Amazon installs AI Cameras in UK delivery vehicles

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May 25, 2022

Global eCommerce and technology giant Amazon installs artificial intelligence (AI)-powered cameras in its delivery vehicles deployed in the United Kingdom, reports The Telegraph.

The cameras will record video footage of both inside and outside of the vehicles to effectively detect traffic norms violations and poor driving practices. The collected footage will then be analyzed by the company to determine the quality of its services.

When the vehicle’s ignition is turned off, the cameras are supposed to turn off automatically. Additionally, drivers will also receive a score based on the analysis of the captured videos.

Last year, Amazon announced that it planned to install these cameras, but it has come to an effect recently. However, this new development has been condemned by people stating it to be “intrusive” and “creepy.”

“We are against cameras being pointed in the face of the drivers every second of every day that they are working. This is surveillance, it does not aid driver safety,” said a GMB Union spokesman.

In 2021, more than 200 Amazon employees signed a petition demanding that the company halt its “labor surveillance.”

The aim of implementing this technology, according to an Amazon official, is to keep drivers and communities safe; there is no other reason.

Silkie Carlo, the director of Big Brother Watch, said, “Amazon has a terrible track record of intensely monitoring their lowest wage earners using Orwellian, often highly inaccurate, spying technologies, and then using that data to their disadvantage.”

She further added that this kind of surveillance might actually distract drivers, demoralize them, and it is harmful to employees’ rights and bad for privacy in the UK.

Meta’s Myosuite can create Realistic Musculoskeletal Models

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Dipayan Mitra

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May 24, 2022

Meta’s researchers have developed a one-of-a-kind artificial intelligence-powered platform named Myosuite that can create realistic musculoskeletal models efficiently.

Mark Zuckerberg just announced MyoSuite, a new AI platform we developed to build realistic musculoskeletal simulations to help accelerate development of prosthetics. It could also help us build avatars that move more realistically in the metaverse. https://t.co/Q4gVboQGSa pic.twitter.com/T27CAbXBg5
— Meta Newsroom (@MetaNewsroom) May 23, 2022

Meta collaborated with the University of Twente to develop Myosuite. The newly launched AI and ML-enabled platform can facilitate applications with real-life implications, such as rehabilitation, surgery, and shared autonomy assistive devices.

MyoSuite’s musculoskeletal models are up to 4,000 times faster than other simulators when it comes to addressing the data needs of modern machine learning algorithms.

Meta says that Apart from Myosuite, Meta is also releasing open-sourcing a set of comprehensive benchmarks for the ML community. This release will aid the community in continuing research in the field.

The newly launched platform can also be used to develop avatars for virtual worlds such as Horizon Worlds. “As we build for the metaverse, these models will help developers build avatars that move more realistically, making the experience more expressive and immersive,” mentioned Meta in a blog.

The advent of MyoSuite’s new technology, which intends to support modern-day features, will aid bioengineering and other related features in practice.

“We can train these models to perform complex movements like twirling a pen or rotating a key. We’re going to open source these models so researchers can use them to advance the field further,” said the CEO of Meta, Mark Zuckerberg.

The physiologically accurate musculoskeletal models developed by MyoSuite are orders of magnitude more computationally efficient and scalable than previous models. A set of well-tuned, physiologically correct musculoskeletal models that facilitate temporal interaction-rich musculoskeletal dynamics are included in the MyoSuite ecosystem.

The company hopes that its MyoSuite will become the pioneer platform for integrating motor and neural intelligence.

Maruti Suzuki to acquire AI company Sociograph Solutions

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Dipayan Mitra

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May 24, 2022

Maruti Suzuki acquire Sociograph Solutions

India’s largest automobile manufacturing company Maruti Suzuki announces its plan to acquire artificial intelligence (AI) firm Sociograph Solutions.

With this acquisition deal, Maruti Suzuki will acquire more than a 12% stake in Sociograh Solutions for a sum of around Rs 2 crores.

The acquisition will allow Maruti Suzuki to further strengthen its technological capabilities to provide a better customer experience.

According to the company, this investment will help Maruti Suzuki in enhancing its customer offering by developing customized sales experiences on the web, virtual reality, and augmented reality.

