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  • UVeya Using UV Light Robots to Disinfect Airplanes

    UVeya Using UV Light Robots to Disinfect Airplanes

    UVeya, a Swiss start-up, is testing robots that use ultraviolet (UV) light to disinfect airplanes, in an effort to make air travel safer.

    Few industries have felt the impact of the pandemic more than the airline industry. During a global pandemic, being in a confined space with recirculated air is the last thing many people want to do.

    UVeya is working on a way to improve the safety of airplane cabins by using robots to disinfect the cabins with UV light. The fully autonomous technology can disinfect a cabin in less than 10 minutes, with 99% efficacy against COVID-19.

    “This is a proven technology, it’s been used for over 50 years in hospitals and laboratories, it’s very efficient,” said UVeya co-founder Jodoc Elmiger, according to Reuters. “It doesn’t leave any trace or residue.”

    The company is currently testing its robots with “Dubai-based airport services company Dnata inside Embraer jets from Helvetic Airways, a charter airline owned by Swiss billionaire Martin Ebner.”

    UVeya hopes its tech will achieve widespread adoption, providing a safe, environmentally-friendly way of making air travel safer.

  • Drunk Roomba? iRobot May Not Have a Fix For Weeks

    A software update that made people’s Roombas act like they’re drunk may not be fixed for several more weeks.

    After updating to firmware 3.12.8, customers started reportingtheir Roombas behaving strangely. Some were wandering around like they were drunk, bumping into furniture, taking much longer than they should to clean an area, recharging several times more than necessary, not being able to go back to their charger and getting stuck in the middle of a room.

    iRobot reached out to The Verge and said some i7 and i9 robots were impacted, with a software update being responsible. The company is working on a new software patch that should fix the issue, but it’s only expected to roll out “over the next several weeks.”

    In the meantime, it looks like Roomba users will have to break out the old Hoover.

  • Nevada Looks to Let Companies Form Their Own Governments

    Nevada Looks to Let Companies Form Their Own Governments

    Nevada is preparing to consider a bill that would allow companies to form their own local government, in a bid to attract top tech companies.

    Tech companies are increasingly looking for alternatives to Silicon Valley, thanks to increased expenses and a pandemic-driven move to remote work. States all over the country are looking to attract such companies, although Nevada’s solution may be the most innovative.

    According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Innovation Zones, first proposed by Gov. Steve Sisolak, would give companies the ability to form a separate local government. The new government would have the same authority as a county, be able to impose taxes, create school districts, justice courts and provide the kind of government services a county normally would.

    The measure is designed to address what is seen as the inability of local governments to meet the needs of companies. A draft of the legislation, seen by the Review-Journal, says local governments are “inadequate alone to provide the flexibility and resources conducive to making the State a leader in attracting and retaining new forms and types of businesses and fostering economic development in emerging technologies and innovative industries.”

    In order to qualify, companies would have to own at least 50,000 acres of uninhabited, undeveloped land, not part of any existing town, city or tax increment, but within a single county. The company would also need at least $250 million, with plans to invest an additional $1 billion over 10 years in the Innovation Zone.

    The Innovation Zones are specifically for companies on the cutting edge of technology, such as artificial intelligence, autonomous technology, biometrics, blockchain, internet of things, renewable resource technology, robotics and wireless technology.

    Initially the Innovation Zones would operate under the authority of the local county government, but eventually take over that authority and become independent.

  • Amazon’s Head Alexa Scientist: ‘The Turing Test Is Obsolete’

    Amazon’s Head Alexa Scientist: ‘The Turing Test Is Obsolete’

    Amazon’s head scientist of Alexa is arguing that the Turing Test is obsolete as an AI test and should be replaced.

    Alan Turing published his famous paper 70 years ago, wherein he outlined the Turing Test as a way to evaluate artificial intelligence to see if it had achieved true intelligence. Since then, it has been the gold standard researchers have used in their efforts to advance AI.

    Writing in Fast Company, Rohit Prasad says the Turing Test is now obsolete.

