In news that journalists around the world are perhaps loath to report, China has just unveiled another non-human that is set to steal their jobs. China's state-run news agency, Xinhua, unveiled "the world's first female AI news anchor" to read alongside its male AI news presenters. Dystopian? Maybe not. But it is unsettling for those who are...
With facial recognition, temporary ID printers and bathrooms equipped with LED screens, Shanghai Hongqiao Railway Station is already pretty high-tech. But things are about to get even better (and faster) as the railway station will soon be outfitted with an indoor 5G network. The project is expected to be operational by the end of the year....
a partnership between US grocery retailer Albertson and medical tech company Genomind saw Genomind’s DNA testing kits made available to purchase at select Albertson stores. The test – called the Genecept Assay – helps determine how an individual will respond to different psychiatric medications by studying genes responsible for neurotransmitter...
At the moment, in order to tell our virtual assistants to do something, we still have say something like "Alexa, tell X to do Y". But this is changing so that you can ask any question or make any request in natural language, and Alexa will connect to the appropriate skill automatically. For example if you say "what are the surf conditions at...
Twiga Foods in Kenya, a platform helping farmers distribute produce to food stalls, partnered with IBM to extend microloans to stall vendors. IBM created a system to help these sellers receive credit scores; a machine learning algorithm analyzes their mobile purchase records and calculates a credit score. The end-to-end lending process is then...
Despite major initiatives to digitize healthcare information, major improvements in transparency and interoperability among various groups in the healthcare system are still necessary. By reducing administrative errors and friction through the application of blockchain technology, healthcare information could be exchanged more efficiently....
Package delivery is quickly becoming a more decentralized market given the rising popularity of on-demand services, which is what the 'Shippa' app aims to help build on. Positioned as a world traveler delivery service, the platform enables travelers to take packages with them when heading out of a trip to make a bit of extra money. This also...
UK-based FabRx is developing and testing a 3D printer to create personalised pills (they call them printlets) on site at hospitals. The printer could solve a major problem. Most medicines are available in set strengths and sizes. This makes it difficult to customise pills to patients’ individual needs. This is especially problematic with...
Mindfulness apps are the must-have addition to smartphones in 2019. A good example is Moodrise, which aims to use digital content, nicknamed “digital nutrition”, to help alleviate pain, boost emotional resilience and improve experiences of everyday life. Instead of focusing on meditation like other wellness apps, Moodrise offers up different...
After successful trials at airports in in Paris and Lyon, the Stan autonomous parking system is on its way to Gatwick, London. Here's how it works: Drop your car into a little garage, scan yourself into the system, then head to the plane. A robot then picks up your car, ferries it off to a distant, secure, high-density car park, and brings it...