Connect with us

Technology

Launched by Visual Electric to free AI art creation from chat interfaces

Published

on

Launched by Visual Electric to free AI art creation from chat interfaces

There are probably some similarities that you have observed if you have experimented with at least a few of the text-to-image AI art generation services that have been introduced in recent years, like Midjourney or OpenAI’s different DALL-E versions. The most notable of them all is that they all resemble chat interfaces. The application usually responds with an image embedded in a message after the user enters their text prompts.

While this point of interaction functions admirably for some clients and application engineers, certain individuals accept it is restricting and at last not what laid out craftsmen and architects need while utilizing computer based intelligence at work. However, presently San Francisco-based Visual Electric is here to offer an alternate methodology. One that the new startup — which rises up out of covertness today following a seed round last year from Sequoia, BoxGroup, and Creator Asset of an undisclosed total — accepts is preferable adjusted to visual imagination over messaging to and fro with a man-made intelligence model.

“There’s just so many workflow-specific optimizations that you need to make if you’re a graphic designer or a concept artist,” said Colin Dunn, founder and CEO of Visual Electric, in an exclusive interview with VentureBeat. “There’s a long tail of things that will make their life way easier and will make for a much better product.”

Dunn recently drove item plan and brand at the versatile site building organization Universe, and before that, filled in as head of plan at Playspace, a Google procurement.

For enterprise users, such as independent designers, in-house designers at major brands, and even “pro-sumers,” Visual Electric aims to be that “much better product” for AI art, visual design, and creativity.

The organization is intentionally not sending off its own hidden artificial intelligence picture generator AI (ML) model. Instead, it is based on the open-source Stable Diffusion XL model, which is currently the subject of a copyright lawsuit brought by artists against Stability AI, the company that developed it, as well as Midjourney and other AI art generators.

This is due to the fact that Dunn and his two co-founders, Adam Menges, chief product officer of Visual Electric and former co-founder of Microsoft acquisition Lobe; and chief technology officer Zach Stiggelbout, who was previously employed by Lobe, are of the opinion that image generation AI models are in the process of being commoditized, and that the front-end user interface will largely determine the success and failure of businesses.

“We just want to build the best product experience,” Dunn said. “We’re really model agnostic and we’re happy to swap out whatever model is going to give users the best results. Our product can easily accommodate multiple models or the next model that’s going to come out.”

What sets Visual Electric apart from Midjourney, DALL-E 3, and other AI art apps?

What sets Visual Electric apart from previous image generators? Instead of the top-to-bottom “linear” form factor of other chat-based AI art generator apps, which force users to scroll back up to see their previous generations, it allows users to generate and drag-to-move their imagery around an infinite virtual “canvas.” Clients can keep producing new arrangements of 4 pictures all at once and move them around this material any place they’d like.

“Creativity is a nonlinear process,” Dunn said. “You want to explore; you want to go down different paths and then go back up to an idea you were looking at previously and take that in a new direction. Chat forces you into this very linear flow where it’s sort of like you have a starting point and an ending point. And that’s just not really how creativity works.”

Unlike many chat interfaces, this box has been moved to the top of the screen instead of the bottom, although there is still a space for text prompts to be entered.

To assist with conquering the underlying obstacle that a few clients face — not knowing precisely exact thing to type in to provoke the computer based intelligence to inspire it to create the picture they have to their eye — Visual Electric offers a drop-down field of autocomplete ideas, like what a client finds while composing in a pursuit on Google. All of these suggestions are based on what Visual Electric has observed from early users and what produces the best images. In any case, a client is likewise allowed to veer off from these completely and type in a custom brief too.

Moreover, Visual Electric’s electronic man-made intelligence workmanship generator offers a scope of supportive extra devices for changing the brief and style of the subsequent pictures, remembering pre-set styles that emulate normal ones for the pre-man-made intelligence computerized and printed craftsmanship universes, including “marker,” “exemplary movement,” “3D render,” “digitally embellish,” “risograph,” “stained glass,” and numerous others — with recent trends being added routinely.

It puts it in more direct competition with Adobe’s Firefly 2 AI art interface, which offers similar functionality, as the user can select their image aspect ratio from buttons on the dropdown or a convenient right-rail sidebar rather than having to specify it within the prompt text. Two common examples of this are 16:9 and 5:4.

This sidebar additionally allows the client to determine prevailing varieties and components they wish to reject from their subsequent simulated intelligence created picture, likewise inputted through text.

