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Fetal Monitoring Prevents Neonatal Deaths in Developing Countries

Fetal MonitoringThe appeal of artificial intelligence has skyrocketed in recent years – with its impressive ability to mimic human intelligence and grow smarter with each interaction.

AI has seen a particular rise in the technology sector with Elon Musk’s self driving Tesla vehicles and programs such as ChatGPT, which boasts its conversations can sound human-like.

Now, with the help of PeriGen, Inc, Baylor College of Medicine and the Area 25 Community Hospital, artificial intelligence has developed a new skill: saving lives with AI-powered fetal monitoring.

Malawians Need Change in Prenatal Health Care

One in every 200 Malawian women dies when delivering a baby, and 2-6% of babies die during delivery both inside and outside of the womb. This is said to be due to a low nurse-to-patient ratio, with midwives struggling to continuously monitor babies within the womb and manage full labor wards.

The nurse-to-patient ratio within Malawi was, as of 2015, just one third of the WHO’s recommended 10 nurses for every 10,000 people. In the same 2015 study, Malawian nurses cited a lack of resources and high workloads as a challenge.

Malawi and other developing countries often do not have access to scanning technology and rely on physical methods of monitoring development, such as physical examination. This can sometimes give incorrect measurements. If these measurements are incorrect and a baby is not developing correctly, this increases the risk of stillbirth or neonatal death.

With the help of AI, however, these struggles may become a thing of the past.

Fetal Monitoring Results in Decreased Stillbirths

PeriGen’s fetal monitoring software continuously scans vitals and notifies clinicians immediately if there is any change in the patterns. This allows for timely treatment. In addition to giving details on labor progression, it monitors vitals for both mother and child.

The software tracks hundreds of patients at a time, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. Currently in place in the Area 25 Community Hospital in Malawi, the monitoring works by capturing patient data at the bedside, and then transmitting this data to PeriGen’s Houston headquarters. There, it is assessed before being transferred back to Malawi in an instant. PeriGen’s software allows for care to extend across many hospital sites at once, and reaches many patients.

Results of the software appear promising. Head nurse at the hospital, Dziwenji Makombe, says that the AI monitoring tool is “the best … strategy” to prevent stillbirths. The hospital saw a 75% reduction in stillbirths and early neonatal deaths.

There is hope that this software can be used across other developing countries with similarly promising results. Not only will this fetal monitoring tool reduce neonatal deaths, but it will help to decrease poverty.

When people live in areas where child mortality rates are low and the child can survive, they have fewer children. Less overpopulation means less poverty.

If this software continues to be effective, it will become a beacon of hope to other developing countries besides Malawi. It can save the lives of newborn children and expectant mothers residing there.

– Chloe Jenkins
Photo: Flickr

How Starlink can Alleviate Poverty in Nigeria and Mozambique

Poverty in Nigeria and Mozambique
Elon Musk proudly shares his work with SpaceX spacecraft, Tesla’s electric cars and Neuralink’s brain-machine. However, this week he changed headlines with a way to reduce poverty in Nigeria and Mozambique. Poverty in Nigeria and Mozambique both have strong ties in rural areas with less connection to neighboring areas. Currently, 83 million people in Nigeria live in extreme poverty, with 53% in rural areas. In Mozambique, 77% of their 18 million residents living in extreme poverty live in rural areas as well.

Starlink

On May 27th, 2022, SpaceEx creator Elon Musk announced over Twitter that his satellite internet system Starlink gained approval for use in Mozambique and Nigeria. Starlink is a set of satellites in constellation form that SpaceX created to provide internet in rural areas, including schools without internet. In the series of tweets, Musk added that one Starlink unit could supply internet to hundreds of students in a single school.

While the United States turned to online learning during the pandemic, developing countries like Nigeria and Mozambique did not have the same tools to keep their children in school.

Internet in Mozambique and Africa

Poverty impacts families in a variety of ways including hunger, lack of education for children and poor health care. The Internet provides a way for children to prevent life-long poverty. Educational programs on the internet can teach children new farming or fishing techniques. They can connect with teachers in other countries and educational videos from around the world. In developing countries, 65% of people do not have access to the internet.

