Brainless AI – Machine Learning Inspired by All Things Bright and Beautiful (The Week in AI)

Written by Dominic Weeks, Head of Technology, and Phil Armstrong, Account Director

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Pick of this week’s AI media coverage came in the shape of a thought-provoking report by Katyanna Quach at The Register, reporting on a keynote speech at the NeurIPS conference by Michael Levin professor and director of the Allen Discovery Centre at Tufts University. “Intelligent behaviour doesn’t require a brain,” her sub-head teased as a lead-in, before an exploration of how artificial intelligence computing innovation can be inspired by biological systems beyond simply the human brain.

As well as the technical advantages Levin discusses, broadening the definition of AI beyond a slavish replication of the human brain’s functionality can have advantages for setting the right context for development. Broadening the discussions may also alleviate the perhaps unhelpful association the public has with AI as a replication (and thus, potentially a replacement), for human thinking.

News in Brief:

Tumblr to use machine learning technology to block adult content https://www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/05/tumblr_ai_smut/
Google and Microsoft researchers call for facial recognition regulation https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/2018/12/06/google-microsoft-researchers-call-facial-recognitionregulation/
Robot in Amazon warehouse hospitalises 24 workers with bear repellent spray https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/2018/12/06/robot-amazon-warehouse-hosipitalises-24-workers-bear-spray/
Cambridge Consultants announces AI tool for fixing distorted moving images https://www.cambridgewireless.co.uk/news/2018/dec/4/artificial-intelligence-moves-beyond-human-vision/
WisdomTree launches artificial intelligence ETF https://www.investmentweek.co.uk/investment-week/news/3067636/wisdomtree-launches-artificial-intelligence-etf
AI could be the answer to a four day work week http://www.cityam.com/270071/ai-could-answer-four-day-week

Around Whitehall:

£1.3bn industry/government partnership to apply AI to early disease detection

The government has announced a £1.3bm partnership with the life sciences industry to accelerate detection of disease using AI. The programme, the largest ever study of its kind, will study 5 million healthy people to develop new AI diagnostic tests. UCB, the global biopharmaceutical company, is investing around £1bn, with government investing £79m. The deal brings together 10 companies from across the sector. It is part of the government’s Life Science’s Sector Deal 2.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/13-billion-industrygovernment-investment-in-uk-economy-and-new-partnership-driving-early-disease-detection

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