Researchers have achieved a breakthrough in the development of artificial intelligence by using light instead of electricity to perform computations. The new approach significantly improves both the speed and efficiency of machine learning neural networks – a form of AI that aims to replicate the functions performed by a human brain in order to teach itself a task without supervision. Current processors used for machine learning are limited in performing complex operations by the power required to process the data. Such networks are also limited by the slow transmission of electronic data between the processor and the memory. Researchers from George Washington University in the US discovered that using photons within neural network (tensor) processing units (TPUs) could overcome these limitations and create more powerful and power-efficient AI. A paper describing the research, published today in the scientific journal Applied Physics Reviews, reveals that their photon-based TPU was able to perform between 2-3 orders of magnitude higher than an electric TPU.

Planning is an essential topic in the realm of automated driving. Besides planning algorithms that are widely covered in the literature, planning requires different software tools for its development, validation, and execution. This paper presents a survey of such tools including map representations, communication, traffic rules, open-source planning stacks and middleware, simulation, and visualization tools as well as benchmarks. We start by defining the planning task and different supporting tools. Next, we provide a comprehensive review of state-of-the-art developments and analysis of relations among them. Finally, we discuss the current gaps and suggest future research directions.

A decade ago in the California high desert, 11 finalists competed in an unprecedented 60-mile race. Robot cars needed to safely and swiftly complete the mission without any human intervention -- while also interacting with human-driven vehicles -- in under six hours. It was the 2007 DARPA Urban Challenge, an autonomous vehicle competition that unofficially kicked off today's self-driving technology initiatives. The vehicles were considered incredible at the time, and looking back, this marked the beginning of a long journey. DARPA ensured a certain level of success by carefully managing scope: Participants agreed to a set of rigorously defined traffic rules, and DARPA eliminated pedestrian and cyclist traffic from the challenge.

James Dean, who has been dead for 64 years, is set to star in an upcoming movie about the Vietnam War. According to the Hollywood Reporter, the movie, an adaptation of Gareth Crocker's novel, Finding Jack, will feature a computer-generated image (CGI) version of Dean. "We searched high and low for the perfect character to portray the role of Rogan, which has some extreme complex character arcs, and after months of research, we decided on James Dean," says Anton Ernst, one of the film's co-directors. Dean will be constructed through "full-body" CGI using archival footage from his films – he will be physically captured through the movements of an actor and voiced by another actor. The fact that the directors couldn't find an actor of this capability in an age where much so much untapped talent is available is questionable.

"With artificial intelligence, we are summoning the devil." So said Tesla chief and all-round tech titan Elon Musk back in 2014. When someone of his standing makes a statement like that, it should give pause for thought. But according to Daniel Pitchford, co-founder of AI Business, this view, while pretty common, is over-egging the situation slightly. We'll tell you what's true.

Scientists are using the popular drawing game Pictionary to teach artificial intelligence common sense. AI researchers at the Allen Institute for Artificial Intelligence (AI2), a non-profit lab in Seattle, developed a version of the game called Iconary in order to teach its AllenAI artificial intelligence abstract concepts from pictures alone. Iconary was made public on 5 February in order to encourage people to play the game with AllenAI. By learning from humans, the researchers hope AllenAI will continue to develop common sense reasoning. "Iconary is one of the first times an AI system is paired in a collaborative game with a human player instead of antagonistically working against them," the Iconary website states.

Autonomous vehicle technology is advancing rapidly, and hard-core promoters contend that driverless cars could soon be the norm rather than the exception. Many other knowledgeable analysts, however, say widespread adoption of fully autonomous cars is many years -- perhaps decades -- away. The chief reason for the delay is the years it will take to generate the vast amount of data required to make self-driving cars fully safe. But whenever it finally takes over, driverless technology will do much more than ease daily commutes: It will also have a profound impact on the world's economy, notes Lawrence Burns, a former corporate vice president of research, development and planning for General Motors who supervised and encouraged GM's development of robotic driving technology. His new book with Christopher Shulgan is titled, Autonomy: The Quest to Build the Driverless Car -- And How It Will Reshape Our World. He joined the Knowledge@Wharton show on SiriusXM to talk about how a driverless world will map out. An edited transcript of the conversation follows.

Google has pledged to never work on artificial intelligence weapons projects, laying down the principle after a collaboration with the US military fomented an employee revolt. The technology giant recently announced it would discontinue work with the Department of Defense on Project Maven, an artificial intelligence project that analyses imagery and could be used to enhance the efficiency of drone strikes. Thousands of employees had signed onto a letter warning that Google's participation contravened the company's ethical tenets. Stating that "Google should not be in the business of war", the letter warned that the company's involvement would compromise its image and drive away potential employees. Google'ditches contract with US military' after employee revolt Google quietly removes'don't be evil' preface from code of conduct Hundreds of AI experts call on Google to stop weaponizing technology Google'ditches contract with US military' after employee revolt Google quietly removes'don't be evil' preface from code of conduct A blog post by CEO Sundar Pichai addressed the underlying debate, establishing guidelines for future artificial intelligence (AI) projects that pledged to ensure the work benefits society and eschew "technologies that cause or are likely to cause overall harm".

Video Friday is your weekly selection of awesome robotics videos, collected by your Automaton bloggers. We'll also be posting a weekly calendar of upcoming robotics events for the next two months; here's what we have so far (send us your events!): Let us know if you have suggestions for next week, and enjoy today's videos. Takahiro Nozaki and colleagues of the Faculty of Science and Technology and Haptics Research Center at Keio University developed a haptic-based avatar-robot with a General Purpose Arm (GPA) that transmits sound, vision, movement, and importantly, highly sensitive sense of touch (force tactile transmission), to a remotely located user in real time. "This'real-haptics' is an integral part of the Internet of Actions (IoA) technology, having applications in manufacturing, agriculture, medicine, and nursing care," says Nozaki.