Bengaluru-based AI company Sociograph Solutions was founded by Ananthakrishnan Gopal, Ashok Balasundaram, and Sriram P H in 2016. The company is best known for developing a patent-pending artificial intelligence platform named DaveAI.

The platform introduces the concept of Empathetic AI to assist organizations in efficiently managing their sales processes and augmenting customers’ product discovery experience. DaveAI can drastically boost conversion rates, optimizes product mix, and raises average order value per customer.

Moreover, DaveAI’s Interactive Infinite Virtual Aisle(IVA) (c) delivers advanced hyper-real time recommendations customized to each customer through digital assets in-store.

“AI is beneficial to the industry in applying insight gained over millions of purchases across the spectrum into creating design strategies that would increase key KPIs for the products,” said Dr. AnanthaKrishnan Gopal, co-founder & CTO of Sociograph Solutions.

Clearview AI fined in UK for Illegally storing Images

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Dipayan Mitra

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May 24, 2022

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) of the UK fined United States-based facial recognition firm Clearview AI £7.5 million for illegally storing images.

The much controversial company has been facing such issues for some time, and this new development is yet another hit for Clearview AI.

This fine has been imposed on the company for its practice of collecting and storing images of citizens from social media platforms without their consent, which is a severe threat to privacy according to several countries.

Moreover, the ICO has also ordered the US firm to remove UK citizens’ data from its systems. According to the ICO, Clearview AI has stored more than 20 billion pictures of people in its database.

“The company not only enables identification of those people but effectively monitors their behavior and offers it as a commercial service. That is unacceptable,” said John Edwards, the UK information commissioner.

He further added that that is why they have taken action in the UK to protect people by fining the company and issuing an enforcement notice.

Earlier this year, Italy’s privacy watchdog also fined Clearview AI €20 million. The fine was imposed for a similar reason, the company’s much-criticized artificial intelligence-powered facial recognition system that collects users’ information from public databases and stores them.

In its defense, Clearview AI’s CEO Hoan Ton-That said, “I am deeply disappointed that the UK Information Commissioner has misinterpreted my technology and intentions. We collect only public data from the open internet and comply with all standards of privacy and law.”

He also mentioned that he is disheartened by society’s misinterpretation of Clearview AI’s technology. Lawyers for Clearview AI stated that the company is not under the ICO’s authority, and it currently does not do business in the United Kingdom.

CryptoSmartlife to simplify Crypto investing in India with Thematic Coin Baskets

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Dipayan Mitra

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May 24, 2022

CryptoSmartlife India Thematic Coin Baskets

Artificial intelligence-powered end-to-end crypto investment platform CryptoSmartlife announces its plans to simplify crypto investing in India with the company’s thematic coin baskets.

According to the company, it is a Crypto Thematic Basket Investment platform that uses artificial intelligence to group the top 100 market capitalization coins into baskets based on past returns, price volatility, coin correlations, and other fundamental variables.

CryptoSmartlife offers its customers multiple one-of-a-kind features that set the company apart from its competitors.

The features include instant KYC and 24*7 customer-centric support, easy withdrawal and deposit, Crypto Recurring Basket Investment Plan in one click, auto rebalancing of coin portfolios based on changing market conditions, and many more.

Founder and CEO of CryptoSmartlife, Vishnu Tadepalli, said, “Current crypto exchanges are very complex, and many wanna-be crypto investors are missing out due to lack of education, unfriendly exchange interfaces & other technology barriers. We harness the power of advanced data science to present facts to users, as data never lies.”

He further added that their back-tested algorithm creates crypto smart baskets based on popular themes, providing customers with a simple and easy-to-use crypto investing experience that is smart and secure based on their preferences.

Singapore-based crypto investment platform CryptoSmartlife was founded by Vishnu Tadepalli in 2021. CryptoSmartlife was founded to be at the forefront of crypto innovation and drive crypto acceptance through an “easy to use” and “crypto learn” interface.

This is India’s first Cryptocurrency investment platform that allows users to make one-time and recurring investments in Crypto coin baskets based on popular themes like Blockchain, Metaverse, NFT, Green Crypto, Web3, etc.

Last few days to Apply for MIT WPU’s Petroleum Engineering AI and ML program

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Dipayan Mitra

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May 23, 2022

MIT World Peace University (WPU) is accepting applications for its undergraduate program in petroleum engineering (artificial intelligence and machine learning).