Schools will have access to the internet using Starlink and this could help fight poverty in Nigeria and Mozambique. Currently, only 16% of people in Mozambique use the internet. Along with giving more people access to the internet, Starlink provides a faster connection to those who have it. In Nigeria, the current download speed is 9 megabits per second (Mbps), while Starlink runs at nearly 100 Mbps.

How Starlink Can Help Poverty

Starlink first launched its satellites into space on May 23, 2019, sending 60 into low Earth orbit. Information sent through space moves 47% faster than fiber optic cables. As of January 2022, Starlink consisted of 1,900 satellites sending information around the globe.

Starlink provides high-speed internet to rural areas with previously no connection or slow speeds. Through Starlink, users can “gain access to education, health services and even communication support during natural disasters.” Those who purchase Starlink receive a satellite dish, wifi router and power supply.

Impact on Education

In Nigeria, approximately 10.5 million children do not attend school although its services are free. In some states, such as Borno, Yobe and Adamawa, many schools are not open or have experienced damage and destruction.

Mozambique continues to improve its education system with free textbooks, but “quality and improvement in learning have lagged behind.” In Mozambique, only 1% of teachers have “the minimum expected knowledge.” Providing one teacher with two-day, high-quality training costs $116.

One Starlink unit costs $599 for installation and $110 each month. This investment would offer schools the opportunity to use remote learning through video calls with teachers, online classrooms and other online materials. Over time, Starlink will help provide a higher quality of education to children in Nigeria and Mozambique.

Future of Starlink in Nigeria and Mozambique

In the United States, Elon Musk has a reputation across the internet for Tesla’s electric cars, trying to buy Twitter and giving his child an unconventional name. But in developing countries, people know him as the man that provides internet to people who never had it before or had unreliable internet in the past.

His constellation of satellites provides internet to 32 countries with more than 2,200 satellites in orbit. In the future, he hopes to launch up to 42,000 satellites so anyone around the world can use Starlink’s internet.

Starlink’s connection proved to be resilient after the invasion of Ukraine. Starlink donated receivers to schools, hospitals and local governments and it worked remarkably during the crisis. Those who faced a lack of internet received connection in a war zone and will continue to work in new areas facing extreme poverty in Nigeria and Mozambique.

– Sara Sweitzer
Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Examining Universal Basic Income in Kenya

Universal Basic Income in Kenya
Imagine if one received free money from the government every month, directly into their bank account with no one asking any questions. It may sound too good to be true, yet that is the main premise behind universal basic income or UBI. Universal basic income in Kenya is going a long way toward fighting the results of the COVID-19 pandemic.

What is Universal Basic Income?

With UBI programs, governments, organizations or private funders deposit direct cash payments to citizens monthly. These deposits occur regardless of status or circumstance with no strings attached. This means no interest and no expectation to recipients to repay the money. UBI programs intend to supplement or even entirely replace other financial social programs and help those struggling financially. The goal of this financial aid is to prevent vulnerable groups from falling deeper into poverty. In addition, it works toward alleviating national poverty on a wider scale.

The idea of universal basic income has long been under debate with skeptics insisting that providing free money to the impoverished would only lower the incentive to work, bankrupt any government who would give it an honest try and fail to address the root causes of poverty. While these criticisms are well grounded, UBI has nonetheless collected a growing base of supporters. Early supporters of a UBI program date back to the Enlightenment, including political activist and philosopher Thomas Paine and French general and emperor Napoleon Bonaparte. In more recent years, supporters have included Silicon Valley giants Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos and South African billionaire Elon Musk. Others range from author Milton Friedman to Pope Francis.

UBI in Practice Globally

Perhaps surprisingly, countries all over the world have experimented with UBI programs. What may come as an even bigger shock is that it has been in use in the United States for the last four decades. Since 1982, Alaska has implemented the Alaska Permanent Fund, an investment fund that disperses a dividend of anywhere from $1,000 to $2,000 to every Alaskan resident including children. The results have virtually eliminated extreme poverty in the state. Extreme poverty refers to those living on $2 or less a day.

