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Using Microsoft AI to Create Real Magic with Coca-Cola

OpenAI reveals Reinforcement Fine-Tuning, Meta Unveils Llama 3.3 70B, OpenAI looks to drop AGI clause, Google to update search engine in 2025 and more!

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Everyday AI
December 06, 2024

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“We’re not being as creative as we can be when we think about AI,” says Microsoft Chief Scientist and Technical Fellow Jaime Teevan.

She joins the WorkLab podcast to discuss how leaders can unlock the full potential of AI for better brainstorming, ideation, and collaboration.

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Today in Everyday AI
7 minute read

🎙 Daily Podcast Episode: Have you seen all the buzz around the Coca-Cola holiday AI commercial? Wonder what’s going on behind the scenes? We sat down with Coca-Cola and Microsoft to break down how they created the project. Give it a listen.

🕵️‍♂️ Fresh Finds: Google Gemini-exp-1206 unveiled, Microsoft teams up with Marvel and Cohere’s $240M partnership with Canada. Read on for Fresh Finds.

🗞 Byte Sized Daily AI News: OpenAI reveals Reinforcement Fine-Tuning, Meta Unveils Llama 3.3 70B, OpenAI looks to drop AGI clause and Google says 2025 search engine update is coming. For that and more, read on for Byte Sized News.

🚀 AI In 5: We did a SECOND episode yesterday to break down all the new OpenAI announcements, including o1 and ChatGPT Pro. See it here

🧠 Learn & Leveraging AI: We’re breaking down how Coca-Cola and Microsoft came together to infuse AI into its marketing and creative process. Keep reading for that!

↩️ Don’t miss out: Did you miss our last newsletter? We talked about OpenAI's academy for developers, Musk investing in his supercomputer and Cloudflare offering AI content monetization. Check it here!

 Using Microsoft AI to Create Real Magic with Coca-Cola 🪄

Did you see that Coca-Cola holiday AI commercial!? 

It's been all the buzz lately.

There were more than a dozen humans that worked on the project.

Think that's shocking?

Wait until you hear the REAL story and a new way that Coca-Cola is partnering with Microsoft to create some real magic. 

We sat down with Pratik Thakar, VP and Global Head of Generative AI at Coca-Cola and Marco Casalaina, VP of Products for Azure AI Microsoft to discuss.

Join the conversation and ask Jordan, Pratik and Marco questions on AI here.

Also on the pod today:

• AI and Coca Cola🥤
• AI and Microsoft Azure Foundry 🚀
• AI Usage in Coca Cola Campaigns 🤖

It’ll be worth your 24 minutes:

Listen on our site:

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Here’s our favorite AI finds from across the web:

New AI Tool Spotlight – ZenAdmin is an all-in-one IT platform for global teams, Introthem is an AI people search engine and Athina builds, tests and monitors AI apps and agents.

Trending in AI – Murdered United Health Care CEO had deployed an AI to automatically deny benefits for sick people.

Google – Gemini-exp-1206, the latest Gemini iteration, is now available in the Google AI Studio and Gemini API.

Microsoft - Microsoft has partnered with Marvel to use Captain America to help sell its AI-powered laptops.

AI in Medical – Every year, predictive AI saves 50 lives in two ERs at UC San Diego Health.

AI in Government – Cohere has struck a $240M deal with the Canadian government to scale its AI infrastructure.

1. Meta Unveils Llama 3.3 70B, Promises Cost-Effective AI Power 🦙

Meta has introduced the Llama 3.3 70B model, boasting performance on par with its hefty predecessor, Llama 3.1 405B, but at a fraction of the cost. This latest iteration is said to excel in math, general knowledge, and app interaction, potentially giving businesses an edge in leveraging AI for their applications.

Meanwhile, Meta is also investing heavily in infrastructure, with plans for a $10 billion AI data center in Louisiana—signaling its commitment to remain a key player in the competitive AI landscape.

2. OpenAI Expands Reinforcement Fine-Tuning Program 🛠️

OpenAI has announced the expansion of its Reinforcement Fine-Tuning Research Program, inviting research institutions, universities, and enterprises to optimize AI models for complex, domain-specific tasks. This innovative approach allows developers to customize models using high-quality tasks and feedback, enhancing accuracy in fields like Law, Healthcare, and Finance, where correct answers are critical.

As organizations look to harness AI to tackle intricate challenges, the opportunity to access this alpha API could be a game-changer for those ready to share their datasets and insights.

3. OpenAI Looks to Remove AGI Clause From Microsoft Contract 👀

OpenAI is reportedly contemplating the removal of a critical clause in its multibillion-dollar deal with Microsoft that would prevent the tech giant from accessing its advanced AI models once artificial general intelligence (AGI) is achieved. This potential shift, aimed at encouraging more investment from Microsoft, comes as CEO Sam Altman expresses confidence that AGI could be reached sooner than many anticipate.

Currently, OpenAI's nonprofit board holds the reins on determining when AGI is achieved, but this move could signal a transformation in how the company operates and funds its ambitious projects.

4. Grok AI Now Free for All Users 👏

Elon Musk's AI chatbot, Grok, has opened to non-Premium users on X, allowing them to send up to 10 messages every two hours. This shift, reported by The Verge, comes after Grok was initially exclusive to Premium subscribers since its launch last year.

The move is likely a strategic effort to compete with free alternatives like ChatGPT and Google's Gemini, as xAI continues to explore a standalone app for Grok.

