Google will not allow its artificial intelligence software to be used in weapons or'unreasonable surveillance' efforts. Following a major backlash from employees, the Alphabet unit has laid out new rules for its AI software. The new restrictions could help Google management defuse months of protest by thousands of employees against the company's work with the U.S. military to identify objects in drone video. Google will not allow its artificial intelligence software to be used in weapons or'unreasonable surveillance' efforts, Chief Executive Sundar Pichai, pictured, said today. Google will pursue other government contracts including around cybersecurity, military recruitment and search and rescue, Chief Executive Sundar Pichai said in a blog post Thursday.

The Model X electric, sport-utility vehicle accelerated in the final seconds to about 71 miles an hour before the March 23 crash in Mountain View, Calif., according to a preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board. The report comes as auto makers and Silicon Valley are testing technologies that allow for varying levels of automation behind the wheel. Those include systems with driver-assist features as well as those that enable fully self-driving vehicles. Fatal crashes have fueled concerns about whether driverless technology is ready for the real world. A Tesla spokeswoman pointed to a previous company blog post about the incident that touted the safety of its vehicles.

Google is banning the development of artificial-intelligence software that can be used in weapons, chief executive Sundar Pichai said Thursday, setting strict new ethical guidelines for how the tech giant should conduct business in an age of increasingly powerful AI. The new rules could set the tone for the deployment of AI far beyond Google, as rivals in Silicon Valley and around the world compete for supremacy in self-driving cars, automated assistants, robotics, military AI and other industries. "We recognize that such powerful technology raises equally powerful questions about its use," Pichai wrote in a blog post. "As a leader in AI, we feel a special responsibility to get this right." The ethical principles are a response to a firestorm of employee resignations and public criticism over a Google contract with the Defense Department for software that could help analyze drone video, which critics argued had nudged the company one step closer to the "business of war."

Google is banning the development of artificial-intelligence software that can be used in weapons, chief executive Sundar Pichai said Thursday, setting strict new ethical guidelines for how the tech giant should conduct business in an age of increasingly powerful AI. The new rules could set the tone for the deployment of AI far beyond Google, as rivals in Silicon Valley and around the world compete for supremacy in self-driving cars, automated assistants, robotics, military AI and other industries. "We recognize that such powerful technology raises equally powerful questions about its use," Pichai wrote in a blog post. "As a leader in AI, we feel a special responsibility to get this right." The ethical principles are a response to a firestorm of employee resignations and public criticism over a Google contract with the Defense Department for software that could help analyze drone video, which critics argued had nudged the company one step closer to the "business of war."

NASA's Curiosity Mars rover has found organic molecules on Mars, the space agency revealed in a major announcement Thursday During a press conference at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Goddard, Md., and NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., scientists noted that the molecules provide fresh insight into the Red Planet. "We found organic molecules in rocks from an ancient lake bed," explained Jen Eigenbrode, research scientist at Goddard. A variety of molecules were identified, she added. While NASA was at pains to explain that it has not discovered life on Mars, the organic molecules could provide vital clues. "Organic compounds are fundamental to our search for life," said Paul Mahaffy, director of the Solar System Exploration Division at Goddard.

A Tesla's autopilot function was engaged in the minutes before a fiery crash that killed its driver in California earlier this year, according to a federal inquiry. In the roughly 20 minutes before the vehicle slammed into a barrier near Mountain View and burst into flames, the car's autopilot feature was in "continuous operation", the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) found in its initial investigation. During the critical 60 seconds leading up to the crash, the NTSB reported, the car's driver repeatedly placed his hands on the steering wheel. Tesla crashes into parked police car in Autopilot mode Wall Street blasts Elon Musk's'truly bizarre' Tesla earnings call Tesla faces labour investigation after allegation of injury undercount But six seconds before the accident, evidence suggests the driver had removed his hands from the steering wheel. The vehicle also accelerated in the final three seconds.

Tesla reported its worst-ever quarterly loss and said its Model 3 production target remains on track. In this Friday March 23, 2018 photo provided by KTVU, emergency personnel work a the scene where a Tesla electric SUV crashed into a barrier on U.S. Highway 101 in Mountain View, Calif. The National Transportation Safety Board has sent two investigators to look into a fatal crash and fire Friday in California that involved a Tesla electric SUV. The agency says on Twitter that it's not clear whether the Tesla Model X was operating on its semi-autonomous control system called Autopilot at the time. Investigators will study the fire that broke out after the crash.

The global race to a 5G network is on. This new wireless broadband technology will offer an exponential speed increase over 4G. It has the capability to deliver services such as remote surgery and self-driving cars with near perfect reliability. But a new report shows that the US is lagging behind China and South Korea in developing 5G networks. The US is the global leader in 4G mobile wireless networks, technologies, apps, and services, and we've reaped the benefits: When 4G mobile broadband was first deployed, a new economy took off, adding $100 billion to the nation's GDP.

To get a sense of the extent to which drones have captured the public imagination, look to the skies. In Folsom, Calif., more than 950 drones took to the skies earlier this month to create a glowing, real-world version of Time magazine's iconic cover, hovering 400 feet above the ground. "Up in the sky, I saw the future," a local resident told a local news station. In recent years, there have been no shortage of publicity-grabbing announcements involving unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs)--just consider Amazon's headline-grabbing goal of drone-delivered packages. But reality is catching up with these long-stated aspirations and, through a combination of drone-friendly legislation and practical research, Virginia is poised to become a key player in determining how to make day-to-day drone operations a reality in a wide range of sectors.

Telecoms giant BT will begin work with a new visual artificial intelligence company to create products across the retail and the public sector. London-based Cortexica Vision Systems, which won at this year's BT Infinity Awards competition, will bring its AI video analysis technology and expertise to the company. "Cortexica's core technology, strong academic pedigree and track record of delivering applications for the real-world meant our decision was a simple one," said Colm O'Neill, MD Major Business and Public Sector for BT. "The BT Infinity Awards aim not only to showcase transformational tech for tomorrow's world, but to connect BT's customers with it and stimulate adoption in a range of sectors. "Past winners of the award have gone on to become trusted partners for many of our customers, and we hope Cortexica will do the same."