The BTech program is aimed at engineering enthusiasts and will produce highly trained professionals specializing in multiple fields such as exploration and economics, production engineering, drilling engineering, artificial intelligence and machine learning, data analytics, etc.

The 4-year BTech curriculum incorporates inputs from mathematics, physical, and geosciences, along with several engineering fields. In the most recent recruiting campaign, Cairn India – Vedanta offered the biggest package of Rs 20 LPA to the top 10% of the current batch, followed by ExxonMobil with Rs 11.5 LPA.

Dr. Rahul Joshi, Head, School of Petroleum Engineering at MIT WPU, said, “The necessity to obtain clean energy from the subsurface of the earth and to store crude oil, a significant ingredient for the production of medicines, agrochemicals and other petrochemicals (polymers and synthetic detergents), is inevitable.”

He further added that the field of energy and resources is expanding with technological innovation to adapt to modern demand, and MIT-WPU is constantly engaging with industry to equip its students with best-in-class skills and knowledge.

The program aims to develop industry-ready individuals with a thorough understanding of the interdisciplinary subject. Candidates must have completed XII grade with Physics, Mathematics, and English as compulsory subjects and a minimum of 50% in PCM group to become eligible for this BTech course.

Interested candidates can apply for this program from the official website of MIT WPU. The last date to submit applications is 25th May 2022.

SoundHound launches Voice AI Ordering service for Restaurants

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Dipayan Mitra

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May 23, 2022

SoundHoundVoice AI Ordering service Restaurants

Invoice-enabled AI and conversational intelligence technologies developing company SoundHound announces the launch of its new artificial intelligence (AI)-powered voice ordering service for restaurants.

We're talking turkey (also salami, roast beef, & chicken)! Announcing our partnership with @Square for a first-of-its-kind service that will allow restaurants to automate phone ordering and integrate their POS system. 🥳

Explore the partnership – https://t.co/6ZynlNV5gJ
— SoundHound (@SoundHound) May 19, 2022

The technology will transform the way people order food in restaurants by making the process completely digital.

SoundHound and Square, the world’s most trusted software, payments, and hardware firm, have teamed together to integrate SoundHound’s conversational AI phone ordering automation with Square’s POS systems.

The company’s newly launched voice assistant answers every call, eliminating the busy signal and smoothly processing orders and payments using Square’s POS system.

Bryan Solar, Head of Restaurants at Square, said, “Our partnership with SoundHound allows us to offer innovative and cost-effective solutions to restaurants working with small profit margins and facing multiple challenges—including the high cost of rapid labor turnover and shortages.”

He further added that this integration with SoundHound provides their sellers with the tools they need to offer a consistently high level of customer service.

According to the company, SoundHound for Restaurants is suitable for restaurant owners looking for cost-effective strategies to deal with contemporary trends of increased consumer demand for take-out orders. Moreover, the simple and hassle-free integration process makes the solution scalable and deployable.

Using a natural language interface powered by SoundHound’s powerful conversational AI technology, customers can ask for what they want to order. The four-step deployment process required restaurateurs to link their Square POS to SoundHound for Restaurants, sync to the menu they like the voice assistant to utilize and input the phone number for the system to answer.

“We spoke with many restaurant operators to develop SoundHound for Restaurants and received overwhelming feedback about the need for automated solutions that help restaurants process more orders and meet growing consumer demands more efficiently,” said the Co-founder and VP of Products at SoundHound, James Hom.

He also mentioned that their partnership with Square has allowed them to offer the power of conversational AI to organizations that would otherwise be unable to benefit from the convenience and efficiencies of a voice-enabled solution.

Israel tests AI-powered Floating Solar Panels

By

Dipayan Mitra

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May 23, 2022

Israel announces that it plans to test a new artificial intelligence (AI)-powered floating solar panels system to generate clean energy, reports Nocamels.

Developed by Israeli startup Xfloat, the solar photovoltaic (PV) system is meant to move and monitor the sun while floating on reservoir water. The company has developed an intelligent water management system that accurately tilts and tracks water loads and pumps.

The data acquired from sensors is subsequently refined and directed to a knowledge-based machine learning process for PV performance prediction, and O&M. Countries across the globe are launching new initiatives to generate clean energy as a step to control global warming.

