Month: January 2018
AI Robots Full 2018 Documentary ~ Taking Over The World
https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/ai-changing-how-businesses-operate-what-future-our-jobs-75449
With AI changing how businesses operate, what is the future of our jobs?
Jobs that require some level of sophistication and skill will remain after the AI revolution, while others requiring mundane tasks will get swept away.
The future may appear to be all doom and gloom for many industries on the back of digital and automation – but that future is decades away. We would have adapted to the oncoming AI revolutions years prior to it disrupting our future, and creating hassles along with miracles for ourselves.
AI is being given the spotlight in this era of the internet age, and its overarching reach hasn’t yet been fully explored. We have already seen major layoffs, sometimes in the tens of thousands, in the IT space due to automation. These jobs were previously handled by humans who were prone to human error in processing. With large organizations facing the heat due to increased competition, they have no option but to lay off massive number of people.
Today, AI is everywhere. From transportation to predictive modelling, AI has entered our mind space in more ways than one. The World Bank believes that by 2021, about 40% of the jobs in technology would become redundant, possibly rendering a large population of the Indian labor force jobless. As economies become more connected and globalized, Indians will see the change happening in our country sooner rather than later.
Some jobs just aren’t needed
Redundancy is the keyword to focus on, as human beings compete further to figure out a way to make themselves more valuable to their employers. AI will take over multiple jobs and disrupt the way that we function daily.
Anand Rao, PwC head of AI, thinks that the competition between AI and human is real. “The human is still in the loop. Both humans and AI are learning, teaching each other. We will see more combination of man and machine in every sector.”
Every industry will be shaken up by the AI revolution and we’re just experiencing the tip of the iceberg.
AI may not be so bad after all
Ray Kurzweil, Principal, Singularity University and Author, believes that our future is going to be optimistic. Like the internet revolution, we would have new jobs created for skilled workers doing new things. Robots won’t necessarily take over our jobs and “Skynet” won’t be a real-life problem.
“Technology has always been a double-edged sword. Fire kept us warm, cooked our food and burned down our houses. World War II – 50 million people died, and that was certainly exacerbated by the power of technology at that time.”
Ray thinks that nanobots and customized medicine will help save humanity rather than destroy it, with more than half diseases being preventable or treated within 40 years. Anytime you create a solution for a problem it’s a beneficial thing as a whole.
Jobs of the future
Therefore, the debate will always be about quality versus quantity rather than a true immense fear of AI. Jobs that require some level of sophistication and skill will remain after the AI revolution, while others requiring mundane and repeatable tasks will get swept away. This was summarized best by Professor Richard Susskind, author of The Future of the Professions.
“So, a lawyer today doesn’t develop systems that offer advice, but the lawyer of 2025 will. They’ll still be called lawyers, but they’ll be doing different things.”
The definition of work will change, but what we actually do will remain the same. Here are some of the professions that will be required in demand in the AI-driven future:
AI technicians: We would need close to 1 million AI engineers and maintenance workers and would see a dearth in supply for many years after its introduction. We would also require bot mechanics to fix the same issues but in a different way – with the help of AI.
Niche crafts: By appealing to our senses, these types of jobs will have a good shot at the future. E.g. bakers, pastry chefs, artists, niche shoe makers, hand-made furniture etc. Creations that have a story will have a stronger future requirement.
Content Manufacturers: Content of any kind will trump most professions in the AI future. When people have more free time at home and at work, content will be the go-to requirement of the future. Even when people travel, or want to try out a new restaurant, they would consume content about it first.
Business Strategists: Strategists have always had an upper hand at being redundancy-free. This involves decision making and computing a large quantity of data to make life easier for the brand.
Marketing, advertising and communications: When marketers are needed for the future, their role will become different but their requirements the same – to make people consume their products.
Data Researchers: Research is a strong component when it comes to data and manufacturing. For example, when a real estate company needs to analyze the best materials used for a certain location, big data will help it in securing the right information and insights.
https://www.theverge.com/2018/1/27/16940002/google-clips-ai-camera-on-sale-today-waitlist
Google began selling its Clips camera today
But you’ll have to jump on a wait list
Last October, Google unveiled a new camera: Clips, a small device that uses artificial intelligence to take the right picture when it sees something interesting. The company hasn’t said much about the device, but it quietly began selling it today.
