Archive for the 'Rise of the Machines' Category
A Mall in China Put in a Traffic Lane Just for People Staring at Their Phones
June 9th, 2018Reader DF sent in this video a few days ago. Via: FastCompany: According to the New York Times, the new lane of traffic was intended to address the needs of the so-called “heads down tribe,” people who find the world around them so dull that they can’t bear to look up from their phones, even […]
Deep in the Pentagon, a Secret AI Program to Anticipate the Launch of Nuclear Missiles
June 5th, 2018First, we take some W.O.P.R. Next, we stir in a pinch of SkyNet And then… Via: Reuters: The U.S. military is increasing spending on a secret research effort to use artificial intelligence to help anticipate the launch of a nuclear-capable missile, as well as track and target mobile launchers in North Korea and elsewhere. The […]
Amazon Using Over 100,000 Warehouse Robots
June 4th, 2018Warehouse robots to the horizon… Via: MIT Technology Review: Amazon’s fleet of automated warehouse robots, now more than 100,000 machines strong, is working alongside human employees to help meet the e-commerce giant’s massive fulfillment demand. The company’s robots carry inventory around massive warehouse floors, compiling all the items for a customer’s order and reducing the […]
McDonald’s to Add Self-Order Kiosks to 1,000 Stores Each Quarter
June 4th, 2018Via: CNBC: As McDonald’s seeks to modernize its business, the company is placing a big bet on mobile and other tech platforms. McDonald’s has been systematically adding self-service ordering kiosks and table service to stores as it works to “build a better McDonald’s.” “What we’re finding is when people dwell more, they select more,” CEO […]
Google Promises Ethical Principles to Guide Development of Military AI
May 31st, 2018Update: Leaked Emails Show Google Expected Lucrative Military Drone AI Work to Grow Exponentially Via: The Intercept: FOLLOWING THE REVELATION in March that Google had secretly signed an agreement with the Pentagon to provide cutting edge artificial intelligence technology for drone warfare, the company faced an internal revolt. About a dozen Google employees have resigned […]
Tesla Flies in New Battery Production Line for Gigafactory
May 25th, 2018Balls to the wall 24/7. Besides the normal Model S and X and energy products output, there’s the Model 3 ramp, the single 50,000 unit Powerwall order from Australia, an as yet undisclosed 1+GWH battery project and the looming Semi. I’ve been in the queue for a Powerwall 2 since December 2017. #learningpatiencewithtesla Via: Reuters: […]
Woman Says Her Amazon Device Recorded Private Conversation, Sent It Out to Random Contact
May 24th, 2018I can’t believe people pay to have these things in their homes. Via: KIRO 7: A Portland family contacted Amazon to investigate after they say a private conversation in their home was recorded by Amazon’s Alexa — the voice-controlled smart speaker — and that the recorded audio was sent to the phone of a random […]
Pentagon Worked with “Private-Sector Organizations” on Plan to Verify Identity with Mobile Phones
May 23rd, 2018Via: Nextgov: The Defense Department is funding a project that officials say could revolutionize the way companies, federal agencies and the military itself verify that people are who they say they are and it could be available in most commercial smartphones within two years. The technology, which will be embedded in smartphones’ hardware, will analyze […]
Amazon Selling Face-Recognition Tech to Police
May 22nd, 2018Amazon, a large CIA contractor, is selling face-recognition tech to police. Via: AP: The American Civil Liberties Union and other privacy activists are asking Amazon to stop marketing a powerful facial recognition tool to police, saying law enforcement agencies could use the technology to “easily build a system to automate the identification and tracking of […]
Robots Fight Weeds in Challenge to Agrochemical Giants
May 22nd, 2018Via: Reuters: In a field of sugar beet in Switzerland, a solar-powered robot that looks like a table on wheels scans the rows of crops with its camera, identifies weeds and zaps them with jets of blue liquid from its mechanical tentacles. Undergoing final tests before the liquid is replaced with weedkiller, the Swiss robot […]
