Tech billionaire Elon Musk's brain-machine interface company Neuralink showcased a working device on Friday, shedding new light into the progress of the secretive company.

Co-founded by Tesla Inc and SpaceX CEO&nbsp;Musk&nbsp;in 2016, San Francisco Bay Area-based Neuralink aims to implant wireless brain-computer interfaces that include thousands of electrodes in the most complex human organ to help cure neurological conditions like Alzheimer's, dementia and spinal cord injuries and ultimately fuse humankind with artificial intelligence.

While the touted benefits of the company's brain-machine interface range from providing anxiety relief to helping paralysed people control devices, the more immediate goal of the company appears to be allowing people to control their phones and computers with chips that can be implanted on brain.

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In picture: V2 of the Neuralink brain-machine interface surgery bot 

"An implantable device can actually solve these problems,"&nbsp;Musk&nbsp;said on a webcast Friday, mentioning ailments such as memory loss, hearing loss, depression and insomnia.

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In picture: Tesla Inc Chief Executive Officer Elon&nbsp;Musk&nbsp;is seen on a screen during a video message&nbsp; 
 
"Live webcast of working @Neuralink device," Musk said in tweet, adding that it will take place on Friday.

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Live webcast of working <a href="https://twitter.com/neuralink?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Neuralink</a> device 
Friday 3pm Pacific <a href="https://t.co/PouLbrGzFU">https://t.co/PouLbrGzFU</a>
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) <a href="https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1298494373278220290?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 26, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Musk&nbsp;did not provide a timeline for those treatments, appearing to retreat from earlier statements that human trials would begin by the end of this year. Neuralink's first clinical trials with a small number of human patients would be aimed at treating paralysis or paraplegia, the company's head surgeon Dr. Matthew MacDougall said.

Neuroscientists unaffiliated with the company said the presentation indicated that Neuralink had made great strides but cautioned that longer studies were needed.

Musk&nbsp;presented what he described as the "three little pigs demo." Gertrude, the pig with a Neuralink implant in the part of its brain that controls the snout, required some coaxing by&nbsp;Musk&nbsp;to appear on camera, but eventually began eating off of a stool and sniffing straw, triggering spikes on a graph tracking the animal's neural activity.

Musk&nbsp;said the company had three pigs with two implants each, and also revealed a pig that previously had an implant. They were "healthy, happy and indistinguishable from a normal pig,"&nbsp;Musk&nbsp;said.&nbsp;Musk&nbsp;said the company predicted a pig's limb movement during a treadmill run at "high accuracy" using implant data.

Musk is soon expected to announce human trials for the technology that has been successful on mice and even apes. 
 
"Will show neurons firing in real-time on August 28th. The matrix in the matrix," Musk tweeted last month. 
 
The Tesla and SpaceX CEO also claimed that a new Neuralink chip will allow users to hear sounds that previously were impossible to human ears. 
 
He confirmed the new feature last month over an exchange with a Twitter user who asked: "If we implement Neuralink - can we listen to music directly from our chips? Great feature." Musk replied with a simple, "yes". 
 
Musk founded Neuralink in 2016 but has only held one major public presentation so far.

The Silicon Valley entrepreneur's&nbsp;&nbsp;net worth topped $100 billion on Friday, according to the Forbes real-time billionaires list, as the shares of electric-car maker Tesla Inc see a more than five-fold surge in value this year.

Tesla Inc's factory in Nevada was a target of a "serious" cybersecurity attack according to&nbsp;a media report that claimed an employee of the company helped the Federal Bureau of Investigation(FBI) thwart the attack.

Tech billionaire Elon Musk's brain-machine interface company Neuralink showcased a working device on Friday, shedding new light into the progress of the secretive company.

Tech billionaire Elon Musk's brain-machine interface company Neuralink showcased a working device on Friday, shedding new light into the progress of the secretive company. Co-founded by Tesla Inc and SpaceX CEO Musk in 2016, San Francisco Bay Area-based Neuralink aims to implant wireless brain-computer interfaces that include thousands of electrodes in the most complex human organ to help cure neurological conditions like Alzheimer's, dementia and spinal cord injuries and ultimately fuse humankind with artificial intelligence. While the touted benefits of the company's brain-machine interface range from providing anxiety relief to helping paralysed people control devices, the more immediate goal of the company appears to be allowing people to control their phones and computers with chips that can be implanted on brain. In picture: V2 of the Neuralink brain-machine interface surgery bot "An implantable device can actually solve these problems," Musk said on a webcast Friday, mentioning ailments such as memory loss, hearing loss, depression and insomnia. In picture: Tesla Inc Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk is seen on a screen during a video message "Live webcast of working @Neuralink device," Musk said in tweet, adding that it will take place on Friday. Live webcast of working @Neuralink device Friday 3pm Pacific https://t.co/PouLbrGzFU — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 26, 2020 × Musk did not provide a timeline for those treatments, appearing to retreat from earlier statements that human trials would begin by the end of this year. Neuralink's first clinical trials with a small number of human patients would be aimed at treating paralysis or paraplegia, the company's head surgeon Dr. Matthew MacDougall said. Neuroscientists unaffiliated with the company said the presentation indicated that Neuralink had made great strides but cautioned that longer studies were needed. Musk presented what he described as the "three little pigs demo." Gertrude, the pig with a Neuralink implant in the part of its brain that controls the snout, required some coaxing by Musk to appear on camera, but eventually began eating off of a stool and sniffing straw, triggering spikes on a graph tracking the animal's neural activity. Musk said the company had three pigs with two implants each, and also revealed a pig that previously had an implant. They were "healthy, happy and indistinguishable from a normal pig," Musk said. Musk said the company predicted a pig's limb movement during a treadmill run at "high accuracy" using implant data. Musk is soon expected to announce human trials for the technology that has been successful on mice and even apes. "Will show neurons firing in real-time on August 28th. The matrix in the matrix," Musk tweeted last month. The Tesla and SpaceX CEO also claimed that a new Neuralink chip will allow users to hear sounds that previously were impossible to human ears. He confirmed the new feature last month over an exchange with a Twitter user who asked: "If we implement Neuralink - can we listen to music directly from our chips? Great feature." Musk replied with a simple, "yes". Musk founded Neuralink in 2016 but has only held one major public presentation so far. The Silicon Valley entrepreneur's net worth topped $100 billion on Friday, according to the Forbes real-time billionaires list, as the shares of electric-car maker Tesla Inc see a more than five-fold surge in value this year. Tesla Inc's factory in Nevada was a target of a "serious" cybersecurity attack according to a media report that claimed an employee of the company helped the Federal Bureau of Investigation(FBI) thwart the attack.