The camera costs $249 and comes with free shipping, but at this point, Google appears to have stopped taking orders for the device. It’s directing potential customers to jump on a wait list, and will e-mail them a notification when the device is available again. According toEngadget, those who were able to place an order for one saw delivery dates ranging from February 27th to March 5th. We’ve reached out to Google to find out when the company will begin taking orders again, and we’ll update if we hear back.
Clips is a different type of camera, one that Google is marketing towards parents who take a lot of pictures of their kids. The idea is that the camera sits in the background, waiting for the right moment to take a picture. Not everyone is onboard with the idea of a Google camera that’s always watching them, but the company has pointed out that the device does all of its work with its own hardware, and doesn’t send anything out to external servers.
http://www.businessinsider.com/why-apple-should-buy-tesla-2018-1
Apple buying Tesla doesn’t sound like a crazy idea anymore — here’s why
Tesla CEO Elon Musk. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
- The idea that Apple should buy Tesla has been floated many times.
- Apple now has more than enough cash coming back to the US to do the deal.
- Tesla needs to be saved from its delusional idea about the company’s future growth — and Apple needs to be saved from the disaster of its car project.
Last November, Rolling Stone published a profile of Tesla CEO Elon Musk, written by Neil Strauss, a neo-gonzo journalist who made his name with a book about pickup culture. And in that interview Musk made a confession.
“I wish we could be private with Tesla,” Musk told Strauss. “It actually makes us less efficient to be a public company.”
Tesla has been public since its 2010 IPO and since then the stock has risen from about $20 a share to nearly $400 at one point in 2017. The company’s market cap is now close to $60billion. Investors who jumped in seven years ago have enjoyed a return of nearly 1,200%.
Musk might be the only person who wishes Tesla were private. Even short-sellers, recently clobbered by Tesla’s surge, have been delighted when the stock has gone through one of itsperiodic swoons of $100 in a few months. And ironically, Musk’s next ten years of compensation are now completely tied to Tesla’s market performance, which the board of directors thinks can yield a $650-billion market cap.
That’s delusional. In many ways, it sets Musk up for both continued inefficiency — a lot of second-guessing about investments in automation, for example, at the expense of hittingproduction targets — and potentially epic failure. It also represents a radical formulation of shareholder value theory.
Tesla is wildly overvalued, and what it needs now isn’t a fatter stock price but rather an ability to satisfy customers. For the Model 3 mass-market vehicle, currently stalled amid production bottlenecks, Tesla has 400,000 mostly unfulfilled pre-orders.
Apple buying Tesla is an idea that always seems to be on the table
Apple CEO Tim Cook. Getty
In the past, there’s been talk about somebody buying Tesla. Usually, Apple is the one that gets everybody’s heart racing. I’ve shot down this idea several times. But with the announcement of Musk’s new pay package, I think Tesla needs to be rescued from itself. And that Musk shouldget his wish.
Tesla is worth so much that there aren’t very many companies able to buy the automaker. And Tesla going truly private would be too much of a reversal of history as well as a financial improbability, although if the bottom falls out some investors might someday snap up what’s left of Tesla on the cheap.
Apple, thanks to the new tax bill, will repatriate over $250 billion is cash that it has been keeping overseas. Even after paying taxes on it, at the reduced corporate rate, it will have arguably too much left over. It could easily wind up going into share buybacks or a dividend, or Apple could continue its pattern of making small acquisitions.
Or the company, which is sitting on a mature iPhone business that mints the profits but could be looking at more severe growth headwinds in coming years, could swing for the fences and get a piece of the multi-trillion global transportation industry. If Tim Cook agrees with the Tesla board that the company will be worth $650 billion in a decade, then buying Tesla now would be a staggering bargain.
The obvious question is, “Who would be Tesla’s CEO?” Musk’s pay package is designed to ensure that it’s him, an extreme evolution of addressing the “great man” risk that companies led by visionary founders face. But Musk is also running SpaceX and he’s on the verge of launching a huge rocket that could pave the way for a Mars mission. Dealing with Tesla’s difficulties could be seen as a needless distraction.
