In the era of rapid technological advancements, artificial intelligence (AI) has revolutionized various aspects of our lives. One such significant innovation is the development of AI personal assistants. These digital companions offer us unparalleled convenience, efficiency, and support, making our daily routines more manageable. In this blog post, we will explore the numerous benefits of having an AI personal assistant and delve into why embracing this technology is a truly remarkable step forward.

Intelligent Suggestions and Fresh Perspectives:

An AI personal assistant goes beyond just executing tasks; it can provide helpful suggestions and offer a tailored but different perspective on various aspects of our lives. By analyzing vast amounts of data and information, these assistants can offer insights and recommendations that we may not have considered on our own. Whether it's suggesting new books based on your reading preferences, recommending alternative places to explore during your travels, or proposing creative solutions to challenges you face, AI personal assistants bring a fresh and intelligent perspective to decision-making.

Personalized Assistance:

LLMs were trained on the web - not your data. But with DataBanc, you can help power your Personal, Personal assistant with your data. Our assistant has the remarkable capability to adapt to your preferences. Powered by your data, this combination of knowledge enables them to provide personalized assistance tailored specifically to you.

Enhanced Decision-making:

Looking for a new activity on the weekend? Or even a data idea? Well, ask away and see what kind of answers and suggestions could come back.

Making decisions can be challenging, especially when faced with a multitude of options. Your Personal, Personal assistant can help alleviate decision fatigue by providing valuable insights and alternative perspectives. Whether it's choosing the best travel itinerary, selecting a restaurant based on your preferences, or deciding on a career path, you can choose the context to provide your personal assistant with from your DataBanc so it can analyze the data, consider various factors, and present you with well-informed suggestions. By leveraging these capabilities, you can make more confident and informed decisions in both your personal and professional life.

DataBanc Editorial Staff

May 31, 2022

As the use of large language models continues to grow, so does the awareness of their limitations, particularly in the realm of something we are referring to as 'context collapse'. While these models offer impressive language generation capabilities, they often struggle to account for specific user preferences and cultural differences. This blog post explores the concept of context collapse and delves into how it can lead to generic or tone-deaf responses that fail to cater to individual needs.

Understanding Context Collapse:

Context collapse refers to the phenomenon where various social contexts converge into a single space, such as online platforms. In these digital environments, individuals from varied perspectives interact, often without the cues and contextual information present in face-to-face communication. Large language models, such as GPT-3, encounter similar challenges in adapting to the individualized needs and nuances of users within this context collapse.

The Pitfall of Generic Responses:

Language models, despite their vast training data, may generate responses that align with general patterns but fail to consider the specific preferences or unique contexts of individual users. This can lead to generic responses that do not accurately address the needs or expectations of the person interacting with the model.

Limitations in Accounting for Individual Preferences:

Looking for a new activity on the weekend? Or even a data idea? Well, ask away and see what kind of answers and suggestions could come back.

Fixing that at DataBanc:

We help consumers power a more personal experience if they choose with their banked data. Go try the Personal, Personal Assistant! The answers may wow you.

DataBanc Editorial Staff

May 29, 2022

Personal AI assistants have become indispensable tools in our daily lives. These intelligent companions offer a wide range of capabilities that enhance productivity, streamline tasks, and provide personalized assistance. While here at DataBanc the Personal, Personal Assistant is geared towards helping consumers use their data - if they choose - to power a more personalized experience, let's try to delve into the myriad of functions a personal AI assistant can perform:

Personalized Recommendations:

Based on your preferences, your AI assistant can provide tailored recommendations for various aspects of your life, including music, movies, books, and restaurants, hobbies.

Travel Assistance:

Planning a trip becomes easier with the help of a personal AI assistant. It can assist in suggesting local attractions or restaurants at your destination, especially geared to your likes and dislikes.

Entertainment and Leisure:

Looking for a new activity on the weekend? Or even a data idea? Well, ask away and see what kind of answers and suggestions could come back.

The capabilities of personal AI assistants are expanding rapidly, transforming the way we interact with technology. These versatile companions simplify our lives, handling tasks efficiently, and (in some places - like DataBanc), offering more personalized assistance. With continuous advancements, we can expect these intelligent companions to become even more integrated into our routines, making our lives easier and more enjoyable.

DataBanc Editorial Staff

May 28, 2022

In the realm of language generation, large language models (LLMs) have gained significant attention for their remarkable capabilities. However, one notable limitation that poses a challenge is their lack of personalization. In this blog post, we will delve into the shortcomings of LLMs when it comes to providing individualized responses, exploring the impact of this limitation on effective communication and user satisfaction.

