Machine learning and artificial intelligence were intended to make people more productive, not replace them. The tools are ultimately aimed at engineers who want to develop ways to solve problems more efficiently, at least that's how the Advanced Research Projects Agency -- Energy (ARPA-E) sees it. Engineers have long had tools such as computer-aided design and a lot of vendors provide CAD modeling software. But ARPA-E is going beyond that. Program Director David Tew said his agency hopes to "automate" the intuition and expertise that engineers bring to the table.

Science needs to understand and predict how climate change--and the growing onslaught of hurricanes, fires, and floods it's bringing--affects tropical forests. Will the forests respond to the assault with shorter trees? Will they store less carbon, or support less tree and plant diversity and fewer wildlife species? To better understand the effects a changing climate will have on tropical forests, Maria Uriarte, Columbia University professor of ecology, evolution, and environmental biology, needs to analyze images of forests. These bird's-eye view images are the size of a postage stamp.

Did you know that one-third of every dollar spent in healthcare today is used for high-volume and repetitive data-driven administrative processes? The challenge has grown from the digitization of the healthcare industry, but new technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) may also prove to be the answer. I recently came across a company called Olive that builds artificial intelligence and RPA solutions that empower healthcare organizations to improve efficiency and patient care while reducing costly administrative errors. I invited Sean Lane, CEO and Co-Founder at Olive to share his expertise in and insights. Sean is a technology entrepreneur with a deep background in national security and healthcare.

A growing backlash against face recognition suggests the technology has a reached a crucial tipping point, as battles over its use are erupting on numerous fronts. Face-tracking cameras have been trialled in public by at least three UK police forces in the last four years. A court case against one force, South Wales Police, began earlier this week, backed by human rights group Liberty. Ed Bridges, an office worker from Cardiff whose image was captured during a test in 2017, says the technology is an unlawful violation of privacy, an accusation the police force denies. Avoiding the camera's gaze has got others in trouble.

Today global history was made, as the first intergovernmental standard on artificial intelligence (AI) was adopted by the OECD--a geopolitical milestone achievement. There is a worldwide investment rush underway in artificial intelligence (AI) technology. Both public and private investment funding are pouring into AI, as nations and corporations seek to gain economic benefits and competitive advantages through automation. IDC estimates the global spending on cognitive and AI systems to reach $57.6 billion by 2021. Last year the UK government announced plans to invest £300 million in AI.

Buzz about artificial intelligence has led to increased spending and put several Trump administration directives in motion, but only a handful of agencies have gotten into the early stages of AI adoption. However, a second wave of agencies may soon launch their own AI tools if they can overcome some common hurdles. The Professional Services Council Foundation, in a report released Wednesday, highlighted some of the challenges and opportunities agencies face in using AI to deliver on their mission. Looking across four agencies -- Defense Department, the General Services Administration, NASA and the Department of Health and Human Services -- the report highlights use cases where program offices have pioneered AI to reduce backlogs or increase the output of their existing workforce. "They've turned to AI to say, 'Are there routine decisions that we make on a regular basis that AI is now competent enough to handle in a way that we can delegate those decision processes to?'" Dominic Delmolino, the chief technology officer at Accenture Federal Services, said Wednesday at a briefing with reporters. Alan Chvotkin, the executive vice president and counsel at PSC, said contract obligations and AI-related investments grew almost 75% to nearly $700 million between fiscal 2016 and 2018.

Hundreds of millions of people across Europe are set to cast their vote over the coming days in the European elections, which run from Thursday to Sunday. Many of them will use an online "questionnaire", such as YourVoteMatters in the UK and several others elsewhere, to navigate through the complex world of European politics and find the party most closely aligned with their views. But what if there was an artificial intelligence that could tell you how to vote instead? "AI will be used when making lots of different decisions, whether it is dating or in business. Why would we not use it in elections?"

WASHINGTON - The U.S. is considering cutting off the flow of vital American technology to five Chinese companies including Megvii, widening a dragnet beyond Huawei to include world leaders in video surveillance as it seeks to challenge China's treatment of minority Uighurs in the country's northwest. The U.S. is deliberating whether to add Megvii, Zhejiang Dahua Technology Co., Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology Co. and two others to a blacklist that bars them from U.S. components or software, people familiar with the matter said. The two others under consideration are Meiya Pico and Iflytek Co. Ltd., according to one of the people. The Trump administration is concerned about their role in helping Beijing repress minority Uighurs, they said, asking not to be identified talking about private deliberations. There's concern also that Hikvision or Dahua's cameras, which come with facial-recognition capabilities, could be employed in espionage, the people said.

The Finance Ministry on Wednesday issued a set of proposals on the reform of local finances, including a call for cuts to the number of local government employees in line with the country's shrinking population. According to the package, local governments should streamline clerical duties by using artificial intelligence and taking other measures in order to maintain their administrative services as they reduce the number of workers. The proposals were presented to the day's meeting of a subcommittee of the Fiscal System Council, which advises the minister of finance. The council plans to reflect the proposals in its policy recommendations, set to be compiled shortly. In the package, the Finance Ministry said that it will become difficult for local governments to hire employees at the current pace, due to manpower shortages in both the public and private sectors as the population shrinks.

Shareholders seeking to halt Amazon's sale of its facial recognition technology to US police forces have been defeated in two votes that sought to pressure the company into a rethink. Civil rights campaigners had said it was "perhaps the most dangerous surveillance technology ever developed". But investors rejected the proposals at the company's annual general meeting. That meant less than 50% voted for either of the measures. A breakdown of the results has yet to be disclosed. The first vote had proposed that the company should stop offering its Rekognition system to government agencies.