Outside of North America, UBI programs have undergone implementation in every continent except Antarctica, from Brazil to Japan with a varying degrees of success. This highlights the widespread capabilities and applications that are possible with basic income systems. However, 2020 introduced a new variable to the theory of UBI. How would a basic income system affect communities dealing with the adverse health and economic effects of a global pandemic?

UBI and COVID-19

The longest-running and most ambitious attempt at a universal basic income system is currently underway in Kenya. Since 2016, nonprofit GiveDirectly has been sending direct cash payments to more than 14,000 households in the Siaya and Bomet Counties of Kenya. The mission is to continue the program through 2028. In doing so, it will collect decades worth of data on the effects of UBI on poverty-stricken communities.

However, the unprecedented arrival of COVID-19 has brought disastrous effects to Kenya’s economy and will likely send millions into poverty. The unpredictable addition of a global pandemic has enabled researchers to examine the effects of an established universal basic income infrastructure. This situation provides invaluable insight into how a basic income system might help vulnerable communities cope with a large-scale crisis.

Based in the Siaya and Bomet Counties of Kenya the program split the recipients of cash payments into four groups. These groups included long-term, short-term, lump sum and a control group. For long-term recipients, every adult for the duration of the 12-year program is to receive $0.75 per day. This amount sufficiently covers food expenses and basic health and schooling needs.

The short-term recipients received the same amount for basic needs, $0.75 per day, for two years. The third group received a lump sum that amounted to a one-time payment of $500. Finally, the control group did not receive any payments at all. This allowed an honest comparison amongst villagers to evaluate the significance that UBI payments had on individuals who received payments.

The Results

Those receiving universal basic income in Kenya experienced better food security and were less likely to report experiencing hunger in the past 30 days. This resulted in a widespread improvement in overall rates of hunger. Hunger rates fell from 68% to 57%, with the strongest improvements coming from the long-term group of recipients.

Looking at general health including mental health, UBI recipients showed promising results. Results indicated that payments reduced the probability that an individual would seek medical treatment. Furthermore, households were around six percentage points less likely to report that a household member was ill. Research also suggests that payments reduced hospital utilization, which helped preserve hospital capacity. Having the peace of mind that at least one stream of income would remain steady certainly played a factor in improving the well-being of Kenyan’s facing economic uncertainty.

Universal basic income payments helped individuals stay resilient through the devastating effects of COVID-19. Nevertheless, basic income is still far from a silver bullet for fighting poverty. In Kenya, UBI was not effective at completely protecting recipients from economic hardship, and by nature, a UBI program will expose individuals to economic volatility and cannot guarantee complete financial protection.

However, payments allowed individuals a crucial advantage in holding on to basic needs such as food and healthcare in comparison to those without any basic income payments. This demonstrates that putting the infrastructure in place for universal basic income in Kenya can provide much-needed relief and security to citizens when they need it most.

– Andrew Eckas
Photo: Flickr

Giga Shanghai: Tesla’s Gigafactory in China

Gigafactory,Over the last few years, there has been a lot of turbulence between the U.S. and China, especially in the areas of business and trade. Through all of the challenges though, U.S. car company, Tesla, managed to erect one of its famed Gigafactories in China in 2018 — one of the world’s largest emerging markets. Other than reducing the price of Teslas globally, the Shangai Gigafactory will also continue to raise employment in China and allow the Chinese economy to better develop.

What is a Gigafactory?

Tesla has been revered for its innovation in the electric vehicle (EV) market. Every year, the company seems to attract higher demand from around the world. With demand showing no signs of slowing down, Tesla was forced to rethink how it handles production. The Gigafactory serves as a production powerhouse to resolve the demand problem.

With the addition of the Shanghai Gigafactory, or Giga Shanghai, Tesla now says that it can produce roughly half a million vehicles per year. Gigafactories centralize production and allow for more parts to be made in-house. This cuts time and costs which ultimately results in lower prices for the consumer.

