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AI and automation
Automation, robotics and artificial intelligence news, features and analysis. Verdict covers the latest on AI, automation, robots and drones, with news and insight from some of the world’s leading experts. AI is transforming the way we work, live and play, and there is far more change ahead as technology advances further.
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5 Feb
Retail robots overwhelmingly rejected by Australian consumers
Just 1% of Australian consumers want to use retail robots and chatbots as part of their shopping experience, despite growing efforts to introduce the technology within the industry.
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1 Feb
Can automation deliver the utopian dream of a shorter working week?
The five-day working week may become a footnote in our history of industrialisation, like child chimney sweeps once common in the UK.
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31 Jan
Watch out, DeepMind – there’s a faster algorithm on the block
Researchers from RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia have developed a set of algorithms they claim can master an Atari video game 10 times faster than current leader in the field, Google-owned AI firm DeepMind.
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31 Jan
Soft robots that can see, feel and perceive: Human-style perception system comes to robotics
Engineers have developed a sophisticated perception system for soft robots that is modelled on the way we as humans process information about our bodies and the world around us.
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30 Jan
Is 2019 the year retail AI goes mainstream? Six predictions for the year ahead
Artificial intelligence (AI) is playing an increasingly prominent role in many of the world’s biggest e-commerce platforms, but what can we expect from retail AI in 2019?
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29 Jan
IBM releases database of 1 million faces to combat bias in facial recognition
One of the apparent strengths of artificial intelligence is its ability to remove human bias. However, although this may be the intention, AI systems learn what they are taught; meaning if they are not powered by robust and diverse data sets, bias can still emerge.
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28 Jan
Harry, Bert and Lenny: Insurer AXA’s admin AI bots
Three artificial intelligence bots named Harry, Bert and Lenny have been deployed at insurance company AXA and will save employees 18,000 hours of repetitive work each year.
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24 Jan
Twitter AI: How the platform is embracing artificial intelligence
In recent years, Twitter has developed a negative association with bots, with the microblogging platform wiping out 6% of its user base by deleting tens of millions of artificial intelligence-powered accounts.
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23 Jan
Robots do food delivery to satisfy university students’ munchies
Starbucks, Dunkin’ and Blaze Pizza have signed up to the launch of a fleet of food delivery robots at the George Mason University in the US.
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22 Jan
Governments urged to establish universal lifelong learning entitlement as automation looms
The International Labour Organization’s Global Commission on the Future of Work has recommended that a universal lifelong learning entitlement be established by governments around the world.
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21 Jan
Chinese business smashes the US and UK in AI and blockchain IP
China still leads in AI and blockchain technology with Chinese businesses filing seven times the number of IP patents in AI as closest rival the US in 2017.
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18 Jan
No, robots aren’t going to make you unemployed
We’re inundated with reports on how automation is going to lead to widespread job displacement, with robots taking on the role of human workers across numerous industries.
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15 Jan
VERA the AI personal shopping assistant launched at NRF 2019
VERA is a digital personal shopping assistant from Piktorlabs being launched at the NRF 2019, the US National Retail Federation’s show in New York.
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14 Jan
Over a third of British workers welcome the use of AI in the workplace
With 52% of UK businesses making ‘technology’ a spending priority in 2019, investment in relevant and worthwhile technology has enabled organisations to streamline and improve various aspects of their operations across many industries.
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14 Jan
RPA adoption strong among US medium-sized businesses, survey says
Robotic process automation (RPA) continues to see robust adoption among medium-sized businesses in the US, according to a survey by RPA provider Softomotive.
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10 Jan
The company using AI to predict the tech trends of 2050
At this time of year, many industry experts are making tech predictions for what trends the year ahead might hold.
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8 Jan
This robot delivery dog will hitch a ride in a driverless car to deliver your packages
German automotive manufacturing giant Continental AG has unveiled its solution to autonomously deliver packages to your front door: robot delivery dogs.
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7 Jan
8 in 10 driving professionals likely to lose their jobs to automation – here are the roles most at risk
There is no shortage of studies detailing the disruptive impact that automation will have on jobs, with many predicting job losses and the need for radically altered workplace skills.
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2 Jan
Could micro robots help put an end to roadworks?
The UK government is investing £26.6m in micro robots to help repair the country’s vast underground pipe network, which could greatly reduce disruptive roadworks.
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21 Dec
Gatwick drone disruption: Why are drones such an issue for the airline industry?
A rogue drone has caused misery for 110,000 people hoping to travel home from London ahead of Christmas, with more than 750 flights grounded after the device repeatedly flew over the runway.
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20 Dec
Who is behind the Gatwick drone incident? Hobbyist theory met with suspicion
The Gatwick drone incident that has seen the holiday plans of tens of thousands of passengers disrupted has led to both deep concern and suspicion from drone pilots.
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19 Dec
Using AI to look at our history of ‘Living with Machines’
A £9.2m grant has been awarded to the ‘Living with Machines’ AI research project at Queen Mary University, which will use new artificial intelligence techniques to analyse historical sources.
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19 Dec
When guide dogs and delivery robots meet
A project to explore how guide dogs respond to autonomous delivery robots is laying the foundation for widespread use of the technology in the coming years.
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19 Dec
AI gender gap: Just 22% of artificial intelligence professionals are female
Females make up just 22% of all professionals in artificial intelligence, with a gender gap of 72% in the field – way above the global average of 32%.
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19 Dec
Top influencers in artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence influencers are driving conversations about AI news and trends across social media and beyond.
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18 Dec
“Game changing” drone tech delivers vaccines for the first time to Vanuatu
A one-month-old baby has become the first person in the world to receive a vaccine delivered by drone.
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18 Dec
UK’s first drone delivery over 4G sees Vodafone bring Christmas cheer
From safety inspections to deliveries, and even transporting people in the near future, drones are becoming an increasingly common site in British skies.
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18 Dec
How AI gave whisky tasting a 21st-century update
It is thought that the origins of whisky can be traced back to as early as the 2nd millennium BC to the Babylonians in Mesopotamia.
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17 Dec
2019 could be the year that retailers embrace the benefits of AI
2019 could be the year that retail fully embraces artificial intelligence, according to new research by Capgemini.
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13 Dec
NVIDA releases Jetson AGX Xavier to power next-gen AI robots – and it fits in the palm of your hand
GPU maker NVIDIA has released the Jetson AGX Xavier module, bringing powerful computing to AI machines such as manufacturing robots, autonomous cars and handheld DNA sequencers.