    The Turing Test is fraught with limitations, some of which Turing himself debated in his seminal paper. With AI now ubiquitously integrated into our phones, cars, and homes, it’s become increasingly obvious that people care much more that their interactions with machines be useful, seamless and transparent—and that the concept of machines being indistinguishable from a human is out of touch. Therefore, it is time to retire the lore that has served as an inspiration for seven decades, and set a new challenge that inspires researchers and practitioners equally.

    Prasad makes the case that the work of modern AI researchers should focus on making AIs that complement humanity, rather than ones that are indistinguishable from humans.

    Instead of obsessing about making AIs indistinguishable from humans, our ambition should be building AIs that augment human intelligence and improve our daily lives in a way that is equitable and inclusive. A worthy underlying goal is for AIs to exhibit human-like attributes of intelligence—including common sense, self-supervision, and language proficiency—and combine machine-like efficiency such as fast searches, memory recall, and accomplishing tasks on your behalf. The end result is learning and completing a variety of tasks and adapting to novel situations, far beyond what a regular person can do.

    Prasad’s point of view has a lot of merit, and could fundamentally change many researchers’ approach to the field. Changing expectations could also help address concerns from those who believe AI is the biggest existential threat to humanity. By focusing on complementary AI systems, instead of ones that duplicate human intelligence, some of those concerns may be nullified.

    Either way, Prasad’s argument is well-worth a read in its entirety.

  • Boston Dynamics’ Robots Dance Together

    Boston Dynamics’ Robots Dance Together

    Boston Dynamics’ robots showed some impressive dance skills, with four robots dancing to The Contours’ Do You Love Me.

    Boston Dynamics is one of the leading robotics firms in the world, and has a history of showing off its robots in whimsical ways. In 2018, its SpotMini danced to Bruno Mars’ Uptown Funk.

    The company’s robots have now upped their game, with four robots, representing three different models, dancing in sync to Do You Love Me.

    Hyundai recently announced it was acquiring a controlling interest in Boston Dynamics. Hyundai is working on non-traditional automobiles, including ones that switch from wheels to walking legs for travel over uneven terrain that would otherwise not be traversable, making Boston Robotics a perfect fit.

    With Hyundai’s stake in the robotics firm, who knows, perhaps we’ll one day see dancing cars.

  • Volkswagen Offers First Glimpse of Mobile Charging Robot

    Volkswagen Offers First Glimpse of Mobile Charging Robot

    Volkswagen has provided the first glimpse of a mobile charging robot, designed to provide autonomous vehicle charging.

    One of the biggest challenges to the wide-scale adoption of fully electric vehicles is a charging infrastructure. With multiple automakers committed to transitioning to electric vehicles within the next two decades, the race is on to provide the charging infrastructure that will be needed.

    “A ubiquitous charging infrastructure is, and remains, a key factor in the success of electric mobility. Our charging robot is just one of several approaches, but is undoubtedly one of the most visionary,” explains Thomas Schmall, CEO of Volkswagen Group Components.

    Volkswagen’s mobile charging robot, complete with blinking eyes, is designed to charge vehicles in close-quarters areas where a traditional charging station is not an option. The robots may be used in underground garages, restricted parking areas, or other places where space is at a premium.

    Users will be able to use to app or Car-to-X communication to summon the robot for charging. Once summoned, the robot will autonomously take over the entire process, including communicating with the vehicle, opening the charging port, plugging in, charging and disconnecting.

    “Setting up an efficient charging infrastructure for the future is a central task that challenges the entire sector,” says Schmall. “We are developing solutions to help avoid costly stand-alone measures. The mobile charging robot and our flexible quick-charging station are just two of these solutions.”

    https://youtu.be/Fk_j1m7ck0c

  • Chinese Drone Maker DJI Faces Uncertain Future As It Faces US Blacklist

    Chinese Drone Maker DJI Faces Uncertain Future As It Faces US Blacklist

    Chinese drone maker DJI is the latest company added to the US trade blacklist, throwing its future into uncertain territory.