The Promise of Large Language Models:

Large language models have been developed with the goal of understanding and generating human-like text. With their vast training data and complex algorithms, they can produce coherent and contextually relevant responses on a wide range of topics. Nevertheless, personalization remains an area where these models struggle to deliver.

Impersonal and Generic Responses:

One of the primary limitations of LLMs is their tendency to generate impersonal and generic responses. While they excel at generating text based on patterns and examples from the training data, they often fail to capture the uniqueness and preferences of individual users. This can lead to interactions that feel robotic, detached, and lacking in authenticity.

Contextual Understanding and Interpretation:

Another area where LLMs fall short is in their ability to deeply understand and interpret context. While they can generate plausible responses based on patterns in the training data, they may lack the understanding of underlying meaning and nuances within a given situation. As a result, the responses generated by LLMs can sometimes miss the mark, failing to adequately address the individual's context and specific requirements.

The Importance of Personalization:

Personalization plays a vital role in establishing meaningful and engaging communication. It allows individuals to feel seen, understood, and valued. By tailoring responses to individual preferences, language models can create more meaningful interactions, enhancing user satisfaction and engagement.

Addressing the Lack of Personalization:

Developing solutions to enhance personalization in LLMs is an ongoing research endeavor. Techniques such as fine-tuning on individual user data, employing user feedback mechanisms, and incorporating context-specific prompts are being explored to improve the model's ability to generate personalized responses.

While large language models offer impressive language generation capabilities, their lack of personalization poses a significant challenge in achieving effective communication. The impersonal and generic nature of responses, the difficulty in adapting to user preferences, and the limited understanding of context and cultural nuances are areas that need further attention and improvement. At DataBanc, we are addressing this limitations. By helping consumers power a more personalized bot with their DataBanc they can start to see results that feel better. And hopefully a bit more personal!

DataBanc Editorial Staff

May 26, 2022

By now you've heard of ChatGPT. I remember the first time I heard about it. Seeing Twitter post after Twitter post, video after video, showing this powerful new technology. It had the power to write code, detail recipes, and even coming up with great lyrics (well, maybe not so great for the musically-inclined).

It would be remiss to not talk about its limitations. It was trained a few years ago, so it doesn't exactly have real-time info. Sometimes it produces wrong answers. As a society, we are also just now untangling the ethical questions that come with producing this type of technology (training the model on the web).

Luckily, ethical researchers, developers, and others are nudging the conversation in a sustainable direction. However, (unfortunately), I think most everyday people don't seem to want to focus on any of that. They care about the fact that their experience isn't a very personal experience. Ask this bot to tell you if you'd like Stockholm. It responds something along the lines that "it's a large language model" (read as AI), and spits out some other text all to get around the fact that "it doesn't know you."

However, that all changes with DataBanc's Personal, Personal Assistant (PPA). If you want a personal personal assistant powered by your data, then you should have one.

Taking a step back, at DataBanc we're building a data bank. A place where you can get your data, bank your data, and then use your data if you choose. End-to-end.

Our first key product was Import: it helps you search the data market to see what kind of data could be floating around out there. The level of detail is shocking, and you could save a profile that can be used for all sorts of things and novel uses if you want.

Enter the Personal, Personal Assistant. It's a more personal chat experience that lets you plug in your Import data (ex: likes/dislikes) to power a chat experience.

Technology should wow you. It should catalyze a reaction that you haven't had before and show you what a better, different future could and should look like. We think the 1-2 punch of Import and PPA shows you the future. Your data, that you control, is powering your experience (if you want).

When we tested it, the results just felt better. Maybe it was the satisfaction of using my info, the satisfaction of having a more "tailored" answer, or maybe something else entirely.

So now, when you ask this bot to tell you if you'd like Stockholm, the answer you get just might surprise you.

DataBanc Editorial Staff

May 21, 2023

Financial wellness has matured into being something that nearly everyone talks about. Whether that occurs on social media, in the classroom, or even within the workplace, financial wellness education seems to be missing one thing, however: privacy education.

Privacy is part of financial wellness because it (and data protection broadly) help to protect your personal and financial information from being accessed or used by un-authorized parties; this can be especially important when it comes to things like online banking, credit card transactions, and other financial activities that involve sensitive information.

