by Miwa Suzuki Agence France-Presse TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — As Japan celebrates the year of the dog, electronics giant Sony on Thursday unleashed its new robot canine companion, packed with artificial intelligence and internet connectivity. The sleek ivory-white puppy-sized “aibo” robot shook its head and wagged its tail as if waking from a nap when it was taken out of a cocoon-shaped case at a “birthday ceremony” held in Tokyo. Seven-year-old boy Naohiro Sugimoto from […]
Tag: artificial intelligence
Smart robot falls dumb as LG touts ‘connected life’
LAS VEGAS, United States (AFP) — A cute, table-top robot packed with digital smarts fell dumb on stage at an LG Electronics event touting “connected” lifestyles where machines obey spoken commands and anticipate needs. The ignoble demo failure came before an audience packed with journalists and analysts on the eve of the official opening of the annual Consumer Electronics Show gadget extravaganza here on Tuesday. It also took place shortly after LG’s chief technology officer […]
LG adds Google AI in ‘smart home’ push
LAS VEGAS, United States (AFP) — Consumer electronics titan LG on Monday proclaimed this year a “tipping point” for smart homes, pushing hard into artificial intelligence and building Google Assistant into a smart speaker. LG Electronics is developing technology designed to enable its appliances, televisions and other devices adapt to users and collaborate to handle tasks. The AI platform is “open” to utilizing software made by other companies, LG chief technology officer I.P. Park said […]
Race for ‘smart’ hits fever pitch at electronics show
by Glenn Chapman, Julie Charpentrat with Rob Lever in Washington Agence France-Presse SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) — Giving gadgets brains will be a hot theme at the Consumer Electronics Show set to open in Las Vegas, with device makers big and small touting hardware with “smarts.” Whether it’s a doorbell or refrigerator, a TV set or a toothbrush, chances are it will be connected to digital assistants powered by artificial intelligence aiming to anticipate […]
Shark-spotting drones on patrol at Australian beaches
SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — High-tech shark-spotting drones are patrolling dozens of Australian beaches this summer to quickly identify underwater predators and deliver safety devices to swimmers and surfers faster than traditional lifesavers. As hundreds of people lined up in the early morning sun to take part in a recent ocean swimming race at Bilgola beach north of Sydney, they did so in the knowledge the ocean had been scanned to keep them safe. “I think […]
Facebook trains artificial intelligence to spot suicidal signs
SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) — Facebook on Monday said stepping up the use of artificial intelligence to identify members of the leading social network who may be thinking of suicide. Software will look for clues in posts or even in videos being streamed at Facebook Live, then fire off reports to human reviewers and speed up alerts to responders trained to help, according to the social network. “This approach uses pattern recognition technology to […]
Engineers get the feeling for robotic fingers
LA JOLLA, California (Reuters) — All hands are on deck at this lab at the University of California San Diego, where researcher Michael Tolley’s team are working on a human-like robotic gripper. Its three fingers are made of three flexible pneumatic chambers that move when air pressure is applied, allowing each digit to manipulate the object it’s holding. “These fingers are unique in that they can bend in any direction so we have enough degrees […]
UN to host first talks on use of ‘killer robots’
by Ben Simon Agence France-Presse GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — The United Nations is set to host the first-ever talks on the use of autonomous weapons, but those hoping for a ban on the machines dubbed killer robots will be disappointed, the ambassador leading the discussions said Friday. More than 100 artificial intelligence entrepreneurs led by Tesla’s Elon Musk in August urged the UN to enforce a global ban on fully-automated weapons, echoing calls from activists […]
Baidu to hit the road with self-driving bus
by Glenn Chapman Agence France-Presse LAGUNA BEACH, United States (AFP) — Baidu chief executive Robin Li on Tuesday said the Chinese internet giant will have a self-driving bus on the road soon as it races for a lead in autonomous vehicles. Baidu is collaborating with an array of companies on autonomous cars, and is working with a large bus maker in China to have a self-driving bus running a route by next year, Li said […]
Intel working with Facebook on chips for Artificial Intelligence
LAGUNA BEACH, United States (AFP) — Intel chief Brian Krzanich said Tuesday his company is working on a super-fast chip designed specifically for artificial intelligence. The chipmaking giant is partnering with Facebook and other internet titans investing heavily in artificial intelligence to create the first in what will be a family of “Nervana Neural Network Processors” tailored to the needs of the emerging technology, Krzanich said during an on-stage interview at the WSJD Live conference. […]
Google’s AlphaGo clinches series win over Chinese Go master
WUZHEN, China (Reuters) – Google’s artificial intelligence program, AlphaGo, beat Chinese Go master Ke Jie for a second time on Thursday (May 25), taking an unassailable 2-0 lead in a best of three series meant to test the limits of computers in taking on humans at complex tasks. Go is a highly complex board game dating back thousands of years that involves two contestants placing black and white stones on a grid. It is popular […]
Zuckerberg builds software butler for his home
by Glenn CHAPMAN Agence France-Presse SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) -Mark Zuckerberg’s artificial intelligence-imbued software “butler” — named Jarvis — is now in service, and even plays with his family, the Facebook chief said Monday. Zuckerberg took on the personal project this year, devoting about 100 hours to making a system inspired by the “Iron Man” film character Jarvis as a virtual assistant to help manage his household. “In some ways, this challenge was easier than […]





