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AI is overhauling the workplace in ways both promising and unsettling
By Simone Castello | Mar 19, 2024
From automating time-consuming, repetitive tasks to driving pioneering innovation, AI is reshaping the labor market, offering huge opportunities and presenting challenges. Will AI steal jobs and make humans redundant, or foster a better work-life balance and deliver inclusivity?
A comparison reveals the stark contrast between AI, human stupidity
This year’s World Economic Forum offered a snapshot on the state of the world and its many ongoing crises. While AI is achieving impressive results in many ways, these are largely being overshadowed by human stupidity, cautions NYU Professor Emeritus of Economics Nouriel Roubini.
AI is advancing preventive medicine, promoting better health
AI draws much attention for transforming areas of healthcare such as cancer treatments and surgery, but its greatest impact lies in keeping more people healthy so they do not need such intervention, argues Ahmed Zahlan, a Fulbright Scholar doing his PhD on AI healthcare startups.
Brazilian AI takes up eyeglass prescription prediction to boost vision care
Nearsightedness and other vision impairments afflict victims everywhere and their early detection is paramount. A new Brazilian AI bids fair to succor via tele-eye exams those who lack access to care. Medical executive and radiologist Gustavo Meirelles makes it all crystal clear.
How a public-private consortium could lead to democratic global AI governance
An open and democratic public-private consortium for AI would sustain growth, transparency, and competition, while averting an over-concentration of power and AI safety risks, argues Trustless Computing Association founder and President Rufo Guerreschi.
Vision Pro realizes Steve Jobs' last vision, but Apple does not yet see it
If Steve Jobs were still alive, Apple Vision Pro would have come out earlier and featured AI at its core, writes award-winning tech columnist Satyen K. Bordoloi as he outlines a vision for AVP that Apple would do well to adapt.
The Yuan announces new ‘brainstorming’ series exploring neuroscience, AIAs humanity teeters on the brink, fears mount over the cognitive powers of the aging global leaders on whose shoulders rests the task of averting human extinction. This moment is thus opportune for The Yuan to unveil our new brain science series, starting on April 1, to catalog its interplay with AI.
A trek to an indigenous land teaches digital health, sustainability lessonsSet in a national park in Brazil’s central Mato Grosso state, Alto Xingu is home to a variety of indigenous peoples. Its very remoteness imparts invaluable lessons on digital health and sustainability. Radiologist and medical executive Dr Gustavo Meirelles guides us on this tour.
How a public-private consortium could lead to democratic global AI governance
An open and democratic public-private consortium for AI would sustain growth, transparency, and competition, while averting an over-concentration of power and AI safety risks, argues Trustless Computing Association founder and President Rufo Guerreschi.
There is a strong case to be made for regulating GenAI through common law
Arguments over whose regulations are best regarding AI, LLMs, and other advance tech overlook the possibility that common law, with its case-by-case approach, offers the best solution for crafting sensible regulatory frameworks, argue profs S. Alex Yang and Angela Huyue Zhang.
UK and US AI regulatory frameworks precede AI safety summit, impact healthcare
Both the UK and US governments published AI regulatory frameworks ahead of the first-ever AI Safety Summit hosted at Bletchley Park in November 2023. The two frameworks are both organized by five similar principles, and by comparing them AI developers will be better equipped to create AI tools designed for use in both UK and US settings.
The Yuan favorites
Cognition
A comparison reveals the stark contrast between AI, human stupidity
This year’s World Economic Forum offered a snapshot on the state of the world and its many ongoing crises. While AI is achieving impressive results in many ways, these are largely being overshadowed by human stupidity, cautions NYU Professor Emeritus of Economics Nouriel Roubini.
Cognition
Meaningful and impactful AI ethics requires an adaptive mindset
The second part of this series elaborates further on the Agile Leadership Framework™ and Strategic Hustler™ concepts introduced in the previous article, writes Dr Frank Lee Harper, Jr, AI thought leader and provost and vice chancellor at Cambridge Corporate University.
Cognition
AI brings disconcerting change. Beware the “weaponised nostalgia” of populism
The populism that has recently surged can be summarised as ‘weaponized nostalgia.’ Best-selling AI author, keynote speaker and London Futurist Podcast co-host Calum Chace cites historical examples to warn of the perils that demagogues will pose in the age of AI.
Cognition
Persuasive AI threatens society, democracy - even humanity itself
What is needed to change a person’s mind? As GenAI becomes more embedded in customer-facing systems such as human-like phone calls or online chatbots, this ethical question must be widely addressed - especially given AI’s tendency to conduce the spread of disinformation.