Tesla also made it paramount to make the Gigafactories as environmentally friendly as possible. All three Gigafactories are zero net energy. This means that they only rely on energy from renewable sources. In the case of Gigafactories, this means lots of solar power and no harmful byproducts.

How Giga Shanghai Helps Impoverished Chinese Citizens

Perhaps the most obvious way that Giga Shanghai helps is by providing jobs in China. Since its completion in 2019, the Gigafactory has employed roughly 2,000 people. Many of the jobs are in the production line so they are attainable for everyday citizens with no formal secondary education.

In addition to jobs, Giga Shanghai serves as a solution to the city’s immense pollution problem, with the most impoverished citizens living in the hardest-hit areas. Shanghai usually has an air quality index (AQI) that hovers around 150. Good air quality levels mean an AQI of between zero and 50. In a country where up to 1.24 million people die from pollution-related illnesses every year, Giga Shanghai proves that factories can still operate on a massive scale without relying on fossil fuels and other non-renewable energy sources.

If the energy technology used in Giga Shanghai is applied to other factories in the city, thousands of lives can be saved every year, especially the lives of the most impoverished citizens who cannot afford to move out of the most polluted areas.

Cutting Costs and Bolstering Relations

Before Giga Shanghai, the price of the world’s most popular EV (Tesla Model 3) remained too high for many people in China and abroad. Now, with the ability to produce the Model 3 in China, production and transportation costs have been slashed across Asia and Europe. Compared with the U.S. models, the production cost of the Chinese Tesla Model 3 has dropped by up to 28%. Now more than ever, Chinese citizens can access clean and reliable personal transportation that does not pollute their cities.

Giga Shanghai has also opened the door for new trade opportunities with European nations. Now, countries such as Germany, France, Italy, Portugal and Sweden prefer to purchase Teslas from China since the cost is lower. Trading in higher volume with developed economies means that China is inching closer to becoming a fully developed economy.

Giga Shanghai and the Future

Tesla CEO, Elon Musk, has stated that he would like to see 10 to 20 Gigafactories built over the course of the next couple of decades. Giga Shangai is the “guinea pig” since it is the first Gigafactory outside of the United States. So far, things appear to be running smoothly.

Soon, Gigafactories could be popping up in other emerging markets like Argentina, Mexico and Morocco. Gigafactories may be a stepping stone to help emerging markets become better developed. Job creation is a significant benefit of a Gigafactory. They advance industry, create new opportunities to trade with other countries and offer a clean alternative to gas-powered vehicles. Ultimately, Gigafactories can serve as a catalyst for global poverty reduction.

– Jake Hill
Photo: Flickr

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How Elon Musk Is Helping Diminish Global Poverty

diminish global poverty
Self-driving cars and trips to Mars might be the first things that come to mind when thinking of Elon Musk. His massive-scale innovations will help humanity as a whole, but Musk’s initiatives are also helping to diminish global poverty. Since he was in college, Musk has sought to help humanity through space exploration, global internet and energy efficiency. The mission of Tesla, which Musk founded in 2003, is to accelerate the world of sustainable energy for the good of humanity and the planet. This mission will also have numerous benefits to the poor and overlooked populations of the world.

Tesla Powered Water Plants

In the coastal village of Kiunga, Kenya, water is available but contaminated. With most water sourced from saltwater wells, communities must bathe and cook with saltwater. Washing clothes and bodies with saltwater leads to painful sores that are hard to heal. On the other hand, drinking and cooking with saltwater leads to health problems like chronic diarrhea or kidney failure. These complications inhibit a healthy and productive society.

Tesla and GivePower offered a solution to Kiunga’s lack of potable water: a desalination plant that solar power and a battery reserve power. GivePower is a nonprofit organization aiming to provide resources to developing countries; it was acquired by Tesla Motors in 2016. A solar water farm that Tesla Powerwalls facilitated stores energy from solar panels to fuel the Kiunga facility at night and when there is a lack of sunshine. This plant produces about 70,000 liters of clean water every 24 hours, giving clean water to 35,000 people daily. This project has improved Kenyans’ lives, and GivePower aims to reach Colombia and Haiti next.