Solar photovoltaic (PV) technology is one of a few energy choices helping usher in a greener future. As technology is rapidly advancing, this new system developed by Xfloat is a perfect example of integrating artificial intelligence with existing solar photovoltaic technology. The buoyancy tanks in Xfloat’s technology are organized in a grid of connected vessels that coordinate the rotation of the PV tracking tables.

“As part of the cooperation, Xfloat’s floating panels will be installed on Mekorot’s water reservoirs,” Shir Azaraf, a spokeswoman for the Finance Ministry, told the Chinese news agency Xinhua.

The new project is being carried out in collaboration with Israel’s national water provider, Mekorot. FPVs open up land that may be used for various environmental, residential, or commercial uses.

Xfloat’s technology will also help prevent evaporation from water sources, resulting in lesser chances of droughts in the region. Moreover, it will maintain improved efficiencies over time due to the water’s cooling impact.

Kerala Police trains special team in Artificial Intelligence and Data Analytics

By

Dipayan Mitra

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May 23, 2022

Kerala Police has successfully trained a team in artificial intelligence and data analytics to help them deliver their duties more efficiently.

The team included fifteen police officers who underwent a capacity-building program in AI and data analytics conducted by Digital University Kerala (DUK).

Kerala Police announced that it plans to conduct this program in March 2022. The goal of this new AI and data analytics training program is to reduce officers’ burden in police stations, allowing them to deliver better services to citizens.

Inspector-General of Police (South Zone) P. Prakash confirmed that the Kerala Police’s AI squad had gone live, saying that the team would immediately put their newly acquired policing talents to use. The police officers received a certificate for the completion of the 45-day Capacity Building in Responsible Artificial Intelligence and Data Analytics program.

“We are looking at a series of projects for various government departments that are much more deep and hands-on with technology as a major component,” Vice-Chancellor of DUK, Saji Gopinath, said during the launch of the program.

He further added that they were elated to start this series with the Kerala Police department. Industry experts and researchers will lead the 150-hour training program in a classroom setting. According to officials, the new course will help the team in executing predictive policing and adopting measures to prevent crimes from happening.

The AI team would be able to use their newly acquired skills to develop tools needed for next-generation policing, like face recognition. Mr. Prakash believes that new-age technologies such as artificial intelligence and data analytics will help the police force use data more effectively to improve policing.

Wayve and Microsoft partners to Scale AI for Autonomous Vehicles

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Dipayan Mitra

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May 22, 2022

Wayve Microsoft scale AI Autonomous Vehicles

Artificial intelligence-powered self-driving technology developing company Wayve partners with global technology giant Microsoft to scale AI for autonomous vehicles.

With this collaboration, Wayve intends to use Microsoft’s supercomputing infrastructure to help with the global development of AI-based models for autonomous vehicles.

They hope to harness the power of deep learning systems for autonomy, which has the potential to scale quicker than rules-based techniques to new locations.

This development comes months after Wayve raised $200 million in its series B funding round, which received participation from Microsoft. Other investors such as Virgin, Baillie Gifford, D1 Capital Partners, Moore Strategic Ventures, and Linse Capital also participated in the funding round.

CTO of Azure at Microsoft, Mark Russinovich, said, “Supercomputing capabilities are key to processing the immense amount of data required for the simulation, validation, and training of AI models that enable safe and secure autonomous driving.”

He further added that Wayve is combining its deep learning-based autonomous vehicle systems expertise with the processing power of Microsoft Azure to provide self-driving mobility to more individuals and organizations faster.

The United Kingdom-based artificial intelligence-powered autonomous driving technology developing startup Wayve was founded by Alex Kendall and Amar Shah in 2017. The startup specializes in offering fully autonomous driving solutions, which are data-driven.

Wayve’s technology uses deep end-to-end learning to develop artificial intelligence that allows vehicles to move autonomously in multiple complicated environments.

“Joining forces with Microsoft to design the supercomputing infrastructure needed to accelerate deep learning for autonomous mobility is an opportunity that we are honored to lead,” said Co-founder and CEO of Wayve.

He also mentioned that they are enthused about the possibilities that this cooperation will open up as they push deep learning to new heights.