| | | | | | | Presented By Bank of America | | | | Axios What's Next | | By Jennifer A. Kingson and Joann Muller · Apr 08, 2022 | | Happy Friday! - Today is National Empanada Day, which falls during National Grilled Cheese month. It's unclear to Jennifer how these milestones got declared and adopted, but she's a fan of both foods anyway.
- See something cool or interesting that speaks to the way we live, work, play and get around? Take a picture and send it to us at whatsnext@axios.com.
Today's Smart Brevity count: 1,135 words ... 4 minutes. | | | | | | 1 big thing: The danger in car safety technology |  | | | Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios | | | | Automated driving features are supposed to make cars safer. But in the hands of drivers who put too much trust in those systems, or simply don't know how to use them, they could make the roads more dangerous instead, Joann Muller writes. Why it matters: Many new cars are equipped with automated driver-assistance features that people don't understand, or, even worse, think they understand and then misuse — with potentially dangerous consequences. Reality check: No, your Tesla can't drive you home on Autopilot after a night at the bar. - Some drivers become less vigilant behind the wheel, or drive more aggressively, when they think the robot has their back.
Driving the news: New research from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety found that even after six months of use, people couldn't fully master advanced driver-assistance systems. - "This research suggests that today's sophisticated vehicle technology requires more than trial-and-error learning to master it," said Jake Nelson, AAA's director of traffic safety advocacy and research.
- "You can't fake it 'til you make it at highway speeds," he said, calling for more rigorous driver training.
Gaps in drivers' understanding of new technologies can have serious safety implications. - The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is investigating a series of deadly accidents involving Teslas equipped with Autopilot.
- Among the issues is whether the design of the technology encourages driver misuse.
- Safety advocates also argue that marketing terms like "Autopilot" and "Pro Pilot" breed driver complacency.
What to watch: In the next year or two, automakers will begin to introduce systems that are even more automated, allowing drivers to fully check out and read a book or watch a video in stop-and-go traffic. - The potential danger comes from "mode confusion" when it's time for the car to hand driving responsibility back to the human, says assistant professor Michael Nees, an engineering psychologist at Lafayette College.
- The paradox of vehicle automation is that the more reliable it becomes, the less prepared drivers are for when it inevitably fails.
Read the full story. |     | | | | | | 2. Meet Ai-Da, a robot "artist" |  | | | Ai-Da, a robot who paints, with her creator Aidan Meller. Photo: Kirsty O'Connor/PA Images via Getty Images | | | | A British gallery owner has created a robot artist with a female persona — "Ai-Da" — whose purpose is to challenge our views of what constitutes art, Jennifer A. Kingson writes. Why it matters: The robot, named for computer pioneer Ada Lovelace, "draws and paints using cameras in her eyes, AI algorithms and her robotic arm," according to a web page of her work. - Both she and her creations are meant to raise questions about the meaning of art, creativity and imagination in an age when intelligent machines increasingly interact with humans.
Driving the news: Ai-Da will be heading to the Venice Biennale this month with a solo show called "Leaping into the Metaverse," according to Artnet news — and that's just her latest exhibition. - Aidan Meller, an art dealer and gallery owner from Oxford, England, built Ai-Da in 2019, calling her "the world's first ultra-realistic artist robot."
- She "makes drawings, paintings and sculptures, and is also something of a performance artist, interacting with viewers," Artnet said.
Between the lines: Ai-Da "exists as a 'comment and critique' on rapid technological change," per The Guardian, which interviewed Meller. - "Camera eyes fixed on her subject, AI algorithms prompt Ai-Da to interrogate, select, decision-make and, ultimately, create a painting," The Guardian said.
- "It's painstaking work, taking more than five hours a painting, but with no two works exactly the same."
The other side: Critics question how much of the art can be chalked up to the artificial intelligence itself — and one has called Ai-Da a "sexist fantasy." - "With her synthetic beauty, she could be a long-lost Kardashian sister," wrote Naomi Rea of Artnet, noting that Meller's gallery has sold more than $1 million of the android's work.
