, claiming he was in legal trouble after a car accident, and requested bail money. The scammers used AI to accurately mimic the son's voice, making the call seem legitimate. They created urgency and prevented verification, having Uber drivers collect the money. Police warn this is an old scam with a new AI twist, allowing convincing impersonations using just seconds of someone's voice.

The Scoop 🍦

☢️ Tech Giants Turn to Nuclear Power for AI Energy Demands
Amazon and Google have announced major investments in nuclear energy to power their expanding AI operations. Amazon is investing $500 million in small modular reactor (SMR) technology, partnering with Energy Northwest and Dominion Energy to develop reactors in Washington and Virginia. Google has signed an agreement with Kairos Power to purchase energy from multiple SMRs, with the first expected online by 2030. Meanwhile, Microsoft plans to use power from the Three Mile Island plant. 

🏫 Plymouth-Canton Schools Enhance Security with AI Camera System
Plymouth-Canton District Schools are beta testing an AI camera system developed by Motorola, to bolster school security. The system can detect weapons and unusual activities, automatically triggering lockdowns and alerts. During tests, it successfully identified armed individuals before they entered buildings. While the AI enhances safety measures, it cannot detect concealed weapons. To address this, the district employs K9 Echo, a weapons detection and therapy dog. A $1.9 million state grant was given to implement this technology.

📚 Penguin Random House Bolsters Copyright Protection Against AI Use
Penguin Random House has updated its copyright notice globally to explicitly prohibit the use of its books for training AI systems. The new wording, appearing in all new and reprinted titles, states: "No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner for the purpose of training artificial intelligence technologies or systems." This move, a first among major trade publishers, aims to protect authors' intellectual property amid growing concerns over AI companies using copyrighted material without permission.

🔒 UK Considers Opt-Out Regime for AI Data Collection
The UK government is reportedly considering an opt-out approach for AI companies to collect and use personal data, drawing criticism from privacy advocates. This potential policy shift would allow AI firms to scrape content from individuals and organizations by default, unless explicitly opted out. Critics argue this reverses long standing copyright norms and unfairly benefits tech giants at the expense of individual privacy rights.

🤖 Elon Musk's xAI Seeks AI Tutors, Offering Up to Rs 5,000 Per Hour
Elon Musk's AI company xAI is recruiting AI tutors with salaries reaching Rs 5,000 per hour. The role involves providing labeled data and feedback to train AI systems in language understanding and text generation. Ideal candidates have strong English skills and research abilities. The position offers remote work flexibility after initial training, with comprehensive benefits including medical insurance. This opportunity allows tech enthusiasts to contribute to AI development while earning a competitive wage.

Stay tuned for more exciting insights and tools in next week’s edition. Until then, keep overclocking your potential!

Zoe from Overclocked