Many alarms have sounded on the potential for artificial intelligence (AI) technologies to upend the workforce, especially for easy-to-automate jobs. But managers at all levels will have to adapt to the world of smart machines. The fact is, artificial intelligence will soon be able to do the administrative tasks that consume much of managers' time faster, better, and at a lower cost. How can managers -- from the front lines to the C-suite -- thrive in the age of AI? To find out, we surveyed 1,770 managers from 14 countries and interviewed 37 executives in charge of digital transformation at their organizations.

Scientists have created a "Nightmare Machine" - an artificial intelligence system that can understand what makes certain images frightening, and tranform harmless-looking images into stuff of nightmares. The primary reason for building Nightmare Machine was to explore the common fear inspired by intelligent computers, said researchers including Pinar Yanardag from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Media Lab. They wanted to confront the anxiety inspired by AI, and simultaneously test if a computer is capable of understanding and visualising what makes people afraid. The designers used "deep learning" - a system that mimics the neural connections in a human brain - to teach a computer what makes for a frightening visual, according to Manuel Cebrian, a principal research scientist at CSIRO in Australia. "Deep-learning algorithms perform remarkably well in several tasks considered difficult or impossible," Cebrian said.

NEC Corporation has launched a new software program that uses artificial intelligence (AI) in video footage search to quickly identify a person by facial recognition. NeoFace Image Data Mining (Idm) is a new product offering from NEC that can use video footage, for example, data gathered by CCTV cameras, and scan it to accurately identify an individual whose image is captured on camera. It can also be used to search for people who appear at a certain time and place, or who appear with other specified individuals. A complete search for a specific person among one million captured images can be concluded in under 10 seconds. Idm combines existing facial recognition technology with profiling parameters – what NEC refers to as'Profiling Across Spatio-Temporal Data' technology.

Just because Halloween is over doesn't mean the fears have ended. A new project uses autonomous computers to discover your deepest nightmares. The project, dubbed "Nightmare Machine," comes from a partnership between Australia and the U.S. The algorithm would let a computer understand what makes certain videos or images scary. One would hope the algorithm would then remove the scary bits and replace them with something more appealing. However, it uses data to transform any photo into something terrifying.

The idea of artificial intelligence (AI) -- autonomous computers that can learn independently -- makes some people extremely uneasy, regardless of what the computers in question might be doing. Those individuals probably wouldn't find it reassuring to hear that a group of researchers is deliberately training computers to get better at scaring people witless. The project, appropriately enough, is named "Nightmare Machine." Digital innovators in the U.S. and Australia partnered to create an algorithm that would enable a computer to understand what makes certain images frightening, and then use that data to transform any photo, no matter how harmless-looking, into the stuff of nightmares. Images created by Nightmare Machine are unsettling, to say the least.

Determining the optimal size and orientation of small-scale residential based PV arrays will become increasingly complex in the future smart grid environment with the introduction of smart meters and dynamic tariffs. However consumers can leverage the availability of smart meter data to conduct a more detailed exploration of PV investment options for their particular circumstances. In this paper, an optimization method for PV orientation and sizing is proposed whereby maximizing the PV investment value is set as the defining objective. Solar insolation and PV array models are described to form the basis of the PV array optimization strategy. A constrained particle swarm optimization algorithm is selected due to its strong performance in non-linear applications. The optimization algorithm is applied to real-world metered data to quantify the possible investment value of a PV installation under different energy retailers and tariff structures. The arrangement with the highest value is determined to enable prospective small-scale PV investors to select the most cost-effective system.

The artificial intelligence (AI) currently being developed is largely benevolent. It can mimic the way humans think, complete menial and repetitive tasks, and more. But that doesn't prevent people from being afraid of AI, thinking it will take away jobs or eventually turn Terminator into a documentary. Somebody thought AI wasn't scary enough, and did something to change that. Researchers from MIT and Australia's CSIRO have created AI that actively warps pictures into scary nightmare fuel.

The idea of artificial intelligence (AI) -- autonomous computers that can learn independently -- makes some people extremely uneasy, regardless of what the computers in question might be doing. Those individuals probably wouldn't find it reassuring to hear that a group of researchers is deliberately training computers to get better at scaring people witless. The project, appropriately enough, is named "Nightmare Machine." Digital innovators in the U.S. and Australia partnered to create an algorithm that would enable a computer to understand what makes certain images frightening, and then use that data to transform any photo, no matter how harmless-looking, into the stuff of nightmares. Images created by Nightmare Machine are unsettling, to say the least.

Greetings and welcome to the PROS Holdings Inc Third Quarter 2016 Earnings Call. At this time, all participants are in a listen-only mode. A brief question-and-answer session will follow the formal presentation. It is now my please to introduce your host Stefan Schulz, Chief Financial Officer. Good afternoon, everyone and thank you for joining us. With me on today's call is Andres Reiner, President and Chief Executive Officer. Before we begin, we must caution you that some of today's remarks, including our guidance, our strategy, our competitive position, future business prospects, revenue, bookings, market opportunities, as well as statements made during the question-and-answer session, contain forward-looking statements. These statements are based on present information and are subject to numerous and important factors, risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ materially from the results implied by these or other forward-looking statements. PROS does not assume any obligation to update the forward-looking statements provided to reflect events that occur, or circumstances that exist, after the date on which they are made. Additional information concerning risks and other factors that may cause actual results to differ can be found in the Company's filings with the SEC. Also, please note that a replay of today's webcast will be available in the Investor Relations section of our website at pros.com. We encourage everyone to review this additional information. Finally, I would like to point out that in addition to reporting financial results in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles, or GAAP, PROS reports certain financial results, as well as forward-looking guidance, on a non-GAAP basis. A reconciliation of each non-GAAP measure to the most directly comparable GAAP measure, to the extent available without unreasonable efforts is available on the press release distributed earlier today, and in the Investor Relations section of our website. Good afternoon, everyone and thank you for joining us on today's call.

Israel-based equity crowdfunding platform OurCrowd is launching a sector specific fund fully focused on digital health -- touting it as Israel's first fund with such a focus. The fund, called OurCrowd Qure, will invest in early stage startups at the seed and Series A level. Fundraising is starting now, with a target of $50 million for the first raise. Managing partner Dr Yossi Bahagon tells TechCrunch the team expects to make about 15 investments with the first fund. He says typical investments will start at $500,000 for the earliest stage startups, rising to up to about $3 million at the Series A level.