That said, Musk could remain CEO of Tesla as an independent business unit of Apple, while Tim Cook would run the entire show (Musk could also relinquish the CEO title but continue aschairman of the board). In a way, Cook isn’t really a CEO in the Musk/Steve Jobs vein anyway. He’s more like a mega-COO.
And that’s just what Tesla actually needs right now. If it was Jobs who rescued Apple and put it on the path that led to the iPod and the iPhone, it was Cook who turned the company into theprofit-making colossus it has become. The guy is a supply-chain genius. Making stuff is his bag. And at the moment, Tesla is struggling mightily to make stuff, falling well behind its ambitious production targets for the Model 3 mass-market vehicle.
Tesla would also witness its cash-burn challenges — over $1 billion per quarter — vanish. Apple could fund losses for years.
Tesla could help Apple get into the car business
The Apple Car project isn’t going well. Apple
Apple has a history of falling into innovations troughs. It’s in one now, following the monumental success of the iPhone. The Apple Watch hasn’t been a gamechanger, and the company is chasing Amazon on smart speakers. Apple clearly wants to do something in the transportation space, but thus far its efforts have been at best confused and at worst pathetic.
Buying Tesla would change that overnight. The Apple Car, really, is a Tesla car anyway. The whole philosophy behind Tesla’s vehicles, and especially the ultra-minimalist Model 3, isApple-esque. The wait for the Apple Car would be immediately over.
And that would enable Apple to focus on bringing to Tesla what Apple’s engineers and designers are now probably working on: an entirely new vehicle interface — an operating system for the car of the future.
Tesla has aspects of such a system in place, from over-the-air software updates to an increasing focus on single screens for all vehicle operations. Apple would enhance and unify these components and transform them into something unexpected. This is Apple’s mojo: take something that works and make it much, much better.
Missing out on a mega-return — but one that isn’t likely
Tesla market cap has become epic. Andy Kiersz/Business Insider
For investors, of course, Apple buying Tesla would eliminate any chance of a mega-return. But I think the odds are low that the 1,000%-plus payback of the past seven years will be matched by another 1,000% surge over the next ten years (Tesla is, after all, 14 years old — hardly a startup). If Tesla stays public, stockholders will also have to put up with numerous, diluting capital raises and the ever-present threat that Tesla’s lack of cash and debt burden will lead to a bankruptcy.
If Apple bought Tesla, the carmaker’s growth would be piped into Apple shares, and Tesla investors would certainly get a premium for their holdings, as Apple can afford to overpay. Idon’t even think that government regulators would have issues with the merger. Sure, Apple would be buying the dominant electric-car manufacturer. But as of 2018, the EV market makes up only 1% of global sales.
I would have stuck to my guns on the foolishness of an Apple acquisition of Tesla were it not for the reckless pay package that Tesla concocted for Musk. But I now think that Tesla is fueling a dangerous idea about the company’s capabilities. Somebody needs to save Tesla from its hubris. That somebody is Apple.
https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/anti-aging-field-explodes-in-pursuit-of-healthy-old-age-1.3778287
Anti-aging field ‘explodes’ in pursuit of healthy old age
Researchers are looking into ways to make for a healthier, older population in the years to come. (shapecharge / IStock.com)
Experts on the forefront of anti-aging medicine say the field is booming, with therapies on the horizon to target illnesses like cancer and Alzheimer’s and make for a healthier, older population in the years to come.
Such remedies are increasingly important because of the world’s aging population. Growing old, experts say, is a leading risk factor for most human diseases and a major socioeconomic problem.
“In the last 20 years this field of research on aging has exploded,” said Felipe Sierra, director of the division of aging biology at the U.S. National Institute of Aging.
“We are getting close to having treatments to prevent the illnesses related to aging,” he added.
Much of the research done so far has been on lab animals and simple organisms like worms, which enable researchers to both measure and tweak life expectancy.
For instance, researchers were surprised to learn that by manipulating just 17 genes, which also exist in humans, they could double the life expectancy of a much-studied worm called C. elegans, and even make mice live 60 per cent longer.
Researchers have also found that a major reduction in calorie intake can have the same effect on these genes.
“We know that the accumulation of cellular damage is the cause of many diseases,” said Luigi Fontana, professor of nutritional science at Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis and University of Brescia in Italy.
“But when you go long periods without food, the resulting metabolic changes appear to stimulate autophagy or a natural cleaning out of your body’s damaged cells.”
