Machines

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AI: what's the worst that could happen?

Stephen Cave, executive director of the UK's new dedicated centre for exploring AI, is gathering the best of human intelligence to tackle the problems of the future

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Drones delivering packages in cities won't take off – here's why

A clever concept collides with reality

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Human says no

Future Trends: The next big technological controversy will see the public turn against algorithms and machine learning

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Going off track

In the 1980s, Britain pioneered futuristic levitating trains pushed by magnets. Now, despite gleaming maglev trains gliding around Asia, Britain's version has been left to waste. What went wrong?

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How the UK passed the most invasive surveillance law in democratic history

The 'snooper's charter' lets authorities in the UK spy on almost every aspect of all of our lives, yet the law has passed with few headlines and little resistance

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How the dearly departed could come back to life – digitally

Virtual simulations of loved ones could be the next step in the evolution of bereavement. Like the idea or not the technology is here – we should start the moral debate now

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'We need the best of human intelligence to make the best of artificial intelligence'

Comment: Huw Price, academic director of the Centre for Future Intelligence, on how we should shape AI for the next generation

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Voting blocks

Blockchain, the technology underlying Bitcoin, could be used to run anything from a protest movement to a nation. It's an exciting prospect, but can it actually work?​

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'Every aspect of our lives will be transformed' – exploring the future of AI

Favourited: A new centre has opened to study the positive and negative implications of AI and ethical quandaries it poses