As interest in religion wanes around the world, and secularism surges, religious leaders have begun searching for innovative ways to spread their message and connect with potential adherents. In the United States, some churches have relaxed dress codes, revamped worship spaces and churned out sermons that place less emphasis on sin, all while embracing Instagram and refashioning faith as a lifestyle brand. In Japan -- where low fertility rates and an aging population are reducing religious affiliation -- Buddhist priests have been warning for more than a decade that their ancient tradition risks extinction. To reverse course, a Kyoto temple has settled on a new plan for connecting with the masses, one that channels ancient wisdom through the technology of the future. Its name is "Mindar," a mostly aluminum androgynous robotic priest who gives plain-spoken sermons that are designed to stimulate interest in Buddhist teachings, according to the machine's designers. Although the robot preaches, it is not programmed to converse with worshipers, though its sermons are translated to English and Chinese on a nearby wall, creators say.

Axios Sign up for a daily newsletter defining what matters in business and markets Email A reality check for AI hubris Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios For the better part of a decade, artificial intelligence has been propelled by a rocket fuel in seemingly endless supply. Deep learning, a method that allows machines to identify hidden patterns in data, has powered commercial applications like autonomous vehicles and voice assistants, and it's potentially worth trillions of dollars a year. The other side: The rosy portrait of unstoppable progress belies a fear among some AI luminaries that things are not on the right path. In a new sort of resource curse, they say that deep learning has sucked energy away from other strains of inquiry without which AI may never approach even a child's intellectual capabilities. The big picture: For the past 5 years, Elon Musk and others have warned of a future disaster resulting from unchecked superintelligent AI. But today, much of the field is caught in a rather more elementary tug-of-war over which avenue will imbue AI even with the capacity for basic understanding.

Using data from a statewide health information exchange, researchers have created machine learning algorithms that are able to identify patients who need advanced treatment for depression. According to Regenstrief Institute and Indiana University researchers, identifying cases of depression that require advanced care can be challenging for primary care physicians. However, they contend that their models--which leverage diagnostic, behavioral and demographic data, as well as past visit history from an HIE--can help PCPs predict which patients may be more at risk for adverse events from depression. Researchers created models for the entire patient population at Eskenazi Health, the public safety net healthcare system for Marion County, Indiana, as well as several different high-risk patient populations. "This study demonstrates the ability to automate screening for patients in need of advanced care for depression across an overall patient population or various high-risk patient groups using structured datasets covering acute and chronic conditions, patient demographics, behaviors and past visit history," conclude researchers in a recent article published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research.

BAGHDAD – A powerful bloc in Iraq's parliament called on Monday for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq, following a series of airstrikes targeting Iran-backed Shiite militias in the country that have been blamed on Israel. The Fatah Coalition said it holds the United States fully responsible for the alleged Israeli aggression, "which we consider to be a declaration of war on Iraq and its people." The coalition is a parliament bloc representing Iran-backed paramilitary militias known as the Popular Mobilization Forces. The coalition's statement came a day after a drone strike in the western Iraqi town of Qaim killed a commander with the forces -- the latest in strikes apparently conducted by Israel against the Iranian-backed militias in Iraq. It added that U.S. troops are no longer needed in Iraq.

AI is being leveraged to meet the requirements of the search engines, which are getting better at identifying keyword stuffing, quality of content, and irrelevant backlinks. FREMONT, CA: Artificial intelligence (AI) is changing the dynamics of various industries. Its ability to analyze and find patterns in vast data sets has prompted businesses to adopt AI systems into their processes. The effect of AI is also impacting the way search engines operate. AI and ML have become a crucial component that influences the way search engines rank pages.

Umeå University welcomes applications for a tenure track position as Assistant Professor in Machine Learning. The position, which is established through the Wallenberg AI, Autonomous Systems and Software Program (WASP, http://wasp-sweden.org/), Last day to apply is 2019-10-14. Subject description Machine learning (ML) is the discipline concerned with computer software that can learn autonomously. ML, including both neural network-based approaches and mathematical statistics-based approaches, has become a driving force behind many recent breakthroughs in artificial intelligence, and is used in widely different areas like speech recognition, image analysis, natural language understanding, machine translation, question and answering systems, protein folding, and even playing GO.

The status quo in retail banking is tottering. This has forced banks and credit unions to modify their business models, re-prioritize investments, change products and services offered and ramp up innovation efforts. There has also been a rethinking of distribution options, with digital channels significantly increasing in importance. These shifts are reflected in the sixth iteration of a study of the future of retail banking conducted by The Economist Intelligence Unit, on behalf of Temenos. Until recently, the changes in consumer behavior were believed to be the primary impetus for changes in retail banking strategies.

The European Union wants to be a leader in AI. As the European Commission's coordinated plan on AI states, its ambition is to make Europe "the world-leading region for developing and deploying cutting-edge" AI. To meet this goal, the EU will need to compete with China and the United States in areas such as talent and research. However, anew report from the Center for Data Innovation shows the EU is already struggling to keep pace. And it will likely fall further behind once the UK, a pillar of the EU's AI ecosystem, leaves the Union.

Humana Pharmacy has deployed an artificial intelligence system in its call centers that gives the human employees speaking on the phone gentle nudges to be friendlier and more empathetic with customers. The algorithm, built by the AI development firm Cogito, reminds people when they've stayed silent for too long or start speaking too quickly, according to USA Today. Given that it's usually human engineers who try to program something resembling emotion into lifeless machines, the role reversal is an unusual twist. None of this is to say that artificial intelligence has reached a point where it comprehends emotions at a human level or that it feels anything of its own. Rather, the algorithm looks for patterns of behavior -- a raised voice, a quickened rate of speech, a long silence -- that could signal a lack of empathy or be tied to customer frustration. Joshua Feast, CEO of Cogito, told USA Today that he sees the system as more of a coach than a replacement for human employees, who can field dozens of calls from irritated customers every day.