Restricting calories for long periods often proves “too difficult” for people, said Sierra.
“There are drugs now that can mimic the effects of caloric reduction,” he added.
Promising molecules
Out of 20 molecules tested so far on mice, seven have led to longer lives, he said.
One of the most promising is called rapamycin (sirolimus), an immunosuppressant used to prevent rejection of transplanted organs.
The substance has been shown to prolong the lives of mice by 25 per cent, and produces similar effects on other mammals.
“There are a lot a side effects but this medication is used in extremely sick people,” said Sierra.
“The interesting thing is that when they tried it in healthy people none of them had side effects,” he added. “It is a kind of miraculous drug.”
Other promising agents to fight aging target cells that are aging and no longer able to divide, by causing them to self-destruct.
Researchers at Mayo Clinic in Minnesota have been able to genetically eliminate these dysfunctional, aging cells in mice.
“It was amazing. The mice lived longer and were in much, much better health,” said Sierra.
Now there are 15 or 20 of these senolytic drugs being tested.
“And I am sure that some of them might work,” said Sierra.
“So that is why it is an exciting field right now.”
Longer lifespan
According to Juan Carlos Izpisua Belmonte, a geneticist at the Salk Institute in California, the science of anti-aging is making real progress.
“Now we have methods to slow down or even reverse aging,” he said, citing numerous studies including his own research, showing how cells can be preprogrammed to make them more youthful.
A recent study on Amish people showed the powerful effect of a single mutant gene against the ravages of age.
“It is the first mutation discovered in humans that appears to protect against multiple aspects of biological aging,” said Douglas Vaughan, a cardiologist at Northwestern University in Chicago and lead author of the study.
This mutation, responsible for a steep reduction in a protein called PAI-1, is credited for a tendency to be in better health with advancing age.
Amish with the mutation lived to 85 on average — significantly longer than the predicted lifespan of 71 for the overall Amish population.
A molecule simulating this effect has been the focus of a clinical trial in Japan.
“I think we will see several more discoveries related to the basic mechanisms of aging that will be important,” said Vaughan.
“We are already seeing intensive efforts to develop anti-aging drugs,” he added.
“I think within 20 to 30 years there will be one or more drugs that will be available to slow the aging process or prevent aging related diseases.”
The goal is not to live forever, but to help people enjoy a good quality of life for a longer period of time.
“Probably the maximum life span, if you retain your health to enjoy life, as a human being, is still not much more than 100 years old,” he said.
https://www.computerworld.com/article/3251173/apple-mac/apple-goes-back-to-the-future-with-web-apps.html
Apple goes back to the future with web apps
Apple’s about to introduce Service Worker support in Safari. So, what are Service Workers, and why might they matter to you or your enterprise?
Apple’s about to introduce Service Workers in Safari 11.1. So, what are Service Workers, and why might they matter to you or your enterprise?
Web apps unleashed
First introduced in Safari Technology Preview 46, Service Workers allow background scripts to power offline web applications and should make it possible (for example) for developers to build Web apps that can work even when offline.
This may mean web services you can save to your Home screen like any other app, use of the camera from within a web page, background sync and other ways to make web apps that will work online or offline.
They are part of an industrywide initiative to enable developers to build Progressive Web Applications, browser-based apps that can also work offline thanks to Service Workers’ ability to cache data for offline use.
Apps for everyone
One advantage of this approach is that it should enable developers to build cross-platform apps (including, potentially, enterprise-class secure conferencing solutions) that will work across any standards-compliant browser.
When Apple first introduced Service Worker support, it said:
“Offline applications are important to the web. After HTML5 first tried to accommodate them with the Offline Application Cache, the Service Workers specification was created as a successor.
“This standard describes new APIs focused on using JavaScript to handle resource loading for a web page without network access. While work continues, we’re excited to enable Service Workers by default in this release.”
In related news, Apple is also working on a Web App Manifests specification, a second technology that is required to make Progressive Web Applications a reality on Safari. This carries important information, such as names, descriptions, icons and so on, required to create an app interface.
When you combine Service Workers with Web App Manifests, you can create JavaScript-based apps that can be run from the Home screen and act like apps (ie. with a user interface).
There’s a clear but technical explanation of all of this at Mobiforge.
