21st Century Innovative Technologies and Developments as also discoveries, curiosity ( insolite)...

At last year’s I/O developer’s conference, Google showed off a new augmented reality feature for Google Maps, which would provide people with directions from your phone’s camera in realtime. As my colleague Chaim Gartenberg noted, it’s a bit like what was promised with Google Glass, but without the headset. The Wall Street Journal’s David Pierce got to try out an early version of the feature.

He says that while it “isn’t likely to be your primary turn-by-turn option, it’s a huge step in the right direction for Google Maps.” He described how the feature worked — the app picks up a person’s location via GPS, and then uses Street View data to narrow it down to your exact location. Once his location was pinned down, it displayed big arrows and directions in his screen. “It was as if Maps had drawn my directions onto the real world, though nobody else could see them.”

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Google reprend à LogMeIn sa plateforme IoT Xively
par Charlie Braume, le 16 février 2018 16:26

Le géant du Cloud muscle ses offres IoT en rachetant une solution et surtout une équipe pour 50 millions de dollars.

Les grands Clouds publics se préparent maintenant à la bataille de l’IoT. Ainsi pour muscler sa Google Cloud Platform et renforcer ses ressources dans ce domaine, le géant de Mountain View annonce son intention de racheter à LogMeIn sa plateforme IoT Xively. L’opération est chiffrée à 50 millions de dollars, Google reprenant à cette occasion une équipe de 45 personnes. LogMeIn avait acquis Xively (anciennement Cosm and Pachube) en 2014 pour 12 millions de dollars. S’appuyant actuellement sur la plateforme cloud de LogMeIn (Gravity), elle génèrerait selon LogMeIn un chiffre d’affaires annuel de 3 millions de dollars.

Cloud IoT Core en béta
Google se fixe comme objectif de fournir aux entreprises un service complet de gestion de données IoT appelé actuellement Cloud IoT Core .et proposé en version béta. Il s’agit de connecter de manière efficace et sûre, de traiter et de gérer les données d’une multitude d’objets distants. Antony Passemard, Product Management, IoT & Pub/Sub, Google Cloud, estime à 20 milliards le nombre d’objets connectés en 2020.

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Earlier this year Google introduced the AIY voice project, which allowed makers to turn a Raspberry Pi into a voice-controlled assistant, using the Google Assistant SDK.

The company has now launched the AIY (AI yourself) Vision Kit that lets you turn Raspberry Pi equipment into an image-recognition device. The kit is powered by Google's TensorFlow machine-learning models and will soon gain an accompanying Android app for controlling the device.

According to Google, Vision Kit features "on-device neural network acceleration", allowing a Raspberry Pi-based box to do computer vision without processing in the cloud. The AIY Voice Kit relies on the cloud for natural-language processing.

As with the AIY Voice Kit, makers will need to provide their own Raspberry Pi Zero W, a Raspberry Pi camera, a 4GB SD card, and power supply. The Vision Kit itself includes the VisionBonnet accessory board, cables, the cardboard box and frame, lens equipment, and a privacy LED to tell others when the camera is on.

The VisionBonnet board was developed by Google and is powered by Intel's Movidius MA2450 vision processing chip. This chip is the secret sauce of the Vision Kit.

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Der Einsatz von Chatbots im Kundensupport, Handel oder in IoT-Geräten wird immer beliebter. Google präsentiert nun eine neue Business-Version seines Chatbot-Builders Dialogflow (vorher API.ai).

Bisher war das Tool nur als kostenlose Variante verfügbar. Diese soll es auch weiterhin geben. Für Entwickler, die einen gesteigerten Funktionsbedarf haben, ist ab sofort die Beta der Enterprise-Version verfügbar.

Beide Editionen erhalten mit dem Launch einige neue Funktionen. Das Tool bekommt nun eine integrierte Spracherkennung. Bisher mussten Entwickler hierfür auf die Google-Cloud-Spracherkennungs-API oder ähnliches zurückgreifen. Nun ist die Funktion direkt über den Builder abrufbar.

