Shortly after walking through the front doors of Baidu in Beijing last November, I was surprised to notice that my face had transformed into that of a cheerful-looking little dog. As I chatted with one of Baidu’s AI researchers, the version of …Continue reading
AI Hits the Mainstream
For Robert Welborn, head of data science for the insurer and finance company USAA, 2015 was the year machine learning started to make commercial sense. Access to improved machine-learning tools, cheaper processing technology, and a sharp decline in the cost of storing …Continue reading
The Bell Labs of Quantum Computing
Raymond Laflamme can’t yet sell you a quantum computer. But he’ll sell you a $13,000 logic board for measuring entangled photons. Laflamme is head of the Institute for Quantum Computing at the University of Waterloo, a research center that’s part of a …Continue reading
Silicon Valley Can’t Be Copied
By 1960, Silicon Valley had already captured the attention of the world as a teeming technology center. It had spawned the microwave electronics industry and set a pattern for industry-academic partnerships. French president Charles de Gaulle paid a visit and marveled at …Continue reading
The Internet’s Innovation Hub
GitHub has created a social network where programmers get together and get work done without bosses, e-mails, or meetings. San Francisco startup GitHub has all the hallmarks of the next big social network. The company’s base of 3.6 million users is growing …Continue reading