Q&A: Anton Fedotov, Airband Technologies: On how AI is tackling air pollution

The ongoing Covid-19 pandemic has been described, in the words of one executive in the air pollution space, as 'the biggest single global intervention you will ever see.' Cars almost entirely remain in their garages; commercial aeroplanes lay dormant.

When the crisis ends, it will in some ways be a statistician's dream. The amount of data which will be able to be extrapolated will be huge, for both scientists and businesses working in this field.

One such business is...

23 April 2020 | Adoption

MIT’s AI paints a dire picture if social distancing is relaxed too soon

According to an AI system built by MIT to predict the spread of COVID-19, relaxing social distancing rules too early would be catastrophic.

Social distancing measures around the world appear to be having the desired effect. In many countries, the "curve" appears to be flattening with fewer deaths and hospital admissions per day.

No healthcare system in the world is prepared to handle a vast number of its population hospitalised at once. Even once relatively trivial...

17 April 2020 | Government

Aussie police use Clearview AI’s facial recognition to fight child exploitation

Police in Australia have employed the use of Clearview AI’s controversial facial recognition to tackle child exploitation.

The Australian Federal Police (AFP) admitted to using Clearview AI’s system despite not having a legislative framework in place for the technology.

Deputy commissioner Karl Kent said that the AFP trialled the facial recognition system but has not entered any formal arrangements with Clearview AI to procure their technology.

In a...

15 April 2020 | Face Recognition

US Department of Defense adopts ethical principles for AI use

The US Department of Defense (DoD) has formally adopted a set of principles to use artificial intelligence (AI) for military use.

In October 2019, the recommendations for use of the technology were provided to Secretary of Defense Dr. Mark T. Esper by the Defense Innovation Board. These recommendations came after 15 months of consultation with leading AI specialists in several industries like the government, academia, commercial, and the public.

The move aligns with...

26 February 2020 | Ethics

Met Police commissioner dismisses critics of facial recognition systems

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The chief commissioner of the Metropolitan Police has dismissed critics of law enforcement using facial recognition systems.

Met Commissioner Cressida Dick was speaking at the Royal United Services Institute think tank on Monday. Much of Dick’s speech was spent on making the case for British police to use modern technologies to tackle crime.

https://youtu.be/8lv7qw6X_rs?t=1848

Dick accused critics of police facial recognition technology as being “highly...

25 February 2020 | Face Recognition

Elon Musk wants more stringent AI regulation, including for Tesla

tesla elon musk ai artificial intelligence regulation policy

Elon Musk has once again called for more stringent regulations around the development of AI technologies.

The founder of Tesla and SpaceX has been one of the most vocal prominent figures in expressing concerns about AI – going as far as to call it humanity’s “biggest existential threat” if left unchecked.

Of course, given the nature of the companies Musk has founded, he is also well aware of AI’s potential.

Back in 2015, Musk co-founded OpenAI – an...

19 February 2020 | Ethics

UK govt ‘failing on openness’ around public sector AI – but specific regulator not the answer

The UK does not need a specific regulator for artificial intelligence (AI), according to a new government report – yet more clarity needs to be given around usage and ethics in the public sector.

The report, ‘Artificial Intelligence and Public Standards: A Review by the Committee on Standards in Public Life’ (pdf, no opt-in, 78 pages), said the government was ‘failing on openness’, although adding that fears over ‘black box AI’, whereby data produces results...

11 February 2020 | Ethics

Google CEO: We need sensible AI regulation that does not limit its potential

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Google CEO Sundar Pichai has called for sensible AI regulation that does not limit the huge potential benefits to society.

Writing in a FT editorial, Pichai said: “...there is no question in my mind that artificial intelligence needs to be regulated. It is too important not to.”

Few people debate the need for AI regulation but there are differing opinions when it comes to how much. Overregulation limits innovation while lack of regulation can pose serious dangers –...

21 January 2020 | Ethics

The White House warns European allies not to overregulate AI

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The White House has urged its European allies to avoid overregulation of AI to prevent Western innovation from being hindered.

While the news has gone somewhat under the radar given recent events, the Americans are concerned that overregulation may cause Western nations to fall behind the rest of the world.

In a statement released by the Office of Science and Technology Policy, the White House wrote:

“Europe and our allies should avoid heavy handed...

7 January 2020 | Ethics

Palantir took over Project Maven defense contract after Google backed out

palantir google project maven backlash military ai drone uav

Surveillance firm Palantir took up a Pentagon defense contract known as Project Maven after Google dropped out due to backlash.

Project Maven is a Pentagon initiative aiming to use AI technologies for deploying and monitoring unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

Naturally, Google’s involvement with the initiative received plenty of backlash both internally and externally. At least a dozen employees quit Google while many others threatened to walk out if the firm continued...

12 December 2019 | Drones