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An Ex-NASA Chief is Making Chips That Use The Same Biological Principles As The Brain
After almost 10 years of working incognito, former National Aeronautics and Space Administration head Daniel Goldin is finally ready to formally present KnuEdge to the world. KnuEdge is a "neural technology innovation company," an outfit that builds hardware and software based on neural technology, with a main focus on human-machine interaction. While newly revealed publicly, it has been in stealth mode for a decade now, and has already raised 100 million in funding to build its neural chips. The company has revealed its two primary products: KnuVerse, which is a voice authentication technology, and KnuPath, its state-of-the-art neural chip. It has also unveiled Knurld.io, a software development kit with a cloud-based voice recognition and authentication service. Foremost of these offerings is KnuPath.
Automation could put 4 in 10 Canadian jobs at high risk in future, study says
More than 40 per cent of the Canadian workforce is at high risk of being replaced by technology and computers in the next two decades, according to a new report out Wednesday. The Brookfield Institute for Innovation Entrepreneurship at Toronto's Ryerson University said in its report that automation previously has been restricted to routine, manual tasks. However, breakthroughs in artificial intelligence and advanced robotics now means that automation is moving into "cognitive, non-routine tasks and occupations, such as driving and conducting job interviews." The institute put a 70 per cent or higher probability that "high risk" jobs will be affected by automation over the next 10 to 20 years, and it said workers in the most susceptible jobs typically earn less and have lower education levels than the rest of the Canadian labour force. "We don't believe that all of these jobs will be lost," said Sean Mullin, executive director of the Brookfield Institute, in a release.
301 Moved Permanently
What if a simple camera capturing data for machine learning could tell you the threat level of an individual approaching a fence. What if the same combination of camera and computer could classify the behavior of shoppers in a grocery store isle and judge things like intent to purchase, presence of decision paralysis, and ease of identifying desired products. Fueled by advances in image recognition and processing power, smart-cameras that can classify human behavior rather than simply observe it may be the next step for IoT. Nanit is one of the first companies in this space. Dr. Assaf Glazer, a parent himself, and his team are working to take the pain out of one of the most strenuous tasks of any parent, making sure their baby gets a good nights sleep.
How Adidas is using motion capture to reinvent running shoes
Before becoming a reality, AlphaBounce had to be shaped by ARAMIS, a motion-capture system that helps determine the amount of strain and tension caused by different materials. ARAMIS, which NASA has used to inspect the outer hull of space shuttles, combines high-speed cameras with flexion sensors to gather information at up to 500 frames per second. Since the software maps skin, bone and muscle, it can give Adidas engineers insight into how they should go about designing a more comfortable running sneaker. ARAMIS can visualize the level of comfort on every area of an individual's foot, from the heel to the toes, as well as indicate when the fabric may be getting in the way of performance. "It's a really versatile tool," said George Robusti, senior design director of global running at Adidas, of the ARAMIS system.
The old-school approach behind St. Lucia's 'Help Me Run Away'
When I spoke to the director, he referenced movies including the original Jurassic Park, where the combination of CGI for longer shots and live-action robots for close up. The behind the scenes video below shows how puppeteering on a custom-built rig or green suited dancers wearing the shoes created movement that's realistic, without the uncanny valley that overused computer renderings can produce, even in current movies. There are some instances of computer generated rendering for close-ups, like when the shoes are waving their shoelaces in the breeze. As described by St. Lucia's Jean-Philip Grobler, he and Norton took their cues not just from cheesy 80s movies (note the quick zooms) but also Pixar's knack for bringing forth a hidden life from everyday objects. The human characters in the video are played by the rest of the band, transforming the song from Grobler's idea of his own journey from South Africa to the US, to something else entirely.
Pistorius walks without prosthetic legs in court
Oscar Pistorius has removed his prosthetic legs in court to demonstrate how he walks without them. The athlete's lawyer, Barry Roux, asked the court's permission. The hearing is reconsidering Pistorius' sentence after a court found him guilty of murdering Reeva Steenkamp, overturning an earlier manslaughter verdict.
SugarCRM is planning a Siri-like agent named Candace
SugarCRM has put AI at the core of its product plans and is working on a new intelligence service along with a Siri-like agent named Candace. Tapping the company's recent acquisitions of Stitch and Contastic, the new technology will be designed to help businesses spend less time entering data into their customer relationship management software and more time learning from and acting upon it. SugarCRM is scheduled to demonstrate the new capabilities Wednesday at its SugarCon conference in San Francisco. "In the CRM space, we want people to focus on what they're good at: relating to others, such as customers and partners," Rich Green, SugarCRM's chief product officer, said in an interview last week. "As data becomes more and more available, it typically has required quite a bit of labor to ensure that your CRM system stays up to date," Green explained.
Financial Institutions Fears Of Artificial Intelligence
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) ordered BSI Bank Singapore to shut down recently on 24 May 2016. This serious action is due to their compliance oversight in money laundering which resulted in a criminal case. This is also a stark reminder of the compliance challenges that financial institutions are facing today. They had attracted millions of dollars of regulatory fines in the aftermath of the 2008 Global Financial Crisis. A distinguished law firm, Baker and McKenzie, commissioned a survey of 424 senior executives from financial institutions.
Office workers meet Betty - their new robot colleague
A trainee office manager is set to begin a two month trial, but this is a new starter with a difference - because Betty is a ROBOT. The unusual colleague is about to launch her new career at The Transport Systems Catapult, based in Milton Keynes thanks to a team from the University of Birmingham. Betty will carry out tasks including patrolling the offices, assessing how many staff members are in the office outside working hours, monitoring the environment by collating data on clutter, office temperature, humidity and noise, as well as checking fire doors are closed and desks are clear. She will also be tasked with greeting guests at reception. Friendly Betty is a highly sophisticated robot, running artificial intelligence-driven software developed by an international research team led by the university.
Digital disruption could threaten 40 per cent of jobs, says Productivity Commission - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
Digital disruption has the potential to threaten 40 per cent of jobs over the next 10 to 15 years as automation and machine learning shake up the economy, according to a Productivity Commission report out today. In research entitled Digital Disruption: What do governments need to do?, the Commission warned that governments and regulators need to prepare for changing times as "disruption" moves beyond Uber and Air BnB. Productivity Commission chairman Peter Harris said developing disruptive technologies of machine intelligence and automation will gradually change economies. "There's little doubt that in some sectors there will be dislocation of labour and dislocation of capital. "It's not just a cost to employees, it will be a cost to certain businesses as well," Mr Harris told The World Today. "Things like 3D printing are going to have an impact.