The United Nations forecasts that the global population will rise from 7.3 billion to nearly 10 billion by 2050, a big number that often prompts warnings about overpopulation. Some have come from neo-Malthusians, who fear that population growth will outstrip the food supply, leaving a hungry planet. Others appear in the tirades of anti-immigrant populists, invoking the specter of a rising tide of humanity as cause to slam borders shut. Still others inspire a chorus of neo-Luddites, who fear that the "rise of the robots" is rapidly making human workers obsolete, a threat all the more alarming if the human population is exploding. They may be the one thing that can protect the global economy from the dangers that lie ahead.

The Estonia-based Starship Technologies wants to hire'robot handlers' Unlike those that resemble humans, the Starship's bot is purely functional Each six-wheeled delivery'ground drone' is almost completely self-driving They travel at 4mph and are capable of carrying 20 to 25lbs of cargo The Estonia-based Starship Technologies wants to hire'robot handlers' Unlike those that resemble humans, the Starship's bot is purely functional Each six-wheeled delivery'ground drone' is almost completely self-driving You may have read about the dangers of robots taking over human jobs. But the introduction of one set of robots is opening up new employment opportunities for humans. Estonia-based Starship Technologies wants to hire'robot handlers' to accompany robots as they start to make deliveries around Washington DC. Starship Technologies has developed six-wheeled bots that travel at four miles per hour and capable of carrying 20 to 25 pounds of cargo. Now the company wants to hire'robot handlers' to accompany robots as they make deliveries around Washington DC The company already has robots working in London, Hamburg, Dusseldorff and the Swiss city of Bern.

Robots to steal 15million of your jobs, says bank chief: Doom-laden Carney warns middle classes will be'hollowed out' by new technology Mark Carney warned in a speech many jobs would be'hollowed out' Huge technological advances meant roles could be automated instead Entire professions, such as accountancy, could be pushed to the brink Mark Carney warned in a speech many jobs would be'hollowed out' Mark Carney warned many jobs would be'hollowed out' Revealed - Russia's'cyber cosmonaut' that is set to conquer... Did YOU lose out in the Adele ticket debacle? Revealed - Russia's'cyber cosmonaut' that is set to conquer... Did YOU lose out in the Adele ticket debacle? The Bank's monetary policy committee (MPC) has come under fire for cutting rates to 0.25 per cent, with Theresa May criticising the'bad side effects' of its policies Speaking at Liverpool John Moores University yesterday, the Governor also claimed workers had suffered'the first lost decade since the 1860s' Man punches kangaroo in the face to save dog being strangled CCTV shows woman hit by a CAR as thieves dodge paying for petrol Christmas advert so touching it's being shared around the world Watch the original 1972 trailer for'Last Tango in Paris' Adorable baby'sings' along with Dutch champion beatboxer B-Art Violence in Liverpool's city centre as crowd confront police Which body types do women like best? MailOnline investigates Heart-stopping moment child climbs on tracks in front of train Group of Russian men line up and break into vicious fight Mob storm police station and lynch suspected paedophile Oakland warehouse manager Derick Ion Almena'tripping out' Moment judge gets slapped in the face at 2016 IFBB Diamond Cup Christmas advert so touching it's being shared around the world Adorable baby'sings' along with Dutch champion beatboxer B-Art Violence in Liverpool's city centre as crowd confront police Which body types do women like best? 'Don't believe a thing you hear, unless it comes from me':... EXCLUSIVE: Man who punched out kangaroo is a ZOOKEEPER:... EXCLUSIVE: Ex-American Idol contestant Corey Clark describes... EXCLUSIVE: The'arrogant' man behind illegal artist enclave... Grim-faced Ross Harris sentenced to life in prison without... Kidnapped California supermom and her family abruptly flee... Tearful organizers of Oakland artist enclave REFUSE to take... Pregnant dancer is blasted to death with a shotgun at an... 'Roo want a piece of me?

Cecila Malmstrom publicly speaks of torture. On October 4, when the European politician stood up in parliament to give her support for laws banning the export of items used for implementing the death penalty, there should have been little controversy. But when footage of her speech was posted online, nobody saw it. YouTube removed the video, which had been uploaded by fellow MEP Marietje Schaake. "I did not know whether this decision was made by a human or whether this was the result of an automated decision," the Dutch politician told WIRED.

