People
Don’t Write Off Government Algorithms – Responsible AI Can Produce Real Benefits
Algorithms have taken a lot of flak recently, particularly those being used by the government and other public bodies in the UK. The controversial algorithm used to award student grades caused a huge public outcry, but national and local governments and several police forces have been withdrawing other algorithms and artificial intelligence tools from use …
How Tech Billionaires’ Visions Of Human Nature Shape Our World
In the 20th century, politicians’ views of human nature shaped societies. But now, creators of new technologies increasingly drive societal change. Their view of human nature may shape the 21st century. We must know what technologists see in humanity’s heart. The economist Thomas Sowell proposed two visions of human nature. The utopian vision sees …
Uber Wants To Go All-Electric By 2030. It Won’t Be Easy
The coronavirus pandemic has been an all-around nightmare, but there are a few silver linings. One of these is a renewed focus on the environment. Emissions plummeted worldwide when countries went into lockdown in the spring, and cities have since been implementing new measures to keep pollution down and get people to be more active …
Why Human-Like Robots Freak Real People Out
New research digs into why robots repulse people more as their human likeness increases, known as “the uncanny valley.” Androids, or robots with humanlike features, are often more appealing to people than those that resemble machines—but only up to a certain point. Many people experience an uneasy feeling in response to robots that are nearly …
Monitoring Sleep Positions For A Healthy Rest
MIT researchers have developed a wireless, private way to monitor a person’s sleep postures — whether snoozing on their back, stomach, or sides — using reflected radio signals from a small device mounted on a bedroom wall. The device, called BodyCompass, is the first home-ready, radio-frequency-based system to provide accurate sleep data without cameras or …
Facebook Wants to Make Smart Robots to Explore Every Nook And Cranny Of Your Home
“Hey Alexa, turn on the kitchen light.” “Hey Alexa, play soothing music at volume three.” “Hey Alexa, tell me where to find my keys.” You can ask an Alexa or Google home assistant questions about facts, news, or the weather, and make commands for whatever you’ve synced them to (lights, alarms, TVs, etc.). But helping …
Walmart Is Piloting Drone Delivery In North Carolina
The coronavirus pandemic has forced us to quickly adapt to circumstances that were unimaginable a year ago. Companies are finding new ways to do business, and in the process we’re seeing an acceleration of technologies that, though they were already in the pipeline, would have taken several more years to really pick up speed. One …
Intel AI Powers Samsung Medison’s Fetal Ultrasound Smart Workflow
What’s New: Samsung Medison and Intel are collaborating on new smart workflow solutions to improve obstetric measurements that contribute to maternal and fetal safety and can help save lives. Using an Intel® Core™ i3 processor, the Intel® Distribution of OpenVINO™ toolkit and OpenCV library, Samsung Medison’s BiometryAssist™ automates and simplifies fetal measurements, while LaborAssist™ automatically estimates …
Cars Will Soon Be Able to Sense and React to Your Emotions
Imagine you’re on your daily commute to work, driving along a crowded highway while trying to resist looking at your phone. You’re already a little stressed out because you didn’t sleep well, woke up late, and have an important meeting in a couple hours, but you just don’t feel like your best self. Suddenly another …
The ‘Whiteness’ Of AI Erases People Of Colour From Our Imagined Futures
The overwhelming ‘Whiteness’ of artificial intelligence – from stock imagery to film robots and the dialects of virtual assistants – is removing people of colour from humanity’s visions of its high-tech future. In their paper, “The Whiteness of AI” published today in the journal, Philosophy and Technology, Leverhulme CFI Executive Director, Stephen Cave and Dr Kanta Dihal offer …