Tesla Powered Micro-grids

In many regions, people take electricity for granted. In Africa, hundreds of millions live without it. According to the International Energy Agency, 55% of the population in sub-Saharan Africa lack basic electricity access. Energy is essential to power schools, homes and healthcare facilities. A lack of modern energy in developing countries hinders the ability to study, work and modernize. For instance, in Zimbabwe, widespread violence and poverty contribute to a declining economy. One beacon of hope is the money trade, which takes place almost completely electronically. An innovative mobile payment system called Ecocash facilitates financial transactions for customers with mobile phones. To be effective, this process relies on consistent power infrastructure.

One incident in July 2019 exposed the vulnerability of Zimbabwe and its markets. A power outage occurred, and Zimbabwe’s Econet generators failed to power up, resulting in a mobile money blackout. This consequently had detrimental effects on the country’s economy, as the majority of financial systems halted. Over 5 million transactions occur daily through mobile money markets, adding up to around $200 million. Interruptions to power cause Zimbabweans to lose millions of dollars.

Microgrids are the answer. Generated by Powerwalls from Tesla, these self-contained systems of solar panels and batteries can provide power across the globe. Above all, no community is too remote to benefit. Tesla’s Powerwalls will alleviate uncertainties that unfavorable weather, unstable prices and fuel shortages cause. Although they require an investment of $6,500, solar-powered batteries replace archaic diesel-powered generators to ensure stability and diminish global poverty.

StarLink: High-Speed Internet Access Across the World

A lack of internet and mobile applications make life harder in developing countries. Without educational, communication and health tools, the cycle of poverty cannot be broken. According to the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, an estimated 750 million people over the age of 15 cannot read or write. Access to educational tools and resources through the global internet can reduce drop-out rates and improve education levels.

Elon Musk’s StarLink internet would deliver high-quality broadband all over the globe, reaching communities that historically lack an internet connection. The internet can bring education, telemedicine, communication and truth to people oppressed in developing countries. It gives isolated and overlooked communities a chance to become more secure. Using Starlink is straightforward: Plug in the device and point it toward the sky. The costs and benefits of Starlink can be shared across multiple families. The Starlink project strives to place a total of 42,000 satellites in space by the end of 2021, enabling internet access and helping to diminish global poverty.

A Sustainable Future for All

Musk’s focus on energy technologies benefits everyone, including the world’s poor. One obstacle to ending global poverty, especially in extreme cases, is that the poorest populations are usually the most remotely located. However, with Musk’s innovations, even remote rural communities can advance with modern technology.

– Tara Hudson
Photo: Pixabay

Elon Musk’s Starlink Satellite System

Starlink Satellite System
As the world progresses through the 21st century, the internet has become an invaluable tool. In the United States, people widely use it for educational purposes. Unfortunately, the developing world is not so lucky. With Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite system, people across the planet should be able to gain access to high-speed internet.

The primary challenge with providing high-speed internet across the globe lies with the cost of fiber optic cables. It is very expensive to obtain and supply to certain areas of the world. On the other hand, using a satellite system to create connections in a vacuum is around 47 percent more efficient and does not require the use of fiber optic cables.

How Starlink Will Connect the World

Musk’s plan is to send 42,000 satellites into orbit. This substantial goal by SpaceX might be a dream, but a large number is necessary to ensure fast and widespread connections across the planet.

People who use the Starlink satellite system would require a device called a Starlink Terminal in their homes. It is a simple tool that they would plug in and point towards the sky. For those in hard-to-reach areas and whose internet connections are slow, this is fantastic news.

Ultimately, the hope is to provide all those who cannot obtain a strong internet connection with the means to connect with the world. The first step of the plan is to provide broadband internet to the west first and expand it into the developing world shortly thereafter.

The Global Impact of a Connected World

Global connectivity would provide an opportunity for anyone to receive the same education despite geographical location. Some of the latest reports regarding primary school-aged children in sub-Saharan Africa have indicated that 59 percent drop out of school.

