Rise of the machines may not be far away.

If New Zealand does not invest in artificial intelligence research, its AI capabilities will only be efficient software running in the cloud of large overseas companies, creating risk for the country's technology and data sovereignty independence. This is a conclusion of the first white paper issued by New Zealand's Artificial Intelligence Researchers Association, which says our universities and research institutes have very strong AI research with "huge breadth and potential". "It is imperative to create and invest in an AI ecosystem where industry and research organisations can work together more closely for the benefit of Aotearoa New Zealand," said the paper. AI was profoundly changing how people live and work, and its cumulative impact was likely to be comparable to transformative technologies such as electricity or the internet. "As a result it is imperative that we take a strategic approach to realising the potential benefits offered by AI and to protecting people against the potential risks," the paper said.

Researchers working on smart irrigation systems have developed a way to choose the most accurate weather forecast, out of those offered in the week leading up to a given day. Dr Eric Wang, an Internet of Things researcher at James Cook University (JCU) in Cairns, works on technology that allows farmers to make data-driven decisions. "Every farmer would love to have a perfect weather forecast, but accurate forecasts are even more important to those who are embracing technology, and in particular the Internet of Things (IoT)," Wang said. In farming, the Internet of Things involved smart devices that talked to each other, to make recommendations such as when, where and how much to irrigate, Wang said. "That decision requires a lot of information, such as the needs of the particular crop, the current stage of its development, soil moisture and of course the weather."