    The US and China have been locked in a costly trade war, one that has involved casualties on both sides. The US has blacklisted Huawei and ZTE, claiming the telecom companies represent a threat to national security.

    Now the US has added DJI to the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Entity List, according to Digital Trends. Being on the Entity List means that US companies can’t do business with DJI without a special license. The US is concerned about data Chinese companies could collect on US citizens, as well as drone technology being used in China’s persecution of ethnic minorities.

    DJI says customers can still purchase its drones, as being on the Entity List primarily impacts the company’s ability to sell to other businesses.

  • Hyundai Acquiring Boston Dynamics Robotics Firm

    Hyundai Acquiring Boston Dynamics Robotics Firm

    Hyundai is acquiring a majority stake in Boston Dynamics, the maker of robotic dog Spot.

    Hyundai will take an 80% stake Boston Dynamics, while existing owner SoftBank will maintain a 20% stake. Hyundai sees the acquisition as an important step toward its transformation into a Smart Mobility Solution Provider.

    Boston Dynamics Spot
    Boston Dynamics Spot

    Hyundai has increasingly been innovating beyond the traditional concept of the automobile. The company is investing heavily in its Urban Air Mobility platform, in an effort to make aerial transport and ride-sharing a reality. Similarly, Hyundai and Autodesk are working to create the Ultimate Mobility Vehicle(UMV), a vehicle with legs that can walk to reach areas a traditional vehicle cannot. The latter, in particular, is a concept that bears a striking resemblance to Boston Dynamics’ work.

    Elevate
    Elevate

    We are delighted to have Boston Dynamics, a world leader in mobile robots, join the Hyundai team. This transaction will unite capabilities of Hyundai Motor Group and Boston Dynamics to spearhead innovation in future mobility. The synergies created by our union offer exciting new pathways for our companies to realize our goal – providing free and safe movement and higher plane of life experiences for humanity. We will also contribute to the society by enhancing its safety, security, public health amid global trends of aging society and digital transformation. — Euisun Chung Chairman of Hyundai Motor Group

    Hyundai’s stake in Boston Dynamics should help the company continue innovating as automobile makers look beyond traditional transportation.

  • French Military Clears Hurdle to Bionic Troops

    French Military Clears Hurdle to Bionic Troops

    The French military has been granted permission to develop augmented troops by an ethics committee tasked with evaluating the issue.

    Bionic humans, augmented with technology, have been a major feature of science fiction for decades. The Six Million Dollar Man was a popular TV show about a USAF Colonel given bionic limbs, implants and abilities following a test flight crash.

    While many prosthetics focus on restoring lost functionality, technology is reaching the point where such prosthetics may go beyond restoration, squarely into the realm of improvement. High-tech prosthetics may be able to enhance a soldier’s strength, cognition, speed and more, not to mention offer built-in connectivity and other electronic abilities. Augments could even help a soldier deal with pain from injuries, or resist enhanced interrogation.

    According to CNN, French armed forces minister Florence Parly ruled out any “invasive” augmentations. The ethics committee also ruled out any modifications that inhibit a soldier’s ability to control their own strength, or anything that desensitizes their “humanity.”

    Much of France’s approach seems geared more toward keeping pace with potential threats than wholesale adoption.

    “But we have to be clear, not everyone has the same scruples as us and we have to prepare ourselves for such a future,” Parly said in a press release.

  • Raspberry Pi 400 Is a $70 Desktop PC In a Keyboard

    Raspberry Pi 400 Is a $70 Desktop PC In a Keyboard

    The Raspberry Pi Foundation has just released the Raspberry Pi 400, a desktop PC in a keyboard.

    Raspberry Pi computers were initially developed to aid in teaching, especially in communities and countries where cost was the prime factor. Over time, the computers became popular with programmers and tinkerers and are widely used in certain fields, such as robotics.

    Now the foundation has released its latest version, which is built into a keyboard, being the closest to an all-in-one machine the foundation has ever produced. Sticking with its low cost-of-entry, the Raspberry Pi comes in at a mere $70.

