Taco Bell has added AI to its mobile app, offering personalized menu suggestions for heavy users ... [ ] (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) Artificial intelligence was identified by a number of restaurant tech providers as a top trend for 2020 and, so far, those predictions seem pretty spot on. Up until now, we've seen just a surface scratch of AI's potential in the restaurant space, with chains like Chick-fil-A quietly leveraging the technology to identify food safety issues, and TGI Fridays using it to sell more alcohol, for example. But thanks in large part to McDonald's $300 million investment in Dynamic Yield last March, AI is no longer an under-the-radar experimentation. And now, Taco Bell is making its case for AI, announcing a broader partnership with Certona last week to create a more personalized experience for its mobile app users, of which there are 5 million. Through the technology, machine learning derives the most relevant menu items for app users and also pushes promotions and content based on an individual customer's behavior.

An artificial intelligence-driven compliance technology company founded by a former fund manager and corporate broker has raised £2.5 million in a recent funding round. FeedStock's latest funding round was led by Praetura Ventures, with Force Over Mass and existing investor Illuminate Financial Management also participating in the round. The company provides AI and natural language processing technologies to help both the buy- and sell-side institutions meet various compliance requirements, as well as commercial goals. Founded in 2015, FeedStock was established by former analyst and fund manager at GAM, Lucas Wurfbain, alongside Charlie Henderson, who previously worked as a research analyst and corporate broker. "With our background in highly regulated businesses, we are seeing enormous appetite for our proprietary technology; not only from businesses required to comply with MiFID II, but also for enterprises that are looking to leverage AI as a core component of their business for efficiency gains and revenue generation," Henderson commented on the recent investment.

Over time, the technological pipeline has made some content marketers remain in chaos. With AI as the fast-evolving approach, the SEO pillars are however expected to become vital for future trades. The developing systems are expected to make work easier and reliable. So far, SEO has been taking considerable attention by marketers as it has become one of the primary tools for boosting sales. However, considerable attention should be given also to the integration of AI into SEO and how will it impact its functionality.

AI/Edge Vastai Technologies is using Arteris IP's FlexNoC Interconnect IP and AI Package for its Artificial Intelligence Chips for artificial intelligence and computer vision systems-on-chip (SoCs). Startup Vastai Technologies was founded in December 2018, designs ASICs and software platforms for computer vision and AI applications, such as smart city, smart surveillance, smart education, according to a press release. Smart city connections will be dominated by video surveillance and smart utility metering, says ABI Research in a report, predicting that by 2026, 87% of the smart city market will be those two device types. Low-latency 5G connections and embedded AI in video surveillance systems are some of the enabling technologies. Internet of Things The smart building market will generate over $2 billion in revenue by 2026 for software and services, says ABI Research, thanks to some new emerging applications.

TOKYO (Reuters) - SoftBank-backed cloud robotics and artificial intelligence startup CloudMinds is slashing its global workforce as it burns through cash after repeated attempts to list on the stock market, people familiar with the matter said. Headed by former China Mobile 0941.HK research whiz Bill Huang, money-losing CloudMinds is the latest SoftBank 9984.T portfolio company to lay off workers. The job cuts include in China, two sources said, where the bulk of the company's workforce is based and where it generates most of its revenues. All the sources declined to be identified because the information is not public. CloudMinds did not respond to requests for comment and a SoftBank representative declined to comment.

Director of Data Science, CLARA analytics -- Ji Li has leadership responsibility for organizing and directing the CLARA data science team in building optimized machine learning solutions, creating artificial intelligence applications, and drivin… (show all) Ji Li has leadership responsibility for organizing and directing the CLARA data science team in building optimized machine learning solutions, creating artificial intelligence applications, and driving innovation. Dr. Li is well-published in fields related to computational theory and big data applications. His specific expertise and interests include machine learning, deep learning, text mining, and natural language processing and understanding. Dr. Li received his Ph.D. in mathematics from the University of Connecticut.

According to a survey conducted by the Bank of England last year, machine learning tools are now in use at two-thirds of UK financial institutions, with the technology entering a new phase of maturity and more advanced stages of deployment. Regulation is not seen as a barrier but some of the 300 firms surveyed stressed the need for additional guidance on how to interpret current regulation. The newly-formed'AI Public Private Forum' (AIPPF) will be co-chaired by Sir Dave Ramsden, deputy governor for markets & banking, BofE, and Christopher Woolard, executive director, strategy and competition, FCA. The Forum's key objectives are to: Parties are welcome to apply to participate in the Forum, with final selection at the discretion of the FCA and BoE. Firms active in AI/ML development, public authorities and academics will be given priority.

The 57-year-old mystery of an infamous prison break from Alcatraz may have finally been solved using artificial-intelligence and facial-recognition technology. Rothco, the Irish creative agency owned by Accenture Interactive, teamed up with AI specialists at Identv to analyse a picture of two escapees and have, for the first time, confirmed their identities. On 11 June 1962, three prisoners – Frank Morris, along with brothers John and Clarence Anglin – broke out of their cells and escaped from the prison on Alcatraz Island, near San Francisco Bay. The trio's extraordinary escape, in which they used sharpened spoons to dig through the walls and made papier-mâché dummies to fool the guards, was made famous in the 1979 movie Escape from Alcatraz. The prison, which shut down in 1963, was famed for being supposedly impossible to escape from.

As numerous authors have documented, the idea of creating artificial, intelligent machines has entranced and scandalized people for millennia. Indeed, part of what makes the history of'artificial intelligence' so fascinating is the mix of genuine scientific achievement with myth-making and outright deception. A certain amount of hype and myth making can be harmless, and might even help to fuel real progress in the field. However, the fact that'AI systems' are now being integrated into essential public services and other high-risk processes means that we must be especially vigilant about combatting misconceptions about AI. At various points throughout 2019, we saw users of Amazon's Alexa, Google's Assistant, and Apple's Siri being shocked to discover that recordings of their private family conversations were being reviewed by real living humans. This was hardly surprising to anyone familiar with how these voice assistants are trained. But to the majority of customers, who do not question the presentation of these systems as 100% automated, it came as a shock that poorly paid overseas workers had access to what were often intimate and sensitive conversations.

Live facial recognition cameras will be deployed across London, with the city's Metropolitan Police announcing today that the technology has moved past the trial stage and is ready to be permanently integrated into everyday policing. The cameras will be placed in locations popular with shoppers and tourists, like Stratford's Westfield shopping center and the West End, reports BBC News. Each camera will scan for faces contained in "bespoke" watch lists, which the Met says will predominantly contain individuals "wanted for serious and violent offences." When the camera flags an individual, police officers will approach and ask them to verify their identity. If they're on the watch list, they'll be arrested.