'Three little pigs': Elon Musk unveils Neuralink brain computer implants

In a groundbreaking first, British researchers have identified 50 new planets using artificial intelligence.

A research team led by David Armstrong at the University of Warwick in the United Kingdom&nbsp;created a&nbsp;machine learning&nbsp;algorithm and trained it using data on confirmed planets and false-positives from&nbsp;NASA's retired Kepler mission.&nbsp;

The scientists&nbsp;then used the algorithm on a dataset of still unconfirmed planetary candidates from Kepler, resulting in fifty new confirmed planets and the first to be validated by machine learning.

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Their results were reported in a new study published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, where they also perform the first large scale comparison of such planet validation techniques.

Previous machine learning techniques have ranked candidates, but never determined the probability that a candidate was a true planet by themselves, a required step for planet validation.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/car-sized-asteroid-becomes-closest-ever-seen-passing-earth-nasa-321591" hreflang="en">Car-sized asteroid becomes closest ever seen passing Earth: NASA</a>

These 50 exoplanets,&nbsp;range from worlds as large as Neptune to smaller than the Earth, with orbits as long as 200 days to as little as a single day. By confirming that these fifty planets are real, astronomers can now prioritise these for further observations with dedicated telescopes.

"The algorithm we have developed lets us take fifty candidates across the threshold for planet validation, upgrading them to real planets. We hope to apply this technique to large samples of candidates from current and future missions like TESS and PLATO,"&nbsp;Armstrong said.

"In terms of planet validation, no-one has used a machine learning technique before. Machine learning has been used for ranking planetary candidates but never in a probabilistic framework, which is what you need to truly validate a planet. Rather than saying which candidates are more likely to be planets, we can now say what the precise statistical likelihood is. Where there is less than a 1 per cent&nbsp;chance of a candidate being a false positive, it is considered a validated planet," added Armstrong.

"Probabilistic approaches to statistical machine learning are especially suited for an exciting problem like this in astrophysics that requires incorporation of prior knowledge,&nbsp;from experts like Dr Armstrong&nbsp;and quantification of uncertainty in predictions. A prime example when the additional computational complexity of probabilistic methods pays off significantly," Dr Theo Damoulas from the University of Warwick Department of Computer Science, and Deputy Director, Data Centric Engineering and Turing Fellow at The Alan Turing Institute, said.

Once built and trained the algorithm is faster than existing techniques and can be completely automated, making it ideal for analysing the potentially thousands of planetary candidates observed in current surveys like TESS.

The researchers argue that it should be one of the tools to be collectively used to validate planets in future.

"Almost 30 per cent of the known planets to date have been validated using just one method, and that`s not ideal. Developing new methods for validation is desirable for that reason alone. But machine learning also lets us do it very quickly and prioritise candidates much faster. We still have to spend time training the algorithm, but once that is done it becomes much easier to apply it to future candidates," Dr Armstrong said.

"You can also incorporate new discoveries to progressively improve it. A survey like TESS is predicted to have tens of thousands of planetary candidates and it is ideal to be able to analyse them all consistently. Fast, automated systems like this that can take us all the way to validated planets in fewer steps let us do that efficiently," added Dr Armstrong.

In a groundbreaking first, British researchers have identified 50 new planets using artificial intelligence. A research team led by David Armstrong at the University of Warwick in the United Kingdom created a machine learning algorithm and trained it using data on confirmed planets and false-positives from NASA's retired Kepler mission.