    The keyboard computer features a quad-core 64-bit processor, 4 GB of RAM, WiFi, 4K video playback and dual-display output. It also ”comes with a mouse, power supply, micro HDMI to HDMI cable, and SD card preloaded with Raspberry Pi OS.” All a user needs is a monitor and they’re ready to go.

    This new addition to the Raspberry Pi family will no doubt be a big hit and make it even easier for people to get onboard.

     

  • Soccer AI Fooled By…A Ref’s Bald Head

    Soccer AI Fooled By…A Ref’s Bald Head

    Artificial intelligence has made some amazing advances in recent years, but there’s nothing like a bald head to highlight its limitations.

    A soccer match involving Caledonian Thistle FC from Inverness, Scotland, was using an AI-driven camera to keep track of the ball. Unfortunately for fans, the camera kept panning back to the linesman’s bald head.

    The situation was made worse by COVID-19 restrictions prohibiting any fans from being in the arena. As a result, fans were relying on the televised broadcast to catch the game, and were no doubt disappointed to have a play-by-play view of the referee’s head.

    The following highlight reel shows just how much the AI was fooled, and just how far AI has yet to improve.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9zoJP2FkpgU&feature=emb_title

  • AI Still Not Paying Off For Most Companies and Why It Does For Some

    AI Still Not Paying Off For Most Companies and Why It Does For Some

    A new reports suggests that, despite its promise for the future, artificial intelligence (AI) is still not paying off for most companies.

    A study by BCG GAMMA, the BCG Henderson Institute and the MIT Sloan Management Review found that a mere 11% of companies reported significant financial benefit from deploying AI.

    Surprisingly, this low return rate was despite widespread attempts to use AI. In fact, the study found that 71% of respondents understood how AI would impact their business, 59% had an AI strategy and 57% had already deployed it to some degree or another.

    One of the key differentiators appeared to be the degree to which an organization adopted and used AI. Companies that merely saw it as a quick fix, such as a way to improve automation, were the companies seeing very little return.

    “Our survey analysis demonstrates that Leaders share one outstanding feature: They intend to become more adept learners with AI,” reads the report. “Organizations that sense and respond quickly and appropriately to changing conditions, such as a new competitor or a worldwide pandemic, are more likely to take advantage of those disruptions. They view AI as more than a tool for cost cutting and automation.”

    As a result of this approach, those companies the report labels “Leaders,” fully integrate AI with their entire approach, learning from it while it learns from humans. This degree of change is often time-consuming and requires a fundamental shift in how many companies operate.

    “As more and more of the core of a company is built around software and data, the nature of the organization changes,” says Marco Iansiti, the David Sarnoff Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School. He goes on to caution: “It’s an architectural transition that takes a lot of time for a traditional organization. It’s a massive change.”

    The full report is a fascinating read and should be a top priority for any executive involved in AI deployment.

  • Hyundai and Autodesk Creating the Ultimate Mobility Vehicle

    Hyundai and Autodesk Creating the Ultimate Mobility Vehicle

    Hyundai is working together with engineering firm Autodesk to design and create “Elevate,” the first Ultimate Mobility Vehicle (UMV).

    The UMV was first shown last year at CES, and represents Hyundai’s ongoing efforts to innovate beyond basic car designs. The company is working with Uber to create aerial ridesharing vehicles and is increasing its investment in electric vehicles.

    The Elevate platform is designed to combine automobile and robotics technology to create a vehicle that can go where no traditional vehicle can. The Elevate can drive on standard roads, or elevate itself on robotic arms for walking and climbing.

    Elevate Mammalian Mode
    Elevate Mammalian Mode

    Elevate is aimed at addressing a wide array of situations where traditional vehicles fall short, such as search and rescue, exploration, transport on uneven ground and transportation for mobility impaired individuals.