If you're financial wellness program is missing privacy education, you could be doing your stakeholders a disservice in the modern, digital-age.

What would privacy as a part of financial wellness education look like? For starters, you can explain how people can take certain steps to to protect their privacy. For example, you can explain what privacy is, some of the versions of privacy, and how privacy tools and awareness can help reduce the risk of identity theft, financial fraud, and other types of financial crimes. This can help to ensure that your financial accounts and assets are secure, and that you are able to maintain control over your financial situation.

You can also include ways ways to protect your privacy include:

• Using strong and unique passwords for your financial accounts
• Avoiding sharing personal or financial information over the phone or online with people you don't know
• Being careful about what personal information you post online, especially on social media
• Being aware of and protecting against phishing scams and other types of online fraud

Financial wellness education is an important aspect of overall personal and financial health, as it helps individuals to make informed decisions about their money and manage their finances effectively. Since data is an asset, you can't miss this critical module. However, right now, many financial wellness programs and resources fail to adequately address the importance of privacy in relation to financial wellness.

As 2023 progresses, it is the duty of financial wellness educators to engage with their stakeholders on privacy issues and education. Privacy impacts all of us, and we're more than happy to connect about how to incorporate privacy into financial wellness education. Reach out to us at support@mydatabanc.com today!

DataBanc Editorial Staff

January 8, 2023

Privacy can be an important aspect of financial literacy and financial literacy education. Financial literacy refers to the knowledge and understanding of financial concepts and practices, and the ability to make informed decisions about financial matters. As finance becomes embedded in nearly every experience - especially throughout digital realm - it is extremely important to help continue to educate stakeholders about key concepts and best practices in this evolving landscape. However, financial literacy and education efforts may be missing one critical thing: privacy and privacy education.

Privacy can be related to financial literacy in a number of ways. For example, in the traditional financial literacy sense, it is important for individuals to understand the importance of protecting their personal information and financial data, and to be aware of the potential risks and consequences of sharing this information online. Data privacy and data protection can help to prevent bad outcomes like (theft), which can have serious consequences for individuals' financial well-being.

But let's talk about the future of financial literacy. Personal data ownership is a different piece of financial literacy, one that isn't yet mainstream but definitely should be. We think your data is an asset, and it's important to understand that asset.

Individuals who are financially literate may be more aware of their rights and responsibilities when it comes to their personal data, and may be more likely to understand the potential financial implications of sharing their data with third parties or using it to access financial products or services. While the above may be correlated, financial literacy education isn't really even talking about privacy and personal data. That needs to change.

Since data is a personal asset, modern financial literacy education needs to help teach everyone the value of personal data and the potential for it to be monetized. Further, they need to help explain how different versions of privacy can be achieved. So if your financial literacy program doesn't dive into these topics, individuals may be missing out.

Overall, privacy can be an important aspect of financial literacy and education on the topic as it can help individuals make better-informed and responsible decisions about their financial affairs and protect their financial well-being. But more than that, teaching consumers about their data is the most important thing when it comes to financial literacy in 2023. If you lead financial literacy workshops or outreach efforts, connect with us about how we can help you teach privacy and privacy education (support@mydatabanc.com) because we think financial literacy isn't complete without it.

DataBanc Editorial Staff

January 4, 2023

As ESG continues to drive conversation, decision-making, and differentiation in the marketplace, organizations who truly want to differentiate themselves may leverage privacy as an important tool in their ESG toolkit. Privacy, now more than ever, is a critical part of ESG. In 2023, if your organization isn't thinking about how to leverage privacy as part of your ESG framework, you could be falling behind.

For those new to the space, ESG stands for environmental, social, and governance; this refers to the three key factors that varied stakeholders consider when evaluating the sustainability, societal and ethical impact of a company. All of which come to impact privacy and data. Environmental factors often include a company's impact on the natural environment; social factors often include the company's impact on society; governance factors often refer to the company's leadership, transparency, and decision-making processes.

ESG factors are becoming increasingly important to varied stakeholders, as many look to align themselves with companies and brands who have specific ESG focuses. Further, many stakeholders believe that companies that maintain strong ESG practices may be better positioned to perform well over the long term, as they are more likely to be able to adapt to changing societal and regulatory expectations.

Before diving into how privacy intersects with ESG, what do we mean when we say privacy? We think about privacy as data privacy, which also means a lot of different things, but our focus centers around control of personal information. It is increasingly becoming not just an important issue, but one of the top issues consumers and other stakeholders may consider when evaluating a company's societal and ethical impact, especially in the digital-age.

