There could be no more consequential decision than launching atomic weapons and possibly triggering a nuclear holocaust. President John F. Kennedy faced just such a moment during the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 and, after envisioning the catastrophic outcome of a U.S.-Soviet nuclear exchange, he came to the conclusion that the atomic powers should impose…
Information technology has already transformed virtually every aspect of modern civilization. The rise of artificial intelligence and the ability of systems to train themselves rather than be programmed, allowing them to perform tasks no human could, is expected to have as much, if not more an impact than the proliferation of computers and the Internet. The Wall…
Unless the politics of the governments around the world change, robots and AI will become the next blow to the living standards of ordinary people. There are an increasing number of stories in the media about robots becoming a big part of our future and the need to have democratic openness overseeing the rise of…
Artificial intelligence (AI) is seen as both a boon and a threat. It uses our personal data to influence our lives without us realising it. It is used by social media to draw our attention to things we are interested in buying, and by our tablets and computers to predict what we want to type…
The US’ Department of Homeland Security (DHS) plans to set up a media monitoring database. The “deep state” agency put out an online bid for creating a system that will “provide media comparison tools, design and rebranding tools, communication tools, and the ability to identify top media influencers” in over 100 languages and which will…
Google — the advertising and search engine monolith that once touted its official commitment, “Don’t be evil” — has thrown its full weight behind the U.S. military-industrial complex’s fast-advancing unmanned drone program – and more than three thousand of its employees will have none of it. In a letter to Google CEO Sundar Pichai, over…
