artificial intelligence

Medical imaging and personal health data are collected and used to develop a commercial products. Should patients have some say over this use?

Health & Safety

When Scientists Develop Products From Personal Medical Data, Who Gets To Profit?

6:18pm May 31, 2018

by Richard Harris

Data from patient medical records are being used to develop commercial products. What rights do we have over the use of our personal health information?

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A team at Johns Hopkins Medicine in Baltimore is developing a tumor-detecting algorithm for detecting pancreatic cancer. But first, they have to train computers to distinguish between organs.

For Some Hard-To-Find Tumors, Doctors See Promise In Artificial Intelligence

7:26pm May 30, 2018

by Richard Harris

Scientists are training computers to read CT scans in the hopes that they can catch pancreatic cancer early.

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Google CEO Sundar Pichai demonstrated new AI technology that can use human-like speech to carry on phone conversations at the Google I/O 2018 Conference on Tuesday in Mountain View, Calif.

Google's New Voice Bot Sounds, Um, Maybe Too Real

4:34pm May 09, 2018

by Laurel Wamsley

The company touts AI that peppers its conversation with "uh" and "hmm" to imitate the tics of human speech. Many observers took issue with how the bot apparently tricked a human on the phone.

A 3D model of two live human stem cells, with colors representing the cells' various internal structures.

Artificial Intelligence Takes Scientists Inside Living Human Cells

3:10pm May 09, 2018

by Jon Hamilton

Diseases like cancer involve changes that occur inside a cell — and usually out of sight. A new technology can reveal a cell's inner workings, using inexpensive graphics processors from video games.

First responders in the Marina District disaster zone after an earthquake on October 17, 1989 in San Francisco, Calif.

Betting On Artificial Intelligence To Guide Earthquake Response

5:55pm April 20, 2018

by Joe Palca

A California tech firm believes that artificial intelligence can help communities prepare for, and respond to, quakes.

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SenseTime's technology is able to identify specific attributes of vehicles and people.

World News

Facial Recognition In China Is Big Business As Local Governments Boost Surveillance

10:41am April 03, 2018

by Rob Schmitz

"The government is pushing the need for this technology from the top, so companies don't have big obstacles in making it happen," says an executive at a major Chinese artificial intelligence company.

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Health & Safety

Invisibilia: Do the Patterns in Your Past Predict Your Future?

1:03pm March 30, 2018

by Alix Spiegel

A massive computer competition works to identify the patterns that can predict where someone will end up in life. But whether this competition has a winner may depend on your viewpoint.

A robot sweeps the floor at the main press center at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics.

At The Winter Olympics, Robots Are Here To Help. But Don't Assume They Work All Hours

2:28pm February 20, 2018

by Bill Chappell

Directions, weather reports and water bottles are a few things robots are delivering at the Olympics. They're also helping South Korea present itself as a tech-savvy nation with an eye on the future.

Computers use artificial intelligence to do everything from drive cars to pick music we'll like. But what exactly is artificial intelligence? How does it work? What are its limits?

Science

Can Computers Learn Like Humans?

5:13pm February 05, 2018

by Joe Palca

Computers use artificial intelligence to do everything from drive cars to pick music we like. But what exactly is artificial intelligence? How does it work? What are its limits?

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Two hundred years ago, Mary Shelley warned us about entering into realms of science we were not sure we could control, says Marcelo Gleiser.

Man As God: 'Frankenstein' Turns 200

12:50pm January 10, 2018

by Marcelo Gleiser

Mary Shelley cautioned us of the dangers of extending science into realms where we have little control of the outcomes; may we all read her tale — and take in its lessons, says Marcelo Gleiser.