AI is growing: How do we create fair technology we can trust in, and minimise the risks of gender bias? May 7, 2021 | City Talk This year marks 20 years since Spielberg’s sci-fi / drama movie came to our screens: A.I. Artificial Intelligence – and in 2021, AI is no longer the work of science fiction. In the last 20 years, AI uses have been explored for human benefits in numerous industries. AI has played a key role in developing vaccines against [...]
Rocket debris racing for Earth, expected to arrive tomorrow May 7, 2021 Debris falling from a Chinese rocket is expected to land on Earth tomorrow, amid concerns it could cause damage upon re-entry into the atmosphere. A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin urged today that most of the debris will be burned up on re-entry and is highly unlikely to cause any harm. The Defence Department [...]
UK spooks warn councils over ‘smart city’ cyber attack threat May 7, 2021 Smart cities that use technology to make services more efficient are an “attractive” target for cyber attackers looking to disrupt British infrastructure or steal data, UK spooks have warned. The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), which is part of GCHQ, today issued a new set of security principles for local authorities to ensure their networks [...]
Ericsson and Samsung ink deal to end global patent dispute May 7, 2021 Ericsson and Samsung have signed a multi-year agreement on global patent licences between the two companies, ending a legal battle that hit the Swedish firm’s first-quarter revenue. In a statement this morning Ericsson said the cross-licence agreement covers sale of network infrastructure and handsets from the beginning of this year. The two tech firms have [...]
German e-car boom will hit 178,000 workers unless companies focus on re-skilling May 6, 2021 The electric cars boom will hit 178,000 workers in Germany unless companies gear up efforts to re-skill their employees, a report has shown today. The country’s auto industry will suffer more employees retiring than the labour market can keep up within the coming years, the Ifo institute said. With battery-driven cars requiring less assembly work [...]
Uber books $600m hit from UK drivers’ rights ruling May 6, 2021 Uber has booked a $600m (£431m) hit following a landmark court ruling that forced the ride-hailing giant to pay its drivers minimum wage and holiday pay. The San Francisco-based app last night said it had incurred the costs to settle historical claims relating to the classification of drivers as workers during the first quarter. In [...]
Demand for food delivery helps Uber narrow losses in the first quarter May 5, 2021 Uber said it saw continued demand for its food delivery business in the first quarter but bookings in its ride-hailing division were flat on the previous quarter. The company delivered revenue of $2.9bn in the first quarter but took a $600m hit to account for a settlement relating to the classification of its UK drivers. [...]
How video games could be the next frontier in the WFH revolution May 5, 2021 By this time last year, most of us were already experiencing Zoom fatigue. A month of working remotely had taken its toll and the endless queue of video meetings seemed to exemplify the creeping malaise of this new way of working. Phil Spencer, head of Microsoft’s games division Xbox, soon came up with a novel [...]
Donald Trump’s Facebook ban upheld by oversight board May 5, 2021 Facebook’s oversight board has upheld the ban of former US President Donald Trump but said the indefinite suspension was wrong. In a much-awaited verdict, the oversight board said it upheld Facebook’s decision but said it was “not appropriate… to impose the indeterminate and standardless penalty of indefinite suspension.” “Facebook’s normal penalties include removing the violating [...]
Infosys to add 1,000 UK staff to help with digital growth May 4, 2021 Indian software exporter Infosys has said it will hire 1,000 new staff in the UK to meet increased demand for its services during the pandemic. Infosys will ramp up its presence in the UK over the next three years after the pandemic “exacerbated” the need for digital skills and infrastructure. The New York-listed company said [...]