The US Navy and researchers from Florida Atlantic University have revealed plans to develop autonomous robotic'drone battleships' that can launch underwater and aerial attacks in order to protect US coasts. Last month, FAU was awarded $1.25 million by US Navy for research for unmanned marine vehicle platforms. The five-year project will undertake research in support of autonomous marine vehicle platforms for coastal surveillance, coastal surveys, target tracking and protection of at-sea assets. The US Navy and researchers from Florida Atlantic University are developing'motherships' that can launch aerial and underwater drones to protect the coast'Our focus will be on developing a multi-vehicle system that can safely and reliably navigate coastal waters with a high level of autonomy while performing assigned tasks,' said Manhar Dhanak, director of SeaTech, the Institute for Ocean and Systems Engineering in FAU's Department of Ocean and Mechanical Engineering. The researchers plan to develop new software to better improve multi-sensors and collision avoidance, as well as simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM).

What do you think when you hear the words'artificial intelligence?' Robots? Do images of a world that looks less human flash across your mind? Before you panic, know this. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is much more than the idea of pending doom. Defined as"intelligence displayed by machines, in contrast with the natural intelligence displayed by humans and other animals," AI is simply another means to improve the way that we, as a society, address some of the biggest challenges we face.

Human: What do we want? Human: When do we want it? Computer: When do we want what? Artificial intelligence, especially machine learning, will overhaul big industries, including manufacturing, finance, and healthcare, potentially adding up to $126 billion to the US economy by 2025. June 2017 McKinsey report emphasizes that digital-native firms such as Google and Baidu are betting vast amounts of money on AI – between $20 billion and $30 billion in 2016, including significant M&A activity.

In this day and age, data protection is paramount whether the information belongs to an individual, a business or a government entity. However, transparency is equally important to verify identities, conduct transactions efficiently, and provide an honest overview of projects. At first glance, data protection and transparency seem to contradict one another. But looking at them closely, both can be achieved without them clashing against each other. And the means to efficiently and effectively reach this outcome relies on two things: blockchain technology and artificial intelligence.

The Royal College Hospital London (UCLH) plans to use artificial intelligence to support clinical decision-making, replacing doctors and nurses in certain situations. The hospital will work alongside The Alan Turing Institute, a government-funded data science research hub, to look at ways to make NHS services quicker, safer and more efficient, announcing a three-year partnership. One area they will focus on is A&E, which is seen as a barometer of how the rest of the hospital and the wider system is working. It is hoped the technology can help the hospital achieve the national average waiting times of four hours, which it is currently not meeting. "Imagine a scenario where patients present to A&E with abdominal pain. Our standard response is to check bloods, order X-rays or scans and in probably about 80% of cases, discharge for home management," said Professor Marcel Levi, UCLH chief executive.

The so-called Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), which we are living through the early stages of, will fully embed existing and future digital technologies in society. As with earlier such shifts, the last of which was the ongoing'Digital Revolution' that began in the 1980s, there are positives and negatives. Two troubling aspects are the rise of decision-making by artificial intelligence (AI)-powered algorithms, and automation in the workplace by robots and AI. 'Traditional' algorithms – formal descriptions of how people or computers should perform tasks – have been in widespread use for years. Universities, for example, use'degree algorithms' to calculate final degree classifications from students' assessed work. But AI-algorithms are created by feeding a computer program huge amounts of data and'teaching' it how to behave.

The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy hosts its first ever summit on AI; Gillian Turner reports.

Smart factories that use breakthrough technologies to drive efficiencies within production processes and across value chains have captured the attention of manufacturing executives. Digitalization, so the story goes, offers a wide array of advantages. They include predictive maintenance that will reduce downtime through the creation of "digital twins," enhanced quality control, demand-driven production, inventory optimization, reduced energy and material costs, and improved safety and environmental performance. Numerous estimates attempt to quantify the value proposition. Consulting firm McKinsey says the economic impact could be between $1.2 and $3.7 trillion by 2025.

It's the year 2075 and the newest generation doesn't remember life before AI. Even more frightening, they don't know the meaning of personal privacy – at least not in the way their grandparents remember it. Someone is always watching you, whether it be the government, your employer, insurance companies, the bad date you had last week, or some random hacker. Personalized surveillance is just a fact of life now. Nothing lives or dies without being monitored.

From answering consumer questions to propelling self-driving cars, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is fast becoming an integral part of everyday life. And AI in business is no exception. Many AI capabilities are being used to improve how businesses run. Private industry has invested in AI for some time, and now the government has joined the conversation. The White House recently held an Artificial Intelligence Summit to look at how AI will change the future of employment and, ultimately, the economy.