LONDON — What will our future look like — not in a century but in a mere two decades?
Terrifying, if you’re to believe Yuval Noah Harari, the Israeli historian and author of “Sapiens” and “Homo Deus,” a pair of audacious books that offer a sweeping history of humankind and a forecast of what lies ahead: an age of algorithms and technology that could see us transformed into “super-humans” with godlike qualities.
Continue reading… “Automation, New Morality and a ‘Global Useless Class’”
Machines are getting much better at the jobs we humans normally do.
As any translator will tell you, transforming the words from one language into another is a task that draws on an enormous reservoir of training, experience, and art.
As children, most of us humans are taught not to be a “sore loser” by throwing some kind of tantrum when we lose a competition. The idea of gracefully accepting defeat forms the basis of friendship, democracy, and game shows, but Fox is risking the sanctity of all of that by developing a new show in which humans must compete against malevolent entities that know nothing about the danger of being a sore loser. We are talking, of course, about evil robots—or at least neutral robots that have the potential to become evil.
Continue reading… “Fox to kick off the human-robot war with a new AI-based game show”
Should governments start taxing robots as a way to prepare for a future of mass unemployment brought on by technology?
Continue reading… “Preparing for the economic impact of artificial intelligence”
“To make real progress in A.I., we have to overcome the big challenges in the area of common sense,” said Paul Allen, who founded Microsoft in the 1970s with Bill Gates.
Microsoft’s co-founder Paul Allen said Wednesday that he was pumping an additional $125 million into his nonprofit computer research lab for an ambitious new effort to teach machines “common sense.”
Continue reading… “Paul Allen wants to teach machines common sense”
We’re not in the business of writing regularly about “fake” news, but it’s hard not to be concerned about the kind of mimicry technology is making possible. First, researchers developed deep learning-based artificial intelligence (A.I.) that can superimpose one person’s face onto another person’s body. Now, researchers at Chinese search giant Baidu have created an A.I. they claim can learn to accurately mimic your voice — based on less than a minute’s worth of listening to it.
Continue reading… “Baidu’s new A.I. can mimic your voice after listening to it for just one minute”
The future of artificial intelligence is both exciting and terrifying. It’s development will have an impact on your life over the next ten years, in more ways than one. While yes, it will have many positive impacts, The Malicious Use of Artificial Intelligence report recently warned that artificial intelligence could also be exploited by criminals and terrorists for negative use. We know, pretty scary stuff, right?
We wanted to delve a little deeper into the future of AI, so we spoke to some experts working in the industry about how it’s expected to affect your dating, work and personal life very soon…
Since entrepreneur Chris Mansi cofounded Viz.ai in 2016, the best-funded wizards of artificial intelligence have taken on board games, and created emoji that mirror your facial expressions. Meanwhile, Mansi has been developing algorithms to save the brain cells of stroke patients.
Continue reading… “Using AI to help stroke victims when ‘time is brain ‘”
Is there something unusual about the pace and nature of technological change today? Should we be more worried about the world we’re creating?
Michael Bess is a historian of science at Vanderbilt University and the author of Our Grandchildren Redesigned: Life in a Bioengineered Society. His book offers a sweeping look at our genetically modified future, a future as terrifying as it is promising. But he’s also someone who thinks a lot about the broader relationship between technology and society.
Continue reading… “Technology isn’t just changing society — it’s changing what it means to be human”
The dream of “quantum computing” – harnessing the power of quantum-level mechanics in order to create computers far faster and more powerful than any available today – came a step closer to reality recently.
Continue reading… “20 mind- boggling facts about quantum computing everyone should read”
“In this far-ranging interview Da Vinci Institute associate Trent Fowler sits down with George Mason University economist and futurist Robin Hanson. They discuss Hanson’s two books (“The Age of Ems” and “The Elephant in the Brain”), the relationship between economics and futurism, the possibilities and dangers of self-improving AI, and many other things.
Continue reading… “Trent Fowler of the DaVinci Institute interviews futurist Robert Hanson”
By triggering precisely timed pulses of electricity to the brain, researchers can essentially use one black box to unlock the potential of another.
Continue reading… “AI just learned how to boost the brain’s memory”
By delving into the futuring techniques of Futurist Thomas Frey, you’ll embark on an enlightening journey.
Learn More about this exciting program.