The App Store goes pro
Some argue that by introducing such support, Apple is changing the politics of iOS development by raising the status of web apps above that of those sold through the App Store.
I don’t really agree with that analysis.
While I do think web apps will replace many of the single-function, relatively simple iOS apps, I also think doing so will raise the status of those apps that are made available via the App Store.
Those complex apps will deliver more functionality than web-based apps — though web-based apps will be far easier to use across platforms, bringing iOS-like utilities to Macs, PCs and elsewhere.
That’s likely an important element to Apple’s long-term view around the evolution of computing.
History repeats itself
There’s an element of historical irony to all of this.
In the relatively recent past, Apple’s then CEO, Steve Jobs, argued that there was no need to create support for app development on iOS because iPhones made it possible to run Web 2.0 apps through the Safari browser.
Jobs and co. very quickly saw the sense in abandoning that plan, and the company opened up its then new smartphone platform to developers, creating tens of thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in one move.
One more thing: I’m quite interested in any plans Apple may have to integrate use of such web apps together inside its recently acquired Workflow apps. What kind of functionality might Apple users access by stringing multiple services together, particularly in conjunction with Siri?
Find out more about Service Workers and associated technologies here.
Google+? If you use social media and happen to be a Google+ user, why not join AppleHolic’s Kool Aid Corner community and get involved with the conversation as we pursue the spirit of the New Model Apple?
Mysterious Sounds from Space | Space News
https://www.engadget.com/2018/01/26/apple-homepod-2018-release/
A closer look at Apple’s new HomePod
It sounds fantastic, but Siri might have some catching up to do.
The first time I got close to one of Apple’s HomePods was in a secluded meeting room at WWDC. Sonically, at least, it blew away the competition. After seven months — not to mention the introduction of other impressive smart speakers — Apple invited me to spend another hour with a near-final HomePod, and it still sounds like the one to beat. There’s much more to the HomePod than just its stellar sound quality, though, and my time spent with Apple’s new speaker provided answers to some key lingering questions. But first: the basics.
What is the HomePod?
Here’s a quick refresher if you aren’t up to date. The HomePod is Apple’s first smart speaker, and it looks like a 7-inch-tall Mac Pro covered in mesh fabric. It’s highly understated in its design; unless your home is particularly rustic, it’s hard to imagine a place where this rounded, low-key body would attract much attention. And, more important, it’s packed to the gills with high-end audio components: A series of seven tweeters are arranged around the bottom, while a 4-inch woofer pushes out meaty mids and lows from the top. Throw in the brain of an iPhone 6, which helps acoustically analyze the speaker’s surroundings to optimize sound based on what’s around it, and you’ve got a surprisingly powerful little speaker.
How do you set it up?
This is pretty sweet: As with the AirPods, all you have to do is hold an iOS device (running the latest version, of course) up to the HomePod. From there, the iDevice will recognize there’s a HomePod in front of it and begin the setup process. You’ll be asked (among other things) whether you want the HomePod to take phone calls, access your messages and so on. These are “personal requests,” and they work only when the iOS device used to set things up is on the same WiFi network. Once you’ve zipped through Apple’s questions, you’re just left waiting for setup to complete. From start to finish, the process took about a minute.
How does it sound?
As mentioned, there’s a ton of components crammed inside the HomePod, and they come together for an audio experience that’s almost shockingly good. Apple ran the HomePod through a handful of test tracks, ranging from Ed Sheeran’s “Shape of You” to the Hamilton soundtrack, and each of them sounded remarkably warm and crisp. More impressive is how the HomePod seemed to layer and highlight different components of each song; it always seemed to emphasize vocals, but I could easily make out the attack of a pick on guitar strings and the warm, lingering sound of a bass being plucked. For me, musical quality often takes a back seat to convenience, but there’s something special about picking up on fresh nuances in a favorite song or being reminded that they were always there, waiting to be heard. The HomePod is especially good at this.
And since it adjusts the way it blasts out music depending on where it is and what’s around it, I was able to wander around a room and hear a song sound the same no matter where I was standing. With most speakers, there’s a sweet spot where everything sounds just right. The HomePod, however, endeavors to build a sweet zone. There are some exceptions, like when you’re standing near a wall the HomePod has its back to, but the sound in those cases is still well worth listening to. This intelligent approach to audio playback isn’t exactly new, though: Google’s Home Maxhas a feature called Smart Sound that also adjusts audio playback depending on where it is in the room.
