Ep. 16 - When AI Rewrites Itself, Who’ll Rule Your Ears? And Your Summer Survival Kit

This episode explores the future of self-improving AI. MIT’s SEAL framework lets language models generate their own fine-tuning data and learning goals. Sakana AI’s Darwin Gödel Machine goes a step further: it rewrites its own code through evolutionary search, building a growing library of smarter agents. These advances point to a future where smaller, more adaptable models can keep learning on the fly.We also cover the conflict between OpenAI and the Google-backed audio startup iyO. OpenAI is investing $6.5 billion in Jony Ive’s hardware company (io) to develop a new AI companion. iyO is about to launch iyO One, AI-powered earbuds for voice-first interaction. The legal clash reflects rising expectations in AI-native hardware.Google DeepMind introduces Gemini Robotics On-Device. It runs locally on robots, removing the need for internet access and enabling real-time object control. The new SDK lets developers fine-tune models with just 50 demonstrations, making it quicker to adapt to new tasks.Your Summer Survival Kit: listen again to our episode “Attention Is All You Need”, read Klara and the Sun, and let Jim explore AI tools like Synthesia, Canva AI, Notion AI and Sana Agents (so you don’t have to). Instead, take the time to reflect on how AI is shaping your field and get ready for what autumn brings.---Papers“Self-Adapting Language Models (SEAL)” – Zweiger et al., MIT, 2025“The Darwin Gödel Machine” – Sakana AI & UBC, May 2025ClipsSam Altman + Jony Ive IO announcement (YouTube)iyO earbud reveal (TED talk)Generalist robotics demoGemini Robotics SDK launchSummer Reading & ListeningKlara and the Sun – Kazuo IshiguroAI och makten över besluten – Steinrud et al.BBC In Our Time (podcast)Hard Fork (New York Times)The Ezra Klein ShowTools to TestSynthesia (AI Video)Canva AINotion AISANA agents