The first episode of HBO's Westworld heavily implied that a terrified robot was being raped -- and not for the first time either. Dolores (Evan Rachel Wood), a 30-year-old automaton that thinks it's a 30-year-old woman, cries and begs and screams. But there are people who go in for this sort of thing. Porn sharing communities often call rape-themed videos "struggle porn" or hide behind neologisms like "painal." The ones that focus on robots are more forward than that because there is no crime implied.

Rather than viewing these advances as threats to job security, we can look at them as opportunities for AI to fill in critical gaps in existing service providers, such as mental healthcare professionals. But what if artificial intelligence could bring quality and affordable mental health support to anyone with an internet connection? This is X2AI's mission, a startup that's built Tess AI to provide quality mental healthcare to anyone, regardless of income or location. Thanks to these psychologists we are able to offer behavioral health services directly to large employers or employer health plans, as the psychologists can take care of parts of the treatment and ensure to stand-by whenever additional human intervention is required.

Artificial intelligence is learning to take on an increasing number of sophisticated tasks. Google Deepmind's AI is now able to imitate human speech, and just this past August IBM's Watson successfully diagnosed a rare case of leukemia. Rather than viewing these advances as threats to job security, we can look at them as opportunities for AI to fill in critical gaps in existing service providers, such as mental healthcare professionals. In the US alone, nearly eight percent of the population suffers from depression (that's about one in every 13 American adults), and yet about 45 percent of this population does not seek professional care due to the costs. There are many barriers to getting quality mental healthcare, from searching for a provider who's within your insurance network to screening multiple potential therapists in order to find someone you feel comfortable speaking with.

Uber's Pittsburgh Experiment, featuring semi-autonomous vehicles, is up and running. If only its fleet could distinguish the proper path down a one-way street. And Google is reporting smashing results for its autonomous vehicle program. This is a public service alert for all you Yinzers out there: Get off the road; you're in danger. While we're at it, to unemployed tech bros desperate to get a foot in the Silicon Valley door: Don't take a gig as a Google autonomous vehicle test driver.

A new artificial intelligence-powered virtual assistant that helps people on the Autism spectrum organize their lives and stay employed will be available in iOS and Android app stores next month, according to Identifor CEO Cuong Do. Do was one of more than a dozen speakers at the Intelligent Assistants Conference, a two-day event held Sept. 12-13 at the Palace Hotel in San Francisco. Called Companion, the app includes a virtual assistant named Abby. Abby is designed to identify an individual's interests and needs and to support a person on the Autism spectrum throughout the day. The virtual assistant uses artificial intelligence to learn the routines of users and keep their work, school, and social life on track.

As Google Home gets closer to launch, the AI assistant is not only getting smarter, but also a little more friendly and -- hopefully -- a whole lot funnier. As the Wall Street Journal's Christopher Mims notes in a piece about friendly AI like Siri, Alexa and Google Assistant, Alphabet's big play for the space includes hiring up comedy writing alumni of Pixar and The Onion. While none of the major AI assistants on the market today or coming soon are truly "artificial intelligence" (that is: the device itself doesn't actually understand the conversation) people have a natural tendency to form an emotional connection with the little robot voice in the kitchen speaker. So, subtle improvements like a witty joke or unexpected bit of humor can go a long way to improving the user experience, especially as voice and conversation becomes the interface itself. Although Siri and Alexa already have a few jokes in their repertoire, they tend to be pretty bad and definitely don't have quite the same punch as the topical humor of "America's Finest News Source."