    Elevate Exploration
    Elevate Exploration

    “When a tsunami or earthquake hits, current rescue vehicles can only deliver first responders to the edge of the debris field. They have to go the rest of the way by foot. Elevate can drive to the scene and climb right over flood debris or crumbled concrete,” said John Suh, Hyundai vice president and head of Hyundai CRADLE. “This technology goes well beyond emergency situations – people living with disabilities worldwide that don’t have access to an ADA ramp could hail an autonomous Hyundai Elevate that could walk up to their front door, level itself, and allow their wheelchair to roll right in – the possibilities are limitless.”

    Elevate Mobility Impaired Transport
    Elevate Mobility Impaired Transport

    Hyundai created New Horizons Studio in Silicon Valley to develop the UMV, and has partnered with Autodesk to make the concept a reality.

    “More than 10 years ago, we identified the pain points, rework required and loss of valuable information when projects move from one phase to the next and the associated files don’t play nicely in the heterogenous environments organizations so often use,” says Srinath Jonnalagadda, vice president of design and manufacturing at Autodesk. “Creating a design and engineering platform that helps remove those hurdles, while also putting advanced capabilities such as generative design tools at the fingertips of designers, has been our North Star for a decade. The Elevate project is a showcase of how leaders like Hyundai can now enjoy the fruits of that vision.”

    While it may look like something straight out of science fiction, it’s unique abilities will likely make it a hit with its target market.

  • H-E-B Partners With Swisslog For Curbside Delivery Robotics

    H-E-B Partners With Swisslog For Curbside Delivery Robotics

    H-E-B is planning to use Swisslog robots to improve its curbside delivery services through the use of micro-fulfillment centers.

    As the coronavirus pandemic has impacted how people go about their daily lives, curbside grocery pickup has experienced major growth. In an effort to improve curbside pickup, without negatively impacting the in-store expense, H-E-B is turning to robotics.

    The goal is to create a number of automated micro-fulfillment centers to meet customers needs. As an added benefit, because of their smaller footprint, it should be possible to place micro-fulfillment centers closer to neighborhoods, making it easer and faster for customers to pick up their groceries.

    “Swisslog is pleased H-E-B put their trust in us to automate and support their facilities with state-of-the-art automation and software,” said Mitch Hayes, vice president of e-commerce and retail, Swisslog Logistics Automation, Americas. “COVID-19 and anticipated behavioral changes have created increased urgency around the need for automation within many grocery operations. E-grocery automation is no longer an option…it’s a requirement for survival and continued growth.”

  • Get Ready For Amazon Prime Drone Deliveries

    Get Ready For Amazon Prime Drone Deliveries

    Amazon’s plans to use autonomous drones for package delivery took a big step forward with FAA approval to begin testing.

    Amazon Prime Air has been working toward the use of drones to deliver packages to consumers in 30 minutes or less. According to Reuters, the FAA just approved the company to begin testing of its autonomous drones, joining UPS and Alphabet’s Wing division.

    The drone service could represent a big cost savings to Amazon, while giving the company a competitive advantage, in terms of the speed of delivery. At the same time, there are still a number of challenges to address. As more people rely on online shopping, porch piracy has become a major issue. It’s a safe bet there will be an equally big problem with ‘package poaching’ as Amazon’s drones take to the sky.

    Either way, the FAA’s approval to begin testing is an important step in widespread adoption of drone deliveries.

  • IBM and AT&T Deepen Their 5G/Edge Computing Partnership

    IBM and AT&T Deepen Their 5G/Edge Computing Partnership

    IBM and AT&T are deepening their 5G and edge computing partnership, with the goal of accelerating the business world’s digital transformation.

    The two companies are working at IBM’s Thomas J. Watson Research Center, where they are “deploying AT&T’s 5G and multi-access edge computing (MEC)—a private cellular, low latency solution that can process data on a business site’s premise, instead of routing traffic over public networks.”

    The two companies have a years-long history of working together, a partnership that helped them both respond to the coronavirus pandemic by helping customers with their work from home needs. Now the two companies are building on that track record, working on new ways to enable remote work, especially in those industries where it has not yet been possible.