In a groundbreaking first, British researchers have identified 50 new planets using artificial intelligence. A research team led by David Armstrong at the University of Warwick in the United Kingdom created a machine learning algorithm and trained it using data on confirmed planets and false-positives from NASA's retired Kepler mission. The scientists then used the algorithm on a dataset of still unconfirmed planetary candidates from Kepler, resulting in fifty new confirmed planets and the first to be validated by machine learning. Also read: Growing dent on Earth’s magnetic field can damage satellites and navigation Their results were reported in a new study published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, where they also perform the first large scale comparison of such planet validation techniques. Previous machine learning techniques have ranked candidates, but never determined the probability that a candidate was a true planet by themselves, a required step for planet validation. Also read: Car-sized asteroid becomes closest ever seen passing Earth: NASA These 50 exoplanets, range from worlds as large as Neptune to smaller than the Earth, with orbits as long as 200 days to as little as a single day. By confirming that these fifty planets are real, astronomers can now prioritise these for further observations with dedicated telescopes. "The algorithm we have developed lets us take fifty candidates across the threshold for planet validation, upgrading them to real planets. We hope to apply this technique to large samples of candidates from current and future missions like TESS and PLATO," Armstrong said. "In terms of planet validation, no-one has used a machine learning technique before. Machine learning has been used for ranking planetary candidates but never in a probabilistic framework, which is what you need to truly validate a planet. Rather than saying which candidates are more likely to be planets, we can now say what the precise statistical likelihood is. Where there is less than a 1 per cent chance of a candidate being a false positive, it is considered a validated planet," added Armstrong. "Probabilistic approaches to statistical machine learning are especially suited for an exciting problem like this in astrophysics that requires incorporation of prior knowledge, from experts like Dr Armstrong and quantification of uncertainty in predictions. A prime example when the additional computational complexity of probabilistic methods pays off significantly," Dr Theo Damoulas from the University of Warwick Department of Computer Science, and Deputy Director, Data Centric Engineering and Turing Fellow at The Alan Turing Institute, said. Once built and trained the algorithm is faster than existing techniques and can be completely automated, making it ideal for analysing the potentially thousands of planetary candidates observed in current surveys like TESS. The researchers argue that it should be one of the tools to be collectively used to validate planets in future. "Almost 30 per cent of the known planets to date have been validated using just one method, and that`s not ideal. Developing new methods for validation is desirable for that reason alone. But machine learning also lets us do it very quickly and prioritise candidates much faster. We still have to spend time training the algorithm, but once that is done it becomes much easier to apply it to future candidates," Dr Armstrong said. "You can also incorporate new discoveries to progressively improve it. A survey like TESS is predicted to have tens of thousands of planetary candidates and it is ideal to be able to analyse them all consistently. Fast, automated systems like this that can take us all the way to validated planets in fewer steps let us do that efficiently," added Dr Armstrong.

Artificial Intelligence identifies 50 new planets from NASA data

Social&nbsp;media platform Instagram, owned by tech giant Facebook, is&nbsp;facing a&nbsp;fresh lawsuit over illegal harvesting of biometrics.

The company is accused of collecting, storing and profiting from the biometric data of more than 100 million Instagram users, without their knowledge or consent in a&nbsp;new lawsuit, filed&nbsp;in state court in Redwood City, California.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/technology/amazon-facebook-and-50-others-file-lawsuit-against-trumps-ban-of-h1b-visa-319640" hreflang="en">Amazon, Facebook and 50 others file lawsuit against Trump's ban of H1B visa</a>

According to the&nbsp;Illinois privacy law,&nbsp;unauthorised collection of biometric data is barred.&nbsp;Under the law, a company can be forced to pay $1,000 per violation, or $5,000 if it was found to have acted recklessly or intentionally.

Facebook started informing Instagram users at the beginning of this year that it was collecting the biometric data, according to the suit.

Facebook did not immediately respond to a request for comment, made after regular business hours.

Last month, the social media company offered to pay $650 million&nbsp;to settle a lawsuit in which it was accused of illegally collecting biometric data through a photo-tagging tool provided to Facebook users.

Social media platform Instagram, owned by tech giant Facebook, is facing a fresh lawsuit over illegal harvesting of biometrics. The company is accused of collecting, storing and profiting from the biometric data of more than 100 million Instagram users, without their knowledge or consent in a new lawsuit, filed in state court in Redwood City, California.

Social media platform Instagram, owned by tech giant Facebook, is facing a fresh lawsuit over illegal harvesting of biometrics. The company is accused of collecting, storing and profiting from the biometric data of more than 100 million Instagram users, without their knowledge or consent in a new lawsuit, filed in state court in Redwood City, California. Also read: Amazon, Facebook and 50 others file lawsuit against Trump's ban of H1B visa According to the Illinois privacy law, unauthorised collection of biometric data is barred. Under the law, a company can be forced to pay $1,000 per violation, or $5,000 if it was found to have acted recklessly or intentionally. Facebook started informing Instagram users at the beginning of this year that it was collecting the biometric data, according to the suit. Facebook did not immediately respond to a request for comment, made after regular business hours. Last month, the social media company offered to pay $650 million to settle a lawsuit in which it was accused of illegally collecting biometric data through a photo-tagging tool provided to Facebook users.

Instagram faces fresh lawsuit over illegal harvesting of biometrics

Computer engineers in Chicago have developed a tool to protect one's online photos from facial recognition.

In an attempt to foil facial recognition&nbsp;technologies, the&nbsp;researchers from the University of Chicago have&nbsp;has developed a tool that disguises photos with pixel-level changes that confuse facial recognition systems.

The tool called&nbsp;Fawkes, named after Guy&nbsp;Fawkes,&nbsp;the software was made available to developers on the researchers' website last month.