While previously, privacy was not heavily discussed when thinking about ESG, not only is this poised to change, but that also makes it such a compelling and important tool for organizations who seek to be forward-thinking in their ESG outlook. In fact, organizations who seek to be true leaders in ESG should consider leveraging privacy-innovations, frameworks, and education to differentiate their ESG practices from competitors and other companies.

Now the interesting part: how does privacy and ESG intersect? Instead of more definitions and background, let's just talk illustrative examples: if a company has weak data privacy practices, it may be seen as lacking in terms of governance; poor data privacy practices can also have negative social impacts, such as facilitating the sale of personal data without individuals' consent; in addition, companies that prioritize privacy may be more likely to be seen as responsible and trustworthy by their stakeholders, which can be a positive factor in terms of governance and social responsibility. This is just a few ways that privacy can intersect with ESG.

What can an organization do about privacy and ESG if they seek to leverage this tool for helping its stakeholders? Well, there are a number of other ways that an organization can leverage privacy as part of its ESG practices:

• Use privacy as a differentiator: an organization that is committed to privacy practices and helping to educate its stakeholders about the topic can use this as not only a benefit but a true differentiator in the marketplace. The most forward-thinking organizations can highlight their privacy practices/frameworks as a key benefit to customers and stakeholders. For organizations of all sizes, privacy-related design and approaches should underpin critical functions and features.
• Engage with stakeholders on privacy issues: An organization can always demonstrate its commitment to ESG by engaging with stakeholders, such as customers and community members; this is even more true on privacy issues. Privacy impacts all of us, and it is a great opportunity to learn and discuss various perspectives, especially because it is such a nascent space in many ways. Instead of just an email notification about a privacy policy update, and organization can seek input from stakeholders along the way about its practices. Other ways organizations can engage with stakeholders includes participating in privacy-related industry events and initiatives, and collaborating with other organizations to advance privacy-related goals. Further, leading workshops and outreach efforts-internally can help as well.
• Develop strong privacy policies and practices: An organization that is committed to protecting the privacy of its customers, employees, and other stakeholders can demonstrate its commitment to ESG through the development of strong privacy policies and practices. This can include things like implementing robust data protection measures, being transparent about how personal data is collected and used, and providing individuals with clear and easy-to-understand information about their privacy rights.
• Promote privacy awareness: An organization can leverage privacy as part of its ESG practices by promoting awareness of privacy issues and encouraging internal stakeholders to be mindful of their own privacy as well as the privacy of others. Privacy by design doesn't just happen - it need to be the beginning of every discussion and privacy awareness can help with this. This awareness can be done through training and education programs.

Looking ahead, it is also possible that privacy could be integrated into ESG frameworks in an even more formal way, with specific metrics and standards being developed to measure a company's privacy practices. This could help to ensure that companies are held accountable for their privacy practices and that stakeholders have more transparent and consistent information about these practices when evaluating companies and making investment decisions.

Whichever path an organization chooses, it's increasingly clear that 2023 is shaping up to be the year of privacy. Organizations who seek to differentiate themselves may leverage privacy as part of their ESG framework, and organizations who are committed to ethical approaches, positive societal impact, and great governance, can no longer forget about privacy as a part of ESG.

And, if you lead ESG efforts within your organization, we are excited to discuss ways you can start to include privacy in these efforts. (Please email us at support@mydatabanc.com)

DataBanc Editorial Staff

January 2, 2023

It's pretty obvious that privacy has been a widely discussed and often popular topic in recent years. New books, weekly articles, and even segments on popular late-night shows have focused on different pieces of the privacy puzzle. While educational efforts and guides (linking to the below blog) have all sought to counter the rise of data-invasive technology and the proliferation of our personal data on the internet, there is still so much to do.

For starters, let's start with arguably the most important piece of the puzzle: why does this all matter? Well, privacy promotes freedom and autonomy; it is an essential building block for trust. Not to sound cliche, but by caring about privacy, you can take steps to protect yourself and maintain control over your own life.

