The AI Times is a weekly newsletter covering the biggest AI, machine learning, big data, and automation news from around the globe. If you want to read A|I before anyone else, make sure to subscribe using the form at the bottom of this page.
Iris Automation raises $10 million Series A to help drones avoid collisions(BETAKIT)
Iris Automation’s Series A funding comes from Silicon Valley firm Bessemer Venture Partners.
Building tomorrow’s city of the present (RBC)
Cities are data factories: by one estimate, the average North American citizen creates more than 500 megabytes of data per day. Sidewalk Labs says it wants to harness that data to build a better city.
Slack hopes its AI will keep you from hating Slack (TECHNOLOGYREVIEW)
The fastest-growing business app is relying on machine-learning tricks to fend off a deluge of messages—as well as competition from Facebook and Microsoft.
AI voice assistant developer Rokid raises $100M Series B extension to build its US presence(TECHCRUNCH)
Rokid, which develops an AI voice assistant and smart devices, raised the Series B extension round from Temasek Holdings, with participation from Credit Suisse, IDG Capital and CDIB Capital.
Artificial intelligence is fuelling new cybersecurity race, say experts (THESTAR)
Businesses and governments could start making use of machine learning to detect insecurities and vulnerabilities — but hackers could turn the same advances to their own ends.
5 Kitchener-Waterloo tech companies to watch in 2018(BETAKIT)
Here’s a roundup on the Waterloo Region companies set to make strides this year.
Microsoft’s new drawing bot is an AI artist (TECHCRUNCH)
Microsoft says the bot is capable of creating images from text descriptions of an object, but it also adds details to those images that weren’t included the text, indicating that the AI has a little imagination of its own.
Smartsheet acquires business automation chatbot startup Converse.AI (VENTUREBEAT)
Smartsheet customers will now have access to conversational user experience and workflow automation tools, which can link across various messaging platforms such as Slack and Salesforce.
Killer robots and politics: Yoshua Bengio discusses the ethics of artificial intelligence(CBC)
Yoshua Bengio speaks on Daybreak about the ethical development of artificial intelligence, and the potential risks if AI development is left unchecked.
International companies say they’re helping Montreal’s AI ecosystem(MONTREALGAZETTE)
Despite a record low unemployment rate in Montreal and high demand for skilled technology workers, international giants that have been attracted to Montreal by the city’s artificial intelligence sector say they’re growing the talent pool, rather than dominating it.
Indico raises $4M for its ‘transfer learning’ AI technology, which requires less data (SILICONANGLE)
Indico, which aims to make machine learning more accessable to smaller organizations that have yet to adopt the technology, raised the funding from Osage Venture, with participation from existing investors.
With $3.5 million seed round, Vention launches platform that automates industrial design(BETAKIT)
Vention wants to democratize the process of building industrial parts.
Verizon acquires machine learning-based threat detection startup Niddel(SILICONANGLE)
Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but Verizon said it plans to integrate Niddel’s technology, which leverages machine learning to hunt for security threats in customers’ networks, with its own products and services.
Self-driving car startup Pony.ai raises over $100 million(BUSINESSINSIDER)
Pony.ai, which aims to connect a self-driving car’s sensors, software, and cameras to create a system capable of Level 4 autonomy, raised the funds from Morningside Venture Capital and Legend Capital, with participation from eight other venture firms.
Wattpad raises $61.25 million to continue investment in machine learning, interactive storytelling (BETAKIT)
Investors included Tencent, BDC, Globe Telecom’s Kickstart Ventures, Peterson Group, and Raine.