It has been downloaded more than 50,000 times after a&nbsp;free app version&nbsp;was introduced for non-coders.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/technology/twitter-could-face-a-fine-of-upto-250-million-for-unauthorised-usage-of-user-data-318080" hreflang="en">Twitter could face a fine of upto $250 million for unauthorised usage of user data</a>

In the researchers' parlance,&nbsp;Fawkes "cloaks" an image by subtly altering some of the features that facial recognition systems depend on when they construct a person's face print.

The tool and be a broadside if it is deployed&nbsp;against facial recognition systems, poisoning the accuracy of the data sets they gather from the Web.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/technology/spanish-pizzeria-takes-social-distancing-to-another-level-with-new-mobile-application-318064" hreflang="en">Spanish pizzeria takes social distancing to another level with new mobile application!</a>

Dr Ben Zhao, a professor of computer science at the University of Chicago,&nbsp;said "Our goal is to make Clearview go away."

Many tech companies use&nbsp;scrapes&nbsp;billions of online photos to build tools for police to reveal a person's identity. This includes the infacial&nbsp;recognition&nbsp;technology company Clearview AI.

The New York-based company bills itself as a tool for law enforcement, scraping the internet for publicly available photos and using&nbsp;facial&nbsp;recognition&nbsp;to identify potential suspects and victims.

Critics raised concerns earlier this year about the lack of consent of those searched and the potential for misuse of the service, leading to a joint investigation launched in February into the company by the privacy commissioners of British Columbia, Alberta, Quebec and the federal government.

The company is under investigation in Britain, Canada, and Australia&nbsp;where Clearview said it would no longer offer its&nbsp;facial&nbsp;recognition&nbsp;services.

Computer engineers in Chicago have developed a tool to protect one's online photos from facial recognition. In an attempt to foil facial recognition technologies, the researchers from the University of Chicago have has developed a tool that disguises photos with pixel-level changes that confuse facial recognition systems.

Computer engineers in Chicago have developed a tool to protect one's online photos from facial recognition. In an attempt to foil facial recognition technologies, the researchers from the University of Chicago have has developed a tool that disguises photos with pixel-level changes that confuse facial recognition systems. The tool called Fawkes, named after Guy Fawkes, the software was made available to developers on the researchers' website last month. It has been downloaded more than 50,000 times after a free app version was introduced for non-coders. Also read: Twitter could face a fine of upto $250 million for unauthorised usage of user data In the researchers' parlance, Fawkes "cloaks" an image by subtly altering some of the features that facial recognition systems depend on when they construct a person's face print. The tool and be a broadside if it is deployed against facial recognition systems, poisoning the accuracy of the data sets they gather from the Web. Also read: Spanish pizzeria takes social distancing to another level with new mobile application! Dr Ben Zhao, a professor of computer science at the University of Chicago, said "Our goal is to make Clearview go away." Many tech companies use scrapes billions of online photos to build tools for police to reveal a person's identity. This includes the infacial recognition technology company Clearview AI. The New York-based company bills itself as a tool for law enforcement, scraping the internet for publicly available photos and using facial recognition to identify potential suspects and victims. Critics raised concerns earlier this year about the lack of consent of those searched and the potential for misuse of the service, leading to a joint investigation launched in February into the company by the privacy commissioners of British Columbia, Alberta, Quebec and the federal government. The company is under investigation in Britain, Canada, and Australia where Clearview said it would no longer offer its facial recognition services.

Engineers develop tool called 'Fawkes' to protect online photos from facial recognition

How countries are using robots to fight coronavirus pandemic?

&nbsp;Chinese artificial intelligence (AI) firm <a href="https://www.wionews.com/.../us-expands-blacklist-to-include-chinas-top-ai- startups-ahead-of-trade-talks-254672">Megvii Technology Ltd</a> plans to seek listing approval on Thursday for a Hong Kong initial public offering (IPO) of at least $500 million, people with direct knowledge of the matter said.

However, Beijing-based Megvii, which is backed by e-commerce giant <a href="https://www.wionews.com/.../what-trade-war-chinese-companies-wow-with- third-quarter-report-card-263154">Alibaba </a>Group and is widely known for its facial recognition platform Face++, has yet to decide whether to carry out a roadshow once approval is granted, one of the people said.

Sources had previously told Reuters the listing was scheduled for Hong Kong in the fourth quarter and might raise as much as $1 billion.

The latest move comes weeks after the US&nbsp;government placed Megvii and seven other Chinese companies on a trade blacklist over their alleged involvement in human rights violations related to Beijing's repression of Muslim minority populations in the<a href="https://www.wionews.com/.../leaked-chinese-government-documents-show- details-of-xinjiang-clampdown-report-262676"> Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region.</a>

Goldman Sachs, which is a joint sponsor of the Megvii IPO alongside Citigroup and JPMorgan, last month said in an emailed statement in response to a request for comment on the Megvii IPO that it was "evaluating in light of the recent developments".

Megvii last month said it "strongly objects" to being added to the blacklist and there were "no grounds" for the designation. In a statement, it said around 1% of revenues were derived from Xinjiang in 2018 and none in the six months ended June 30.

Megvii and the three banks declined to comment.

Hong Kong, which topped the global charts in 2018 for funds raised through IPOs, has been roiled by nearly six months of political crisis. But IPO activity in the city has picked up since September, marked by AB InBev's Budweiser Brewing Company APAC Ltd, which raised about $5 billion in Hong Kong's biggest IPO so far this year.

Alibaba last week also launched the share sale for its Hong Kong listing, aiming to raise up to $13.4 billion in what would be the biggest follow-on share sale globally in seven years, according to Refinitiv data.