What’s the catch?
For one, Apple Music is the only music service the HomePod natively supports; you’ll have to use an AirPlay connection if you’re a Spotify or Pandora person. Features like stereo pairing and multiroom audio won’t be available until software updates get pushed later this year. Other smart speakers, like Sonos’ new One, can sound almost as good at times (and are on sale at the moment). And, of course, there’s Siri.
How well does Siri work?
About as well as it does on your phone. Depending on your feelings about Siri, though, that might be a deal breaker for the HomePod. Throughout my demo, Siri did most of the things you’d expect an assistant in a tube to do: It played back a handful of news stories from NPR (though Fox News and CNN are also available) and quickly unfurled and retracted connected blinds in front of a window.
Thanks to the metadata embedded into Apple Music tracks, Siri was also great at playing playlists for specific moods and offering up information about songs and artists we listened to. Since the HomePod also works as an extension of your phone, I could ask it to read messages I’d just received or start writing one to send to a friend. For paranoiacs concerned about having yet another intelligent microphone at home, it’s easy enough to get Siri to stop listening — just ask. More important, Siri was always quick to react to commands, even when the HomePod was blasting tunes at 90 percent volume. With rare exceptions, Siri interpreted and responded correctly to every request on its first try. That’s a good sign.
How does Siri compare with Alexa and Google Assistant at home?
That’s a tricky question, considering the limited time I spent with the HomePod. Based on first impressions, though, Siri often felt limited as compared with its rivals. It can’t, for instance, tell your voice apart from others. Sure, that means anyone at your next party can change up the music. It also means people talking to Siri can influence the stored musical preferences Siri uses to choose tracks for you. (Thankfully, you can disable this in settings.)
On a broader level, I’ve been spoiled by the wide variety of actions and skills available for competitors like Google Assistant and Alexa. Google and Amazon have had a tremendous head start in getting developers to build experiences around their connected speakers, and Apple could have trouble making up ground. Encouraging developers to embrace SiriKit is a start, but so far Apple hasn’t confirmed which third parties are working to make their apps HomePod friendly.
Making the switch from another smart speaker could be problematic for other reasons. I spend more of my life talking to Alexa and chatting up Google Assistant than I do interacting with Siri. How could I not? Amazon and Google made it to market much sooner than Apple did, and you could trick out an entire home with a handful of Echo Dots or Home Minis for the same price as one HomePod. They’re everywhere, and ubiquity breeds familiarity. Some people might not be willing to trade the assistant they know and appreciate for something new and different, no matter how much better that hardware may sound. That’s totally valid, and I see that being the case for a lot of people.
https://9to5mac.com/2018/01/25/apple-watch-singapore-and-hong-kong/
Apple Watch Series 3 with cellular coming to Singapore & Hong Kong next month
Apple originally released the Apple Watch Series 3 with cellular back in September, but because of the carrier requirements, cellular connectivity was only supported in a handful of countries. Apple today announced, however, that Apple Watch Series 3 with cellular is coming to two new locations next month…
Apple has updated its website in Singapore and Hong Kong to announce that the Apple Watch with cellular will be available for preorder on February 2nd. The first orders will arrive to customers one week later on February 9th.
In Singapore, the Apple Watch Series 3 with LTE will start at S$598, while customers in Hong Kong will pay HK$3,188. As for carrier support, Hong Kong customers will have their choice between 1O1O and csl3.
Channel News Asia notes that Singtel will be the first carrier to offer customers in Singapore support for the LTE Apple Watch. Pricing is unclear at this point, but customers in Singapore will receive the same free three months of cellular that have been offered in other countries.
With the additions of Singapore and Hong Kong, the Apple Watch Series 3 with LTE is now available in 12 regions around the world. In other countries, however, the device is limited to GPS connectivity. Those are:
Singapore, Hong Kong, Germany, Australia, France, Hong Kong, Japan, Switzerland, United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, and the UK.
If you’re located in Singapore or Hong Kong, let us know down in the comments if you’ll be picking up the LTE Apple Watch next month.
Thanks, Leonard!
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