In addition, the user can click a button to “remix” or “regenerate” their images based on their initial prompt, or they can “touch up” specific areas of the image and have the AI regenerate only those areas that they highlight using a digital brush of a size that the user can adjust, while keeping the rest of the image intact and adding to it in the same way. So, for instance, you could “touch up” the hair of your AI-generated subject and instruct the Stable Diffusion XL model to redo only that portion of the image if you didn’t like it.

Additionally, there is a built-in upscaler that can improve image resolution and detail.

“These are the tools that represent what we see as the AI-native workflow and they in the order that you use them,” Dunn said.

Pricing, the community, and early success stories

Despite the fact that Visual Electric is going public today, the company has been quietly conducting alpha testing with a few dozen designers. Dunn claims that these designers have already provided valuable feedback that will help improve the product. Additionally, Dunn says that the promising results of how Visual Electric has been used to assist in real-world enterprise workplace situations show that the company is on the right track.

Dunn referenced one client specifically — keeping the name for classification — who had a little group of creators attempting to make menus and other visual guarantee for in excess of 600 colleges.

Previously, this group would have invested bunches of their energy figuring out stock symbolism and trying to track down pictures that matched each other yet likewise addressed genuinely the things on a school’s eating corridor menu, and having to physically alter the stock symbolism to make it more precise.

With Visual Electric, they can now create brand-new images that meet the requirements of the menu and edit portions of them without using Adobe Photoshop or other alternatives.

“They’re now able to take what was a non-creative task and make it into something that is very creative, much more fulfilling, and they can do it in a tenth of the time,” Dunn claimed.

An “Inspiration” feed of AI-generated images created on the platform by other users is another important feature that Visual Electric offers. This feed, a lattice of various estimated pictures that inspires Pinterest, permits the client to float over the pictures and see their prompts. They can also import any images from the public feed into their private canvas by “remixing” them.

“This was a early decision that we made, which is we think that with generative AI there’s an opportunity to bring the network into the tool,” Dunn explained. “Right now, you have inspiration sites like Pinterest and designer-specific sites like Dribbble, and then you have the tools like Photoshop, Creative Suite and Figma. It’s always felt odd to me that these things are not unified in some way, because they’re so related to each other.”

Clients of Visual Electric can decide to draw in with this feed and add to it or not, at their tact. For undertakings worried about the security of their symbolism and works underway, Dunn guaranteed VentureBeat that the organization views security and security in a serious way, however just the “Genius” plan offers the capacity to have secretly put away pictures — all the other things is public as a matter of course.

Sending off in the U.S. today freely, Visual Electric’s valuing is as per the following: a free plan that gives you 40 generations per day at slower speeds and a license that can only be used for personal use (you can’t sell the images or use them for marketing); a standard arrangement at $20 each month or $16/month paid every year direct, which takes into consideration local area sharing, limitless ages at 2x quicker velocities, and sovereignty free business use permit; as well as a well conceived plan for $60 each month or $48/month paid yearly direct, which offers all that the last two plans offer yet additionally significantly higher goal pictures, and fundamentally, privatized ages.

Continue Reading
Advertisement

Technology

Google experiments with Android tablets’ desktop windowing

Published

on

Google is testing a new feature for Android tablets that would allow you to easily rearrange apps on your screen and resize them, which will facilitate multitasking. Developer previews of the “desktop windowing” functionality are now accessible, and you can even run multiple instances of the app simultaneously if they support it.

At the moment, Android tablet apps always open in full screen mode. Each program will show up in a window with controls to let you move, maximize, or close it when the new mode is enabled. Moreover, your open programs will be listed in a taskbar at the bottom of the screen.

It sounds a lot like Stage Manager for the iPad, which allows you to do the same with windows on your screen, or with almost any desktop operating system. For years, Samsung has also provided its DeX experience, which gives Android apps on Galaxy phones and tablets desktop-like window management.

When the functionality becomes available to all users, you may activate it by tapping and holding the window handle located at the top of an application’s screen. The shortcut meta key (Windows, Command, or Search) + Ctrl + Down can also be used to enter desktop mode if a keyboard is connected. (You can drag a window to the top of your screen to dismiss the mode, or you can close all of your open apps.)

Apps that are locked to portrait orientation can still be resized, according to Google, which could have odd visual effects if some apps aren’t optimized. Google intends to fix this in a later release, though, by scaling non-resizable apps’ user interfaces without changing their aspect ratios.

For the time being, users with the most recent Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2 for Pixel Tablets can access the developer preview.

Continue Reading

Technology

Sony Faces Backlash for Pricing PlayStation 5 Pro Well Above Xbox

Published

on

Sony Group Corp. has set the price of its new, faster PlayStation 5 Pro at $700, significantly higher than Microsoft’s Xbox Series X, which costs $600. The PlayStation 5 Pro, launching on November 7, comes at a $200 premium over the original PS5, suggesting Sony is targeting a loyal audience willing to pay extra for enhanced performance.