Additionally, the quality of education is poor; many children across the globe are unable to read at a basic level. The main concerns surrounding the lack of education include cost, quality of teaching and a lack of schools and teachers. Fortunately, the Starlink satellite system could provide connectivity to reduce cost, provide proper tools and improve access to education.

The Starlink Terminal would cost between $100-$300 and several people could conceivably share it. A shared cost between multiple people, perhaps a school, would increase the affordability of the Starlink satellite system and terminal.

A growing global economy would likely also result from the Starlink satellite system. Specifically, the system has an extremely low latency for information transfer. This could give people in developing areas of the world more opportunity to participate in local and global stock markets.

Further, since the Starlink satellite system would likely be the fastest internet connection in the world, most of the financial markets would undoubtedly use it. Financial organizations using the system would provide customers the ability to send and receive money at the same rate, no matter the geographic location. Ultimately, the use of the Starlink satellite system would aid in the fight against global poverty by allowing the communities to participate in activities that developed nations regularly have access to.

The Timeline

As of right now, 362 Starlink satellites are orbiting the world and more should launch every other week. However, the recent pandemic might slow down the time frame.

Prior to COVID-19, the expectation was to have all 42,000 satellites orbiting by the end of 2021. Eventually, there will be enough satellites in orbit to provide global coverage. Even if the Starlink satellite system implementation takes more time than Elon Musk originally intended, the potential benefits are difficult to ignore.

The Starlink satellite system has the capacity to connect the entire world, changing the way people around the globe interact with one another.

– Drew Pinney
Photo: Wikimedia

After Maria: Building a New Tech Infrastructure in Puerto Rico

New Tech InfrastructureThe recent ravaging of the island territory of Puerto Rico, first by Hurricane Irma, then by Maria, is a reminder of the sheer destructive mayhem Mother Nature can wield—but also of the ability of individuals, businesses and governments across the globe to come together to solve problems and help those in need. Although the storms undoubtedly caused major problems, they also offered opportunities for change and innovation.

One such possibility is the chance to build a new tech infrastructure from the ground up. Many U.S. companies are stepping up to join in on this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Under the direction of Elon Musk, Tesla is sending its Powerpack battery system to Puerto Rico to help homes, businesses, hospitals and schools use their existing solar panels by providing energy storage. Google’s parent company, Alphabet, is sending special balloons to help restore cell phone connectivity in areas where the infrastructure is down. Meanwhile, Facebook pledged $1.5 million in relief money to various charities and sent employees to Puerto Rico to work toward restoring internet connectivity to the island.

In an interview with USA Today, Puerto Rican Governor Ricardo Rosselló spoke about talking with Elon Musk. He affirmed that they were looking into batteries and solar panels as a long-term solution to transform energy delivery and bring down costs for the island.

The new tech infrastructure is direly needed. As The New York Times notes, the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA) was already $9 billion in debt before the two hurricanes hit. PREPA declared itself insolvent in 2014 and ceased making debt payments, forcing a debt restructuring deal that has yet to be finalized. To make matters worse, PREPA has been at the center of a corruption scandal, making it harder to unify the public behind its mission and importance.

But, according to Puerto Rico resident Gabriel Rodriguez, tech company aid to the island has been very polarizing. In his words, “People are really for it or against it. There are the people that say that of course it’s going to be a great improvement for us… but then there’s a lot of people that are very mad because they say we are selling the island to outside interests.”

Ina Fried of Axios speculates that the American companies currently volunteering side-by-side on the island will eventually compete with each other for larger-scale rebuilding contracts. The heavy lifting won’t come free, and this is likely the source of some Puerto Rican worries.

One of the challenges of rebuilding will be to do it in a way that respects Puerto Ricans’ autonomy and independent identity. These fears of selling out to foreign interests are similar to the ones that inspired the Cuban Revolution in the 1950s that toppled Fulgencio Batista and put Fidel Castro in power.

While the two situations are not politically analogous, the tales of government corruption and fears of foreign influence are, and those U.S. companies interested in helping would do well to approach the situation with sensitivity. There is room for all parties to share in the profits and rewards that a new tech infrastructure in Puerto Rico can yield.

