Next generation roadside detectors could soon be snapping motorists using smartphones behind the wheel without them realising, say police in Australia. High tech cameras that can detect the presence of the gadgets in the hands of drivers could be commonplace in the near future, they say. Drivers distracted by talking or texting on the phone are one of the biggest dangers on the road, and the new technology could help to crack down on the practice. It's not exactly clear how the cameras will work, but it seems likely they will incorporate image recognition AI software. Next generation roadside detectors could soon be snapping motorists using smartphones behind the wheel, say police in Australia.

It may seem more like a moral dilemma posed in an episode of Star Trek, but the question of whether robots are people has European lawmakers at loggerheads. The issue first arose in January 2017, thanks to a paragraph of text buried deep in a European Parliament report, that advised creating a'legal status for robots'. Its primary purpose was in order to establish who is liable if the intelligent machines cause any damage. However, experts are now opposing the move, saying that it is'inappropriate' from a legal and ethical perspective and could breach human rights. It may seem more like a moral dilemma posed in an episode of Star Trek, but the question of whether robots are people has European lawmakers at loggerheads.

Developments in AI, automation, augmented reality and robotics have spurred on changes that merely a few years ago would have been unimaginable. From self-driving cars to drones and even predictive analytics developments in genetic research, every sector seems to be going through significant changes. The Pew Research Centre highlights that nearly half of US adults use a voice assistant to interact with their smartphones and devices. Indeed investors are increasingly attuned to these changes with PE houses such as Apax Partners, CVC and KKR collectively investing over $3bn in technology-focused funds. While developments in technology have already catalysed fundamental changes in the way we live our lives, further seismic shifts are still expected.

Artificial intelligence programs promise to do everything, from predicting the weather to piloting autonomous cars. Now AI is being applied to video surveillance systems, promising to thwart criminal activity not by detecting crimes in progress but by identifying a crime–before it happens. The goal is to prevent violence such as sexual assaults, but could such admirable intentions turn into Minority Report-style pre-crime nightmares? Such a possibility may seem like a plot line from an episode of Black Mirror, but it's no longer the stuff of science fiction. Cortica, an Israeli company with deep roots in security and AI research, recently formed a partnership in India with Best Group to analyze the terabytes of data streaming from CCTV cameras in public areas.

Despite concerns over data privacy and immature technology, AI assistants and chatbots are gaining a foothold among businesses, according to a report from IT professional network Spiceworks. The report, which surveyed 529 IT professionals from North America and Europe, showed that 29% of respondents have implemented one or more chatbots or intelligent assistants for work-related tasks, or plan to do so this year. Adoption was higher for larger organizations, which have more resources to evaluate emerging technologies, with 24% using AI assistants or chatbots currently and 16% set to deploy the technology this year, for a total of 40%. "A lot of businesses are starting to see how these technologies are useful, and because they are more widely available, we are seeing adoption increase," said Peter Tsai, Spiceworks senior technology analyst and the author of the report. He added, however, that the technology is still "in its infancy."

This week, we learned the future of the car is not owning one--at least not if Uber gets its way. The ride-hailing giant came out with twin announcements: On Monday, it said it would acquire the bike-share company Jump, in a deal worth $200 million. On Wednesday, it announced a move into car-sharing and public transit ticketing, too, inking deals with the startup Getaround and the British mobile payments company Masabi. The goal: Making it much, much easier to live car-free, and maybe take a few UberX rides along the way. Meanwhile, Airstream rolled out an adorable and very practical new trailer that is, perhaps, too small to share with too many honies, and the Silicon Valley–based lidar startup Luminar shared its newest tech with transportation editor Alex Davies.

It's no secret that the U.S. spends a lot on health care, around 18 percent of its GDP or $9,400 per capita, nearly double what other high-income countries such as Canada, UK, Germany, and Australia spend. But more spending doesn't necessarily yield better results. In fact, studies show that many of the countries that spend less than the U.S. see better outcomes in the overall health of their citizens. According to a new report published by the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), a little less than half the health care expenditures in the U.S. go into planning, regulating, and managing medical services at the administrative level. And industry experts believe we can reduce a lot of this spending with the help of artificial intelligence.

UK citizens appear to be losing their fear of artificial intelligence (AI) technology, according to survey research by OpenText. The enterprise information management software supplier has repeated a survey it conducted in 2017 among 2,000 British consumers. While the 2017 survey revealed that a quarter of the UK consumers asked believed their job could be replaced by AI software in the next 10 years, this dropped to around one-in-five (21%) in the 2018 survey. You forgot to provide an Email Address. This email address doesn't appear to be valid.

With Microsoft being heavily involved in the news this week, I decided to recap their highs and quite possibly their lows that hit headline news across the world. Let's start with this - Early last week, Microsoft announced that they are planning on narrowing options for Office 365 tenancies by effectively ending the "native" Sharepoint Online public newsfeed - This change is set to take effect in June 2018. It's said that this change will affect the "public newsfeed" used by various organizations, which is also known as the "company feed" by many. As of June, the "public newsfeed" will become "read only" for organizations that are currently using it, which basically means that it can be read but not modified or updated. Having said that, Microsoft wants organizations to use Team News, Communication Sites or Yammer feeds as their main means for company posts and communication.

The trio is considered the best players in the world right now with Messi and Neymar playing alongside each other for Barcelona from 2013 to 2017 in a spell that saw the club win two La Liga titles, three Copa del Reys, one Champions League crown and the FIFA Club World Cup. However, Neymar shockingly made the move from Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain last summer after the oil-rich Ligue 1 side activated his €222 million ($273.7 million) release clause in what is still the world record transfer deal. It is highly believed that the Brazilian did not move for money but rather, the chance to play for a side built around him rather than Messi as with his current injury aside, he has flourished this season with 29 goals and 19 assists in 30 games in all competitions with PSG requiring just four points from their last six games to seal a fifth Ligue 1 title in six years. But, there are rumors that the 25-year-old is unhappy in Paris with speculation rising that he could return to La Liga for Barcelona or even rivals Real Madrid where he would be teammates with Ronaldo. There were also reports that Zahavi, who acted as an intermediary for Neymar's move last summer, accompanied a PSG delegation to Brazil last month to check on his injury and determine his value for another potential transfer.