Can AI have good taste? Auction giant Sotheby’s is counting on it

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Sotheby’s acquired startup Thread Genius, whose machine learning tech can discern clients’ artistic and style leanings–and suggest customized purchases.

Just a few doors down from its CEO and the wood-paneled cubicles where sharply dressed professionals sit, the eighth floor of Sotheby’s New York takes on a very different vibe.

Suddenly, it’s more Silicon Valley than Upper East Side as staid formality gives way to a group of millennials, some in T-shirts with their sneakered feet on desks. Computer code is scrawled on whiteboards and the room’s glass wall. It is here where the storied auction house–founded in 1744–meets its future.

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‘The Scream’ sold for a record $120 million

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The Scream sets a new record!

If he were alive, Edvard Munch would’ve screamed. You see, his iconic painting The Scream (the pastel version – one of four that Edvard has drawn) has just sold for a record $120 million at auction to an anonymous buyer.

The other three versions of The Scream are all owned by Norwegian museums, but Sotheby’s say the version they sold is the most colourful…

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Holy Crap, John Lennon’s Toilet Up For Auction

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The Slain Troubadour’s Toilet

John Lennon’s toilet and one of his rarest albums will be among the highlights of an auction of Beatles memorabilia next weekend, as well as a mono-sound copy of Two Virgins, which he recorded with Yoko Ono, which is expected to fetch at least £2,500…

Princess Diana’s Hair Made Into Jam

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Would you eat jam made with Princess Diana’s hair?
Jam made with Princess Diana’s hair has sparked a storm after going on sale at an exhibition. The milk preserve contains a speck of her locks – bought from a dealer on online auction site eBay – which has been soaked in gin. It sold out at a surrealist show at London’s Barbican and could soon be on supermarket shelves after attracting the attention of top retailers.

But it should also come as no surprise that  the jam has angered Diana supporters…

World’s Largest Gold Coin up for Auction

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World’s Largest Gold Coin

Behold the largest gold coin in the world. This one million dollar Canadian gold coin weighs 220 lb and is worth about four times its face value. And now it’s up for sale:

The 100-kilogram Gold Maple Leaf was, in fact, recognized by Guinness World Records in October 2007 as the planet’s largest gold coin.

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Picasso’s “Nude, Green Leaves and Bust” Sets World Record for Art Sold at Auction

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Picasso’s “Nude, Green Leaves and Bust”

The vibrant large-scale depiction of Picasso’s mistress and frequent subject, Marie-Thérèse Walter, was the highlight of a world-class collection assembled by the late Los Angeles art patrons Frances and Sidney Brody. Picasso’s profile can be discerned in the blue background of the canvas.

 

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Your Choice in 2020 – How Computing Will Make Every Action a Transaction

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Technology is about possibilities. Phones increase how many people you can connect with. Cars, how much ground you might cover. Powerful, highly networked computers may shift your every situation, changing what you might do and where you might be, every hour of any day.

 

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Toenail To Be Sold For Charity At New Zealand Auction

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Nailing Down Some Charity

There is no tip-toeing around by a group of Taranaki Salvation Army parishioners who are raising funds for their local foodbank – they’re auctioning a toenail that has been grown and cultivated for a year.

E-Bay User Selling Chances To Test-Pilot Jetpack

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My eBay – selling: one jetpack. One careful owner. Easy to control. Ejector-seat-equipped Aston Martin and secret underground lair sold separately. Serious bids only.  The Martin Jetpack – technically a ducted fan pack, rather than a true jetpack – is the brainchild of New Zealand engineer Glenn Martin.

 

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