Today’s Tech Sightings:
Stephen Hawking: AI Could Be ‘Worst Thing to Happen to Humanity’
Renowned physicist and cosmologist Stephen Hawking again warned against the dangers of advancements in artificial intelligence. Speaking at the launch of The Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence (CFI) in Cambridge, England, Hawking said more advanced AI could lead to “powerful autonomous weapons” or new ways “for the few to oppress the many.” Depending on how AI is managed, he said the technology could save humanity or destroy it.
Study: US Women in Computing to Decline to 22 Percent by 2025
A new study from the nonprofit Girls Who Code and research firm Accenture projects the number of U.S. women in computing will drop from 24 percent to 22 percent by 2025. Researchers say if steps are taken now to encourage more women to study computer science, then their number in computing could triple within the projected period to 3.9 million.
India Cyberattack Compromises 3.2 Million Debit Card Accounts
At least 3.2 million debit card details were stolen Thursday from several financial institutions in one of India’s worst data breaches. The malware that was used to compromise the country’s Hitachi Payment Services platform, which powers financial transactions, went on to infect other banks, including the State Bank of India.
More:
- Biggest Ever Women-in-Computing Conference Belies Fragile Gains
- Why Data Is So Important to Educating Girls in Sub-Saharan Africa
- How Estonia Is Solving the Shortage of Tech Skills
- Latina-led Silicon Valley Tech Company Raises $2M
- China Dethrones US as iOS App Revenue Hits Record $1.7 Billion in Q3
- Worrying Security Flaw Found in Some Intel Processors
- This Ransomware Is Now One of the Three Most Common Malware Threats
- App Helps Save Seattle Cardiac Patient
- Apple: 90 Percent of ‘Genuine’ Apple Items on Amazon Are Fake
- Meet Your New Streaming TV Bundlers: Apple, Amazon, Roku, Google