It’s been a busy week in the field of generative artificial intelligence (AI).

First, Anthropic launched the second iteration of Claude, the company’s signature generative AI tool. Then, Elon Musk announced that he was returning to the field with xAI, a company that he launched to rival OpenAI’s ChatGPT.

If you’ve got ChatGPT-fatigue, we’ve also got some more lighthearted stories on the linguistics of Taylor Swift’s fandom, as well as the usual roundup of press releases and blogs from companies like Translated, Unbabel, and Acolad.

Got news you’d like to share in next week’s Week in Review? Send it over to our editorial team here. 

Inside the White-Hot Center of A.I. Doomerism (via The New York Times)

Earlier this week, Anthropic, a San Francisco-based company specializing in AI, launched Claude 2.

Claude 2 is the second iteration of the startup’s generative AI tool, which was initially launched in March. Following the launch of Claude 2, The New York Times examines the palpable sense of anxiety within the company’s headquarters as leadership ponders the potential implications of adding another model into the growing lineup of large language models available to the public.

“My worry is always, is the model going to do something terrible that we didn’t pick up on?” the company’s chief executive told The New York Times.

Musk launches artificial intelligence rival to ChatGPT’s OpenAI (via Al-Jazeera)

It looks like there’s another player in the generative AI sphere: xAI, a company launched by Elon Musk.

Musk himself is no stranger to generative AI — he was one of the biggest funders of OpenAI when it first launched in 2015, and served on the board of directors until 2018. But since the release of OpenAI’s massively popular ChatGPT, Musk has criticized the company for being too “woke.” So, he’s tossing his hat into the ring once again — this time, with xAI.

He announced the launch in a brief tweet, with few details: “Announcing formation of @xAI to understand reality,” Musk wrote on Wednesday. 

How two newsrooms are improving news access for Spanish-language readers (via Poynter)

As the Spanish-speaking population of the United States grows, the country’s newsrooms are seeing increased need for Spanish resources. This week, Poynter explored the approaches that two local newsrooms are taking to ensure that the country’s Spanish speakers have equal access to news stories in their area.

“Those (children) are eventually going to become adults and get into the news,” one Nevada reporter told Poynter, noting the fact that in her locale in southern Nevada, about 50% of the local school district is Latino. “The Hispanic adult population is just going to keep growing in Clark County. We’ve seen it grow in northern Nevada as well.”

The Linguistic Phenomenon Behind Taylor Swift’s Superstardom (via Georgetown University)

If you’ve studied linguistics or worked in the language industry for any period of time, you no doubt know what a dialect is. Maybe even an idiolect.

But what about a “familect?”

Last Friday, Georgetown University’s newsroom spoke to a linguistics professor about the unique “familect” that Taylor Swift fans have developed, and how it sheds light on the pop sensation’s stardom.

“All kinds of small groups, families, fandoms, social clubs and so on are bound together by language. So when we speak to people regularly, we develop certain patterns and routines that start to characterize our group,” Gordon said. “And when we use these patterns and routines, we reaffirm our group membership and set off the boundaries of our community.”

Language Industry Blogs

• Best Must-Have Interpreting Equipment on the Market (via U.S. Translation Company)
• 10 Best AI Tools to Use for Content Creation in 2023 (via BLEND)
• Quality Assurance: A Vital Part of Stellar Customer Service (via Unbabel)
• One year on from Quebec’s Bill 96, and how localization tools can help you stay compliant (via Lokalise)

Press Releases and Event Recaps

• Acolad partners with Easygenerator to boost e-learning portfolio
• Lightspeed leads Zluri’s $20M funding round as SaaS management platform takes off
• Mayan speakers launch Wiki glossary Mayan Languages Preservation Project, staking a claim online for their digital future
• Translated levels up adaptive MT with expanded document context
• Unbabel launches next-generation language operations platform, offering the first holistic approach to multilingual communication and translation
• Blu Digital Group and Atlantis Television join forces to launch Blu Digital Group France
• XL8 announces acquisition of AHT to modernize US government-related stenography, transcription and localization services
• Milengo announces second wave of Localization Project Management Bootcamp
• Machine Learning and Localization Technology Trailblazer Alon Lavie joins Phrase as New Vice President of AI Research
• XTM sets a new standard for inclusive language with AI-powered quality checks