Founded in 2011 by Chief Executive Yin Qi and two friends from Tsinghua University, Megvii will become the first Chinese AI firm to go public if the deal goes ahead.

The company provides AI technology to governments and companies including Alibaba, Ant Financial, Lenovo Group Ltd and Huawei.

Its $750 million fundraising in May valued the company at slightly over $4 billion and attracted investors including Bank of China Group Investment Ltd, Macquarie Group and the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority.

Chinese artificial intelligence (AI) firm Megvii Technology Ltd plans to seek listing approval on Thursday for a Hong Kong initial public offering (IPO) of at least $500 million, people with direct knowledge of the matter said.

Chinese artificial intelligence (AI) firm Megvii Technology Ltd plans to seek listing approval on Thursday for a Hong Kong initial public offering (IPO) of at least $500 million, people with direct knowledge of the matter said. However, Beijing-based Megvii, which is backed by e-commerce giant Alibaba Group and is widely known for its facial recognition platform Face++, has yet to decide whether to carry out a roadshow once approval is granted, one of the people said. Sources had previously told Reuters the listing was scheduled for Hong Kong in the fourth quarter and might raise as much as $1 billion. The latest move comes weeks after the US government placed Megvii and seven other Chinese companies on a trade blacklist over their alleged involvement in human rights violations related to Beijing's repression of Muslim minority populations in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region. Goldman Sachs, which is a joint sponsor of the Megvii IPO alongside Citigroup and JPMorgan, last month said in an emailed statement in response to a request for comment on the Megvii IPO that it was "evaluating in light of the recent developments". Megvii last month said it "strongly objects" to being added to the blacklist and there were "no grounds" for the designation. In a statement, it said around 1% of revenues were derived from Xinjiang in 2018 and none in the six months ended June 30. Megvii and the three banks declined to comment. Hong Kong, which topped the global charts in 2018 for funds raised through IPOs, has been roiled by nearly six months of political crisis. But IPO activity in the city has picked up since September, marked by AB InBev's Budweiser Brewing Company APAC Ltd, which raised about $5 billion in Hong Kong's biggest IPO so far this year. Alibaba last week also launched the share sale for its Hong Kong listing, aiming to raise up to $13.4 billion in what would be the biggest follow-on share sale globally in seven years, according to Refinitiv data. Founded in 2011 by Chief Executive Yin Qi and two friends from Tsinghua University, Megvii will become the first Chinese AI firm to go public if the deal goes ahead. The company provides AI technology to governments and companies including Alibaba, Ant Financial, Lenovo Group Ltd and Huawei. Its $750 million fundraising in May valued the company at slightly over $4 billion and attracted investors including Bank of China Group Investment Ltd, Macquarie Group and the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority.

Chinese Artificial Intelligence start-up Megvii seeks approval for Hong Kong IPO of at least $500 million: Report

US&nbsp;government funding in artificial intelligence has fallen short and the country needs to invest in research, train an AI-ready workforce and apply the technology to national security missions, a government-commissioned panel led by Google's former CEO said in an interim report on Monday.

The National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence (NSCAI), created by Congress last year, raised concerns about the progress China has made in this area. It also said the US&nbsp;government still faces enormous work before it can transition AI from "a promising technological novelty into a mature technology integrated into core national security missions."

The commission thinks an allied effort on AI in the realm of national security is important, Robert Work, vice chairman of the NSCAI and a former deputy secretary of defense, told reporters. The NSCAI has spoken with Japan, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia and the European Union, Work said.

China is investing more than the United States in AI, said the report, which referred to the Asian nation more than 50 times.

"China takes advantage of the openness of US&nbsp;society in numerous ways - some legal, some not - to transfer AI know-how," the report said, at a time of heightened tensions between the countries.

A spokeswoman for China's embassy in Washington did not immediately return a request for comment.

"China is ahead in two areas. One is in the face recognition surveillance area. And another one is in financial technology. This does not mean that they’re ahead (in) AI overall," Eric Schmidt, the panel's chairman and one of several US&nbsp;tech industry executives on the commission, told reporters.

A poll the commission conducted of researchers found that China is a "fast follower" but that "the best and the most original papers are still occurring in the West," Schmidt said. There is still a way forward for the United States to win the high-stakes technological race, he said.

Schmidt is a technical advisor to Google's parent Alphabet Inc. He was previously the company's executive chairman and before that was Google's chief executive officer. Others on the commission include Andrew Jassy, CEO of Amazon Web Services, and Safra Catz, CEO of Oracle Corp.

China's research ties

Part of the commission's report addressed whether the United States should restrict American cooperation with Chinese AI researchers, including through visa and export controls. The challenge US&nbsp;officials face is that American industry and academic leaders have said that any such restrictions would harm the US&nbsp;economy, the report said.

The commissioners did not specify solutions, saying instead that "the choice need not be a binary one between cooperating and disentangling."

It said, however, the United States should be open to cooperating with China on promoting the responsible use of AI, including for example jointly banning use of AI to authorize the launch of nuclear weapons.

The commission also expressed concern that China, by allegedly using AI to violate human rights, will set a bad example for authoritarian regimes. It noted that beside China, "at least 74 other countries are also engaging in AI-powered surveillance," including half of "advanced liberal democracies."

