Human-level intelligence is familiar in biological hardware – you're using it now. Science and technology seem to be converging, from several directions, on the possibility of similar intelligence in non-biological systems. It is difficult to predict when this might happen, but most artificial intelligence (AI) specialists estimate that it is more likely than not within this century. Freed of biological constraints, such as a brain that needs to fit through a human birth canal (and that runs on the power of a mere 20W lightbulb), non-biological machines might be much more intelligent than we are. What would this mean for us?

When we type in a search query, access our email via the cloud or stream a viral video, chances are we don't spend any time thinking about the technological plumbing that is behind that instant gratification. They are engineers who spend their days thinking about ever-better and faster ways to get you all that information with the tap of a finger, as you've come to expect. A team of Microsoft engineers and researchers, working together, has created a system that uses a reprogrammable computer chip called a field programmable gate array, or FPGA, to accelerate Bing and Azure. Utilizing the FPGA chips, Lanka and Chiou's teams can write their algorithms directly onto the hardware they are using, instead of using potentially less efficient software as the middle man. What's more, an FPGA can be reprogrammed at a moment's notice to respond to new advances in artificial intelligence or meet another type of unexpected need in a datacenter.

Most amputees use purely aesthetic prostheses. They find it difficult to accept a robotic limb that is not only by and large complicated to use but also has somewhat unnatural motion. Most of the models on the market today can only execute a few simple gestures, for example opening and closing the fist, and often in a very jarring way. Furthermore, users can't always properly control the magnitude of the movement, which adds a safety risk to the mixture. Scientists are therefore striving to bring prosthetic movements closer to those of the human body by using machine learning, a technique also used in artificial intelligence.

Any organization looking to remain competitive in today's high-tech digital world must constantly innovate and pilot new technologies and, most importantly, listen to consumers and the market for indicators of change. The basic commercial landscape is rapidly shifting towards automated processes and data-backed decision making, and marketing is no different. Automated and personalization are now key elements to engaging and communicating with consumers. All marketing efforts rely in some part on the ability to personalize the consumer journey and create incredible and memorable experiences that keep customers coming back again and again. Today, it's big data, machine learning, and artificial intelligence (AI) that have taken the spotlight as the new tools of highly effective marketing teams.

That's just one takeaway from a new 48-page report White House AI report it released to policy makers this week, according to Jim Hendler, AI expert, researcher and coauthor of the new book, Social Machines: The Coming Collision of Artificial Intelligence, Social Networking and Humanity. Addressing such concerns, the report says that fears about super-intelligent and evil computers, shouldn't have much impact on current US policy toward AI. "And it gets that part right … we all need to cut past the hype and look at what's really on in AI," he said, "so we can pay attention to the real risks and opposed to the science fiction risks," he said. The things to worry about aren't the frightening HAL 9000 or Skynet scenarios, Hendler says, "but the very real economic, societal ethical and safety concerns AI poses for the foreseeable future." The report does a fair job of addressing such issues overall, he says, "and it is good as far as it goes," Hendler says.

Rather than leading to the violent downfall of humankind, artificial intelligence is helping people around the world do their jobs, including doctors who diagnose sepsis in patients and scientists who track endangered animals in the wild, experts said Thursday (Oct. Advancements in the field of artificial intelligence (AI) haven't always been met with enthusiasm. Famed astrophysicist Stephen Hawking warned on several occasions that a fully developed AI could destroy the human race, and Hollywood sci-fi movies are rife with fierce robots battling humans for control. But at Thursday's conference -- attended by the country's leading researchers, innovators, entrepreneurs and students -- scientists explained how newly developed AI is accelerating research and improving lives. Here is a look at five AI inventions that are already redefining technology.

Tim Cook's latest stop for his Asia tour is in Japan. Apart from riding the bullet train to travel around the country, Apple's CEO did an interview to share some interesting things about the company's plans for its Japan-based R&D center. Speaking with Nikkei Asian Review, Cook revealed that Apple's R&D facility in Yokohama, which is close to Japan's capital city Tokyo and is expected to be completed this December, will serve as the core of the tech giant's "deep engineering." Steve Jobs' successor admitted that he is remaining mum about what this is all about, but he did say that Apple is capitalizing on AI in cooperation with Japanese companies. Cook shared that they plan to make the most out of AI by crafting technologies that would be very useful, such as increasing battery life of certain products or recommending songs to Apple Music users.

Driven by a declining population, a trend for developing robotic babies has emerged in Japan as a means of encouraging couples to become "parents." The approaches taken vary widely and are driven by different philosophical approaches that also beg a number of questions, not least whether these robo-tots will achieve the aim of their creators. To understand all of this it is worth exploring the reasons behind the need to promote population growth in Japan. The issue stems from the disproportionate number of older people. Predictions from the U.N. suggest that by 2050 there will be about double the number of people living in Japan in the 70-plus age range compared to those aged 15-30.

WIRE)--GNS Healthcare (GNS), a leading precision medicine company that applies causal machine learning technology to massive and diverse data streams to better match drugs and other health interventions to individual patients, today announced the appointment of Leslie Hoyt as Chief Operating Officer. A veteran healthcare operations leader, Hoyt, who most recently served United Health Group (NYSE:UNH) as Senior Vice President at Optum Health, will help GNS scale its operations and strategically navigate its development during a time of tremendous growth for the company. "Leslie brings an enormous passion for improving the health of individuals and the overall quality of care," said Colin Hill, CEO and Co-founder of GNS. "Her experience will be an essential asset to GNS, as more of our existing customers, as well as new customers, turn to GNS for solutions to complex problems arising from the transition to value-based care. Health plans, providers and biopharmaceutical companies are seeking deeper and more timely knowledge regarding which patients are likely to progress with disease, and which interventions will result in better outcomes for those patients at a lower total cost of care."

A lack of progress with secondary prevention, in terms of skin cancer screening and early detection, is a concern and a source of some disappointment among the dermatologist community.1,2 Early detection and treatment of melanoma is critical to maximise survival.3,4 Nevertheless, recently and for a second time the US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) found insufficient evidence to recommend visual screening of adults for skin cancer following a systematic review.1,5 Where does this leave us? It may feel like some kind of impasse, but it has been suggested that perhaps we simply need to shift our focus from secondary to primary prevention.1