Boston Dynamics' video of a humanoid robot executing a perfect backflip sparked a lot of dark humor, and now billionaire Elon Musk has responded with dark seriousness about the risks posed by super-intelligent, super-agile bots. Musk suggested that future robots could move so fast they could match the fictional Flash, who eludes his comic-book foes by moving too fast for the eye to see. Compared to that superpower, doing human-level backflips is "nothing," Musk said in a tweet: In a few years, that bot will move so fast you'll need a strobe light to see it. Then Musk added a bit of explanation for those who didn't see where he was going: How would a strobe light help see anything? Otherwise you'd only see a blur The agility of Boston Dynamics' Atlas robot gave Musk another opportunity to touch on a theme he's been emphasizing for months: that the potential risks posed by the rapid rise of artificial intelligence are so great that a regulatory regime is needed: Got to regulate AI/robotics like we do food, drugs, aircraft & cars.

The government is planning to create a raft of new police powers as part of a crackdown on the civilian use of drones, the Department for Transport has announced. The new drone bill to be published in 2018 will allow police officers to order drone operators to ground their devices where necessary, alongside a series of new changes that will create a mandatory registry for larger unmanned aerial vehicles, such as those sold by Parrot or DJI. It could also include a ban on drones flying near airports or above 122 metres (400 feet), the government says, and a requirement for drone owners to use apps, rather than simple remote controls, to fly their aircraft, in order to ensure that the rules are always readily accessible and incorporated into the flight plan. The proposed bill will be accompanied by changes to the air navigation order that will introduce safety awareness tests for drone users, and the requirement to register with the government before flying drones that weigh more than 250g. Aviation Minister Baroness Sugg said: "Drones have great potential and we want to do everything possible to harness the benefits of this technology as it develops, but if we are to realise the full potential of this incredibly exciting technology, we have to take steps to stop illegal use of these devices and address safety and privacy concerns. "These new laws strike a balance, to allow the vast majority of drone users to continue flying safely and responsibly, while also paving the way for drone technology to revolutionise businesses and public services." Tim Johnson, policy director at the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), said: "The CAA supports the safe development of drones in the UK.

Elon Musk has issued a new warning about advanced machines. The Tesla founder, who has been highly critical of artificial intelligence developers over recent months, has revealed his thoughts on Atlas, the backflipping humanoid robot. A video released by Boston Dynamics earlier this month shows the machine backflip off a raised platform, land perfectly on its feet and raise its arms in the air as if to celebrate. "This is nothing," Mr Musk tweeted in response to the footage. "In a few years, that bot will move so fast you'll need a strobe light to see it. After being asked to clarify exactly what he meant by the strobe light comment, he added, "Otherwise you'd only see a blur." He then followed this up with an update calling for the regulation of AI and robotics, something he believes to be not only necessary but urgent. "Got to regulate AI/robotics like we do food, drugs, aircraft & cars.

Welcome back from what was hopefully a nice long weekend. We've got our verdict on Google's Pixel Buds, more news on that massive Yahoo data breach, and Time Inc.'s further struggles. Oh, and some new NASA tires inspired by chainmail. He won't fight charges that he helped swipe 500 million accounts. The US may find it hard to catch the Russians accused of participating in the massive 2014 Yahoo breach, but a third culprit appears ready to cooperate.

Elon Musk has once again issued a stark warning over his fears of the rise of the machines. Responding to footage of a 6ft9 back-flipping robot, the Tesla CEO spoke of the need to control development of AI, or else it could be'sweet dreams' for mankind. The billionaire has been an outspoken critic of allowing such technology to progress unchecked, branding it a'fundamental risk to the existence of human civilisation.' Elon Musk has been very vocal about his concerns over artificial intelligence, and now the Tesla and SpaceX CEO has quantified his worries. In a recent talk, Musk claimed that efforts to make AI safe only have'a five to 10 per cent chance of success.'

Elon Musk and Stephen Hawking have repeatedly expressed their concerns over developing Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems, and even warned that they could soon surpass humans and might one day pose a severe threat to the entire humankind. Their concern may be compounded by recent developments, like when a robot named Sophia was last month confirmed in Saudi Arabia as the world's first robot citizen, and now, we have the world's first AI-powered virtual politician from New Zealand known as SAM. It seems the tech titans were not totally wrong as humans are ready to give AI the power to rule us. The world's first AI politician can reportedly answer a person's queries on local issues regarding education, housing and immigration, PTI reported. The AI politician was created by Nick Gerritsen, who said: "There is a lot of bias in the'analogue' practice of politics right now."

Scientists in New Zealand have developed a robot politician whose "brain" is powered by artificial intelligence. This politician, whose name is SAM, is able to answer a citizen's questions about housing, education, and immigration, NDTV reports. According to NDTV, this AI politician was created by a 49-year-old entrepreneur in New Zealand named Nick Gerritsen. "There is a lot of bias in the'analog' practice of politics right now," said Gerritsen about his new invention."There SAM answers questions via Facebook messenger. "My memory is infinite, so I will never forget or ignore what you tell me.

Cyber-security companies are turning to artificial intelligence and machine learning tools to ward off growing number of attacks on networks, Finland-based Internet security firm F-Secure said. As the world is fast moving towards Internet of Things and connected devices, deployment of artificial intelligence (AI) has become inevitable for cyber security firms to analyse huge amount of data to save networks from infiltration attempts, F-Secure's Security Advisor Sean Sullivan said. Networks are persistently exposed to threats like malware, phishing, password breaches and denial of service attacks. On a daily basis, F-Secure Labs on an average receives sample data of 500,000 files from its customers that include 10,000 malware variants and 60,000 malicious URLs for analysis and protection, Sullivan said. For humans, it is a big task to go through such huge amount of data and machine learning tools and AI are lending a helping hand at this stage, he said.

Business Secretary Greg Clark has today (27 November 2017) launched the government's ambitious Industrial Strategy, setting out a long-term vision for how Britain can build on its economic strengths, address its productivity performance, embrace technological change and boost the earning power of people across the UK. With the aim of making the UK the world's most innovative nation by 2030, the government has committed to investing a further £725 million over the next 3 years in the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund (ISCF) to respond to some of the greatest global challenges and the opportunities faced by the UK. This will include £170 million to transform our construction sector and help create affordable places to live and work that are safer, healthier and use less energy, and up to £210 million to improve early diagnosis of illnesses and develop precision medicine for patients across the UK. The government has previously committed £1 billion to the first wave of Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund projects, including investing £246 million in next generation battery technology and £86 million in robotics hubs across the UK. Last week the Prime Minister announced an ambition to increase the level of investment in research and development (R&D), rising from 1.7% to 2.4% of GDP by 2027.

Note: This essay is a response to "Machine Morality and Human Responsibility." The essays in this symposium were first delivered at the second conference in the series "Stuck with Virtue." Sponsored by the University of Chicago's New Science of Virtues project, this conference examined the various Cartesian, Lockean, and Darwinian premises that help shape and inform the ethics and ethos of modern technological democracy. Held in April 2011 at Berry College in Rome, Georgia, the conference featured four main speakers: Ronald Bailey, Charles T. Rubin, Patrick J. Deneen, and Robert P. Kraynak, with responses to Mr. Bailey by Benjamin Storey and to Professor Rubin by Adam Keiper (left, here joined by Ari N. Schulman). The symposium is introduced by Peter Augustine Lawler and Marc D. Guerra. Should we care about machine morality at all? Do the issues that Charles T. Rubin so ably raises merit scholarly time and public attention? Or are they just frivolities -- material suited for science fiction romps in books and movies but unworthy of serious consideration? This is a difficult question to answer readily.