Employers: do the ladies on your payroll have any "female weaknesses" that would make them mentally or physically unfit for the job? The question comes to you courtesy of the year 1943. It was posed in a guide to hiring women, written for the flummoxed male supervisors at Transportation Magazine tasked with integrating a new female workforce during a wartime shortage of manpower. Back then, you wouldn't be surprised to see logical reasoning like "Men are to programmers as women are to homemakers". Or "Men are to surgeons what women are to nurses".

It may have been a difficult year for the wider world, but 2016 did at least see a lot of excellent video games, from the glossy action movie thrills of Uncharted 4 to the agenda-setting multiplayer fun of Overwatch and the solemn dystopian vision of Inside. But we wanted to know what the industry itself thinks were the best games to come out in the past 12 months. To find out, we asked 50 of our favourite developers, including 30-year veterans, Bafta award winners and rising indie stars. We've split the list into categories, and at the end we have a list of the most popular titles of them all. Karla Zimonja (Fullbright) Known for: BioShock 2, Gone Home Working on: Tacoma My favorite game this year is Dishonored 2, which I am still in the midst of. I love stealth games, so I'm taking my time with this one! Emily's powers are super satisfying to combine in entertaining ways. Anne Lewis (Bethesda Softworks) Known for: Doom, Dishonored 2 Working on: Prey It might sound like I'm shilling for my company when I say this, but Dishonored 2 is my favorite game of 2016. Dishonored is one of the reasons I wanted to work for Bethesda.

A few weeks ago, Montreal-based AI pioneer Yoshua Bengio launched Element AI, a Silicon Valley-style startup incubator dedicated to deep learning. Despite its modest (but growing) startup scene, Montreal is already a hotbed in AI talent, with a trove of deep learning researchers across the city. Bengio -- along with Jean-François Gagné, Nicolas Chapados, Jean-Sébastien Cournoyer, and the rest of their team of tech mavericks -- is hoping to accelerate the proliferation of AI startups and researchers in Montreal to turn the city into an AI center. As a proud Montrealer and bot maker, I couldn't be happier with this news. Surprisingly, though, the launch received some mixed feedback locally.

Leading tech companies ship AI free within their products (Siri, Alexa, Google Assistant), powering our phones and the rapidly growing home personal assistant market. Indeed, they are becoming increasingly good at answering our questions, making us smarter. Teaching not rote facts and figures, but instead teaching students the paths to find this knowledge on their own. Teaching students -- as we do with computers through AI -- how to learn. We are stuck with centuries old methodologies, where schools and teachers act like the gateway to knowledge, but at a time when students can access all they want by simply asking Alexa.

The new chief spokesman for the Islamic State group (also called ISIS) promised attacks on the United States, Russia, Europe and Iran in his first address to the terrorist outfit's followers, which was released Monday by ISIS's al-Furqan media division. The audio recording named Abu Hassan al-Muhajir as the successor to Abu Muhammad al-Adnani, who was killed in a U.S. drone strike near al-Bab, Syria, on Aug. 30. In a chilling message -- titled "For You Will Remember What I Tell You" -- aimed at the West and ISIS's regional adversaries, Muhajir called on the group's fighters to target its enemies. According to a translation by Rita Katz, director of the SITE Intelligence Group, Muhajir said in the message: "We will attack them in their own countries. Your operations make a difference … change the situation. Attack them in their markets, roads, clubs and any unexpected location and burn the ground under their feet."

Former Alaska Airlines CIO Veresh Sita has joined Emaar Properties as its chief digital officer, a role in which he will oversee a technology transformation intended to drive growth for the Dubai-based global real estate developer. His core focus is incorporating artificial intelligence, machine learning and internet of things (IoT) into sophisticated properties, or "digital smart cities," Sita says. Emaar Properties is one of the largest real estate developers in the United Arab Emirates and is renowned for building and owning both the tallest building and largest mall in the world. With six business segments and 60 companies, Emaar has a presence in 36 markets across the Middle East, North Africa, Pan-Asia, Europe and North America. One of its key current projects, Dubai Creek Harbour, is expected to be among the most digitally sophisticated housing developments when it's completed in 2018.