It has been called the new gold rush – a rush to catch up with China in producing and refining the materials needed in everything from computers to cars: but has it come too late to save Europe's car industry? Deep inside a former East German town lies the first fruits of the EU's grand plan to "de-risk" and wean itself off dependency on imports for the green revolution. In Bitterfeld-Wolfen, 140km south-west of Berlin, an Amsterdam-listed company is scrambling to complete construction of a vast factory that will be the first in Europe to deliver battery-grade lithium. There is now a race across Europe to both mine the silver-white soft metal and manufacture its refined form, lithium hydroxide – the key ingredient in the batteries that power electric cars, robot vacuum cleaners and mobile phones. "Everybody wants to get access to lithium. This is maybe why they call it the white gold, because it is like a gold rush," says Stefan Scherer, chief executive of AMG Lithium.

Artificial intelligence technology's impact can be seen in introducing automation, driving efficiency gains and enhancing productivity, creating new jobs, and reducing risks associated with cyber-threats and fraud. During the pandemic, AI-enabled more effective testing for Covid-19 and faster vaccine development and helped manage grocery supply chains and tailor lessons for individual students affected by remote schooling. The San Francisco Bay Area, made up of the San Francisco and San Jose metro areas, is in a category all its own, far and away from the lone U.S. leader in AI. Home to leading academic research centers like Stanford and the University of California at Berkeley; a plethora of startups; and big companies that invest heavily in AI research and technology like Alphabet Inc., Salesforce.com Inc., and Facebook Inc., the Bay Area accounts for roughly one-quarter of all Artificial Intelligence activity in the U.S. It is one of the five global hubs for top artificial intelligence talent in 2021. New York is in the midst of an explosive period of growth in artificial intelligence and machine learning.

Artificial intelligence (AI) has crossed a threshold. "In the past five years, AI has made the leap from something that mostly happens in research labs or other highly controlled settings to something that's out in society affecting people's lives," says Michael Littman, chair of the One Hundred Year Study on Artificial Intelligence, hosted at Stanford. It's easy to see what he's talking about: The technology's impact can be seen introducing automation, driving efficiency gains and enhancing productivity, creating new jobs, and reducing risks associated with cyber-threats and fraud. During the pandemic, AI enabled more effective testing for Covid-19 and faster vaccine development, and helped manage grocery supply chains and tailor lessons for individual students affected by remote schooling. As AI expands into more and more facets of our lives, there is also more scrutiny on who's developing it.

October 28, 2020 – "It has been a wild year," says Montreal-based Brainbox AI's president, Sam Ramadori. When the company launched in May 2019, it had just shy of 20 people, and worked on six development buildings totalling half a million square feet. "Today, we're in over 30 million, and with the commitment here, getting us over 40 million installed square feet." The commitment to which Ramadori is referring is that of AMP Capital in Australia, which is set to roll out Brainbox AI's energy-saving AI technology--which promises a reduction of carbon footprint by 20-40% and 15-20% in energy spend--across its entire managed real estate portfolio of central business district (CBD) office buildings, retail shopping centres and logistics facilities. Six AMP Capital-managed buildings across Australia are already trialling the technology, which will then be rolled out across the entire portfolio of over 40 buildings in Australia and New Zealand by Q1 2021. "We have a very young team, of very highly-capable technical folks, and they're all driven, not only by the truly autonomous solution, but we can really make a strong impact on climate change… but the only way to do that is to be able to scale quickly," said Ramadori, referring to the solution's ease of deployment.

Speaking at the Responsible AI for Social Empowerment (RAISE) 2020 summit, PM Modi said that while he wants India to become a global hub for AI, it is also a collective responsibility of the nation to protect the world from misuse of AI by non-state actors such as cyber criminals, terrorists, among others. "It remains our collective responsibility to ensure trust in how AI is used. Algorithm Transparency is key to establishing this trust. We must protect the world against weaponisation of AI by non-state actors," he said. In a first, the union government has organized a five-day virtual global summit to kickstart discussion on the creation of robust AI-powered public infrastructure to benefit India as well as other nations.

India's response to the Covid-19 pandemic has been applauded across the world. The importance of gaps in data assets has been highlighted across war rooms that are fundamental for pandemic response and reopening of the economy. To instil confidence for economic and social value creation data resilience is the need of the hour. Data and Artificial Intelligence (AI) could be the pillars of support to the government and businesses during the pandemic for virus containment. For instance, contact tracing, workforce planning and protection, resource optimization and restarting the economic engine in a systematic and secure manner.

Singapore has its eyes on being the frontrunner in technology and innovation, within the region. It aims to be the "living laboratory", the hub for innovating on artificial intelligence (AI) solutions. Minister-in-charge of the Smart Nation initiative Dr Vivian Balakrishnan made this statement while speaking at the opening segment of the Smart City Expo World Congress in Barcelona, on Tuesday, Nov 19. He presented the advantages and capabilities, supporting the vision of Singapore being an AI hub in the world. Experimentations and AI solutions testing will be effectively managed with agile regulations put in place.

This makes investment in AI one of the biggest commercial opportunities in today's fast-changing economy. However, recent Deloitte data reveals that while 82% of the UK's large businesses are pursuing some form of AI initiatives, only 15% can be considered'seasoned' or mature AI adopters – lower than the US (24%), Germany (22%), Canada (19%), Australia (17%) and France (16%). In this competitive international market, creating a favourable business environment for AI and investing in AI skills programmes is key for ensuring the long-term success of the UK's national AI strategy. While the UK has a thriving AI scene, it's important to ensure it continues to grow and that investment in AI is proportionally distributed across the country, both to make the most of existing AI talent and to encourage new talent development. Although 80% of the UK's top 50 AI start-ups are based in London, some notable AI success stories came from outside of the capital.

IBM is planning to invest over $2 billion to help establish an "AI Hardware Center" at the SUNY Polytechnic Institute campus in Albany, as well as boost its high-tech footprint throughout New York State. The Center will be set up for artificial intelligence-focused computer chip research, development, prototyping, testing and simulation, and help solidify the region as a global hub for research and development. "New York has always been at the forefront of emerging industries, and this private sector investment to create a hub for artificial intelligence research will attract world-class minds and drive economic growth in the region," Governor Cuomo said in a press release. "Artificial intelligence has the potential to transform how we live and how businesses operate, and this partnership with IBM will help ensure New York continues to be on the cutting edge of developing innovative technologies." IBM's investment will be extend beyond SUNY Poly, where the company is a long-time anchor, to include other IBM facilities in New York State.

Cutting-edge, emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), robotics and big data are among the fastest growing areas for investment according to analysis of venture capital flows into London's tech sector carried out by the founders of London Tech Week. The findings reveal that London's AI and machine learning companies have become particularly attractive for investors, with 20 times more investment in 2016 (£85.75 million) than the amount raised in 2011 (£3 million). Deputy Mayor for Business, Rajesh Agrawal said: "London is the technology capital of Europe. With a rich melting pot of creative talent, London is leading the way in the development of emerging technologies such as mobile payments, big data and artificial intelligence. Our world-class tech sector is creating jobs and growth across the city, with Londoners working alongside the best and brightest from across Europe and all over the world."