Calling attention to activism by tech workers who have protested industry partnerships with the US&nbsp;military, the report said, "ethics and strategic necessity are compatible with one another." There is widespread support for making the technology unbiased and safe, the report said, but "the Commission is concerned that debate will paralyze AI development."

Last month, the Pentagon awarded a controversial contract to Microsoft Corp, protested by some of the company's workers, that will help the military better access data and cloud computing services from battlefields and other remote locations.

The final report from the commission will be ready in about a year, the commission said. 
&nbsp;

US government funding in artificial intelligence has fallen short and the country needs to invest in research, train an AI-ready workforce and apply the technology to national security missions, a government-commissioned panel led by Google's former CEO said in an interim report on Monday.

US government funding in artificial intelligence has fallen short and the country needs to invest in research, train an AI-ready workforce and apply the technology to national security missions, a government-commissioned panel led by Google's former CEO said in an interim report on Monday. The National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence (NSCAI), created by Congress last year, raised concerns about the progress China has made in this area. It also said the US government still faces enormous work before it can transition AI from "a promising technological novelty into a mature technology integrated into core national security missions." The commission thinks an allied effort on AI in the realm of national security is important, Robert Work, vice chairman of the NSCAI and a former deputy secretary of defense, told reporters. The NSCAI has spoken with Japan, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia and the European Union, Work said. China is investing more than the United States in AI, said the report, which referred to the Asian nation more than 50 times. "China takes advantage of the openness of US society in numerous ways - some legal, some not - to transfer AI know-how," the report said, at a time of heightened tensions between the countries. A spokeswoman for China's embassy in Washington did not immediately return a request for comment. "China is ahead in two areas. One is in the face recognition surveillance area. And another one is in financial technology. This does not mean that they’re ahead (in) AI overall," Eric Schmidt, the panel's chairman and one of several US tech industry executives on the commission, told reporters. A poll the commission conducted of researchers found that China is a "fast follower" but that "the best and the most original papers are still occurring in the West," Schmidt said. There is still a way forward for the United States to win the high-stakes technological race, he said. Schmidt is a technical advisor to Google's parent Alphabet Inc. He was previously the company's executive chairman and before that was Google's chief executive officer. Others on the commission include Andrew Jassy, CEO of Amazon Web Services, and Safra Catz, CEO of Oracle Corp. China's research ties Part of the commission's report addressed whether the United States should restrict American cooperation with Chinese AI researchers, including through visa and export controls. The challenge US officials face is that American industry and academic leaders have said that any such restrictions would harm the US economy, the report said. The commissioners did not specify solutions, saying instead that "the choice need not be a binary one between cooperating and disentangling." It said, however, the United States should be open to cooperating with China on promoting the responsible use of AI, including for example jointly banning use of AI to authorize the launch of nuclear weapons. The commission also expressed concern that China, by allegedly using AI to violate human rights, will set a bad example for authoritarian regimes. It noted that beside China, "at least 74 other countries are also engaging in AI-powered surveillance," including half of "advanced liberal democracies." Calling attention to activism by tech workers who have protested industry partnerships with the US military, the report said, "ethics and strategic necessity are compatible with one another." There is widespread support for making the technology unbiased and safe, the report said, but "the Commission is concerned that debate will paralyze AI development." Last month, the Pentagon awarded a controversial contract to Microsoft Corp, protested by some of the company's workers, that will help the military better access data and cloud computing services from battlefields and other remote locations. The final report from the commission will be ready in about a year, the commission said.

US urged to invest more in Artificial Intelligence; ex-Google CEO warns of China's progress

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has gifted German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who is currently in India, an exquisite handloom woollen khadi stole from Ladakh and a Ratnam pen.

The stole, known as 'Call of Ladakh', has an intricate traditional Ladakhi border pattern and four corner motifs, in dark wool.

The yarn is hand-spun using the finest sheep wool, on a traditional charkha, by native Ladakhi women, in the harsh winter months. The Ratnam Pen, named after KV Ratnam (originally from a family of goldsmiths in Rajahmundry) was made iconic by Mahatma Gandhi. It is still produced even today, its original form, by KV Ratnam and Sons - Ratnam Ballpen Works, a company owned by Ratnam`s descendants.

Even today, it has a barrel for filling ink using a dropper and the Genius Iridium Nib from Germany.

Notably, Mahatma Gandhi had written over 31,000 letters in his quest to take India to its freedom. Many of these letters were written using the pen that was made for him in 1934 by Ratnam, by using indigenous materials which were based upon Mahatma Gandhi's request to him to create 'swadeshi'&nbsp;(locally made) products - be it a pin or a pen.

A young Ratnam, took on the challenge and developed an ink pen which won him Mahatma Gandhi's praise, evident when the latter wrote him a letter saying, "Dear Ratnam, I have used the fountain pen and it seems to be a good substitute to the foreign pens, one sees in the bazaar."

A copy of the prized letter has been presented in a 'recycled wood'&nbsp;and brass frame, created to match the vintage aesthetic of the Ratnam pen.

Merkel is currently on a three-day visit to India. She arrived in New Delhi on Thursday and held talks with Modi on several bilateral issues the following day.