    “Combining 5G with edge computing, for example, could open the door to breakthroughs in robotics and the ability to perform intricate machine work from remote locations,” write Mo Katibeh, AT&T Chief Product and Platform Officer and Steve Canepa, IBM General Manager of the Global Communications Sector. “One of the tasks we are exploring at Yorktown Heights envisions enabling a researcher to remotely adjust locations of IoT network devices in a laboratory. Another envisions allowing a systems administrator to remotely rewire machines in a data center to provide a more agile environment.”

    At the same time, the two companies are working to help employees be able to safely return to work.

    “We are addressing workplace safety in a system driven by IBM AI and made feasible at scale by AT&T LTE and 5G mobile network technologies,” continue Katibeh and Canepa. “That includes AT&T MEC. This solution from AT&T enables the development and deployment of new capabilities that rely on ultra-low latency, higher security and privacy, improved bandwidth conservation and greater control of data.

    “The low latency of 5G allows for remote operations in industrial settings, helping to keep workers from harmful situations. And if any dangerous situations do arise, edge computing is designed to let businesses capture and analyze data quickly without extra storage or processing on a central cloud.

    “That same processing ability can help employees look after their health with devices to monitor their temperature, oxygen levels and blood pressure with instantaneous feedback. Hospitals can even take advantage of similar advances to make their current infrastructures more reliable, while implementing advances like wireless surgery, robotics, virtual reality simulations.”

    IBM and AT&T’s partnership is poised to leverage emerging technologies to help companies now and in the future.

  • One Step Closer to Skynet: AI Beats Top Air Force Pilot

    One Step Closer to Skynet: AI Beats Top Air Force Pilot

    An AI-powered “pilot” went undefeated in five rounds of simulated dogfighting with a top Air Force pilot.

    Fans of the Terminator franchise are familiar with Skynet, the artificial intelligence that turned on humanity, nearly wiping it out and sending the Terminators to eliminate human targets. Critics of AI have long claimed that it represents one of the greatest existential threats humanity has ever faced.

    The latest development is not likely to assuage any concerns, as an AI performed flawlessly in simulated combat against a top Air Force pilot.

    “The event was the culmination of an effort that the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) began last year as an adjacent project to the larger Air Combat Evolution (ACE) program, which is focused on exploring how artificial intelligence and machine learning may help automate various aspects of air-to-air combat,” writes The Drive’s Joseph Trevithicka.

    Originally, there were eight companies that were part of the competition. After flying against each other, Heron Systems came out on top and advanced to the final round where their AI beat the human pilot.

    Should AI ever become a Skynet-like threat, it appears it won’t have any problem controlling the sky.

  • Robot Stock Analysts Outperform Humans

    Robot Stock Analysts Outperform Humans

    In further evidence robot domination may yet be in our future, a study has shown robot stock analysts outperform their human counterparts, leading to better investments.

    There has been a fair amount of hand-wringing about what role robots will play in the future, and whether mankind will be able to control a true artificial intelligence. World domination aside, the economic possibilities and threats robots pose are just beginning to be understood. While many have believed it would largely be physical jobs, such as manufacturing, that would be taken over by robots, recent studies have shown that high-paying, white collar jobs are also at risk.

    Now a study by Indiana University professors Braiden Coleman, Kenneth J. Merkley and Joseph Pacelli has demonstrated that robots even make better stock analysts than humans.

    “First, Robo-Analysts collectively produce a more balanced distribution of buy, hold, and sell recommendations than do human analysts, which suggests that they are less subject to behavioral biases and conflicts of interest,” reads the study abstract. “Second, consistent with automation facilitating a greater scale of research production, Robo-Analysts revise their reports more frequently than human analysts and also adopt different production processes. Their revisions rely less on earnings announcements, and more on the large, volumes of data released in firms’ annual reports. Third, Robo-Analysts’ reports exhibit weaker short-window return reactions, suggesting that investors do not trade on their signals. Importantly, portfolios formed based on the buy recommendations of Robo-Analysts appear to outperform those of human analysts, suggesting that their buy calls are more profitable. Overall, our results suggest that Robo-Analysts are a valuable, alternative information intermediary to traditional sell-side analysts.”