– Chuck Hasenauer

Photo: Flickr

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On Artificial Intelligence and Poverty

Artificial Intelligence and Poverty

Artificial intelligence (AI) has forever changed the way society interacts with technology. It has provided limitless opportunities for problem-solving in the last decade, and the relationship between artificial intelligence and poverty reduction may be one worth fostering.

In 2007, the iPhone had first made its appearance on the world stage. Since its release, phone-based computer programs (apps) have evolved from simple games like Space Invaders: Infinite Gene, to industry-upsetting business models like Uber.

Since apps began to use algorithms to create relatively simple artificial intelligence (AI), computation has become vital to leading businesses and organization. Ten years ago, AI was almost entirely task-based, but a new form of AI—known as deep learning—has garnered more attention in the past few years.

Instead of a programmer telling how a certain machine should do a task, deep learning AI uses neural networks which actually teach the computer (or other deep learning AI) how to complete tasks in the most efficient manner. What makes it so special is that deep learning is faultless, and, with enough computation resources, can learn things faster than humans.

Does this finally mean that the age of robots is upon us? The easy answer is yes. Deep learning machines have now outplayed people in chess, Go (widely considered to be the most complex game in the world) and are possibly are going to try to beat humans at StarCraft, a multiplayer video game. But AI can disrupt the world’s economy in significant ways. Corporations use it to trade in the financial sector; write articles for newspapers; diagnose health disorders and diseases and do manual office work. It has even recreated a Nobel prize-winning physics experiment.

In the last decade, we have discovered that deep learning AI and AI has infinite potential. So, the question goes, how will artificial intelligence and poverty correlate? Can AI reduce poverty? In general, it should. Never in the history of mankind have we let machines do this type of work for us, so we have no precedents to build off of. Additionally, because deep learning machines are only just coming onto the marketplace, new obstacles may appear as we continue AI research.

However, people are beginning to harness this extremely powerful tool for the poor, and the work sounds promising. At the moment, AI is especially useful for data mining simple statistics: which areas need more development, which people require more education and how they can receive it, etc. Having to collect this data manually would be a time-intensive task that would also be incredibly expensive.

However, there are also more complex uses for AI, such as agricultural research for poor farmers. Tech giant IBM is working on an operations research robot that will optimize transporting food aid around the globe. Improvement of artificial intelligence and poverty reduction are thus parallel goals for these major corporations.

In addition, IBM is also working on a novel illiteracy project. If eventually implemented, it will allow people to learn how to read without the assistance of a teacher by having a computer analyze something that a student of any age might find in their daily life (such as a flower). The computer would then display the written word while playing the sound for it. This would allow people to learn how to read wherever they are, whenever they have time.

Of course, these are all leading edge uses when talking about artificial intelligence and poverty. While engineers continue to work on the technical aspects of the technology, the U.N. is preparing for the change in methodology in battling poverty by holding AI summits. Twenty U.N. agencies have and will continue to discuss issues pertaining to the Millennium Goals and the Sustainable Development Goals in relation to AI.

The potential to significantly diminish poverty with these new technologies is very high. It might take humanity decades before AI is actively fighting poverty, but when it does, it will most likely help eradicate it.

One main challenge of AI is to make sure that we can control it. Futurologist Elon Musk, along with world renowned physicist Stephen Hawking and many AI experts have signed an open letter warning the U.N. against the use of AI-powered weapons, as they can potentially develop their own ethics standards and kill humans ceaselessly, regardless of their affiliation. Even though this warning specifically targets militarized robots, it is a cautionary tale: we need to tread carefully when using new technology, which is why AI will only truly take off several years into the future.

– Michal Burgunder

Photo: Flickr

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Is the World Ready for Universal Basic Income?