The two countries signed over 20 agreements including several in the form of Joint Declaration of Intent (JDI) in artificial intelligence (AI), education, agriculture, maritime technology sectors among others.&nbsp;

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has gifted German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who is currently in India, an exquisite handloom woollen khadi stole from Ladakh and a Ratnam pen.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has gifted German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who is currently in India, an exquisite handloom woollen khadi stole from Ladakh and a Ratnam pen. The stole, known as 'Call of Ladakh', has an intricate traditional Ladakhi border pattern and four corner motifs, in dark wool. The yarn is hand-spun using the finest sheep wool, on a traditional charkha, by native Ladakhi women, in the harsh winter months. The Ratnam Pen, named after KV Ratnam (originally from a family of goldsmiths in Rajahmundry) was made iconic by Mahatma Gandhi. It is still produced even today, its original form, by KV Ratnam and Sons - Ratnam Ballpen Works, a company owned by Ratnam`s descendants. Even today, it has a barrel for filling ink using a dropper and the Genius Iridium Nib from Germany. Notably, Mahatma Gandhi had written over 31,000 letters in his quest to take India to its freedom. Many of these letters were written using the pen that was made for him in 1934 by Ratnam, by using indigenous materials which were based upon Mahatma Gandhi's request to him to create 'swadeshi' (locally made) products - be it a pin or a pen. A young Ratnam, took on the challenge and developed an ink pen which won him Mahatma Gandhi's praise, evident when the latter wrote him a letter saying, "Dear Ratnam, I have used the fountain pen and it seems to be a good substitute to the foreign pens, one sees in the bazaar." A copy of the prized letter has been presented in a 'recycled wood' and brass frame, created to match the vintage aesthetic of the Ratnam pen. Merkel is currently on a three-day visit to India. She arrived in New Delhi on Thursday and held talks with Modi on several bilateral issues the following day. The two countries signed over 20 agreements including several in the form of Joint Declaration of Intent (JDI) in artificial intelligence (AI), education, agriculture, maritime technology sectors among others.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi gifts Ladakhi woolen khadi stole, Ratnam pen to Angela Merkel

Key takeaways from PM Modi's meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel

Israel&nbsp;unveiled options Sunday for its "combat vehicle of the future" -- a tank with large touchscreens, 360-degree vision and, in one prototype, a video game-style controller.

The ministry of defence wants to procure an armoured vehicle that can be operated by two soldiers instead of four with the hatch closed, something officials involved in the project say would be a unique achievement.

The ministry tasked three Israeli companies -- state-owned&nbsp;Israel&nbsp;Aerospace Industries and Rafael Advanced Defence Systems, along with Elbit Systems -- with drumming up ideas.

The so-called Carmel project, launched three years ago, aims to develop not the vehicle itself, but its brains and sensors, which can&nbsp;be installed into existing tanks.

All three firms succeeded in reducing the number of soldiers to two.

The vehicles also have options for autonomous driving and target identification with the help of sensors and cameras, along with artificial intelligence and other features.

"This is a revolutionary concept based on cutting-edge technology," Brigadier General Yaniv Rotem, head of military research and development with&nbsp;Israel's defence ministry, told journalists.

"Many countries and many armies are looking for future armoured vehicles."

Israel&nbsp;demonstrated options for the project to US army representatives on Sunday and plans to do the same for other countries.

The three companies presented tank models fitted out with their technologies at an army base in northern&nbsp;Israel.

Inside, soldiers look at a combination of large screens and use various methods of controlling the vehicle and its weaponry.

One of the options used as a video game-style controller.

All three went through a series of tests that the ministry says were successful.

Rotem said armoured vehicles could eventually reach the point of being completely autonomous.

He said it was too soon to lay out a precise timeframe and budget for the project.

But he noted a decision had already been taken to integrate a high-tech Elbit helmet into existing Israeli armoured vehicles.

Israel&nbsp;is the world's eighth-largest arms exporter, according to a recent report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.

Israel unveiled options Sunday for its "combat vehicle of the future" -- a tank with large touchscreens, 360-degree vision and, in one prototype, a video game-style controller.

Israel unveiled options Sunday for its "combat vehicle of the future" -- a tank with large touchscreens, 360-degree vision and, in one prototype, a video game-style controller. The ministry of defence wants to procure an armoured vehicle that can be operated by two soldiers instead of four with the hatch closed, something officials involved in the project say would be a unique achievement. The ministry tasked three Israeli companies -- state-owned Israel Aerospace Industries and Rafael Advanced Defence Systems, along with Elbit Systems -- with drumming up ideas. The so-called Carmel project, launched three years ago, aims to develop not the vehicle itself, but its brains and sensors, which can be installed into existing tanks. All three firms succeeded in reducing the number of soldiers to two. The vehicles also have options for autonomous driving and target identification with the help of sensors and cameras, along with artificial intelligence and other features. "This is a revolutionary concept based on cutting-edge technology," Brigadier General Yaniv Rotem, head of military research and development with Israel's defence ministry, told journalists. "Many countries and many armies are looking for future armoured vehicles." Israel demonstrated options for the project to US army representatives on Sunday and plans to do the same for other countries. The three companies presented tank models fitted out with their technologies at an army base in northern Israel. Inside, soldiers look at a combination of large screens and use various methods of controlling the vehicle and its weaponry. One of the options used as a video game-style controller. All three went through a series of tests that the ministry says were successful. Rotem said armoured vehicles could eventually reach the point of being completely autonomous. He said it was too soon to lay out a precise timeframe and budget for the project. But he noted a decision had already been taken to integrate a high-tech Elbit helmet into existing Israeli armoured vehicles. Israel is the world's eighth-largest arms exporter, according to a recent report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.

