Every day we wake up, drink a cup of coffee, and get ready for work. Following are a handful of stories from around the tech world condensed to fit into one single cup of coffee. These are the things you need to know before you step foot out of your door (or in front of a webcam) and into the real world this morning.
So sit back, grab a cup, and start your morning off right with a few “Quick Bytes” from Innovation & Tech Today.
Amazon In-Truck AI Cameras Punish Drivers for Others’ Mistakes
A Vice report details a number of incidents where Amazon’s AI-equipped cameras are punishing drivers for the mistakes of others. For example, when cut off by another car, the driver is dinged for failure to maintain a safe distance. That data collected by the cameras is then used to evaluate driver performance and could result in fines, suspension, loss of bonuses, or termination.
Apple Determining if iPhone Can Detect
The team at Apple is always looking for new things the iPhone is capable of doing. With health monitoring taking an increased role on mobile devices, Apple is now researching whether the iPhone can detect depression. The Wall Street Journal reported the study is very early, so it may or may not lead to a new feature. The team is consulting with scientists at Biogen and UCLA.
AI-Powered Disinformation Detector Raises $10 million
Blackbird.AI, a platform that combats disinformation using artificial intelligence, has raised $10 million in its Series A round. The goal for Blackbird is for the software to help businesses respond to disinformation using real data. The software tracks and analyzes social media and other platforms for what it calls “media risks” that could be harmful information campaigns.
Slack to Add Clips and Video Messages
Slack, a subscription-based work communication software, has added video clips to its platform. This adds a new way to create and share audio, video, and screen recordings between channels or DMs as needed. The playback experience for clips is designed to be inclusive and accessible. You can speed up or slow down the content, watch with live captions, and open up the transcript to jump to critical parts of the conversation. You can also respond in whatever medium you feel most comfortable with: text, audio, or video.
