Artificial intelligence already is part of our everyday lives: in our web searches, in our interactions with digital assistants, and even helping us decide what movies and TV shows to watch. "Not only will it be in the fabric of the future of work, but it's going to be in the fabric of solutions to the future of work as well," Vietas said during a webinar hosted by the agency in June. Some of the benefits AI is providing to the safety field: deeper insights, continuous observations and real-time alerts to help employees avoid unsafe situations and organizations respond to incidents quicker. Experts say making use of AI requires collaborative efforts between safety professionals and other departments, namely information technology, to ensure transparency as well as alleviate privacy concerns and other issues workers may have. "Our recommendation is, basically, try to understand AI and try to see how it can work for you," said Houshang Darabi, a professor at the University of Illinois Chicago and co-director of the occupational safety program at the school's Great Lakes Center for Occupational Health and Safety.

IMAGE: UIC's Liz Marai (center) and collaborators examine a large dataset in the Electronic Visualization Laboratory's high-resolution CAVE2 environment at the UIC College of Engineering. Computer scientists at the University of Illinois Chicago are developing a computational artificial intelligence system they hope will serve as a decision support tool for doctors prescribing treatment for head and neck cancer. The work is supported by a $2.8 million grant from the National Institutes of Health. "Chemotherapy and radiation can have very serious side effects, so knowing more about when it makes sense to prescribe these treatments and at what time points is valuable information," said Liz Marai, associate professor of computer science at the UIC College of Engineering and principal investigator. "But most cancer treatment decisions are made by small groups of doctors during what is called'tumor board' meetings where they discuss their patients and come up with treatment plants. We want to develop a scalable system based on real cancer patient data that can help guide physicians in how to treat specific patients."

Fox News Flash top headlines are here. Check out what's clicking on Foxnews.com. Army researchers are working with the University of Illinois Chicago on unmanned technology for recharging drone swarms. The university has been awarded a four-year, $8 million cooperative agreement "to develop foundational science in two critical propulsion and power technology areas for powering future families of unmanned aircraft systems," according to a statement released by the Army Research Laboratory. "This collaborative program will help small battery-powered drones autonomously return from military missions to unmanned ground vehicles for recharging," the Army added.