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 Personal Assistant Systems



The Bandwagon Effect: Not Just Another Bias

arXiv.org Machine Learning

Optimizing recommender systems based on user interaction data is mainly seen as a problem of dealing with selection bias, where most existing work assumes that interactions from different users are independent. However, it has been shown that in reality user feedback is often influenced by earlier interactions of other users, e.g. via average ratings, number of views or sales per item, etc. This phenomenon is known as the bandwagon effect. In contrast with previous literature, we argue that the bandwagon effect should not be seen as a problem of statistical bias. In fact, we prove that this effect leaves both individual interactions and their sample mean unbiased. Nevertheless, we show that it can make estimators inconsistent, introducing a distinct set of problems for convergence in relevance estimation. Our theoretical analysis investigates the conditions under which the bandwagon effect poses a consistency problem and explores several approaches for mitigating these issues. This work aims to show that the bandwagon effect poses an underinvestigated open problem that is fundamentally distinct from the well-studied selection bias in recommendation.


Use That Everyday A.I. in Your Pocket

#artificialintelligence

Virtual assistants usually hog the spotlight when it comes to talk of artificial intelligence software on smartphones and tablets. But Apple's Siri, Google Assistant, Samsung's Bixby and company aren't the only tools using machine learning to make life easier -- other common programs use the technology, too. Here's a quick tour through some common A.I.-driven apps and how you can manage them. When you set up a new device, you're usually invited to "enroll" in its facial recognition security program, which captures your image and analyzes it so the program will recognize you in different looks and lighting situations. Later, when you want to unlock the device or use apps like digital payment systems, the camera confirms that your face matches the stored data so you can proceed.


A bundle with the Echo Show 5 and a Ring Doorbell is only $85 for Prime members

Engadget

Amazon has pulled another solid deal out of its hat ahead of Prime Day. You'd essentially be getting the smart doorbell for free, as Echo Show 5 typically costs the same price. The Ring Doorbell normally costs $100 by itself. The standard price of the bundle is $150, which is already $35 less than the products cost separately. The current version of the Alexa-enabled Echo Show 5 arrived a year ago. We gave it a score of 85 in our review, finding the decent sound quality and bedside-table size to be plus points.


Improving digital employee experiences must start with cybersecurity

#artificialintelligence

We are excited to bring Transform 2022 back in-person July 19 and virtually July 20 - 28. Join AI and data leaders for insightful talks and exciting networking opportunities. Trading off usability for more hardened cybersecurity is the price vendors have been paying for decades to reduce their customers' breach risks. Enterprises bought into the logic, assuming the more challenging a security app or platform was to use, the more secure it was and capable of reducing risk. Fast-forward to today and organizations now need to support work-from-home employees, a new hybrid workforce and road warriors that require secure, real-time connections from their own devices to the most valuable data a business has. The pandemic forever changed everyone's perspective of an excellent digital employee experience. Ivanti's State of the Digital Employee Experience (DEX) study published this week provides insights into how enterprises move beyond trading off usability for security and what's most important to new, more virtual workforces.


Alexa and Cortana end their partnership quietly.

#artificialintelligence

Now, if you ask Alexa to use Cortana for some reason you will just hear Alexa says "sorry, the service is no longer available". The main reason behind this is the removal of the deal that Alexa had made with microphone Cortana a few years ago. Both of them wiped the integration away without making much noise among fans. Officially the climax of this connection was made on September 18 but didn't get much spotlight. Cortana and Alexa tied their connection for Cortana to reach a much wider audience than it had with their own Cortana products. But now, there's nothing to wonder about the decision behind this disconnection as it's pretty obvious.


Rewriting what we thought was possible in biotech

MIT Technology Review

The tech in biotech is nailing it. Machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI) can now figure out who has a condition (perhaps better than your doctor can), establish a medical checklist to diagnose you, and help target likely treatments. AI models can help design drugs or find a new purpose for existing ones. At home, just ask your AI assistant--Siri, Alexa, Cortana, or many chatbots--to answer medical questions or talk to you about your day. Those assistants might also have access to information from the smart devices in your home--your scale could work with your Fitbit to check your health.


The End of em Roe /em Means We Need a New Civil Right to Privacy

Slate

Yes, it denies women and girls reproductive autonomy, but it also augurs a future where no aspect of our intimate life is ours, where even the most private spaces or relationships are ripe for surveillance, where every detail about our bodies, health, and relationships is amassed and sold. Everyone's life opportunities are on the line in a world without intimate privacy. With the evisceration of Roe and the triggering of state laws criminalizing abortion, police can access the evidence they need to pursue investigations. Our fertility, dating, and health apps, digital assistants, and cellphones track our every move, doctor visit, health condition, prescription, and search; the details of our intimate lives are sold to advertisers, marketers, and data brokers. Law enforcers can purchase or subpoena data about women's missed periods, health clinic visits, and resumed menstruation.



Hey Siri, What's Next for AI and Robotics in Insurance?

#artificialintelligence

A lot has changed in the world of automation since Apple first launched its virtual assistant, Siri, on October 4, 2011. It's a date that musician, actress, and public speaker, Susan Bennett, remembers well because she's the original female, American voice behind Siri. "It is still weird," she said on this episode of The Insuring Cyber Podcast. "It's like, 'How many millions of people know my voice?' …I don't really think about that aspect of it." After getting her start in entertainment as a musician working on commercial jingles and singing backup vocals on tour with Burt Bacharach and Roy Orbison, Bennett began voiceover work at Doppler Studios in Atlanta.