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IBM, Microsoft Sign on to Vatican Advisory Group’s Call for AI Ethics
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Welcome back. A Vatican advisory group drafted a charter on AI ethics that is being supported by IBM and Microsoft. The document calls for AI to be developed and used to serve and protect people and the environment.
Also: The coronavirus outbreak has spurred a rise in the use of virtual meeting and work platforms that go beyond simple videoconferences. And, more on the outbreak.
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Microsoft President Brad Smith met with Pope Francis last year. Mr. Smith and IBM Executive Vice President John Kelly are scheduled to present the new AI ethics document to the pope Friday. CREDIT: VATICAN MEDIA/REUTERS
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Vatican advisory group issues call for AI ethics. The Pontifical Academy for Life, an advisory body to Pope Francis, has drafted a charter on artificial intelligence ethics that is being supported by International Business Machines Corp. and Microsoft Corp., reports WSJ Pro.
The charter, called the Rome Call for AI Ethics, looks to ensure that AI is developed and used to serve and protect people and the environment. The document calls for AI education and regulation and outlines a set of six principles that define the ethical use of AI.
IBM and Microsoft sign on. Both IBM and Microsoft—in a show of support—are signing the document, which was scheduled to be presented to Pope Francis in the Vatican on Friday. IBM and Microsoft hosted representatives of the Academy for Life and provided feedback to the body as it was creating the document.
(Continues below)
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The six principles. The ethical use of AI, according to the document, is defined by six principles: transparency, which addresses the need that all artificial-intelligence systems be explainable; inclusion, that the needs of all people be considered and that everyone can benefit from the technology; responsibility, that the people who design and deploy AI do so with caution and transparency; impartiality, that the people who create the systems do so without bias, ensuring the systems safeguard fairness and human dignity; reliability, that AI systems be dependable; and security and privacy, that the systems be safeguarded and they respect privacy.
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Passengers wear protective face masks while riding the subway in Shanghai. CREDIT: HECTOR RETAMAL/AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE/GETTY IMAGES
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Coronavirus outbreak gives rise to more complex forms of remote work. The coronavirus outbreak has spurred a rise in the use of virtual meeting and work platforms that go beyond simple videoconferences, reports WSJ Pro’s Steven Rosenbush.
Wide use of remote platforms. As the ability to travel and meet face-to-face is curtailed, people are using remote platforms to hold meetings, conduct training, and follow updates from co-workers, including their self-reported health status, according to interviews with workers in China.
Use case. Beijing-based information service provider and investment research firm EqualOcean said it is using Alibaba’s DingTalk tool for its weekly meetings and internal training.
The outbreak has demonstrated the “huge potential” of remote work, said Kuan Chen, founder and chief executive of Beijing-based medical AI company Infervision. Infervision’s AI is being used in imaging machines so that doctors can spot likely cases of the highly contagious virus almost immediately. That allows them to isolate people right away, instead of waiting days for more conventional tests, WSJ Pro has reported.
“We are meeting much less face to face. Online working is more complex and intricate. We are sharing, talking, coordinating team work,” said Mr. Chen.
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The Latest on the Coronavirus Outbreak
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Stock indexes around the world on Friday followed U.S. markets into correction territory as fears about the coronavirus continued. A U.S. coronavirus outbreak would trigger temporary but widespread disruptions of daily life and business activity, posing a new risk to the nation's longest economic expansion on record. Investors have dramatically reassessed the chances that the Fed will lower interest rates as soon as next month.
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📞 On call with WSJ: Register here for a conference call today at noon EST with Wall Street Journal editors and reporters on how global markets are reacting to the latest virus news.
For more, visit WSJ's live coverage page, which is updated regularly. Or check out our primer on what you need to know about the virus itself.
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A Waymo self-driving car during the annual Google I/O developers conference in Mountain View, Calif., in May 2018. CREDIT: STEPHEN LAM/REUTERS
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Waymo, GM raise issue with self-driving data report. Alphabet Inc.’s Waymo and General Motors Co.’s Cruise had the most test miles between “disengagements,” according to Reuters, citing California reporting data. Disengagements refer to instances when a driver takes control of an autonomous-vehicle system. The data is used to compare self-driving vehicle manufacturers in California.
Manufacturers say data isn't a good measure. However, both Waymo and GM say the data isn’t a relevant or accurate measure. In a tweet, Waymo wrote that the metric “does not provide relevant insights,” according to the Reuters report. The big autonomous vehicle makers would like to see different data, such as miles logged in simulations, used to gauge their performance.
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The February market rout deepened Thursday, as major stock indexes around the globe posted another round of significant declines and uncertainty over the impact of the coronavirus began shading into fear. All three major U.S. indexes slipped into correction territory—a drop of at least 10% from a recent peak—and posted their biggest one-day point drops ever. (WSJ)
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Chinese search provider Baidu Inc.’s fourth-quarter profit and revenue rose, driven by its core business. But the Beijing-based company, which had delayed its earnings report citing the coronavirus epidemic, on Thursday projected core revenue would decline 10% to 18% this quarter, missing Wall Street targets. (WSJ)
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Under fire from the Trump administration, China’s Huawei Technologies Co. has approached high-profile figures in Washington to try to turn around negative perceptions of the company. (WSJ)
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The Federal Communications Commission is seeking hundreds of millions of dollars in fines from the country’s top cellphone carriers after officials found the companies failed to safeguard information about customers’ real-time locations, according to people familiar with the matter. (WSJ)
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The U.S. Senate approved legislation that would provide $1 billion for rural telecom carriers to replace equipment made by China’s Huawei Technologies Co. in their networks. (WSJ)
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Cisco Systems Inc. has started a new round of job cuts as the networking-equipment maker faces the prospect of slowing sales growth because of global economic uncertainty. (WSJ)
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