This pricing positions both Sony and Microsoft at the high end of the gaming console market. Four years into their product life cycles, the two most popular home consoles are moving towards premium models. Analysts are split on whether Sony’s pricing strategy will drive sales, especially as it seeks to grow its entertainment portfolio across gaming, anime, and film.

Industry analyst Serkan Toto described the PlayStation 5 Pro as a niche device aimed at hardcore PlayStation users, rather than a mass-market offering. “It’s about Sony skimming the absolute top end of the market,” he said, with the gaming world questioning Sony’s high pricing.

Others speculate that Sony’s pricing strategy is aimed at boosting margins, particularly after recent price hikes in Japan due to rising component costs like chips. The new console will allow for higher resolution and faster frame rates without requiring users to switch between performance modes, delivering 45% faster rendering than the standard PS5, according to lead architect Mark Cerny.

Despite the steep price, some analysts believe Sony could benefit. Citi analyst Kota Ezawa pointed out that no previous game console successor has been priced significantly higher than the original model, and that the PS5 Pro’s improved components may not justify such a big price jump. Nevertheless, the higher price could enhance Sony’s gross margins.

The PlayStation 5, which has sold over 59 million units since its 2020 release, has slightly lagged behind the PlayStation 4. The increased cost of the PS5 Pro may narrow its appeal, as the price edges closer to that of a gaming PC—one of the console market’s biggest competitors.

Reviewers also highlighted the lack of a disc drive in the new model, reflecting a broader industry shift from physical media to digital content. A disc drive will be available separately for purchase.

In a blog post, Sony announced that the PS5 Pro would enhance the performance of older titles, with several popular games such as Hogwarts Legacy, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, and Spider-Man 2 receiving free updates to take advantage of the console’s new features.

Continue Reading

Technology

Apple’s iPhone 16 Launch: A Crucial Test for Consumer AI

Published

on

Apple is set to unveil its highly anticipated iPhone 16 lineup on Monday, Sept. 9, during its annual event at its Cupertino headquarters. The keynote, led by CEO Tim Cook, is expected to introduce not only the new iPhones but also the 10th anniversary Apple Watch and updated AirPods.

While the hardware lineup is impressive, Wall Street’s focus is elsewhere—on Apple’s generative AI platform, Apple Intelligence. This AI initiative, designed for iPhones, iPads, and Macs, represents Apple’s major push into the consumer AI space. Initially, investors were concerned about the company’s delay in launching AI compared to Microsoft and Google. However, after the platform was revealed at Apple’s WWDC conference in June, the company’s stock surged by 15%, outperforming tech giants like Microsoft, Amazon, and Google.

Apple Intelligence is now positioned as a key feature of the new iPhones, particularly those from the iPhone 15 Pro and newer models. Analysts believe this exclusivity will drive iPhone sales, with Morgan Stanley’s Erik Woodring predicting AI as a major factor in boosting the iPhone replacement cycle.

However, Apple Intelligence might be more than just a sales driver—it could shape consumer perceptions of generative AI itself.

Apple’s AI Ambitions

Apple’s upcoming event makes it clear that AI is front and center. From the tagline “It’s Glowtime” to the colorful logo reminiscent of Siri’s new look, the company is signaling a major AI focus.

The AI features Apple is integrating into its ecosystem are extensive. Users can expect tools that summarize text conversations, prioritize emails, enhance Siri’s capabilities, and offer access to OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Additional features like AI-powered proofreading and email optimization will also be part of the package, along with new apps developed to leverage AI through Apple’s hardware.

Wedbush analyst Dan Ives forecasts that Apple’s AI integration could bring in an extra $10 billion in annual services revenue, potentially boosting the company’s market cap to $4 trillion.

Though competitors like Samsung and Google have also introduced AI in their devices, Apple’s approach seems more compelling. Its June event showcased how seamlessly AI integrates into its ecosystem, making the technology feel more personal and essential compared to the offerings from Samsung’s Galaxy AI and Google’s Gemini platform.

The AI Risk

However, Apple faces challenges in ensuring Apple Intelligence’s success. The AI needs to avoid errors like those seen in Google’s AI tools, which have been criticized for providing bizarre recommendations. More importantly, Apple must prove that its AI is something consumers will genuinely want to use, rather than just a rushed feature aimed at appeasing investors.

As Apple ventures deeper into AI, its success or failure could shape the future of generative AI for everyday consumers.

Continue Reading

Trending

error: Content is protected !!