Gergely Neu
@neu-rips.bsky.social
full-time ML theory nerd, part-time AI-non enthusiast
Straight talk time: Doomerism is BORING. It's the same fantasties rehashed over and over again, just louder each time. And with each iteration it seems that new audiences are being reached, and a new group of people needs to be talked down from unnecessary fear. >>
I've been unsettled lately when reading messages and papers. It feels like I'm dissociating. Everything seems a bit alien, even if it's completely human. I've had a realization: When our simulations finally exited the Uncanny Valley, they brought the Uncanny with them.
Life on the Uncanny Precipice | Naomi Saphra
We were wrong about the Uncanny Valley.
nsaphra.net
Such oversimplification risks influencing public opinion in a way that not only damages perceptions of mathematics, but also misleadingly uses specific mathematical tasks as metrics for the general reasoning capacities of commercial products." ➡️SPOT ON.
value-driven transport! a new framework for generative modeling, combining elements of * optimal control / RL * optimal transport * stochastic primal-dual optimization thread about our new work with @pmorenoz.bsky.social (@upf.edu) & Adrian Müller (@ethz.ch) 1/
Today NeurIPS is announcing our official satellite event in Paris. After responding to the call from Ellis following the success of EurIPS in December, we are pleased to reach a new milestone by joining forces with the NeurIPS organizing committee for the 2026 edition.
📣 Reinforcement Learning Summer School is returning to Milan in 2026! Co-organized with @ellisunitmilan.bsky.social & designed for Master's and PhD students on RL theory, multi-agent systems, RL & LLMs, real-world applications... 📍 Milan 🇮🇹 📅 3-12 June ⏰ Apply by 27 March 🔗 https://bit.ly/4b2Plhp
The left is not "missing out" on AI. It's winning the argument. Americans worry about AI and dislike tech CEOs. They're mobilizing against data centers. They support regulation, even refusal. Calls for the left to embrace AI are an effort to change the terms of the debate in Silicon Valley's favor.
Actually, the left is winning the AI debate
But it does need to get organized.
bloodinthemachine.com
🎉 Avui és un dia especial! Celebrem els #25anysICREA al CCCB. Ens trobem més de 320 persones per celebrar un quart de segle de recerca d'excel·lència que ha transformat Catalunya i l'ha projectat al món. Avui, més que mai, tots #SomICREA.
"The agents on Moltbook are mimicking sci-fi tropes, not scheming world domination. Whether the most viral posts on Moltbook are generated by chatbots or by humans pretending to be AI, the hype around this viral site is overblown & nonsensical" www.wired.com/story/i-infi...
I Infiltrated Moltbook, the AI-Only Social Network Where Humans Aren’t Allowed
I went undercover on Moltbook and loved role-playing as a conscious bot. But rather than a novel breakthrough, the AI-only site is a crude rehashing of sci-fi fantasies.
wired.com
our team at @upf.edu is hiring a POSTDOC on graphical models and statistical learning! deadline: jan 30
#NousICREAs2025 |📊 Gergely Neu (@neu-rips.bsky.social @upf.edu) estudia els fonaments de l’aprenentatge automàtic i IA, amb l’objectiu de desenvolupar algoritmes més transparents i robustos, capaços de prendre decisions fiables en el món real. https://short.do/JYHhN1
Wildly different things, tasks, techniques, subspecialties being lumped into "AI" and then being conflated with each other, doesn't help. Different types of models vs the techniques to train them vs the tasks they are supposed to accomplish, all under "AI".
4️⃣ #recercairesICREA han aconseguit una ERC Consolidator Grant (@erc.europa.eu). 🔶Vladimir Asriyan 🔶Rebekah Clements 🔶Gergely Neu 🔶I Marc Garcia, que s'incorpora a ICREA properament! 👏Enhorabona per aquest ajut que us permetrà consolidar els vostres projectes! 🔗 short.do/AWRd_V
In applying AI to material science, biology, etc, capitalism is trying to shed science. The point is to substitute the engineering of a machine that can generate what science has hitherto done, but without having people know things. Knowledge ultimately residing in private property is the dream.