Read the full story. | | | | | | | | 3. Methane saw record jump in 2021, as carbon dioxide spiked too |  | | | Flames from a flaring pit near a well in the Bakken Oil Field. Photo: Orjan F. Ellingvag/Corbis via Getty Images | | | | For the second straight year, scientists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) are reporting a record increase in the level of methane in the atmosphere, along with a significant jump in carbon dioxide (CO2) levels, writes Andrew Freedman of Axios Generate. Why it matters: These are the two most notable greenhouse gases, with CO2 lasting in the air for centuries to millennia. - Methane, which is a stronger warming agent, exerts its warming influence on the timescale of about a decade.
By the numbers: NOAA's preliminary analysis of global warming gases in 2021, released Thursday, is based on measurements taken at monitoring stations around the globe. It finds that the annual spike in atmospheric methane during 2021 was 17 parts per billion. - This was the largest annual increase recorded since such tracking began in 1983. It beat the previous record set in 2020, which was 15.3 ppb.
- According to NOAA, atmospheric methane levels are now about 162% greater than they were during the pre-industrial era.
Keep reading. | | | | | | | | A message from Bank of America | | A $1.25 billion investment to advance economic opportunity | | |  | | | | The urgency to advance racial equality is only increasing. Recognizing the need to do more, Bank of America is accelerating work already underway to better support communities of color with a $1.25 billion commitment over five years. Learn more. | | | | | | 4. Epic Games is making a Lego metaverse |  | | | Image: Epic Games | | | | Epic Games — the makers of Fortnite — is building a kid-friendly Lego-themed virtual world, write Stephen Totilo of Axios Gaming and Ina Fried of Axios Login. Why it matters: The project, pitched as a "place for kids to play in the metaverse," could be a well-funded competitor to Minecraft, Roblox and other virtual worlds. Details: Epic and Lego didn't say much about the virtual world they're building — and avoided calling it a game — but repeatedly emphasized in their announcement that it'll be safe for children. - "Just as we've protected children's rights to safe physical play for generations, we are committed to doing the same for digital play," Lego CEO Niels Christiansen said in the release.
- That emphasis invites a contrast to the popular virtual world Roblox, which also touts its content moderation but regularly draws scrutiny over whether its users are creating content that's inappropriate for kids.
Between the lines: Lego is no stranger to video games but has largely found success with licensed games that offer Lego-ified takes on "Star Wars," Marvel superheroes and "Lord of the Rings." - More than a decade ago, the independently developed Minecraft essentially beat Lego to the punch by creating a digital playground full of virtual building blocks.
- Lego eventually tried to counter with 2015's Lego Worlds, but the project failed to catch on.
Share this story. | | | | | | | | 5. Jewelry sales take off |  Data: Mastercard SpendingPulse; Chart: Simran Parwani/Axios Bring back the bling. Americans are ready to get fancy again, as jewelry sales are humming, writes Nathan Bomey of Axios Closer. - By the numbers: Sales rose 78.8% in March compared with pre-pandemic March 2019, according to MasterCard SpendingPulse data.
The big picture: Consumers had already been buying jewelry at elevated levels during the pandemic, some apparently wanting to look good on camera in the Zoom age. - But 2022 is poised to be the year many Americans go back to the office, and it's expected to be a record year for weddings. Hence the need for bling.
Our thought bubble: Anything that makes you feel invigorated again sounds like a good way to go. Share this story. | | | | | | | | A message from Bank of America | | It's clear the private sector must do more | | |  | | | | Bank of America is committing $1.25 billion to address underlying issues communities of color face. The company must "serve as a catalyst for a collective response to the critical issues affecting our nation," says CEO Brian Moynihan. Learn more. | | | | Was this email forwarded to you? Get your daily dose of What's Next magic by signing up for our free newsletter here. |  | It's called Smart Brevity®. Over 200 orgs use it — in a tool called Axios HQ — to drive productivity with clearer workplace communications. | | | | | | Axios thanks our partners for supporting our newsletters. If you're interested in advertising, learn more here.
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