This week’s list of top data news highlights covers September 16, 2023 to September 22, 2023 and includes articles on using an AI system to decipher chickens’ emotions and tracking businesses engaging in fake review schemes.
1. Generating Images
OpenAI has released the third version of its text-to-image generative AI system, DALL-E 3. The company integrated the new version into ChatGPT, enabling users to ask the chatbot for prompt suggestions and edits.
2. Verifying Identification
Officials in Singapore have announced plans to automate immigration clearance at Changi Airport. Starting next year, immigration checkpoints will use biometric data to verify passengers’ identities as they leave Singapore.
3. Identifying DNA Mutations
DeepMind, a U.K.-based AI company, has created an AI system that can identify DNA mutations that could cause diseases. The company says the system has classified 89 percent of DNA mutations that might cause diseases. Previously, genetic scientists had classified only 0.1 percent of DNA mutations.
4. Selling Clothes
Amazon has added radio frequency identification (RFID) tags to its Just Walk Out technology. Companies can now use RFID tags to sell soft products, such as clothes, without requiring customers to visit a cashier.
5. Translating Chicken Clucks
A team of researchers led by the University of Tokyo has created an AI system that can decipher chickens’ emotional states from their clucks. The team trained the system with recordings from 80 chickens and input from animal psychologists and veterinarians.
6. Combating Fake Reviews
Yelp, a U.S.-based crowdsourced reviews platform, has launched an index listing businesses suspected of paying for fake reviews and those with multiple reviews originating from the same IP address. The company has identified nearly 5,000 businesses engaging in fake review schemes.
7. Creating Content
YouTube has created new AI-powered tools that can generate image or video backgrounds for Shorts, brainstorm video ideas, script outlines, search for music, and dub videos into different languages.
8. Patrolling Subway Stations
The New York Police Department has announced that an autonomous robot will patrol the Times Square subway station at night. The robot contains a camera that can transmit live video of the station to police officers.
9. Providing Healthcare
GE HealthCare, a U.S.-based medical technology company, will develop an AI-powered ultrasound imaging tool that does not require advanced training. Healthcare providers in resource-poor regions can use the tool to serve a greater number of patients more efficiently.
10. Tracking Respiratory Illnesses
The Washington State Department of Health has launched a dashboard to track data on respiratory illnesses in the state. Residents can use the dashboard to view information on emergency department visits, hospital admissions, and ICU occupancy related to COVID-19, the flu, and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).
Image credit: Flickr user Matthew Willis
