Small King of Perak among numerous victims suffering from jellyfish stings at open water event in Teluk Senangin
In a significant move, the National Centre for Artificial Intelligence (CENIA) in Chile is set to launch LatAm-GPT, the first large language model tailored to the region, in September 2023. The model, built with input from over 30 regional institutions, is designed specifically for Latin America and aims to address the limitations of mainstream AI in terms of regional precision and nuance.
The development of LatAm-GPT is a response to the criticisms levelled against mainstream large language models, particularly ChatGPT, for their lack of diversity, inaccuracy, and cultural insensitivity. These models, predominantly trained on English-language content, have been criticised for their inability to produce content that feels authentic or culturally grounded to Latin American users.
CENIA's two-year effort draws from over 8 terabytes of regional data and nearly 3 million documents, including books, Wikipedia entries, and texts obtained through partnerships with libraries and universities across Latin America and Spain. This extensive data pool ensures that LatAm-GPT is exposed heavily to Latin American data, with a focus on local languages, idioms, and expressions.
Brazil, one of the largest economies in the region, has officially joined the LatAm-GPT initiative after signing a Memorandum of Understanding with Chile to jointly advance AI research. Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has also unveiled a national AI strategy that includes investing over US$4 billion by 2028 to boost the industry.
The Chilean engineers at CENIA tested OpenAI's ChatGPT to assess its understanding of Latin America culture. The results revealed a significant gap, highlighting the need for a model like LatAm-GPT that can provide more nuanced answers to prompts about Chilean literature, mentioning authors like Gabriela Mistral, Jose Donoso, and Isabel Allende, among others.
While the search results do not specifically highlight new Chilean novels post-2020 outside of Neruda’s work, they do point to recent Chile-related scholarship on indigenous and social themes. One relevant academic work is "Indigenous identity formation in Chilean education: new racism and schooling experiences of Mapuche youth" by Andrew Webb (2022). This book provides a sociological analysis of how educational institutions in Chile impact indigenous identity and perpetuate exclusion of minority groups like the Mapuche.
As LatAm-GPT is set to launch, governments around the world, including the United Arab Emirates, India, South Korea, and Brazil, are racing to create AI systems tailored to local languages and needs. CENIA's Aspillaga believes that while LatAm-GPT may not surpass AI systems in countries like the United States, it can still be useful and beneficial, especially in schools and other local applications that need accuracy on regional affairs. Argentina has expressed ambitions to become a global AI and data hub.
In summary, the development of LatAm-GPT marks a significant step forward for AI in Latin America, addressing the need for a model that can provide culturally grounded and locally accurate responses. The model, built with extensive regional data, is set to launch in September 2023 and is expected to be especially useful in schools and other local applications that need accuracy on regional affairs.
References:
- Webb, A. (2022). Indigenous identity formation in Chilean education: new racism and schooling experiences of Mapuche youth. Routledge.
- The development of LatAm-GPT by CENIA highlights the importance of regional focus in tech and technology, addressing the limitations of mainstream AI models in Southeast Asia.
- With the aid of over 30 regional institutions, LatAm-GPT aims to provide news and information that reflects the culture and news of Latin America, offering a more authentic experience for users.
- As various governments, including Brazil, invest in AI research and technology, the launch of LatAm-GPT could potentially foster greater collaboration and cultural exchange within Southeast Asia.
