When a doctor suspects a patient may have lung lesions or pulmonary nodules, the next step is usually a CT scan. If lesions show up, doctors often recommend biopsies to obtain an accurate diagnosis and determine if the lesions are benign or malignant. The biopsy procedure is common, albeit intricate and error prone. Imaging can produce false positives, for one thing, resulting in unnecessary intervention. When surgeons perform biopsies, they can accidentally damage border areas of the lungs.

Implementing AI solutions in brick-and-mortar retail is naturally more challenging than online retail, yet taking a step back, both are still surprisingly only in early stages. According to a 2018 study by Capgemini, over a quarter of the top 250 global retailers are integrating AI into their organizations (a sharp increase from 2016, when it was only a small minority of 4 percent). However, the study also found that only 1 percent of AI initiatives reach full-scale deployment. This is about to change. According to McKinsey Global Institute, investments by retail and CPG in artificial intelligence are expected to exceed $8 billion by 2024.

Agriculture is set to become'smarter' with digitisation and new technologies such as facial recognition for animals promising to provide the sector with greater control over its processes. Dr. Venkat Maroju, Chief Executive Officer of'SourceTrace' a provider of software solutions to the agriculture and allied sectors, said that digital technologies have an "enormous potential" to impact agriculture in several aspects by enabling farmers, on the one hand, to produce more while at the same time reducing the environmental impact of agricultural production. "Digital technology comes with several solutions to make this happen from farm management and traceability to certification and market linkage," he said. In September, itelligence AG the SAP software and technologies services company in partnership with the German Technical University OWL and HARTING Foundation & Co. KG a provider of industrial interconnection technology announced the launch of HARTING MICA . This is a system designed to enable the most efficient method of farming a given acreage of wheat using data collected via sensors from the soil, agricultural machinery and satellite images.

Novartis and Microsoft plan to use artificial intelligence to develop new drugs faster, and with greater precision. Novartis and Microsoft have agreed to a five-year partnership to use artificial intelligence (AI) to develop new drugs faster, and with greater precision. Novartis CEO Vas Narasimhan said AI's potential for personalized medicine is particularly promising, as it will help classify subgroups of patients that new drugs will most likely benefit, using clinical and preclinical datasets. Narasimhan added that these datasets were consolidated from Novartis' internal information, surmounting integration obstacles. The ultimate goal of the alliance is to use AI to fuel research, development, manufacturing, finance, sales, marketing, and acquisitions.

Tech columnist Marc Saltzman gives tech ideas to keep you entertained during your "staycation" if you're home for the holidays. Don't be jealous if your snooty friends won't stop talking about their upcoming holiday vacation. Let them deal with crowded airports, sunburns, and watered-down booze at all-inclusive resorts. Instead, having a "staycation" has never been more fun – especially if you consider all the awesome home tech you can pick up for you and the family. From big-screen televisions and smart speakers that play millions of songs (simply by asking for it) to deals on video game consoles and curling up with a great e-book on a tablet, there's never been a better time to be home for the holidays.

A robot developed by engineers in Taiwan can pour coffee and move chess pieces on a board against an opponent - but he's looking for a real job. The robot spent last week playing games against opponents at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. It was displaying what developers call an'intelligent vision system' which can see its environment and act with greater precision than its peers. A robot developed by Taiwan's Industrial Technology Research Institute plays chess at the Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas, Nevada on January 8, 2017 Rob Lever (AFP) With this enhanced vision, the robot can perform variety of tasks for service and manufacturing, and can also learn on the job with artificial intelligence. Playing chess is just a hobby showcasing the robot's visual acuity - such as the ability to distinguish between different chessmen- and dexterity in gripping and moving objects.