It's clear that a gap still exists for consumers to be able to have cool technology, while not missing out on the key benefits of privacy. If we focus in on that one locus, one of the biggest reasons why privacy is broken is the sheer amount of personal data that is available online that isn;t controlled by you. Yes, you. With the rise of social media/online platforms, it has become easier than ever for companies and other organizations to collect and store vast amounts of personal information

That's the problem we want to solve. We want you to be able to have some sort of control of your data. Where to start? Well, first up, go check out our privacy tooling overview to learn more about tools. Or, create a DataBanc to start building your privacy in a new way. We'll leave you with this: it is important to care about privacy because it protects your personal information, allows you to control your own information, promotes freedom and autonomy, and is essential for building trust. And by using a DataBanc, you can try to get privacy in a new way.

DataBanc Editorial Staff

December 1, 2022

Where your data is now

When was the first time you made a bank account? On average, many people get theirs around 17 or 18 years old. But before you signed up for a bank account you probably had an Instagram, Snapchat, and Gmail

The Problem

Why is it that we as consumers banked one asset when it comes to our money but not when it comes to our data? Something isn't right with that. So, that changes today.
Today, we introduce you to DataBanc: A bank account for your data.

What can you do now?

Today you might be able to do a few things: Organize your data, Trade your data for rewards, and many more features to come!

Things to remember:

Remember when you first had a bank account. You started out with maybe that yearly birthday check. You probably put more money in your account over time. And you got more products over time (like a debit card, etc).
DataBanc is no different. Test us out, test out the concept. Test out banking your own info. We start you off small. We hope you'll grow your DataBanc over time.

DataBanc Editorial Staff

November 16, 2022

History of data

Well to begin the first English use of the word "data" is actually from 1600s. And a fun fact, "Data Bank” means database in German.
Lets fast forward a bit: in the early 1800s, the field of statistics expanded to include collecting and analyzing data.
Fast forwarding again to 1945, ENIAC ushered in a new moment in computing - where there was a shift from building computers for specific use cases to building for broader use of computing. Thus, more computers and advances meant more collection of lots of digital information - aka data.

Where data come from?

Data comes from everywhere: your swipes, DMs.

Do you control that data?

It depends on where you live.

Do you hold that data?

Now you do with DataBanc! It seems wrong to have an account for everything besides that information, right? This issue is precisely what DataBanc was built to fix.

DataBanc Editorial Staff

November 15, 2022

A market comparison of privacy technology is a useful way to understand the different options available for protecting personal data and ensuring online privacy. Many such guides exist, often linking to specifics, however, one of the challenges is simplicity. We love innovations, but we also love great user experiences. So we focus on the good and bad of these various privacy tools from the perspective of actually fixing privacy. Like, if you could only pick one, which type of privacy tool would you pick.

Search: one of the leading vectors in the privacy technology market are privacy-focused search engines. Consumer's often opt for a privacy focused search engine that does not track or personalize results. Search is of course an integral part of the Internet experience, so it makes sense to start with privacy here. However, Search begins your Internet journey; your data exhaust grows the more time you spend once you land at your destination.

VPN: in a similar vein, another popular privacy intervention are VPNs (virtual private network (VPN)) services, which aim to protect users' online activity. VPNs can be used to shield from spying eyes, and could provide benefits by securing local traffic while using something like a public WiFi network. However, in our experience, VPNs require some amount of set-up/cost; it isn't to say they are too complex by any means, it's just not as seamless as we expected (especially depending on your current tech set-up).

DataBanc: This is where we come in. We help people hold and bank their data, easily. We think privacy is different. Instead of picking apart pieces of your privacy journey with the above (and combining different layers of tools), we think privacy should be all inclusive of the data on your journey. It's time to bank it. So what are you waiting for? Join our beta now!

DataBanc Editorial Staff

October 30, 2022

Quizzes are an opportunity to collect the data for yourself. Enjoy quizzes when you have some time, and you can learn a lot of new or interesting things about yourself

Whether it is the new trip, a vacation destination prediction, or something else we create, the results could inform your decisions and fill your data bank. And, because they're a perfect blend of interesting, fun, and maybe even surprising, it is good entertainment too!

But past the fun, let's talk seriously. Broadly speaking, quizzes can be data vacuums. Brands use them to better create, and, then place ads. We think a lot of consumers didn't know that when they took those quizzes, and most of all: we think that's wrong. Quizzes here start with a different premise - they seek to empower people and the answers can right in your bank.

These quizzes are our take on the quiz-data-landscape. Honestly, we do think its fun to turn traits into what food you most embody or learn your horoscope based on your dream vacation. But here's the thing - that data is floating around - somewhere. Why not just keep it in here so you can decide - maybe at some point - to use it for you.

DataBanc Editorial Staff

October 14, 2022