Um den Chatbot möglichst natürlich antworten zu lassen, setzt Google bei Dialogflow auf Machine Learning. Der Entwickler muss lediglich ein paar Beispiele dafür eingeben, was der Kunde sagen könnte. Dialogflow entwickelt daraus dann ein lernfähiges Modell, das konstant darum bemüht ist, möglichst präzise auf die Kundenanfragen zu reagieren.

Dialogflow unterstützt auch mehrere Sprachen. Damit ist die fertige Anwendung nicht regional eingeschränkt sondern kann bei Bedarf international eingesetzt werden.
Die fertige Chatbot-App kann auf der eigenen Homepage, in einer App sowie auf 32 verschiedenen Plattformen wie etwa dem Google Assistant oder Messaging-Diensten direkt integriert werden.

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On the stage of Google I/O, CEO Sundar Pichai announced Google.ai, a new initiative to democratize the benefits of the latest in machine learning research. Google.ai will serve as a center of Google’s AI efforts — including research, tools and applied AI.

The new site will host research from Google and its Brain Team. It also allows anyone to quickly access fun experiments that highlight the company’s progress in the field. This includes AutoDraw, that makes it possible for unskilled artists to put their ideas on paper, Duet that can play along with piano players and Quick, Draw!, a game where an AI tries to guess your drawings. A selection of videos and posts about Google’s AI-first efforts are also co-located.

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Developers will be able to create VR software for the Chrome browser to cover both desktop and mobile environments.
Google is updating its Chrome browser to support WebVR, a JavaScript application programming interface (API) that enables virtual reality (VR) experiences delivered over the web to work with VR headsets.

For software developers this opens up a new avenue on which they can build VR and 360 degree experiences that are not limited to specific apps or platforms.

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FEI-FEI LI IS a big deal in the world of AI. As the director of the Artificial Intelligence and Vision labs at Stanford University, she oversaw the creation of ImageNet, a vast database of images designed to accelerate the development of AI that can “see.” And, well, it worked, helping to drive the creation of deep learning systems that can recognize objects, animals, people, and even entire scenes in photos—technology that has become commonplace on the world’s biggest photo-sharing sites. Now, Fei-Fei will help run a brand new AI group inside Google, a move that reflects just how aggressively the world’s biggest tech companies are remaking themselves around this breed of artificial intelligence.

Facebook Manages to Squeeze an AI Into Its Mobile App
Alongside a former Stanford researcher—Jia Li, who more recently ran research for the social networking service Snapchat—the China-born Fei-Fei will lead a team inside Google’s cloud computing operation, building online services that any coder or company can use to build their own AI. This new Cloud Machine Learning Group is the latest example of AI not only re-shaping the technology that Google uses, but also changing how the company organizes and operates its business.

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Mit dem Jamboard will Google Meetings verbessern: Auf dem digitalen Whiteboard erstellte Notizen werden direkt auf Google Drivegespeichert, Teilnehmer können auch Beiträge von ihrem Smartphoneoder Tablet an das Board schicken. Die Kosten sollen bei ungefähr 6.000 US-Dollar liegen.

Le Jamboard est un tableau blanc numérique connecté aux services collaboratifs en ligne de Google. Une offre à la fois moderne et abordable.

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In Barcelona gibt Eric Schmidt Googles neue Marschrichtung vor: "Mobile first" heißt es nun für den Suchmaschinenkonzern, der mit dem Netz groß geworden ist. Das war im Februar 2010 auf dem Mobile World Congress. Der Smartphone-Markt war im Umbruch, HSPA+ der letzte Schrei. Am Abend zuvor hatte Steve Ballmer Microsofts neues Windows Phone vorgestellt und Googles eigenes Mobilbetriebssystem Android sollte wenig später erstmals die 10-Prozent-Hürde bei den Marktanteilen nehmen.

Das Zeitalter des Smartphones geht zu Ende, ist Pichai überzeugt. Es wird künftig nur eins von verschiedenen Mitteln sein, mit künstlicher Intelligenz zu kommunizieren. Nach "Mobile first" stehen wir am Übergang in die Ära der künstlichen Intelligenz, sagt der CEO. Google hat seine künstliche Intelligenz in den vergangenen Jahren weiterentwickelt und hält sie nun für reif genug, auf den Menschen losgelassen zu werden.