Israel's 'Tanks of the Future' prototype features Artificial Intelligence

Technology helps Wimbledon to hook growing tennis-loving market in Asia, especially India

Microsoft Corp and Sony Corp on Thursday said they struck a strategic partnership in which Sony would use Microsoft's cloud for streaming games and media and the two would work together to develop image sensors.

The deal is in its early stages, with many specifics yet to be determined. But the owners of two major consumer interactive entertainment franchises - Microsoft's Xbox platform and Sony's PlayStation - would collaborate to stream games and content to consumers and offer game makers new development tools.

"For many years, Microsoft has been a key business partner for us, though of course the two companies have also been competing in some areas," Sony Chief Executive Kenichiro Yoshida said in a statement. "I believe that our joint development of future cloud solutions will contribute greatly to the advancement of interactive content."

Sony shares jumped nearly 11 per cent as Asian markets opened. Microsoft's stock closed up 2 per cent on Thursday.

Sony's deal with Microsoft comes at a time when the Japanese firm's gaming business is losing some steam as its PlayStation 4 (PS4) console nears the end of its life.

Analysts widely expect Sony to launch a next-generation console in 2020 to replace the five-year-old PS4, but for this year at least Sony has flagged a drop in profit.

For Microsoft, the deal bolsters its Azure cloud computing business, which helped push its market value past $1 trillion last month. It also helps the Redmond, Washington-based company counter cloud-market leader Amazon.com Inc's Amazon Web Services.

Amazon has also jumped into the gaming market, offering game makers new technology tools, and with its nearly $1 billion acquisition of Twitch, a major destination for gamers to watch other players competing in the e-sports market.

Japan's Sony is also a major supplier of camera chips for smartphones and other devices.

Sony and Microsoft said they will potentially develop new image sensor chips that use Microsoft's artificial intelligence (AI) technology for business customers. The two companies did not specify how the chips would be used.

Intelligent cameras are currently being used in applications such as spotting defective items coming off manufacturing lines with greater accuracy than human inspectors.

Sony and Microsoft said they would explore how to use Microsoft's AI tools in Sony's consumer products "to provide highly intuitive and user-friendly AI experiences."

Microsoft's technology for tasks like recognizing images and understanding human speech is widely believed to be competitive with better-known rivals such Alphabet Inc's Google, but its focus on business customers has left it fewer outlets for technology that consumers touch.&nbsp;

Sony, by contrast, makes a wide range of televisions, phones and other consumer devices.

"Sony has always been a leader in both entertainment and technology, and the collaboration we announced today builds on this history of innovation," Microsoft Chief Executive Satya Nadella said in a statement.

Microsoft Corp and Sony Corp on Thursday said they struck a strategic partnership in which Sony would use Microsoft's cloud for streaming games and media and the two would work together to develop image sensors.

Microsoft Corp and Sony Corp on Thursday said they struck a strategic partnership in which Sony would use Microsoft's cloud for streaming games and media and the two would work together to develop image sensors. The deal is in its early stages, with many specifics yet to be determined. But the owners of two major consumer interactive entertainment franchises - Microsoft's Xbox platform and Sony's PlayStation - would collaborate to stream games and content to consumers and offer game makers new development tools. "For many years, Microsoft has been a key business partner for us, though of course the two companies have also been competing in some areas," Sony Chief Executive Kenichiro Yoshida said in a statement. "I believe that our joint development of future cloud solutions will contribute greatly to the advancement of interactive content." Sony shares jumped nearly 11 per cent as Asian markets opened. Microsoft's stock closed up 2 per cent on Thursday. Sony's deal with Microsoft comes at a time when the Japanese firm's gaming business is losing some steam as its PlayStation 4 (PS4) console nears the end of its life. Analysts widely expect Sony to launch a next-generation console in 2020 to replace the five-year-old PS4, but for this year at least Sony has flagged a drop in profit. For Microsoft, the deal bolsters its Azure cloud computing business, which helped push its market value past $1 trillion last month. It also helps the Redmond, Washington-based company counter cloud-market leader Amazon.com Inc's Amazon Web Services. Amazon has also jumped into the gaming market, offering game makers new technology tools, and with its nearly $1 billion acquisition of Twitch, a major destination for gamers to watch other players competing in the e-sports market. Japan's Sony is also a major supplier of camera chips for smartphones and other devices. Sony and Microsoft said they will potentially develop new image sensor chips that use Microsoft's artificial intelligence (AI) technology for business customers. The two companies did not specify how the chips would be used. Intelligent cameras are currently being used in applications such as spotting defective items coming off manufacturing lines with greater accuracy than human inspectors. Sony and Microsoft said they would explore how to use Microsoft's AI tools in Sony's consumer products "to provide highly intuitive and user-friendly AI experiences." Microsoft's technology for tasks like recognizing images and understanding human speech is widely believed to be competitive with better-known rivals such Alphabet Inc's Google, but its focus on business customers has left it fewer outlets for technology that consumers touch. Sony, by contrast, makes a wide range of televisions, phones and other consumer devices. "Sony has always been a leader in both entertainment and technology, and the collaboration we announced today builds on this history of innovation," Microsoft Chief Executive Satya Nadella said in a statement.

Microsoft, Sony partner on streaming games, chips and Artificial Intelligence