Recently, the regions around the Dead Sea in Jordan were flooded, causing the death of 21 children who were on a school trip, and injuring 35 more. Such disasters affect millions of people every year and cause property damage worth hundreds of billions. In 2017 alone, almost 335 natural disasters have affected more than 95.6 million people, and killed 9,697, costing around US $335 billion. But, the impact of these phenomena can be reduced if we were able to predict their occurrence. AI-powered systems can already predict the prices of stocks, which involve the analysis of numerous variables.

Some of the first concepts for self-driving cars date back to the 1920s. However, it wasn't until recently that the idea of consumer self-driving cars began to near reality. As the technology for self-driving cars has become more feasible at scale, the need for regulation has grown along with it. With all of the buzz around autonomous or self-driving vehicles in the news, you may be wondering, "What are the autonomous driving levels"? Back in 2013, the US Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) came up with a set of five levels (well, six including level 0) to characterize the classes of self-driving cars and their capabilities.

Special report Quantum computing has been portrayed as a threat to current encryption schemes, but the ability of finicky vaporware to overthrow the current security regime looks like it's massively overstated. Richard Evers, cryptographer for a Canadian security biz called Kryptera, argues that media coverage and corporate pronouncements about quantum computing have left people with the impression that current encryption algorithms will soon become obsolete. As an example, Evers points to remarks made by Arvind Krishna, director of IBM research, at The Churchill Club in San Francisco last May, that those interested in protecting data for at least ten years "should probably seriously consider whether they should start moving to alternate encryption techniques now." In a post Evers penned recently with his business partner Alastair Sweeny, he contends, "The hard truth is that widespread beliefs about security and encryption may prove to be based on fantasy rather than fact." And the reason for this, he suggests, is the desire for funding and fame.

Today, more companies are choosing to implement artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) in cybersecurity tools. In fact, a Webroot report found that 74% of businesses across the US and Japan have already done so in 2017. ML and AI could be crucial technologies in the future prevention of cyberattacks. However, a recent report found that 87% of researchers believe that it would take longer than three years before they can trust AI to lead cybersecurity decisions. According to Webroot, 73% of organisations plan to use even more AI and ML tools in 2019.

Innovative mobile apps married to increasingly powerful artificial intelligence (A.I.) are rapidly getting smarter -- making them even more helpful for users. These kinds of apps, showcased at VentureBeat's two-day MobileBeat conference here this week, are designed to anticipate user needs. Who knew, for example, that you can use your smartphone to simplify the process of getting a green card to enter the United States or to streamline corporate travel? The program is based on a bot that walks users through a series of simple questions that, when answered, generates a package of documents you can file with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to complete the application process. "When I came to this country, I needed a visa urgently, but it took a month," said Visibot's co-founder and chief operating officer, Andrey Ziniviev.

In February, the French video-game publisher Ubisoft sent an e-mail to its company mailing list with the subject "Come see what a real government shutdown looks like in the Private Beta." The message came just after President Trump's thirty-five-day closure of the U.S. government and was intended to promote The Division 2, the latest video game to emerge from the Tom Clancy-industrial complex. In it, players join a peacekeeping force that's sent to Washington, D.C., after a terrorist attack incites anarchy and closes the government. Four hours after the initial e-mail, Ubisoft sent a second message apologizing for the first. "We recognize the very real impact of the United States government shut down on thousands of people and did not intend to make light of the situation," it read.

In a world where technology is constantly evolving, the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has become prevalent in our everyday routine, whether we realize it or not. As multiple systems continuously gather and transmit information, how can the government ensure the safety of that information? To fully understand the capabilities of AI, it takes teams of highly skilled researchers in an innovative workspace to analyze the competencies of these machines and understand why they do the things they do. "I'm a little hesitant to define artificial intelligence since it has always sounded a little too much like science fiction to me," says Liz Russell, an Applied Research Mathematician at National Security Agency (NSA). She splits the concept of AI into two sectors: machine learning and data science.

The U.S. Army recently awarded QinetiQ North America a contract worth up to $152 million for special robots that are light enough to be carried in a backpack into combat. The Common Robotic System Individual, or CRS (I), is the Army's first "small-sized" robotic program of record, according to a recent press release from the service's Maneuver Capability Development Integration Directorate at Fort Benning, Georgia. "CRS (I) is a remotely operated, highly mobile, unmanned ground vehicle that is light enough for a dismounted soldier to carry in a backpack," the release states. These new robots, which the Army plans to begin fielding in fiscal 2020, "will provide the dismounted soldier with enhanced situational awareness, force protection and increased standoff capability from enemy threats," the release adds. The potential value of the total program could be $429 million over seven years for the delivery of more than 3,000 ground robots, according to a May 22, 2018, QinetiQ North America press release announcing that the company had been chosen as one of two finalists in the program.

The Computing Community Consortium (CCC) has released a draft version of its 20-year roadmap for AI research in the United States. Made after consultation with researchers and tech companies, the roadmap calls for sustained support from the federal government and prescribes a number of steps to ensure the U.S. retains its position as a nation with some of the most advanced AI resources on the planet. The roadmap also supports the development of lifelong personal assistants to augment human ability in education, health care, and industry. According to the roadmap: "… lifelong personal assistants will enable an elderly population to live longer independently, AI health coaches will provide advice for lifestyle choices, customized AI tutors will broaden education opportunities, and AI scientific assistants will dramatically accelerate the pace of discovery." Organizers believe such efforts could promote universal personalized education, accelerate scientific discovery, and drive business innovation.

The swarm robots are coming and they could change the way wars are fought. In February, the defence secretary said "swarm squadrons" will be deployed by the British armed forces in the coming years. The US has also been testing interconnected, co-operative drones that are capable of working together to overwhelm adversaries. Low-cost, intelligent and inspired by swarms of insects, these new machines could revolutionise future conflicts. From swarming enemy sensors with a deluge of targets, to spreading out over large areas for search-and-rescue missions, they could have a range of uses on and off the battlefield.