Used for both patient diagnosis and treatment, artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly being adopted in the healthcare sector. With recent developments enabling AI to outperform expert radiologists at spotting breast cancer and diagnose deadly blood diseases at a faster rate than humans, investment in such technologies is set to increase significantly over the next five years. The use of AI is improving diagnostics, patient care, and clinical decision support across the medical field. In fact, in light of the current pandemic, industry spending on such technologies is set to reach more than $2 billion in the next five years–a testament to AI's potential to unlock significant medical breakthroughs. However, AI is also proving crucial in protecting the very systems which power these healthcare advances.

We imagined computers that would be able to think. They would be able to make decisions using better knowledge and data than we have, and make those decisions faster than we ever could. Machines are able to perform very complicated tasks now, facial recognition is an example. We've always been comfortable with machines performing manual repetitive tasks. We've taken full advantage of the technology to make banking and financial transactions quicker and easier for customers.

A new report from Data and Society raises doubts about automated solutions to deceptively altered videos, including machine learning-altered videos called deepfakes. Authors Britt Paris and Joan Donovan argue that deepfakes, while new, are part of a long history of media manipulation -- one that requires both a social and a technical fix. Relying on AI could actually make things worse by concentrating more data and power in the hands of private corporations. The Verge reports: As Paris and Donovan see it, deepfakes are unlikely to be fixed by technology alone. "The relationship between media and truth has never been stable," the report reads.

Terror groups constantly search for new ways to wreak havoc. Will artificial intelligence, machine learning and algorithms save us from terrorism? Futurist Mal Fletcher shares important insights in this edition of 2030PlusTV... Subscribe Now. Written and presented by Mal Fletcher, social commentator (BBC etc), futurist, broadcaster, author and global speaker.

Now, it may be more of a reality than previously thought. Public information about company leadership can make an email or social media phishing attack more convincing, especially as hackers automate data collection on a targeted company using ML to emulate both the timing of communications and writing style. When will Siri be smart enough to step in and protect us?::cough:: Is that even on Apple's radar? The technical journalist's job is to know the strengths and weaknesses of each platform and to educate the user about them. New iPad Pro has both strengths and weaknesses.

Note: This is an edited version of an article I wrote for RT Insights. I'm convinced we are entering the Golden Age of artificial intelligence (AI); with so much promise and potential in front of us, I am feeling a little like Neo in The Matrix as he swallows the red pill. However, rather than science fiction, my recent work at FICO to make AI better has drawn upon my background in theoretical physics to create what we call defensive AI. This is needed, because AI-based attacks are not science fiction -- they are happening today. Businesses have relied on AI to fight fraud and financial crime for more than 25 years.

For our new series Provocation, Co.Design posed that question to some of our favorite design firms. So far, we've heard about flying inflatable drones that act like airbags for pedestrians, a steering wheel that gives passengers control over their car's morality, and an entire connected street grid. The San Francisco-based firm Astro Studios responded to our prompt by creating a smart infrastructure system with warning lights, street illumination, and a fully reactive road that–in the worst-case scenario–will rise up and become a buffer between car and person. The system, created by Astro creative directors Norio Fujikawa and Alejandro Chavetta, is based on the duo's conviction that self-driving cars will be fully dedicated to protecting their passengers. That means it's up to the city's infrastructure to keep pedestrians and cyclists safe.