Putin ordered his government apparatus on February 27th to formulate a national artificial intelligence strategy by June 25th. With that date quickly approaching, the world is waiting to see Russia’s AI plans.

Back in September 2017, Putin famously said the nation which leads in AI “will become the ruler of the world.” Understandably, Putin’s comments generated fear of a cold war-like rush to militarise AI technology.

The Russian leader’s most recent speech won’t help to ease those concerns after reiterating that AI offers unprecedented power, including military power, to any government that leads in the field.

“Mechanisms of artificial intelligence provide real-time fast decision-making based on the analysis of huge amounts of information, which gives tremendous advantages in quality and effectiveness,” he said. “If someone can provide a monopoly in the field of artificial intelligence, then the consequences are clear to all of us: he will rule the world.”

However, there appears to be some understanding from Russia’s president of the need for a level-headed approach to AI. Putin suggested his government needs to enshrine and protect citizens’ rights and new intellectual property.

Other key areas highlighted by Putin for Russia’s AI development include:

• Training initiatives
• Legislative support
• Public-private cooperation
• Efforts to advance Russia’s STEM strengths

Putin spoke of the need to ensure “the readiness of society, citizens for the widespread introduction of such technologies. It is, therefore, necessary to provide widespread digital education, to launch retraining programs.”

An increased need for AI funding was also touched upon. Putin said cash will need to be invested from both the state and investors through public-private cooperation.

“Russia should become one of the key platforms for solving complex scientific problems with the participation of scientists from around the world,” declared Putin.

“It is fundamentally important to tune our legislation to a new technological reality, quickly and efficiently form a flexible, adequate legal basis for the development and use of artificial intelligence-based application solutions, as well as special regimes for private investment in creating breakthrough solutions,” he said.

The overview of what’s forming the base of Russia’s AI strategy was provided by Putin during a May 30th speech.

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Based on the comments made by Elon Musk and Vladimir Putin in our article yesterday, you’d be forgiven if this raises some concerns. AI like Prowler, however, could be what saves us from destruction.

If you missed it, Musk voiced his concern about Putin’s comment that the nation which leads in AI “will become the ruler of the world.”

Some are concerned about an AI arms race and that, without human input, an AI relying solely on logic could decide on things such as launching preemptive strikes as being the most likely to achieve victory or protect its host nation. This decision would be devoid of empathy for the human, environmental, political, and long-term destabilising catastrophes this would create.

Mark Cuban, a billionaire and possible U.S. president runner in 2020, shares a concern about killer AI:

Autonomous weaponry is the ultimate threat to humanity. https://t.co/C0EEfwOCDw

— Mark Cuban (@mcuban) September 4, 2017

Cuban, however, points out it’s AIs not taking on human-like qualities which pose the biggest threat:

I’m concerned about machines NOT taking on human like qualities https://t.co/1pG75agllk

— Mark Cuban (@mcuban) September 4, 2017

Most AI development today focuses on deep neural networks using vast amounts of data. This approach is vital for problem-solving as it is very effective, but for decision-making, Prowler argues it is limiting.

Building a decision-making AI

Prowler is building a decision-making AI which is based on probabilistic modelling, reinforcement learning, and game theory. For each of those areas, Prowler has experts in their field combining their knowledge to create an AI it hopes will make decisions as well as a human.

The company was co-founded by two alums from AI company VocalIQ, which was acquired 13 months after launch by Apple. Today, Cambridge Innovation Capital (CIC) announced it led a £10 million Series A funding round for Prowler.

“Prowler has assembled a world-class team of researchers to tackle some of the most intractable problems of our age,” comments Andrew Williamson, Investment Director at CIC, who is joining the Board of Prowler. “It is hugely exciting that the company is able to capitalise on the expertise in probabilistic modelling, principled machine learning and game theory available in Cambridge.”

“This investment allows us to expand our world-leading team of academics and developers, enhancing our research bandwidth and accelerating our technology into the market,” added Vishal Chatrath, CEO of Prowler. “As a team, we will use the funding to take the business to the next stage and we will continue to solve some of the world’s hardest machine learning problems.”

Despite popular belief, the closer we get to AI taking on human-like qualities could save us all. At the least, it will be far more efficient.

What are your thoughts about AI making human-like decisions?

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Musk, co-chairman of OpenAI, has long warned of dire consequences for mishandling AI development. OpenAI itself is a non-profit research company that aims to champion promoting and developing friendly AI in a way to benefit humanity.

As with any major technology advancement, however, there will undoubtedly be those which aim to weaponise it and to do so before rivals. Based on Putin’s comments to Russia-based publication RT, it sounds as if the nation is among them.

“Artificial intelligence is the future, not only for Russia, but for all humankind,” said Putin, in a report from RT. “It comes with colossal opportunities, but also threats that are difficult to predict. Whoever becomes the leader in this sphere will become the ruler of the world.”

Musk tweeted his brief reaction to the news:

It begins … https://t.co/mbjw5hWC5J

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 4, 2017

Further responses to his tweet highlighted the concern about AI weapon systems. In particular, an AI which may decide a preemptive strike is the best option to prevent a threat from developing. The lack of human involvement in the decision also enables the blame to be mitigated.

Last week, AI News reported that China is catching up to the U.S. in artificial intelligence. Part of this rapid development is due to a significant increase in government support of core AI programs. China will increase spending to $22 billion in the next few years, with plans to spend nearly $60 billion per year by 2025.

Musk has also voiced concerns about this international competition for AI superiority:

China, Russia, soon all countries w strong computer science. Competition for AI superiority at national level most likely cause of WW3 imo.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 4, 2017

These recent developments further highlight the pressing need for regulations and open dialogue on AI development to ensure it benefits humanity rather than poses a threat.

See more: Experts believe AI will be weaponised in the next 12 months

Are you concerned about AI posing a threat? Share your thoughts in the comments.

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