Jeff Bezos Creates A.I. Start-Up Where He Will Be Co-Chief Executive
nytimes.com
one of those (innumerable) days when i just can't get @6organs.bsky.social tunes out of my head. guess I'll just have to lean into it
Announcing the ICML 2026 policy for LLMs in reviewing! Reviewers and authors both pick either conservative or permissive LLM use, and will be matched accordingly. Importantly: authors on papers who choose conservative must obey the conservative policy as reviewers.
#Recerca Quatre investigadors vinculats a la #UPFBarcelona desenvoluparan la seva recerca innovadora gràcies als ajuts ERC Consolidator Grant 2025 atorgats per l'European Research Council @erc.europa.eu L'enhorabona! 👏👏👏
immensely grateful & happy to be among the recipients 🙏🙏🙏
European Research Council (ERC)@erc.europa.eu · 11mo agoThe results of the ERC Consolidator Grant call have been announced! 📣 349 researchers have been selected for funding. Congratulations to all! #ERCCogG! 👉 buff.ly/uu62uFV #FrontierResearch #EUfunded #HorizonEurope @scienceinnovation.ec.europa.eu
The Learning Theory Alliance (LeT-All) also had a social at #EurIPS this year! Featuring a panel discussion as well as mentoring tables afterwards. Building community on multiple continents at the same time!
One thing I really love about EurIPS is how so many different people and groups pitched in to make it happen. A true community effort. This echoes the philosophy of the Learning Theory Alliance, and I'm glad the crew (inc @neu-rips.bsky.social @amartyasanyal.bsky.social) did such a great job!
@let-all.com · 11mo agoThe Learning Theory Alliance (LeT-All) also had a social at #EurIPS this year! Featuring a panel discussion as well as mentoring tables afterwards. Building community on multiple continents at the same time!
happy to finally share some BIG news: today i'm starting a new job as an ICREA research professor (@icreacommunity.bsky.social) at @upf.edu. this is literally the best job ever and i'm looking forward to all the exciting work i'll get to do now that i am tenured!
![A SEKELETEN ON FIRE IN FRONG OF "DA TRIUMPH OF DEATH" BY PIETER BRUEGEL DA ELDER , GOT A SHIRT I MADE WITH HIM AWHILE AGO SO CHECK THAT ONE OUT IF YOUR COOL ENOUGH , BUT ANY WAY "THINGS MIGHT BE GOING DOWNHILL FAST BUT AT LEAST ITS NOT FUN TO WATCH" , ALOT OF PEOPLE SORT OF RELIED UPON THE HUMOR IN THE CONTRAST BETWEEN OUR IDEALIZED SOCIETY AND THE ACTUAL SOCIETY, ISNT IT SILLY HOW THINGS ARE CORRUPTED AND SO ON, BUT NOW THAT ITS VISIBLY BAD IT LOST ITS HUMOR VALUE, AS IT WAS ALWAYS RELIANT ON THERE BEING ENOUGH MERIT IN THE IDEA OF THE NATION THAT A DEVIATION FROM IT WAS AN INCONVENIENCE AT BEST, WE LIKED SEEING A GUY ON TV SAYING THE PRESIDENTS A DICK, WE DONT WANT TO SEE A GUY ON TV SAYING "I DONT AGREE WITH THE SECRET POLICE" WE WANT TO SEE [CAN'T SAY HERE] [CAN'T SAY HERE] [CAN'T SAY HERE] [CAN'T SAY HERE] [ CAN'T SAY HERE] [CAN'T SAY HERE] [CAN'T SAY HERE] - DASHARE.ZONE ADMIN](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:sxxnhzipsapdm5inx44fr322/bafkreihxnuby3pydittu3j4dczu7hfapshapoikx6tov6jyawr5vcieibu)