A dream is a succession of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that usually occurs involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep.[1] The content and purpose of dreams are not definitively understood, though they have been a topic of scientific speculation, as well as a subject of philosophical and religious interest, throughout recorded history. The scientific study of dreams is called oneirology.[2] Dreams mainly occur in the rapid-eye movement (REM) stage of sleep--when brain activity is high and resembles that of being awake. REM sleep is revealed by continuous movements of the eyes during sleep. At times, dreams may occur during other stages of sleep. However, these dreams tend to be much less vivid or memorable.[3] The length of a dream can vary; they may last for a few seconds, or approximately 20–30 minutes.[3] People are more likely to remember the dream if they are awakened during the REM phase. The average person has three to five dreams per night, and some may have up to seven;[4] however, most dreams are immediately or quickly forgotten.[5] Dreams tend to last longer as the night progresses. During a full eight-hour night sleep, most dreams occur in the typical two hours of REM.[6] In modern times, dreams have been seen as a connection to the unconscious mind. They range from normal and ordinary to overly surreal and bizarre. Dreams can have varying natures, such as being frightening, exciting, magical, melancholic, adventurous, or sexual. The events in dreams are generally outside the control of the dreamer, with the exception of lucid dreaming, where the dreamer is self-aware.[7]

A dream is a succession of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that usually occurs involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep.[1] The content and purpose of dreams are not definitively understood, though they have been a topic of scientific speculation, as well as a subject of philosophical and religious interest, throughout recorded history. The scientific study of dreams is called oneirology.[2] Dreams mainly occur in the rapid-eye movement (REM) stage of sleep--when brain activity is high and resembles that of being awake. REM sleep is revealed by continuous movements of the eyes during sleep. At times, dreams may occur during other stages of sleep. However, these dreams tend to be much less vivid or memorable.[3] The length of a dream can vary; they may last for a few seconds, or approximately 20–30 minutes.[3] People are more likely to remember the dream if they are awakened during the REM phase. The average person has three to five dreams per night, and some may have up to seven;[4] however, most dreams are immediately or quickly forgotten.[5] Dreams tend to last longer as the night progresses. During a full eight-hour night sleep, most dreams occur in the typical two hours of REM.[6] In modern times, dreams have been seen as a connection to the unconscious mind. They range from normal and ordinary to overly surreal and bizarre. Dreams can have varying natures, such as being frightening, exciting, magical, melancholic, adventurous, or sexual. The events in dreams are generally outside the control of the dreamer, with the exception of lucid dreaming, where the dreamer is self-aware.[7]

A dream is a succession of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that usually occurs involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep.[1] The content and purpose of dreams are not definitively understood, though they have been a topic of scientific speculation, as well as a subject of philosophical and religious interest, throughout recorded history. The scientific study of dreams is called oneirology.[2] Dreams mainly occur in the rapid-eye movement (REM) stage of sleep--when brain activity is high and resembles that of being awake. REM sleep is revealed by continuous movements of the eyes during sleep. At times, dreams may occur during other stages of sleep. However, these dreams tend to be much less vivid or memorable.[3] The length of a dream can vary; they may last for a few seconds, or approximately 20–30 minutes.[3] People are more likely to remember the dream if they are awakened during the REM phase. The average person has three to five dreams per night, and some may have up to seven;[4] however, most dreams are immediately or quickly forgotten.[5] Dreams tend to last longer as the night progresses. During a full eight-hour night sleep, most dreams occur in the typical two hours of REM.[6] In modern times, dreams have been seen as a connection to the unconscious mind. They range from normal and ordinary to overly surreal and bizarre. Dreams can have varying natures, such as being frightening, exciting, magical, melancholic, adventurous, or sexual. The events in dreams are generally outside the control of the dreamer, with the exception of lucid dreaming, where the dreamer is self-aware.[7]

Researchers have trained an artificial intelligence algorithm to understand and predict visual humor, representing a major development towards creating "common sense" machines. The machine-learning algorithm, created by scientists at Virginia Tech, is capable of both recognising and creating humorous scenes by analysing certain aspects of an image considered to be funny. According to the researchers, humor is a major barrier to the advancement of AI and could hold the key to unlocking emotional intelligence. "Humor is an integral part of human lives," the paper's abstract states. "Despite being tremendously impactful, it is perhaps surprising that we do not yet have a detailed understanding of humor."