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GOOGLE HAS LAUNCHED Daydream View, a fabric-coated virtual reality (VR) headset that's the first to support the firm's Daydream platform. 

The odd-looking facemask, which has probably been designed to match your sofa seeing as you're not going to leave it once you have one, requires a Daydream-compatible smartphone to function, which is handy as Google has just launched the Nougat-powered Pixel and Pixel XL with Daydream support. 

The View is 30 per cent lighter than other smartphone-powered VR headsets, according to the firm, and is easier to use. The handset automatically switches to VR mode when the latch is opened and the phone is inserted.

Once you've strapped the Daydream View to your face, you can navigate around Google's Daydream platform, which offers content from the likes of The New York Times, CNN, IMAX and developers Electronic Arts and Ubisoft, which you'll find at the firm's Oculus-style VR marketplace. 

Daydream View, which follows the success of the firm's Cardboard viewer, also come with a Wii-style handheld controller for more immersive experiences, which fits inside the headset so you don't lose it. 

DeepMind, la filiale de Google spécialisée en intelligence artificielle, a développé un programme de synthèse vocale qui reproduit la parole humaine avec un naturel inédit. Baptisé WaveNet

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Google hat den API-Spezialisten Apigee gekauft. Die Lösungen des Softwareherstellers sollen in Googles Cloud-Plattform integriert werden.

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Google has built the world’s most advanced quantum chip
The record-setting device could beat conventional supercomputers at solving some problems.

The news: Google announced its new Bristlecone quantum chip. It contains 72 quantum bits, or qubits, which are used to perform calculations. Until now, the most advanced quantum chip, built by IBM, had 50 qubits.

Why it matters: Some researchers—including those at Google—say that quantum devices with over 50 qubits may outperform regular supercomputers at some (specific) tasks. That’s what’s known as “quantum supremacy.”

But: More recently, some research has suggested that supremacy may require rather more than 50 qubits. And if it’s to beat regular hardware, Google will have to ensure that its chip is stable and relatively error-free.

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Auf der Suche nach fernen Welten ist Wissenschaftlern wohl ein Durchbruch gelungen. Sie entdecken im Sonnensystem "Kepler-90" den achten Planeten. Das Besondere: Sie hatten Hilfe. Aufgespürt hat den Himmelskörper eine von Google entwickelte künstliche Intelligenz.

Die Software könnte den Beginn einer einmaligen Entdeckungsreise in den Weiten des Alls bedeuten.

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Google is increasingly focusing on neural networks and artificial intelligence to solve problems in search, image processing, and other areas of computing. It’s also doing what it can to foster interest in artificial intelligence among the developer and DIY communities with initiatives like “AIY Projects,” which stands for artificial intelligence yourself. Google has announced a new AIY hardware project to help you experiment with computer vision and object recognition.

This is the second release as part of AIY Projects. The first one was the AIY Voice Kit, which was based on a project from a Raspberry Pi enthusiast magazine called MagPi. The new AIY Vision Kit has a very similar vibe. It too is based on a Raspberry Pi (See on Amazon) and comes with a simple cardboard enclosure. It certainly doesn’t look fancy, but it can do some very fancy things. Although, the $45 kit doesn’t come with everything you need.

The AIY Vision Kit includes a cardboard enclosure, a button, a speaker, a pair of camera lenses, the AI board, and various bits of wire and connectors. You need to add a Raspberry Pi Zero, a Raspberry Pi camera, an SD card, and a power supply. The Raspberry Pi camera is the most expensive of those components at around $30. The Zero itself is only $5, but it doesn’t need a lot of power. All the cool computer vision features are controlled by the included VisionBonnet board.

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DeepL heißt ein neues Übersetzungstool. Es will besser als die Übersetzungsdienste von Google und Microsoft sein. In Stichproben war Golem.de von den Ergebnissen sehr angetan.

