Alibaba launches A.I. tool to generate images from text. 2 other stories and a trivia

This line-up of stories will help you discover the latest happenings around the tech world, today

1. Alibaba launches A.I. tool to generate images from text

 

Alibaba has launched an artificial intelligence tool dubbed Tongyi Wanxiang that could generate images from text prompts.

The AI tool allows users to input prompts in Chinese and English to generate an image in various styles such as a sketch or 3D cartoon.

Alibaba’s cloud division, which launched the product, said on Tuesday, it was available for enterprise customers in China for beta testing.

Tongyi Wanxiang was Alibaba’s latest generative AI offering as tech giants in China and the U.S. looked to race ahead with the technology.

Generative AI referred to a type of artificial intelligence that was able to generate content based on prompts.

In the U.S., Google launched its AI chatbot called Bard, and, in China, Baidu released Ernie Bot.

OpenAI’s DALL-E and a service called Stable Diffusion were two of the most well-known.

Jingren Zhou, CTO of Alibaba Cloud Intelligence, said in a press release.

“With the release of Tongyi Wanxiang, high-quality generative AI imagery would become more accessible, facilitating the development of innovative AI art and creative expressions for businesses across a wide range of sectors, including e-commerce, gaming, design, and advertising.”

 

Tech Trivia: Which Wi-Fi security protocol uses an authentication server to validate a user’s login?

1. WVV
2. WPA-Enterprise
3. WEP
4. WPS

Answer: see end of post

 

2. ABAN partners Rwanda Finance to foster entrepreneurship

 

The Africa Business Angels Network (ABAN), a pan-African association of angel investors, and Rwanda Finance Ltd (RFL), a company dedicated to establishing Rwanda as a premier financial destination in Africa, has officially entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate and advance their respective initiatives across the continent.

ABAN, which was established in 2015, served as a prominent network of angel investors focused on Africa, encompassing over 35 African countries and the diaspora.

Ripples Nigeria gathered that the organization is dedicated to market education on angel investment and the development of an early-stage investment ecosystem throughout the continent.

RFL, headquartered in Rwanda, had been actively working to position the country as a leading financial hub in Africa, attracting investments and driving economic growth.

READ ALSO:FUTA test-runs app developed by student. 2 other stories and a trivia

The partnership between the two aimed to foster entrepreneurship, enhance investor awareness, and cultivate a favorable investment ecosystem in Africa.

Under the MoU, ABAN and RFL would engage in collaborative promotion and cooperation to elevate investor awareness and facilitate access to investment opportunities.

 

3. Crypto suffers $600m cybercrime blow in 2023 H1

 

An ominous surge in cyberattacks cast a dark shadow over the crypto landscape, with losses exceeding $600 million in the first half of 2023.

According to a report by Atlas VPN, the cryptocurrency space, which is notorious for its volatility, reeled under the shock of these astronomical losses.

The digital coin Binance Smart Chain (BSC) emerged as the most vulnerable, registering the highest number of cyberattacks.

Ethereum, a pioneer in decentralized platforms, bore the brunt of the most significant financial loss.

Cybercriminals pillaged over $265 million from various Ethereum-related projects, underscoring the ever-looming cyber threats in the crypto sphere.

In a parallel narrative, crypto scams shook investor confidence, siphoning off nearly $250 million during the same period.

The crypto community may have to prioritize vetting all crypto services, steer clear of suspicious offers, and remain skeptical of unsolicited investment proposals to prevent falling victim to this rising tide of crypto-related cybercrime.

 

Trivia answer: Library

The word “library,” in the context of computer software, has several meanings. A library may refer to a collection of pre-written source code and other resources a program can refer to.

A library may also refer to an organized database of files a program manages, like a music or photo library.

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