McDonald's [MCD] share price has gained 19% this year. The purchase of Apprente, which is aimed at automating its drive-thru operations, is a clear indication of a more tech-focused direction for McDonald's. Apprente's voice-based, conversational technology, "will allow for faster, simpler and more accurate ordering", McDonald's said on Tuesday. The Big Mac seller added that Apprente's technology could also be incorporated into mobile ordering and self-order kiosks. At the end of trading without disclosing the deal's financial terms, McDonald's shares were down 0.11% to $209.45.

Globally the healthcare industry is at an inflection point. While the industry continues to evolve at a rapid pace, there are related aspects to be taken care so as to ensure adequate consideration to the overall administration of accessible healthcare. Such aspects include regulatory norms that keep on changing at frequent intervals particularly in a globalised economy, lack of integration and data security as well as analytics. AI is already in use, there are various successful applications of AI in healthcare. But do we really require such AI applications? Let's find out where and how AI is helping healthcare.

During The AI Summit London 2019, Terah Lyons, Founding Executive Director of the Partnership on AI, was joined onstage by WIRED Editor Greg Williams to discuss the AI landscape today, the challenges facing organizations implementing AI, the ethical use of AI, and much, much more. With flagship shows in San Francisco, London, New York, Munich, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Cape Town, 2019 will see over 30,000 delegates from businesses globally joining the AI revolution through The AI Summit events. The AI Summit series uniquely has the support of tech's elite, with our 2019 Industry Partners featuring Agorai, AWS, IBM Watson, Microsoft, Oracle, Google, HCL, Publicis Sapient, Genpact, Intel alongside 300 sponsors and partners. Exclusive, inspirational insights from acclaimed speakers are frequently reported by the world's foremost press including official media partners CBS, Reuters, BBC, The Times, Quartz, Tech Radar.

While AI had some success at beating humans at other games such as chess and Go (games that follow predefined rules and aren't random), winning at poker proved to be more challenging because it requires strategy, intuition, and reasoning based on hidden information. Despite the challenges, artificial intelligence can now play--and win--poker. Artificial Intelligence Masters The Game of Poker – What Does That Mean For Humans? Artificial intelligence systems including DeepStack and Libratus paved the way for Pluribus, the AI that beat five other players in six-player Texas Hold'em, the most popular version of poker. This feat goes beyond games. This achievement means that artificial intelligence can now expand to help solve some of the world's most challenging issues.

ORLANDO, Fla. - What do you think of when you hear the term Artificial Intelligence? More often than not, you might think of a movie with an evil robot intent on destroying the world. Hollywood films often present a frightening image of Artificial Intelligence (AI), but the reality is that we use AI in our daily lives without even knowing it. During its world premiere at Orlando Science Center this fall, Artificial Intelligence: Your Mind & The Machine will show visitors exactly what AI is, how it works, and what it might do in the future. From illusions that trick our brains to machines that can identify your emotions and translate languages, Artificial Intelligence: Your Mind & The Machine shows numerous ways that the human mind and thinking machines work.

From depression chatbots to diagnosing eye diseases, developers are coming up with incredible ways of teaching robots to transform the African industries they work in. So says smart technology entrepreneur Jacques Ludik, founder of AI company Cortex Group and of the Machine Intelligence Institute of Africa. According to Ludik, artificial intelligence could be the powerful tool Africa needs to tackle its challenges, suck as shortcomings in health, education or employment. While many people see robots as a potential threat to jobs, Ludik believes AI holds the key to uplifting communities, through education and economic development. "Education is key to bridging the increasing gap of our experiences of the world, and improve and increase access to jobs (and other services) that aren't bound by geography. AI, the very technology that is moving the rest of the world forward so rapidly, has the power to do that."

Oblivious to those depending on bananas for their favourite protein shake or breakfast fix, a deadly fungus has sneaked up on banana plantations in South America, threatening the fruit's future. An artificial intelligence-powered smartphone app developed for banana farmers can come in handy to stem further spread of the disease, its makers from Colombia, India and U.S., said. The artificial intelligence-powered tool built into the app called Tumaini – which means "hope" in Swahili- can detect pathogens at an early stage and help fast-track control and mitigation efforts, according to a statement by researchers who designed the application. The app has been developed by scientists from the Colombia-based International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), the Imayam Institute of Agriculture and Technology (IIAT), Tamil Nadu in India, and Texas A&M University, in the United States. The tool is being tested on three main banana-producing continents: Asia, Latin America and Africa. It has been tried in Colombia in South America; the Democratic Republic of Congo, Benin and Uganda in Africa; and India and China in Asia.

Many people don't understand quite how their data is used, or why, and a lot of companies aren't forthcoming with this information. Menstrual tracking apps are some of the most popular on the digital health market. Through collecting intimate data about users – when their period is, when they last had sex, their mood and general health, even which sanitary products they use – the app offers an estimate for when they are the most fertile and when to expect their next period. According to a study recently carried out by Privacy International (PI), several menstrual tracking apps have been sharing user data with Facebook via the social network's software development kit (SDK). The SDK allows software developers to receive analytics on which aspects of their app are most popular with users.

Who are the brightest 10% of people at your Company? Which of your current staff are best equipped with both good judgement and good leadership. One of my diligent HR officer's want to move into IT, does she have a good fit with that role? Which of my current financial officers have the greatest risk of being dishonest? I want to help staff become more assertive, but what percentage of staff would most benefit from such a course?

Researchers have designed a machine learning algorithm that predicts the outcome of chemical reactions with much higher accuracy than trained chemists and suggests ways to make complex molecules, removing a significant hurdle in drug discovery. University of Cambridge researchers have shown that an algorithm can predict the outcomes of complex chemical reactions with over 90% accuracy, outperforming trained chemists. The algorithm also shows chemists how to make target compounds, providing the chemical'map' to the desired destination. The results are reported in two studies in the journals ACS Central Science and Chemical Communications. A central challenge in drug discovery and materials science is finding ways to make complicated organic molecules by chemically joining together simpler building blocks.