A recap of the AI boom: 2023 saw more than 25% of all of the US venture funding investments channeled into AI-related companies, rising from 12% of funding from 2018-2022. The rise of large language models (LLMs) and their generative AI capabilities has Goldman Sachs predicting global investments in AI to reach USD 200 bn by next year, with AI-related investments expected to peak at 1.5-2.5% of GDP in countries that are “major AI leaders” in the long term.

While these USD bn companies have asserted that not all the layoffs are directly linked to AI replacing workers, most of the job cuts — clocking in at over 7.5k as of this morning, just two weeks into 2024 — came hot on the heels of the disclosures of major investments into AI by those same companies.

Could you be next? The full extent of AI’s impact on the labor market is still unfolding, but generative AI is expected to negatively affect hundreds of mns of jobs around the world, mostly those of white collar workers. Goldman Sachs expects the impact of “computerizing” jobs to be more acute in advanced economies than in emerging markets.Women are also expected to bear the brunt — nearly 80% of US women’s jobs could be disrupted by AI, compared to 58% of men’s jobs that are thought to be at risk.

Keeping a close eye: Last year, we saw the EU and the US make legislative headway to regulate the development and use of AI. This year, we may see a response in a similar vein to the layoffs plaguing Silicon Valley. According to CNN, dozens of lawmakers have already officially submitted letters to US Labor Secretary Julie Su urging the Labor Department to pay close attention to the ongoing mass layoffs.

CES 2024 could have a gadget that you didn’t know you needed. The annual Consumer Electronics Show (CES) wrapped up last week but not without some brilliant — and many bizarre — gadgets that are currently being sold, or will hit the market soon. If you were looking to upgrade your gadget game, here are our picks from the new lineup on display from the trade show.

#1- Clicks is for iPhone14 Pro, 15 Pro, or 15 Pro Max users who have vintage telephone ringtones and can’t quite rage-type on a touchscreen. Clicks is a phone case that comes with a physical QWERTY keyboard that sticks out at the bottom and frees up space on your screen by getting rid of the virtual keyboard — until you get bored of typing and want it back.

COST- USD 139-159

#2- Terra Earbuds are an over-ear bone conduction buds with benefits — an activity tracker with AI that can build a tailored exercise program to make sure you stick to your new year’s resolutions as it pushes you to finish that last lap or rep.

COST-USD 300 (or USD 200 with code HFPRE1 for preorder)

Pet tech was a theme this year, with several items on display that can help you care for and monitor your furry friends better.

#1- Invoxia Minitailz Smart Dog Collar tracks your pet’s health through checking their respiratory and heart vitals, atrial fibrillation, and detection of anomalies, while also including GPS tracking just in case they ever lose their way. The collar is currently focused on dogs but will release the cat version in March.

COST-USD 99

#2- The Ilume Dog Wellbeing Smart Suite comes with a whole kit that will log your pet’s weight and activity levels to recommend a specific calorie intake without you having to measure, because the smart bowl does it for you (obviously).

COST-USD 299-399

#3- The RCA Cat & Dog Pet Feeder is an automatic feeder that you can schedule or put to work through the app, or using Google Assistant and Alexa. You have the option of getting it with a 1080p camera or without.

COST-USD 80-100

And then a couple of oddballs made the list…

#1- The Kohler PureWash E930 Bidet Seat is the most high tech “shatafa” on the scene, with voice controls to change the temperature, activate a heated seat, air dryer, and a motion-activated cover. There is also a remote, but where’s the fun in that?

COST-USD 1290

#2- Segway Go Kart Pro 2, which appears to be the transformer of Segways. First, it’s a standard Go Kart that can go up to 43km/h. You can separate the back and turn it into a hoverboard (cue Back to the Future teenage fantasies), or — the most exciting of all — you can use it as a racing sim for your TV. We’re not sure who the target audience is on this one, but we sure hope they have medical ins.

COST- USD 2.3k

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