According to a United Nations (U.N.) report, inequality is rising in both developed and developing countries. Many people lack access to basic healthcare, clean water and food. For example, the U.S. has the largest economy in the world yet ranks second in income inequality out of the 32 developed countries indexed by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

It is apparent that poverty, inequality and access to healthcare are transnational issues that know no boundaries. Each year, more and more jobs become automated. Artificial intelligence is taking the place of blue-collar jobs all over the world. A 2013 Oxford study estimates that 47 percent of U.S. jobs will be taken over by robots, automated technology and artificial intelligence within the next 10 to 20 years. The World Bank states that the shift will be even more drastic in developing countries. This is because almost two-thirds of jobs are at risk of being replaced by automation.

Some of the world’s brightest minds believe that the culmination of rising inequality, poverty and workforce automation will inevitably draw humanity toward a universal basic income.

“I think that from a human decency standard there’s a lot of sense to the idea that everybody in a society should be able to meet their basic needs,” says Jeffrey Sachs, economist and director at the Earth Institute at Columbia University.

Another expert, Elon Musk, says that “there is a pretty good chance we end up with a universal basic income, or something like that, due to automation.”

When the Basic Income Grant Pilot Project (BIG) was trialed in India, results showed that recipient households were three times more likely to start a new business than others. In Namibia, crime rates dropped by 36 percent despite an influx of immigration after BIG was implemented. “When you have a safety-net people will take more risks,” says Martin Ford, author of Rise of the Robots. Human ingenuity is restricted in a system that forces people to work low-level jobs to pay for their existence. Universal basic income ensures that everyone reaches the first rung of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, ensuring that basic needs are met. This will drastically improve the quality of life on Earth in developed and developing countries alike. This generation could actually live to see the end of poverty on Earth.

The only way that a phenomenon like this could come to fruition is if the cost of not moving to a universal basic income becomes greater than doing nothing. As more humans are phased out of work by robots, the cost of welfare will extrapolate until it is necessary to switch to a universal basic income.

– Josh Ward

Photo: Flickr

Tesla’s New Home Battery: The Powerwall

Tesla-Home-Battery-Powerwall
As we burn up some of our nonrenewable resources, we face a grim ultimatum: continue using the same resources until we’ve depleted them all (which could have catastrophic consequences) or find a way that everyone on Earth can benefit from electricity without burning our nonrenewable resources. Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla Motors, is trying to find a way to solve this and he has recently created a battery that may do just that.

Powerwall is a home battery that uses solar power in order to provide the battery with a charge. The battery is capable of powering an entire house when utilities are low. When a storm comes rolling into town and knocks the power out, the Powerwall is capable of providing the emergency power.

The compact design of the battery allows you to mount it on any wall that is desired; it is also an aesthetically pleasing piece of equipment. The entire system that collects and distributes electricity through the Powerwall is relatively simple. There are three essential parts:the Solar Panel, the Home Battery (Powerwall) and the Inverter.

The solar panel, which is installed on the roof, collects and converts sunlight into electricity. That surplus electricity is stored in the Powerwall during the day or even when the rates of the utility grid are low. The Inverter converts the electricity from DC to AC. AC is the type of electricity used for household electronics.

Building an invention as groundbreaking as this has many benefits. The battery can provide financial savings to its owner by charging during low rate periods when demand for electricity is lower, and, conversely, discharging when the rates are high. Owning a Powerwall also increases the consumption of solar power generation, which is one of the cleanest, renewable energy sources around. This allows for reduced CO2 emissions.

As this technology progresses, it can be used to address poverty and help provide electricity to areas that aren’t near power plants. Once there is a way to produce these types of rechargeable lithium-ion batteries cheaply, then we will be able to see them popping up in developing, remote areas, such as sub-Saharan Africa. The U.S. Congress has made bringing electricity to remote areas in Africa a major goal. The U.S. Agency for International Development is headlining that mission under the Electrify Africa Act.

The Powerwall is considered the automobile of its industry; it is pioneering technology. Once there are even better ways to produce the Powerwall, the technology will become more accessible. Once more accessible, more people will be able to utilize renewable energy. This is the underlying purpose of this technology; to reduce the amount of nonrenewable energy used by burning fossil fuels by providing a renewable alternative.

– Erik Nelson

Sources: Congress, Tesla Motors 1, Tesla Motors 2
Photo: Wired