Google and others, fighting for a small pool of researchers, are looking for automated ways to deal with a shortage of artificial intelligence experts.
Continue reading… “Building A.I. that can build A.I.”
Google Photos now recognizes your pets
Google Photos has announced that it can now detect photos of your pet, automatically grouping them together the way it does with people. This means you will no longer have to type in words like “dog” or “cat,” as the algorithm will sort them for you.
Continue reading… “Google Photos now recognizes your pets”
Amazon’s Alexa can now recognize different voices and give personalized responses
Your Echo just got smart enough to tell you apart from the people you live with.
Silicon Valley isn’t just disrupting democracy—it’s replacing it
If you want to understand the threat that Silicon Valley poses to culture at large, consider Apple’s $5 billion headquarters. The Cupertino, California, building may seem like paradise to some, with striking architecture—a donut-shaped building featuring the world’s largest piece of curved glass—and lavish details like iPhone-inspired elevator buttons and patented pizza boxes that prevent soggy crusts. Writing for Wired, Stephen Levy quotes one of the architects of the project: “The idea that a beautiful object descended on this verdant, luxurious landscape and that it will be inhabited by 12,000 people: That is a true utopian vision.” (Never mind the lack of onsite childcare in this revolutionary building.)
Continue reading… “Silicon Valley isn’t just disrupting democracy—it’s replacing it”
Google debuts Tez, a mobile payments app for India that uses Audio QR to transfer money
After several weeks of speculation and leaked details, today Google officially unveiled its first big foray into mobile payments in Asia. The Android and search giant has launched Tez, a free mobile wallet in India that will let users link up their phones to their bank accounts to pay for goods securely in physical stores and online, and for person-to-person money transfers with a new twist: Audio QR, which uses ultrasonic sounds to let you exchange money, bypassing any need for NFC.
The average age of employees at all the top tech companies, in one chart
Silicon Valley is known for its youth-obsessed culture.
Continue reading… “The average age of employees at all the top tech companies, in one chart”
Who’s in the lead in developing self-driving car technologies? Hint, it’s not Google
When it comes to the race to develop autonomous vehicles, Google and its fellow tech companies have gotten a lot of publicity. But the tech giants may have a tough time beating out the traditional car makers and parts suppliers, if a new study is any indication.
What is Ray Kurzweil up to at Google? Writing your emails
RAY KURZWEIL HAS invented a few things in his time. In his teens, he built a computer that composed classical music, which won him an audience with President Lyndon B. Johnson. In his 20s, he pioneered software that could digitize printed text, and in his 30s he cofounded a synthesizer company with Stevie Wonder. More recently, he’s known for popularizing the idea of the singularity—a moment sometime in the future when superintelligent machines transform humanity—and making optimistic predictions about immortality. For now, though, Kurzweil, 69, leads a team of about 35 people at Google whose code helps you write emails.
Continue reading… “What is Ray Kurzweil up to at Google? Writing your emails”
The most-loved social network among Americans isn’t the one you think
Google+ has topped the American Consumer Satisfaction Index’s 2017 list evaluating how users feel about Internet social media companies.
Yes, Google+.
Continue reading… “The most-loved social network among Americans isn’t the one you think”
Google Glass returns: this time it’s professional
Glass 2.0 goes to work, and suddenly it looks normal. Maybe enterprise is where it should have been all along.
Continue reading… “Google Glass returns: this time it’s professional”
The top five battlegrounds for tech platforms in 2017
Large platform companies like Amazon, Apple, Google, Samsung, and Microsoft want to provide the operating system for our lives, and they will fight hard in 2017 to establish their foothold in the emerging technologies we will likely come to rely on in the future. Who will succeed?
Continue reading… “The top five battlegrounds for tech platforms in 2017”
The most Googled products in every country
In popular culture, certain countries are stereotypically associated with certain products — beer in Germany, carpets in Turkey, electronics in Japan. But those things aren’t what people are really searching for.
Continue reading… “The most Googled products in every country”