    The study is a fascinating read on the potential of robots to help revolutionize another industry, and especially one that many may not think of as a candidate for robot takeover.

  • MIT Removes AI Training Dataset Over Racist Concerns

    MIT Removes AI Training Dataset Over Racist Concerns

    MIT has removed a massive dataset after finding it contained racist, misogynistic terms and offensive images.

    Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) systems use datasets as training data. MIT created the Tiny Images dataset, which contained some 80 million images.

    In an open letter, Bill Freeman and Antonio Torralba, both professors at MIT, as well as NYU professor Rob Fergus, outlined issues they became aware of, and the steps they took to resolve them.

    “It has been brought to our attention that the Tiny Images dataset contains some derogatory terms as categories and offensive images,” write the professors. “This was a consequence of the automated data collection procedure that relied on nouns from WordNet. We are greatly concerned by this and apologize to those who may have been affected.

    “The dataset is too large (80 million images) and the images are so small (32 x 32 pixels) that it can be difficult for people to visually recognize its content. Therefore, manual inspection, even if feasible, will not guarantee that offensive images can be completely removed.

    “We therefore have decided to formally withdraw the dataset. It has been taken offline and it will not be put back online. We ask the community to refrain from using it in future and also delete any existing copies of the dataset that may have been downloaded.”

    This has been an ongoing issue with AI and ML training data, with some experts warning that it is far too easy for these systems to inadvertently develop biases based on the data. With their announcement, it appears MIT is certainly doing their share to try to rectify that issue.

  • Robot Analyzes Your Gait to Detect Your Feelings

    Robot Analyzes Your Gait to Detect Your Feelings

    Researchers at the University of Maryland have developed ProxEmo, an “end-to-end emotion prediction algorithm for socially aware robot navigation among pedestrians.”

    ProxEmo is designed to help robots interpret human feeling, based on their gait. This enables a robot equipped with ProxEmo to better interact with humans, giving them more or less space depending on their mood.

    According to the researchers—Venkatraman Narayanan, Bala Murali Manoghar, Vishnu Sashank Dorbala, Dinesh Manocha, Aniket Bera—ProxEmo “achieves a mean average emotion prediction precision of 82.47% on the Emotion-Gait benchmark dataset,” and outperforms competing algorithms.

    ProxEmo is a novel approach to AI and robotics, and could have a wide range of applications as the technology matures.

  • Microsoft AI Virtual Summit Scheduled For June 2

    Microsoft AI Virtual Summit Scheduled For June 2

    Microsoft has announced a virtual AI summit with company executives and industry leaders, scheduled for June 2.

    Artificial intelligence has become one of the most important developing technologies, with companies large and small looking to make their mark. AI is seen as one of the pivotal pieces necessary for a number of industries to take shape, or to evolve to the next level. Multiple companies are working on AI-powered, self-driving vehicles that can make the kind of life-and-death decisions human drivers have been making for decades.

    In day-to-day businesses, AI is playing an increasingly important role in online moderation, search interpretation, content curation, supply chains and much more. AI is taking steps toward content creation and learning to display empathy and personality. In recent months, AI has even played a significant role in combatting the coronavirus pandemic, helping authorities monitor citizens and enforce social distancing.

    With AI playing such an important role in so many industries, Microsoft’s summit will focus on discussing how companies can navigate the challenges that come with developing AI.

    “Join Microsoft and industry leaders for a summit dedicated to thinking big about the critical role of artificial intelligence to help us navigate through these unprecedented times,” reads the announcement. “Every day, AI is proving its value in addressing massive change, disruption and unpredictability as well as enabling business continuity, greater agility and efficiencies. And there’s never been a better time to put AI into action in your organization. We’ll share timely and relevant examples of how customers are using AI to respond and recover from recent challenges and move forward with game-changing solutions to pressing business, government, education, civic, social and health issues.

    “This interactive gathering brings together prominent leaders to discuss the extraordinary possibilities of AI and practical steps to drive lasting impact.”

    Interested parties are encouraged to register for the summit now.