Tech Life

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Speaking out against teen sexual harassment on Instagram Nov 07, 2023

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Arturo Béjar is a former director of engineering at Facebook and was responsible for its protect and care team. He shares his concerns with Tech Life. Also, we get the view from South Korea on making artificial intelligence tools safe. And how to sniff out forest fires - with the help of an AI nose.

PHOTO CREDIT: Arturo Béjar

Artificial intelligence in the classroom Oct 31, 2023

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A professional body for computing in the United Kingdom says schools should teach children how to use AI from the age of 11. Do you agree ? We ask where it is happening already. Also, politicians and experts discuss AI safety at a big global summit. Health tech helps epilepsy diagnosis in the Caribbean. And we test the tech that takes the crunch out of chewing.

PHOTO CREDIT: PonyWang, Getty Images.

This episode could have been an email Oct 24, 2023

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From summarising video calls to making presentations in minutes, Microsoft is launching an AI copilot on some of its apps and Tech Life have been for a preview. But will it change how we work or present new challenges? We also speak to the tech entrepreneur, Miron Mironiuk, who is collaborating with Pope Francis to teach children tech skills. And we meet 21 year old Luke Farritor who has won $40,000 unscrambling ancient texts that were left unreadable after the eruption of Mount Vesuvius.

Presenter: Shiona McCallum

(Picture: a video call taking place on line Getty/Mayur Kakade)

Spotting fake news online Oct 17, 2023

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BBC disinformation reporter Shayan Sardarizadeh talks to Tech Life about the spread of false information online during times of conflict, and how he verifies social media posts. An expert on electric cars answers your questions about EVs. We send our reporter out to sea to find out how tech can help marine conservation. And say hello to some old friends - Sonic the Hedgehog and Super Mario.

(Photo: Man holds a yellow warning symbol in front of a laptop. Credit: Getty Images)

The carbon footprint of AI Oct 10, 2023

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Researchers estimate that the AI industry could consume as much energy annually as a country the size of the Netherlands by 2027. We take a look at the details and ways of reducing electricity demand. Also, we talk to one of Africa's leading technology entrepreneurs about how he sees AI helping the continent and how workers can adapt to it. And how do you persuade an unwanted wildlife creature not to mess up your garden ? One man trained his home camera system to solve the problem.

(Photo: Electricity pylons. Credit: Igor Borisenko/Getty Images)

Where are we on the road to EV? Oct 03, 2023

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Shiona McCallum takes Tech Life on the road to find out more about electric vehicles and the challenges of rolling them out globally. Monica Miller is in Singapore experiencing some of the new cars on the block and Alasdair Keane joins Nissan's Formula E team in France.

(Picture: Shiona McCallum plugging in an EV)

Be My AI: When innovation and privacy clash Sep 26, 2023

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An AI-powered tool helped blind people make sense of the world - then ran into privacy concerns. Be My AI user, the BBC's Sean Dilley, in Washington DC, tells us what happened next.

A rare interview with the boss of Spotfiy, Daniel Ek, who tells us there is a place for AI in music making.

Plus, reporter Marc Cieslak tells us about second thumbs and brain hacking, as he explores the mind boggling world of neural interface technology.

(Photo: A blind man using a mobile phone. Credit: Agrobacter/Getty Images)

The world focusses on facial recognition Sep 19, 2023

Show notes

Simon Gordon, founder of Facewatch, a British facial recognition company and Fraser Sampson, the UK's Biometrics and Surveillance Commissioner discuss the growing use of facial recognition tech. Dr. Cosmas Zavazava, Director of the ITU’s Telecommunication Development Bureau, tells us about how much of the world remains offline. And Tom Singleton reports on how a digital payment scheme, set up by the UNCDF, is proving to be a lifeline for people exposed to extreme weather in the Pacific Islands.

(PHOTO CREDIT: A young man captured by a facial recognition system. Credit: Izusek. Copyright: Getty Images)

The health tech changing lives in Africa Sep 12, 2023

Show notes

There's a new testing kit for life-threatening diseases in sub-Saharan Africa. We hear about the technology from the project leader and some of those involved in Uganda and Kenya. Also in Tech Life, we report on lab grown diamonds in India. And posting photos of flooding on social media could help experts predict where it might happen next.

(Photo: Composite image with a globe and medical staff looking at a tablet. Credit: Getty Images)

Battery tech goes super miniature - and tear powered Sep 05, 2023

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Associate Professor Lee Seok Woo, from NTU, in Singapore, tells us how a Tom Cruise film inspired him to create a battery, powered by tears, that's so small it could be fitted to a contact lens. Ben Derico reports from San Francisco on why Chatbot detectors are mistakenly accusing people for whom English is a second language of cheating in exams. Analyst Ben Wood, from CCS Insight, brings us up to speed on Apple's latest product plans. And journalist Jack Thompson guides us through the farming revolution in Senegal, being powered by WhatsApp voicenotes.

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