Pandemic
How different countries leveraged the power of AI to navigate COVID-19
This first part of a series explores how AI helped the world weather COVID-19 and at least partially cushion its impact. While the pandemic exposed many shortcomings, it also shed light on future improvements. Biomedical engineer and med-tech innovator Anjali Rajan presents a glimpse into popular AI applications in pandemic management deployed by five countries.
Pandemic
The COVID-19 Calculator
With the evolving nature of the COVID-19 pandemic, along with seemingly ever-changing recommendations, restrictions, and government guidance, trying to assess one’s own personal level of risk at any given time or location can be confusing. Now, with the development of the COVID-19 calculator, people finally have a tool to cut through all the uncertainty and determine their own risk of infection accurately and flexibly.
Pandemic
Experts Claim CT Scans For COVID-19 Diagnosis is Flawed
As the novel coronavirus evolved from epidemic to pandemic, early research suggested CT scans provided the best diagnosis for COVID-19. It turns out that the information was flawed. Data scientist and Google Scholar Dan Elton takes a closer look at the studies published.
Game-changers
Vision Pro realizes Steve Jobs' last vision, but Apple does not yet see it
If Steve Jobs were still alive, Apple Vision Pro would have come out earlier and featured AI at its core, writes award-winning tech columnist Satyen K. Bordoloi as he outlines a vision for AVP that Apple would do well to adapt.
Game-changers
The AI revolution is creating new possibilities in climate science
AI is transforming the world’s weather forecasting systems, helping scientists better understand Earth and giving them access to new tools for the world’s fight against climate change, says Giulio Boccaletti, Scientific Director of the Euro-Mediterranean Center on Climate Change.
Game-changers
Preventing AI nuclear Armageddon is one of today’s greatest challenges
In today’s fraught geopolitical climate, AI’s impact on nuclear weapons systems shows that new safeguards are needed, argues Melissa Parke, former Australian minister for international development and Executive Director of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons.
Game-changers
Generative technology is even changing the nature of pornography
Generative technology - commonly referred to as ‘generative AI’ - is opening the door to photo-realistic imagery of the foulest kinds. This is not some hidden dark art, either - it is readily available in any browser on any computer or phone, and this is just the beginning.
Emerging markets
Market power is permanent even with intense technological competition
Contrary to what one might think, the competition and ceaseless innovation that are hallmarks of today’s globalized, digital, hyperconnected world are actually increasing and entrenching market power for large, established players, argues Stanford economics prof Mordecai Kurz.
Emerging markets
AI octopus flexes its tentacles to entrench Big Tech’s hegemony
No end looms in sight to Big Tech companies’ chokehold on the digital economy, and AI’s steady rise bids fair to buttress this trend based on these corporate leviathans’ access to data and knowledge of consumer and business behavior, argues author and Law Prof Eric Posner.
Emerging markets
AI roots out corruption in India’s troubled healthcare terrain
India, the world’s most populous country, has a complex healthcare system prone to inefficiency and corruption. As the country digitalizes, AI is already bearing fruit by exposing graft and granting more Indians access to quality care, writes AI and Big Data expert Disha Ganguli.
Emerging markets
Norway’s billion-kroner investment in AI should target innovation
To get the most bang for one’s buck - or krone - means carefully choosing how AI funds are allocated. Innovation Prof Tor W. Andreassen of NHH Norwegian School of Economics and tech executive Yngvar Ugland discuss the pros and cons of prioritizing AI inventions vs. innovations.
Domain knowledge
AI is advancing preventive medicine, promoting better health
AI draws much attention for transforming areas of healthcare such as cancer treatments and surgery, but its greatest impact lies in keeping more people healthy so they do not need such intervention, argues Ahmed Zahlan, a Fulbright Scholar doing his PhD on AI healthcare startups.
Domain knowledge
AI fails to flag autoimmune diseases, of which women form 80% of victims
Autoimmune diseases are tricky for both AI and humans to spot and diagnose. Even specially-bred algorithms often fail to find their quarry, with devastating consequences for their mostly women sufferers. ML engineer and technical writer Jacia Ebubechi kindles a beacon of hope.
Domain knowledge
Teaching ‘AI and the law’ in law school
AI has come a long way in a short time and is no longer the exclusive domain of computer scientists and techies. Even aspiring lawyers are now learning about how its many applications will shape the future of the law, explains attorney, professor, and AI expert Eran Kahana.
