Under President Obama's leadership, America continues to be the world's most innovative country, with the greatest potential to develop the industries of the future and harness science and technology to help address important challenges. Over the past 8 years, President Obama has relentlessly focused on building U.S. capacity in science and technology. This Thursday, President Obama will host the White House Frontiers Conference in Pittsburgh to imagine the Nation and the world in 50 years and beyond, and to explore America's potential to advance towards the frontiers that will make the world healthier, more prosperous, more equitable, and more secure. Today, to ready the United States for a future in which Artificial Intelligence (AI) plays a growing role, the White House is releasing a report on future directions and considerations for AI called Preparing for the Future of Artificial Intelligence. This report surveys the current state of AI, its existing and potential applications, and the questions that progress in AI raise for society and public policy.

A UK parliamentary committee has urged the government to act proactively -- and to act now -- to tackle "a host of social, ethical and legal questions" arising from the rise of autonomous technologies such as artificial intelligence. "While it is too soon to set down sector-wide regulations for this nascent field, it is vital that careful scrutiny of the ethical, legal and societal dimensions of artificially intelligent systems begins now," says the committee. "Not only would this help to ensure that the UK remains focused on developing'socially beneficial' AI systems, it would also represent an important step towards fostering public dialogue about, and trust in, such systems over time." The committee kicked off an enquiry into AI and robotics this March, going on to take 67 written submissions and hear from 12 witnesses in person, in addition to visiting Google DeepMind's London office. Publishing its report into robotics and AI today, the Science and Technology committee flags up several issues that it says need "serious, ongoing consideration" -- including: "[W]itnesses were clear that the ethical and legal matters raised by AI deserved attention now and that suitable governance frameworks were needed," it notes in the report.

As banking organisations, financial services providers and brands predict and plan for the way consumers will manage their money in the future, artificial intelligence (AI) is high on the business development strategy for 2016 and beyond. Gideon Hyde, co-founder of Market Gravity, proposition design consultancy, shares his thoughts on this emerging technology and explains how businesses can embrace AI to enhance their offerings, meet consumer demand for speed, personalisation and convenience, and launch new products and services to stand out in the competitive marketplace. Gideon Hyde is co-founder and CEO of Market Gravity, which has offices in London, Edinburgh and New York. It works with big businesses, including Boots, Barclaycard, HSBC, Aegon, Standard Life, RWE npower and The AA, to help them realise their innovation capabilities and release the start up within. AI is already around us and used everyday within payments, money management and for robo-advice, particularly in the area of intelligent digital assistants that handle regular customer service enquiries and tasks.

Building on the innovative thinking that jump-started three previous life-changing eras – steam-powered mechanised production, mass production assembly lines, and the first electronics and IT-based automations – we're about to find out how this latest evolution will take us places we can't begin to imagine. In the most disruptive industrial revolution yet, AI advancements are infiltrating our existence at every level, whether they're in the guise of IBM Watson's Jeopardy-playing prowess, or Uber's self-driving cars. The businesses we run, the jobs we perform and the lives we live will never be the same again. With every new era comes fresh concerns that the latest advancements will usurp our role as humans, and make our work redundant. From driving our cars to diagnosing the sick, if machines are being trained to do our thinking for us, will we still need to think for ourselves?

Today on In Case You Missed It: Robots have finally gotten around the'needing human assistance' thing when it comes to sewing clothing. The Sewbo is one such option, which can stitch together clothing as long as the garment is first dipped in a stiffening solution that makes it feel like cardboard. Meanwhile MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab created a computer program made to simplify the process of 3D-printing with different materials in the same object. News about the Foundry is here. The video we can't stop watching from Russia is here.

Nasa has announced that it has found evidence of flowing water on Mars. Scientists have long speculated that Recurring Slope Lineae -- or dark patches -- on Mars were made up of briny water but the new findings prove that those patches are caused by liquid water, which it has established by finding hydrated salts. Several hundred camped outside the London store in Covent Garden. The 6s will have new features like a vastly improved camera and a pressure-sensitive "3D Touch" display

The motorcycle of the future is so safe riders can cruise without a helmet and never fall off, giving all of the thrills with none of the danger, according to BMW. The German automaker unveiled its Motorrad Vision Next 100, a sleek, self-balancing prototype the company released as part of its 100th anniversary celebrations. The zero-emissions bike has self-balancing wheels designed to stand upright even at a complete stop, stability that the company says will allow riders to forgo riding a helmet. The self-balancing BMW Motorrad Vision Next 100 concept motorcycle is unveiled on the last of four international stops of the'Iconic Impulses' event, celebrating 100 years of BMW. A'flexframe' extends from the front to the rear wheel, which means means the bike can be steered without the various joints found on today's motorcycles.

From driverless cars to virtual personal assistants - breakthroughs in artificial intelligence (AI) technology could lead to a loss of jobs for humans. And humankind currently does not have the skills to compete, according to a new report. Government officials have called for a Commission on AI to be established in order to investigate the social, ethical and legal implications of the technology. They warn that if British workers don't acquire new skills, millions could lost their jobs to machines. While some expect rising unemployment as labour is substituted for AI-enabled robots and machines, others foresee a transformation in the type of employment available, says the report.

Amazon is launching a paid streaming music service, the latest entry in an increasingly crowded field. Amazon Music Unlimited is being positioned to compete against existing services such as Spotify and Apple Music. It will cost 8 per month, or 80 a year, for members of Amazon's 99-a-year Prime loyalty program. Non-Prime members will pay 10 a month, the same monthly fee charged by Spotify and Apple Music. Owners of Amazon's Echo smart speaker, meanwhile, will be able to get the unlimited music service on one device for 4 per month.

Leading UK MPs are calling on the government to set up a commission on artificial intelligence (AI) to examine the potential problems the technology could create for future generations. A report into the issue by the House of Commons science and technology committee, which was chaired by MP Dr Tania Mathias warned that the government is failing to prepare for how AI will "fundamentally" change people's lives. The research concluded that there is no strategy for developing the new skills workers will need to succeed as AI becomes more popular, and cautioned that more must be done to tackle the ethical and social problems posed by the advent of robots. "Concerns about machines'taking jobs' and eliminating the need for human labour have persisted for centuries. Nevertheless it is conceivable that we will see AI technology creating new jobs over the coming decades while at the same time displacing others," said Mathias. Dr Cotton-Barratt from the Future of Humanity Institute, who is quoted in the report, said that the UK is "well-positioned" to respond to this challenge.