Over the weekend, the US Marine Corps conducted drills with Boston Dynamics' Spot robot at Quantico, Virginia, to assess its utility alongside infantry. The four-legged machine, developed by a Google subsidiary and introduced earlier this year, drew positive feedback from handlers and marines. The trials suggest potential future roles for robotic systems in dismounted combat operations.
A supercomputer at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston analyzes patient data to predict the likelihood of death within 30 days, with 96% accuracy. The system, which uses machine learning on 30 years of data from 250,000 patients, aims to assist doctors rather than replace them, despite ethical concerns.
Meta plans to fill Facebook with AI-generated characters that users can create and interact with, aiming to boost engagement. The move, part of a broader AI rollout, raises concerns about misinformation and user safety, as similar chatbots have faced issues.
OpenAI has acquired the domain Chat.com, previously used by an adult video chat service, and now redirects it to ChatGPT. The purchase price was not disclosed, but the previous owner paid $15.5 million in 2023. The move comes amid OpenAI's expansion into AI-powered search.
Tesla is rolling out Autopilot 8.0, a software update that elevates radar to a primary sensor for braking decisions, following fatal and non-fatal crashes. The upgrade processes radar data six times faster, enabling 3D mapping in poor visibility. Elon Musk claims the system could have prevented a prior fatality, though he cautions that perfect safety remains unattainable.
Property managers are increasingly deploying AI chatbots to field tenant inquiries, collect rent, and schedule tours, according to The New York Times. While these systems offer 24/7 availability, tenants report frustration with vague answers and impersonal service, and experts warn about the risks of automated misinformation.
Stability AI's new video generator, Stable Video Diffusion, is enabling users to animate popular memes with unsettling results. The tool's release follows internal turmoil at the company, including executive departures and disputes over copyrighted training data.
Murray Campbell, who helped build IBM's Deep Blue, reflects on the 1997 match that ended Garry Kasparov's reign. The victory marked a turning point in AI, proving machines could master complex human games.
Security researchers at Wiz discovered a publicly accessible DeepSeek database containing user chats and internal secrets. The exposure, which required no authentication, was closed within an hour of alerting the company. Experts warn the incident highlights serious maturity gaps in the AI startup's security posture.
Emily Kennedy, a Carnegie Mellon graduate, created Traffic Jam, an AI tool that scans online ads to identify trafficking victims. With an 88% success rate, it has helped rescue hundreds in the U.S. and Canada and is expanding globally.
A new survey reveals that no 2020 presidential campaign has a plan to counter deepfakes, despite warnings from national security experts and a recent viral video of Nancy Pelosi. Candidates largely defer responsibility to institutions, leaving the election vulnerable to manipulated media.
British AI specialist Catriona Campbell argues that within 50 years, people may raise virtual children in the metaverse to address overpopulation and resource scarcity. She suggests these digital offspring, dubbed 'Tamagotchi children,' could be available for a modest monthly fee. Critics point to falling global population projections and environmental gains from technology.
Despite OpenAI's policies against explicit content, users are crafting detailed prompts to trick ChatGPT into generating pornographic stories. Reddit communities share these jailbreak prompts, and other AI chatbots like DeepAI and Poe also produce explicit text. The issue highlights the challenges of content moderation in AI systems.
Two UK academics propose equipping robots with an 'ethical black box' modeled on aviation flight recorders to log decisions and sensory data, enabling accident investigations as machines move into human environments. They join a broader push for AI oversight, including industry partnerships and the Asilomar AI Principles.
President Trump acknowledged the emergence of Chinese AI startup DeepSeek as a challenge to US tech dominance, calling for increased competitiveness. The low-cost R1 model, developed for under $6 million, has rattled markets and prompted a reassessment of billion-dollar AI infrastructure investments.
Jürgen Schmidhuber, a pioneer in deep learning, predicts that by the 2050s, AI-managed, self-replicating robot factories will operate in the asteroid belt, and that AI could eventually colonize the galaxy. His vision, presented at WIRED2016, highlights AI's potential to revolutionize resource gathering and scientific discovery, with humans playing a diminished role.
Google has acquired Eyefluence, a startup specializing in eye-tracking interfaces, a move that could enhance its upcoming Daydream VR platform. The technology enables hands-free control of head-mounted displays through eye movements, potentially transforming user interaction in virtual and augmented reality.
Astronomer CEO Andy Byron resigned after a Coldplay concert Jumbotron captured him with the company's HR chief, Kristin Cabot. The board accepted his resignation and named cofounder Pete DeJoy as interim CEO. Cabot remains employed but is reported to be on leave.
An investigation by Nikkei Asia uncovered 17 academic papers on arXiv containing invisible prompts intended to manipulate AI review tools into giving positive evaluations. The findings highlight a growing battle between researchers and AI-driven peer review, with authors offering conflicting justifications for the practice.
The University of Chicago Law School is banning phones, tablets, and laptops in first-year classes as part of a curriculum overhaul aimed at making learning more resilient to generative AI. The policy, announced Thursday, also includes in-class exams without internet access and oral discussions on research papers. Officials stress the move is not a total AI ban but an effort to promote deliberate and effective use of the technology.