The findings tie in with Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders' (SMMT) Connected Car conference on Thursday, which explores how the technology will transform the industry and the opportunities it presents. "The benefits of connected and autonomous vehicles are life-changing, offering more people greater independence, freedom to socialise, work and earn more, and access services more easily," said Mike Hawes, chief executive of the trade body, which predicts that self-driving cars will be commonplace by the 2030s. "Fully autonomous cars will be a step change for society, and this report shows people are already seeing their benefits. The challenge now is to create the conditions that will allow this technology to thrive." The research also found that six out of 10 people believe self-driving cars will improve their quality of life, with this rising to seven out of 10 for people aged 17 to 24.

Flights of nearly all unmanned aircraft, or drones, have been banned over 133 U.S. military facilities due to security concerns over the use of unauthorized drones, the Federal Aviation Administration said on Friday.

The FAA's agreement with the Defense Department restricts drone flights to up to 400 feet (120 meters) high within the boundaries of the facilities. The restrictions are effective beginning April 14. Only a few exceptions will be permitted and they must be coordinated with the individual facility or the FAA.

The cyberdefense industry needs to quit playing catch-up and having a reactionary approach to cybersecurity. So what is this industry doing wrong, and how can we change it? We must recognize that our cyberdefense technologies are not working and will not work. Cases in point: Our most sensitive cyberoffense technologies have been hacked; power companies admit they would have great difficulty stopping a cyberattack and are being asked to be prepared to operate at much less than full capacity under a cyberattack; 70 percent of oil and gas companies have been attacked -- and the threat is growing. The cybersecurity industry is in chaos and needs to move toward new technologies -- cyberdefense technologies that are beginning to leverage analytics, machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI).

While visiting Japan and interviewing officials on the robotics revolution that is sweeping much of Asia, it became clearer than ever to me that President Donald Trump's plans to bring back low-skilled manufacturing jobs to America are a political illusion. Trump should take some time off from the golf course and visit this part of the world, where he would see how fast Japan, China and South Korea are developing their robotics industries. They are replacing massive numbers of workers with ever faster, more efficient and cheaper robots, and the United States will have to do the same to remain competitive. If Trump goes ahead with his plans to clamp down on U.S. free trade agreements with Mexico and other lower-wage countries in order to bring these jobs back to America, he will be wasting his time. These jobs will never go back to American workers.

Over 8,000 drivers for Uber and Lyft are now not allowed to drive in Massachusetts. Aaron Dickens has the story. SAN FRANCISCO -- Anyone reading the tea leaves on how the Trump administration may treat ride-hailing and self-driving car companies was just handed a bit more tea. The White House said late Thursday that Trump would nominate Lyft general manager Derek Kan to join the Department of Transportation as under secretary of transportation for policy. Plans for the appointment were initially reported by Reuters.

FILE - In this June 1, 2014 file photo, people cycle towards the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Germany. Officials and cycling campaigners in Berlin have agreed to massively expand bike lanes with the goal of reducing car traffic in the German capital. Local media report that the two sides agreed on an annual investment of some 50 million euros ($53 million). Berlin daily B.Z. reported Friday. April 7, 2017 that the money will be used to create protected bike lines of the kind seen in Chicago and New York, build 100 kilometers of dedicate cycling highways and install 100,000 bike parking spaces.

This 2015 file photo shows U.S. soldiers from Dragon Troop of the 3rd Cavalry Regiment discuss their mission during their first training exercise of the new year near operating base Gamberi in the Laghman province of Afghanistan. WASHINGTON – The Trump administration opened a new military front Thursday when it ordered dozens of cruise missiles against a Syrian air base, adding to a growing list of recent U.S. military forays. A look at where the United States has fought in the 21st century. After al-Qaida attacked the U.S. on Sept. 11, 2001, the U.S. led an invasion of Afghanistan that ousted the Taliban. Though the U.S. and NATO formally ended their combat mission in Afghanistan at the end of 2014, the war -- now in its 16th year -- drags on.

The recent weaponization of drones has seen its share of inventiveness. But now, militants in Yemen are foregoing clever hacks and add-ons for a far more blunt approach: ramming drones into anti-missile systems, to keep them from knocking ballistic missiles out of the sky. It shows how militant groups and smaller military forces in the Middle East are exploiting gaps in the air defenses of better-equipped forces by using drones in new and unexpected ways, increasing demand for counter-drone technologies in the process. The United Arab Emirates, as part of a Saudi-led coalition, has been trying to oust the Houthi Ansar Allah movement in Yemen since Houthi militants seized control of the country from then-President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi in 2015. Recently, according to a report from weapons-tracking research organization Conflict Arms Research, the UAE picked up seven drones, used by the Houthi militia to render the coalition's Patriot ballistic missile defense systems unable to intercept missiles fired from Yemen into Saudi territory.

The importance of artificial intelligence (AI) has been vouched for since the 1950s. Yet, it's only within the last five years that a great buzz has been generated, owing to its allegiance to'deep learning'. This is where artificial systems imbibe information and in turn attune themselves to'learn' by repeatedly working through large numbers of similar parameters. The constant feeding of'similar set programs' built, what can be referred to, as intuitive framework. What insight is dawning upon us is that we are witnessing an upwards trend in the number of things happening within artificial systems; with increasing levels of capabilities.