Modern militaries are way beyond reliance on hand-loaded mortars and Howitzers. Those old-fashioned ways of lobbing explosive charges tend to reveal the location of the troops using them. Protecting our troops and civilians in or near the battlefield is best accomplished through a mix of conventional and high-tech tools. A U.S. Army spokesperson says “allowing […]
The Real Threats of Artificial Intelligence
Some consumers may be alarmed at the prospects of malicious Artificial Intelligence (AI), but some are unconcerned. In a verbal standoff, Elon Musk claims that humanity needs to fear AI while Steven Pinker (a highly respected academic) feels that perspective is unproductive fear mongering. Bill Gates and the late Stephen Hawking side with Musk, but […]
Artificial Intelligence, Price Setting, and Antitrust Behaviors
With specialized training, Artificial Intelligence (AI) machines can scour a marketplace looking at prices and devising ways that all sellers could obtain higher prices, especially if the competitors acted collusively. Of course, AI is unaware of the ethical violation that arises from collusion until it is trained to avoid such behaviors. The scope of training […]
Robots Will Help Reverse the Offshoring of US Jobs
Robots long ago graduated from the pages of sci-fi novels and comic books. In nations that engage in serious manufacturing, robots have become crucial to prosperity and growth. Industrial robots have become so common in factory settings that we no longer expect them to appear humanoid. Around the clock, they perform the full panoply of […]
How AI Learns and Where AI Is Welcomed
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is of three types: Narrow AI, Machine Learning and Deep Learning. The demand for experienced AI developers is brisk, with Microsoft, Facebook, Google, IBM and Intel aggressively recruiting. Already non-IT firms are looking for their own AI developers. In recent years, much AI development has been focused on practical AI products for […]
Labor Productivity and Artificial Intelligence
Economic growth is needed to provide income for workers and to provide tax revenues that support our defense and safety net government programs. Without Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth, it is difficult to justify higher wages and it becomes near impossible to fund government at the desired levels. The advent of robotics and artificial intelligence […]
Wishlist Computing Items Under Development
Artificial Intelligence (AI) developments have attracted much attention in industrial and financial circles. AI is being used commercially to “recognize spoken words, translate from one language to another, improve Internet search results” and to select financial investments (e.g. AIEQ, the AI Powered Equity ETF) that would normally require human judgement. Gradually, some workers will find […]
Continue Sharpening Your Skills
Once upon a time, good behavior and a high school diploma qualified us for a career-long job in an automobile manufacturing plant. Good behavior still matters, but that high school diploma isn’t worth much, and it will likely be trumped by artificial intelligence or a tireless robot. Of its 33,000 employees in this quarter, Tesla […]
Will the Next Generation Have Artificially Intelligent Assistants?
Will the Next Generation Have Artificially Intelligent Assistants? Artificial intelligence (AI) describes projects involving purpose-driven computer hardware and software. When aimed at economically valuable goals, AI projects have proven to be helpful, but they are expensive to develop and are not yet up to some tasks. A big part of the challenge is overcoming shortcomings […]
Just When You Thought Robots Would Do the Heavy Lifting
Today’s automobile manufacturing plants are manned by highspeed robots that lift steel panels, hold them in place, weld them together and present the assembly to the next specialized robot. Down the line, a robot slowly spins the entire steel body of a car so a “paint” robot can spray it uniformly – flat panels and […]
