TECH TIT BITS

Railways to use AI for preventing signal failure

The Railways has decided to use Artificial Intelligence to prevent the possibility of signals failing, moving from a find-and-fix to predict-and-prevent approach. Any flaws in the signalling system would be detected on a real-time basis and rectified to avoid possible delays and mishaps. A trial will be taken up in two sections of Western Railway and South Western Railway.

PM Modi launches UMANG app offering over 100 govt services

PM Narendra Modi recently launched e-governance app UMANG (Unified Mobile Application for Newage Governance), which unifies over 100 central and state government services. The app presently offers services related to payment of bills, filing income tax, Aadhaar-related queries, among other things. UMANG also allows a user to link their Aadhaar number and social media accounts with the app.

New Zealand gets world's first AI politician

New Zealandbased entrepreneur Nick Gerritsen has developed the world's first AI politician 'SAM', which can answer queries related to housing, education, and immigration policies. Gerritsen hopes SAM will be advanced enough to participate in the 2020 elections but was unsure of whether it would be legally possible. Gerritsen said the bot may help bridge the growing political and cultural divide.

Video shows NASA's AI drone racing human pilot

A video shows NASA's artificial intelligence powered (AI) drone racing a professional human pilot-led drone. In the video, the drones are seen flying through a test track with the AI drone maintaining more accuracy than the human pilot. The work was funded by Google, and the drones used the tech giant's Tango technology to map their surroundings in 3D.