Over the next decade, automation and artificial intelligence could throw 54 million Americans out of work. Here's everything you need to know: Why is automation a threat? Rapid technological advances are enabling machines to perform a growing number of tasks traditionally done by humans. Law firms now use artificial intelligence (AI) -- sophisticated computer programs that can learn from experience -- to conduct contract analysis, hunt for client conflicts, and even craft litigation strategy. McDon ald's is replacing drive-thru workers with order-taking AI, and cashiers with self-checkout kiosks.

An artificial intelligence has debated the dangers of AI – narrowly convincing audience members that the technology will do more good than harm. Project Debater, a robot developed by IBM, spoke on both sides of the argument, with two human teammates for each side helping it out. Talking in a female American voice to a crowd at the University of Cambridge Union on Thursday evening, the AI gave each side's opening statements, using arguments drawn from more than 1100 human submissions made ahead of time. On the proposition side, arguing that AI will bring more harm than good, Project Debater's opening remarks were darkly ironic. "AI can cause a lot of harm," it said.

That's the verdict of the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, whose 36-page paper published Wednesday says the region needs stronger rules governing the use of such technology by states, be it at national borders or in public spaces. "Given the novelty of the technology as well as the lack of experience and detailed studies on the impact of facial recognition technologies, multiple aspects are key to consider before deploying such a system in real life applications," the Vienna-based agency said. The body, which analyzes topics ranging from artificial intelligence to children's rights, put out its report as EU law enforcement authorities multiply facial recognition tests in Berlin, Nice and London and at airports in Amsterdam, Dublin and Paris. The technologies -- developed by private firms and customized for states or companies, have yet to show they are fail-safe. The EU's new Commission, whose mandate begins in December, has among its goals a plan to build a "Europe fit for the Digital Age." An internal policy document by the Commission detailed the steps the EU should take to master AI technologies, including facial recognition.

A Chinese firm has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Ethiopia authorities on establishing a National Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure (NAIF) in Ethiopia, reported state media outlet Ethiopia News Agency (ENA) on Saturday. The MoU was signed between Ethiopia Innovation and Technology State Minister, Sisay Tola and Chen Kuan, the founder and CEO of Chinese firm Infervision Technology Corporation in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa on Friday evening, reported ENA. Ethiopia hopes the partnership with Infervision will boost the technological capacity of its education, health care and medical services. Ethiopia also hopes the partnership will facilitate a platform for exchange of ideas and investment opportunities between enterprises of both countries in various sectors including energy, textile, agriculture, construction and information technology. Ethiopia and China have recently signed various agreements in the Information Communication and Technology (ICT), as Ethiopia looks to modernize its largely agrarian economy.

Artificial Life, often shortened as ALife. What is your first thought when reading those words? For me and hundreds of ALifers, ALife is the bottom-up scientific study of the fundamental principles of life. Just as Artificial Intelligence researchers ponder the nature of intelligence by trying to build intelligent systems from scratch, ALife researchers investigate the nature of "life" by trying to build living systems from scratch. "Life as it could be."

Pauline Brown, former chairman of North America for the luxury goods company LVMH, argues that in additional to traditional and emotional intelligence, great leaders also need to develop what she calls aesthetic intelligence. This means knowing what good taste is and thinking about how your services and products stimulate all five senses to create delight. Brown argues that in today's crowded marketplace, this kind of AI is what will set companies apart -- and not just in the consumer products and luxury sectors. B2B or B2C, small or large, digital or bricks-and-mortar, all organizations need to hire and train people to think this way. Brown is the author of the book Aesthetic Intelligence: How to Boost It and Use It in Business and Beyond. ALISON BEARD: Welcome to the HBR IdeaCast from Harvard Business Review. Apart from being both popular and profitable, what do all of these products and services have in common? Our guest today says that they're all created with something she calls aesthetic intelligence. Pauline Brown is a former chairman of North America for the luxury good company, LVMH and also previously worked at cosmetic company Estee Lauder. After decades in business she's come to believe that her kind of AI can help any organization to be more successful. She says it can be developed in both.

The desire for data-science and machine learning (ML) skills will continue strongly into next year, according to developers surveyed by analyst firm SlashData. SlashData queried some 20,500 respondents from 167 countries, which means this is a pretty comprehensive survey from a global perspective. Responses were additionally weighted in order to "derive a representative distribution for platforms, segments, and types of IoT [projects]," according to the report accompanying the data. According to the survey, some 45 percent of developers want to either learn or improve their existing data science/machine learning skills. This outpaces the desire to learn UI design (33 percent of respondents), cloud native development such as containers (25 percent), project management (24 percent), and DevOps (23 percent).

Making matters worse, improvements in infrastructure and technology have made telecoms largely comparable in terms of coverage, connection speeds, and service pricing, meaning companies must transform their businesses if they hope to compete. For many global telecoms, shoring up market share under today's pressures while also future-proofing operations means having to invest in AI. The telecom industry is expected to invest $36.7 billion annually in AI software, hardware, and services by 2025, according to Tractica. Through its ability to parse large data sets in a contextual manner, provide requested information or analysis, and trigger actions, AI can help telecoms cut costs and streamline by digitizing their operations. In practice, this means leveraging the increasingly vast gold mine of data generated by customers that passes through wireless networks -- the amount of data that moves through AT&T's wireless network has increased 470,000% since 2007, for example.

Introduction At IBM, work is more than a job - it's a calling: To build. To think along with clients and sell. Not just to do something better, but to attempt things you've never thought possible. Are you ready to lead in this new era of technology and solve some of the world's most challenging problems? Your Role and Responsibilities As the Data and AI Sales Rep, you will be responsible for developing Data and AI specific solutions that address your clients' business needs (both industry and business) and deliver tangible client value while supporting Data & AI business strategies.

"There are gigantic contrasts between degree courses exclusively centered around AI and independent AI courses by colleges, schools, instructing schools, and other private substances," Anil K Jain, Michigan University teacher said. There is a requirement for degree courses and expert preparing programs in Artificial Intelligence (AI Engineer) with the changing innovation scene, as indicated by industry and scholastic specialists. Advertising While the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has just presented AI as a discretionary subject in schools, no undeniable degree courses are accessible in the territory in the nation other than not many momentary courses. "As indicated by our ongoing review, 60 percent Indians accept that the world is moving to a model where individuals take an interest in training over a lifetime which makes it age rationalist. An ever increasing number of prepared experts, youthful students and midlevel representatives presently understand the requirement for upskilling and formal preparing in AI and different territories. Given this background, we will see an interest for present moment or professional instruction, yet in addition for AI-explicit full-time courses," said Varun Dhamija, Vice President, Pearson Professional Programs (PPP).