Domain knowledge
Zoonotic AI: Should AI cheetahs offer running advice and otters transcribe?
Most AI and robots assume a humanoid form, but zoonotic AI takes a different tack, with animal figures providing AI-powered services. Dr Anshu Suri, Assistant Professor of Marketing at the CD Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School, advises matching furries with their functions.
Generic
AI is on FHIR, with huge ramifications for healthcare delivery
Many know healthcare and medical research are swiftly evolving, piggybacking on technological advances, but fewer realize much of this shift comes from greater interoperability between various computers and systems. CUNY Data Science Prof Scott Burk introduces game-changing FHIR.
Generic
Bio-Europe Winter Conference highlights latest trends in life sciences
The Bio-Europe Winter Conference is held in a different city each year - and last year, the rota fell on Munich. With a proven track record of fostering partnerships and innovation, the event showcased key biopharma trends set to impact healthcare over the next decades.
Generic
Legal status, IP rights of automatons raise many troubling questions
Can a computer own intellectual property or bear criminal liability? GenAI poses thorny questions that challenge existing notions of ownership, copyright, and legal responsibility, argues financial crime risk and compliance specialist and legal expert Nigel Morris-Cotterill.
Generic
The future of healthcare: a patient journey powered by AI
AI is transforming patient healthcare at each step in a hospital journey, and will be an indispensable tool in all phases of future treatments. Biomed engineer and med-tech innovator Anjali Rajan, and epidemiologist and health economist Vishnu Baby Kumar discuss this trend from a patient perspective.
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Special reports
Human-machine relationship needs shared understanding to thrive
The Yuan’s voyage of intelligent discovery lands back in London to end on day 18. The capital of the largest empire ever was once dubbed ‘The Smoke’ due to the notorious ‘pea-soup’ smog from its coal-burning furnaces and hearths. A new Industrial Revolution is now underway in this cradle of the first one, and Ivana Bartoletti, chief privacy officer at IT business consultancy Wipro, advises how to better close the damper on its adverse effects.
Imaginary Friends 5: ‘The first thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers’
This time, the four imaginary friends gather together once more to consider the importance of precision in language as they examine vocabulary, grammar, and inflection. Imprecise language can be especially problematic with AI, which can easily get confused and spit out answers or take actions that are incorrect.
Assumptions underlying AI outsmarting humans are flawed
Day six of The Yuan’s voyage of intelligent discovery makes landfall at Massachusetts Bay. Boston was founded in 1630 by Puritan settlers fleeing religious persecution in England and named for a town in the east of the mother country from which many hailed. The Pilgrim Fathers hoped to create a ‘city on a hill’ - a radiant model of a godly society for the world. They saw their flight as a fight between good and evil. ‘Good AI’ may one day ally with humanity to combat ‘evil AI,’ in the view of David H. Freedman, an award-winning science journalist covering health and technology, contributor to Scientific American and Forbes, and author of a book on AI, who calls into question the very assumptions underpinning a time when AI outwits humans.
The next trillion-dollar business: personal AI assistants - part 1
Seldom in the swiftly evolving tech world does one get to say: ‘I told you so.’ With Dall-E, LaMDA, ChatGPT-type AI systems in 2022, The Yuan contributor Satyen K. Bordoloi says just that as - in a three-part series - he outlines how AI personal assistants will storm and transform the world, leading to the next trillion-dollar business.
What will be the outcome when AI 'outsmarts' humans?
Views on AI diverge. Some see a savior bestowing immortality on and whisking humanity off to the stars. Others descry a false prophet encompassing the ruin of humankind. The Yuan is cordially inviting our contributors to read their auguries and divine a time when AI ‘outsmarts’ us in this new series.
The synergy of humans and AI: Nurturing humanity in the age of innovation
Crossing from the Old World that launched the Age of Exploration to the New World that bore its brunt, our voyage of intelligent discovery lands on day five on the shores of Brazil, named for a tree yielding a dye as red as embers (brasas) so precious Portugal’s bandeirantes eagerly shed the equally carmine blood of the area’s indigenes to obtain the colorant, before these bannermen mixed their own with them and others to produce Brazil’s largely Pardo people. On day five of our quest, radiologist Gustavo Meirelles takes the helm in the Southern Hemisphere’s biggest city to relate how other historic advancements that aroused dire fears at the start were ultimately also fully incorporated into human society.
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