Robotics/AI – Lifeboat News: The Blog

DARPA moving forward with drone ‘space plane’

Posted by Andreas Matt in drones, military, robotics/AI, satellites

Jun 2
2016

The US military’s research arm says its robotic “space plane” program has received funding for the next phase of development. Aiming to provide a quicker and cheaper way to launch satellites, the still-conceptual vehicle may fly as early as 2019.

The Experimental Spaceplane (XS-1) program is intended to prove that “routine and responsive access to space can be achieved at costs an order of magnitude lower than with today’s systems,” according to Jess Sponable, program manager at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).

After reviewing studies submitted by several aerospace conglomerates, DARPA has now issued a call for design proposals. The deadline for submissions is July 22.

Bill Gates talks about why artificial intelligence is nearly here and how to solve two big problems it creates

Posted by Karen Hurst in robotics/AI

Jun 1
2016

I get a kick out of stories like this one.

The real challenge is ensuring humans stay in control.

Google’s secretive Japanese robotics division is reportedly up for sale — here’s everything we know about it

Posted by Karen Hurst in robotics/AI

Jun 1
2016

Anyone looking to build robots; Google has a deal for U!

Nikkei reported that Google’s Schaft, a Japanese robotics division acquired in 2013, is up for sale. Here’s a closer look at what Schaft has been working on.

Why Should We Ban Autonomous Weapons? To Survive

Posted by Karen Hurst in ethics, law, robotics/AI

Jun 1
2016

I reported on this 3 months ago; and glad to see others seeing the light.

While debate has focused on moral and legal issues of autonomous weapons, too little attention has been paid to the material dangers of an AI-powered war.

Toyota in talks to buy Waltham’s Boston Dynamics from Google’s parent, Alphabet

Posted by Karen Hurst in robotics/AI, transportation

Jun 1
2016

Both Toyota and Honda would make sense as buyers. Toyota’s TRI has been ramping up on AI technology and Honda has been working on AI such as as Asimo for over a decade.

The car company may acquire Alphabet’s Boston Dynamics, known for a spry robot called Cheetah, and Schaft, a company working on humanoid robots, Tokyo’s Nikkei reported Wednesday. The potential acquisition would allow Toyota to make serious strides in its robotics division, while Alphabet could unload elements of its own underperforming robotics unit.

The Pentagon is building a ‘self-aware’ killer robot army fueled by social media

Posted by Bryan Gatton in military, robotics/AI

Jun 1
2016

Official US defence and NATO documents confirm that autonomous weapon systems will kill targets, including civilians, based on tweets, blogs and Instagram by Nafeez Ahmed.

This exclusive is published by INSURGE INTELLIGENCE, a crowd-funded investigative journalism project for the global commons

See The Difference One Year Makes In Artificial Intelligence Research

Posted by Shailesh Prasad in food, robotics/AI

Jun 1
2016

An improved way of learning about neural networks.

What The Future Of Supermarkets May Look Like

Posted by Shailesh Prasad in food, robotics/AI

Jun 1
2016

This concept, by Italian designer Carlo Ratti Associati, features many futuristic designs such as transparent displays and robots boxing up your food.

Uber, Ford, and Google Teaming Up to Radically Change Driving Laws

Posted by Shailesh Prasad in robotics/AI, transportation

Jun 1
2016

With a new lobby, driverless cars could gain some legitimacy and legislation for the road. The question is whether they are good for the environment or not.

Here’s why the inventor of the Internet supports basic income

Posted by Shailesh Prasad in economics, employment, internet, robotics/AI

Jun 1
2016

With the robot economy looming large in the coming decades, one solution to vanishing jobs may simply be to give people money regardless of whether or not they work.

That idea is called “basic income,” and it just gained the support of one of the tech world’s founding fathers, Internet inventor Tim Berners-Lee.

“I think a basic income is one of the ways of addressing massive global inequality,” Berners-Lee, who founded the Web in 1989, explained on a recent episode of The Economist podcast.