AI can help us chat to animals; animals can help us train robots

Two recent articles show how technology can help us communicate with animals, and how animals–specifically dogs–can teach us training techniques for robots. Welcome to a “bestial brave new world”, where AI is the newest species.

Chatbots Can Help Us Talk to Animals

Excerpt from article on How We Get To Next:

Advances in technology, from incredibly shrinking hardware to machine learning, along with new understandings of animals as individuals with complex characters, are ushering in a… world where humans can communicate with animals on levels we’ve barely allowed ourselves to dream about. (Who knows what dreams the animals have allowed themselves?). READ FULL ARTICLE

Using animal training techniques to teach robots household chores

Excerpt from article on KURZWEIL AI:

As robots become more pervasive in society, humans will want them to do chores like cleaning house or cooking. But to get a robot started on a task, people who aren’t computer programmers will have to give it instructions. “So we needed to provide a way for everyone to train robots, without programming,” said Matthew Taylor, Allred Distinguished Professor in the WSU School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. READ FULL ARTICLE