5. David Sacks Appointed as Trump’s AI & Crypto Czar 👤

President-elect Donald Trump has appointed David Sacks, a seasoned venture capitalist and co-host of the All-In podcast, as the White House A.I. & Crypto Czar. Sacks will spearhead policies aimed at establishing the U.S. as a global leader in artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency, while also advocating for free speech online and addressing Big Tech's perceived biases.

This role underscores the growing intersection of technology and governance, signaling to entrepreneurs and investors that innovation in these sectors is a priority for the incoming administration.

6. Google's Search Engine to Transform by 2025 🔍

Google CEO Sundar Pichai revealed plans for a significant evolution of the search engine by 2025, promising enhanced capabilities for tackling complex queries. Pichai emphasized that users will be surprised by the innovative features set to debut as early as early 2025, reflecting Google's commitment to leading in artificial intelligence.

He also challenged Microsoft’s claims about AI supremacy, noting that Google is developing its own models rather than relying on external partnerships.

Breaking: OpenAI’s New o1 and ChatGPT Pro - Revolution or Rip-Off?

OpenAI dropped some major announcements so we had to run it back with ANOTHER livestream yesterday!

OpenAI just released a new model! o1 and o1 Pro are here.

But there’s more! We also have ChatGPT Pro…

So what do these updates include and what impact will it have in the AI space? We break it all down for you.

Check out today's AI in 40 (lol).

🦾How You Can Leverage:

The company that LITERALLY invented modern Santa Claus in 1931 just gave him an AI brain.

Yeah, you can actually go talk with the OG Coca-Cola Santa in real-time. (More on that below.) 

Pretty magical, TBH. 

Old school Coca-Cola magic, infused with AI. 

And if THEY can trust robots with their most precious icon, what's your company’s excuse?

Cuz let's be honest, shorties.

And we’d hate to sound like a broken record — but AI literally changes everything. Like…. How your company runs. Every part of it. 

And Coke’s pivot should show you that AI is here to stay and we’ve all GOTTA be paying attention to its impact. 

We're not talking about some random chatbot wearing a red suit. 

This is THE Santa. The one you grew up with. The one your grandparents grew up with. The Coca-Cola Santa that defined Christmas marketing for nearly a century.

And they just taught him to have real conversations in 26 languages using Azure AI.

Let that sink in.

To give us the insights, we tapped into the 1-2 duo of Pratik Thakar, VP and Global Head of Generative AI The Coca-Cola Company and Marco Casalaina, VP of Products for Azure AI Microsoft.

They joined us at Microsoft Ignite, and this convo was so good we HAD to save it for a December day to get y’all in the holiday spirit. 

Today’s episode is a behind-the-scenes look at how two global brands are changing how they think, work and connect with AI. 

Cuz when the brand that turned a jolly old elf into a global cultural phenomenon decides to trust AI with their crown jewel – it's time to rethink everything we thought we knew about AI's place in mainstream culture.

Ready? 

Let’s dive in. 

1 – The Secret Recipe for Teaching Santa New Tricks 🤫

They didn't just scan some old ads into DALL-E and call it a day.

The team went DEEP into the archives, obsessing over every detail of their 1931 Sundblom Santa. Every wrinkle. Every fold in that iconic red suit. Every twinkle in his eye.

Then they partnered with Mimic Production in Germany to create a digital twin that could chat about everything from reindeer gossip to Lapland weather patterns.

But here's the wild part: This Santa remembers your entire conversation. Creates personalized snow globes from your Christmas memories. And does it all in 26 languages without breaking character.

Try this:

Seriously….. this is friggin cool. 

Whether you wanna give the ‘Real Magic’ experience of talking to AI Santa yourself or do it with your kids, this is such a fun experience to walk through. 

Now that Pratik and Marco showed us how the campaign was accomplished, go talk to Santa in real time.

2 – They Reimagined Christmas Ads (And Made Everyone Mad) 🎄

Remember those cozy "Holidays are Coming" ads from 1995? Coca-Cola just dropped three AI-powered remakes that broke the internet.

But here's what the hot takes missed: Three separate production studios. Three different teams of human musicians. One crystal-clear mission: Use AI for imagination, not automation.

They unleashed Runway ML, Luma Labs, and Leonardo AI – but kept every creative decision in human hands.

The result? Pure Christmas magic that somehow feels both nostalgic AND next-gen.

Try this:

In biz, sometimes we play follow the leaders when it comes to new tech. 

This article shows a great look at how other large ‘old school’ brands like Heinz, Nike and others are reimagining their brand identity with AI. 

3 – Building Trust in the North Pole 2.0 ❄️

Making an AI Santa talk to kids isn't just ambitious – it's potentially disastrous if done wrong.

So Coca-Cola and Microsoft built what they call an "ethical prompting strategy" before writing a single line of code.

Every interaction gets monitored. Every response pathway gets verified. Every language variation gets cultural context checked.

 Make sure you read/watch/listen to today’s full convo to hear exactly how they pulled it all off. 

Try this:

Like Microsoft and Coke did, create your AI guardrails BEFORE you start development. Not after.

Test your system with real users from every demographic you're targeting.

Build in clear escalation paths for when things go sideways.

Never launch without a comprehensive trust and safety playbook.

⌚

Numbers to watch

75%

Generative AI usage jumped from 55% to 75% among business leaders and AI decision-makers in the past year.

Now This …

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