Besser als Google und Microsoft - dieses Ziel setzt sich das deutsche Unternehmen DeepL zumindest bei Übersetzungsdiensten. DeepL verwendet eine neuartige Architektur neuronaler Netzwerke und setzt auf einen Supercomputer mit 5,1 Petaflops. Vom gleichen Unternehmen stammt der Dienst Linguee, der sich mit Übersetzungen einzelner Wörter oder Wortgruppen bereits einen Namen gemacht hat. Dabei werden von Menschen übersetzte Texte für Übersetzungen herangezogen, um bessere Ergebnisse zu liefern.

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Google has acquired the VR game studio behind such popular gaming titles like Job Simulator and Rick and Morty: Virtual Rick-ality.

In a blog post, the founding team of the Austin-based Owlchemy Labs detailed that it has been acquired and will be joining the team at Google. “Today is a REAAAALLY BIG day for Owlchemy. We’re positively thrilled to announce that Owlchemy Labs has been acquired by Google!”

Owlchemy Labs, founded in 2010, has raised $5 million in seed funding from Capital Factory, Qualcomm Ventures, Colopl VR Fund, HTC and The Venture Reality Fund.

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Google is taking over Twitter’s mobile app developer platform Fabric, as well as its Crashlytics crash reporting system, Answers mobile app analytics, Digits SMS login system, and FastLane development automation system. Twitter launched Fabric as a modular SDK in 2014 to allow developers to pick and choose different tools to improve their apps, and it now serves apps reaching 2.5 billion users built by 580,000 developers.

But as Twitter tries to get into better financial shape, it’s cutting non-essential divisions, as it did with its change from Vine to Vine Camera. By passing the platform off to Google, it can remove the costs of running Fabric without screwing over its developers by suddenly shutting it down. Google will continue to operate Fabric and its related tools, and developers shouldn’t have to do anything to support the transition.

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Wenn Technik sich selbst absichert: Forscher von Googles Deep-Learning-Projekt "Google Brain" haben ihre AI nun eigenständig neue Verschlüsselungsverfahren entwickeln lassen.

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Google today is unveiling its latest hardware — a 55-inch, 4K implementation of a whiteboard, called Jamboard, that offers Google Docs-style collaboration, and Android and iOS apps that let others join in on the “jam.” The pressure-sensitive display, along with accompanying markers and erasers, will become available for purchase next year for less than $6,000, although companies can sign up for access through an early adopter program now.

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Google wants to know everywhere that you’re looking. Today, Eyefluence announced that it has been acquired by Google. The eye-tracking interface startup founded in 2013 had raised $21.6M in f…

Google showed off its Daydream VR system for the first time today and with its debut came a better look at the games and content users will eventually be able to access. More than 50 Daydream apps are supposed to be released this year, with "hundreds" more coming after that. Google already listed several developers at its I/O event in May, but it's given some new, specific projects to look out for. That includes Gunjack 2, a sequel to EVE Online developer CCP's turret shooter for the Gear VR.

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On Wednesday, the world learned of a new industry association called the Partnership on Artificial Intelligence, and it includes some of the biggest tech companies in the world. IBM, Google, Facebook, Microsoft, and Amazon have all signed on as marquis members, though the group hopes to expand even further over time. The goal is to create a body that can provide a platform for discussions among stakeholders and work out best practices for the artificial intelligence industry. Not directly mentioned, but easily seen on the horizon, is its place as the primary force lobbying for smarter legislation on AI and related future-tech issues.

Best practices can be boring or important, depending on the context, and in this case they are very, very important. Best practices could provide a framework for accurate safety testing, which will be important as researchers ask people to put more and more of their lives in the hands of AI and AI-driven robots. This sort of effort might also someday work toward a list of inherently dangerous and illegitimate actions or AI “thought” processes. One of its core goals is to produce thought leadership on the ethics of AI development.

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Alphabet Inc's Google said on Thursday it is acquiring cloud software company Apigee Corp in a deal valued at about $625 million, the tech giant’s latest effort to claim a greater share of the lucrative cloud business.

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