designboom TECH predictions 2020: AI and the third era of computing

tech predictions 2020: scientists have already used it to explore our ancient origins, beer lovers have rigged taps with it to pour the perfect pint, and now humankind wants to use it to find everything out about everyone — artificial intelligence is making rapid strides and there’s talk of a new evolution that could fundamentally change life on our planet. 

this month, LA-based studio ouchhh created a 3 billion-pixel digital monolith combining AI with data learnt from the pre-pottery neolithic period (read more…)

in 2020, artificial intelligence will reach new heights. robotic scanners that serve the perfect pizza, seem pretty schoolboy in comparison to its future potential. the AI of tomorrow uses its political prowess instead of its culinary skills. it will decide who should be hired and who should be fired, who is guilty and who is innocent, deciding the fate of entire nations.

earlier this year, dominoes announced the launch of a new pizza-checking robot which uses a mix of AI, advanced machine learning and sensor technology to identify pizza type, even topping distribution and correct toppings (read more…)

deepfakes refer to manipulated videos, or other digital representations produced by sophisticated artificial intelligence, that generate fabricated images and sounds that appear to be real. these falsified videos are becoming increasingly sophisticated and accessible, with the danger of making people believe something is real when it is not. it’s just in time for the 2020 US election where some fear it could be used to undermine the reputation of political candidates by making the candidate appear to say or do things that never actually occurred.

in june, a doctored video of mark zuckerberg was uploaded to instagram raising concerns over falsified content (read more…)

gartner, an IT research and advisory company, reports that by 2024, the world health organization will identify online shopping as an addictive disorder. that might be in part because by then, as the same report suggests, AI which is able to identify emotions will influence more than half of the online advertisements you see. by 2020, it is predicted that 85% of customer interactions in retail will be managed by artificial intelligence. new technology could monitor customers’ reactions to brands, pricing and store layouts, helping retailers make decisions based on consumer responses. it’s kind of like market research but 24/7: if emotions read negative, it might be time to lower prices, and if shoppers appear confused, it might be time for a redesign.

just a couple of months ago, researchers at openAI developed a robotic arm that uses artificial intelligence to solve a rubik’s cube one-handed (read more…)

there’s no hiding your emotions in the future. newly developed ‘artificial emotional intelligence‘ puts power in the hands of big businesses with an incentive to know exactly what’s on your mind and when. it might not change the way we shop entirely, but the use of AI to detect consumer emotions will surely change the way we are ‘sold to’. imagine a hyperpersonalized shopping experience curated by humanoid sales assistants whose ability to understand what you want or need happens before you’ve even had time to articulate it. 

in september, designboom reported on a new PSA in america that used artificial intelligence to create a composite ‘portrait of hunger’ by scanning the faces of americans (read more…)

the biggest concern of the future is if brands will be transparent and if so, how? consumers will demand an education on how their data is being collected and used. AI that can scan human beings for their emotional state is already being used to vet job seekers, test criminal suspects for signs of deception, and set insurance prices – but just cause AI can read our emotions…should it? research center AI now institute has called for new laws to restrict the use of emotion-detecting for fears that it is ‘built on markedly shaky foundations’. we just can’t rely on AI doing its job properly when people’s lives are at stake. with AI around there’s no room for human error, but there’s still plenty of space for machine-made mistakes.

israel-based startup seedo is developing fully automated, commercial-scale cannabis farms for example (read more…)

but its not all bad — AI is set to drive sustainability in 2020 and beyond. companies will use it to measure environmental and social effects within their businesses, automatically optimizing operations for sustainability. that includes operating responsibly, reducing waste, making smarter transportation strategies.