Elon Musk is already trying to get regulator buy-in on his Boring tunnel networks, and AI is a complicated hornet's nest to poke. All that and more in The Daily Crunch for June 19, 2017. 1. Musk touts top tunnel talks Elon Musk has discussed the potential of the tunnel networks he wants to create under L.A. with the city's mayor, Eric Garcetti. Musk's Boring Company envisions improving tunnel digging tech to the point where it's cheap and easy to build underground interconnected tunnels to ferry goods and people – without traffic. That he's already talking to city officials is key. The hardest part could be securing regulatory clearance to actually build the network. By comparison, digging layered networks 50 or more feet deep through solid earth is child's play. 2. AI's biggest dilemmas There's a prevailing narrative that whatever else AI means for labor and the future of human civilization, it'll be "cleaner" than human work in a lot of ways. That's not necessarily true, and Natasha breaks down why. 3. Ring's new doorbell has a battery pack that's easy to swap out One of Ring's doorbell's biggest strengths is that it can work in a range of settings since it has its own battery pack. But it's also a weakness, since charging has meant having no doorbell for at least a little while. Now, the new version is here with a swappable battery source so you can charge without any downtime. Smart. 4. Google will double down on using AI to ID extremist YouTube content Filtering out all bad content on YouTube and other social networks is not a problem humans can solve – that's why it's great that Google is investing more in AI-powered filtration systems. The only way it'll ever work properly is if it doesn't require a huge amount of human intervention, which means AI is the best way forward. 5. Bosch is building a $1.1 billion bet on autonomous cars Bosch, probably the world's largest automotive supplier, is investing $1.1 billion in a new factory to build chips to help power the upcoming autonomous vehicle revolution. It's a big bet, but a logical one. 6. Blue Apron valued at $3 billion in IPO pricing Blue Apron's IPO will probably be viewed very differently in the context of Amazon's acquisition of Whole Foods. These numbers might not make sense anymore, in fact, but we'll see what results. 7. Pokémon Go gets co-op, new gyms Pokémon Go may have shed many of its early players, but the remaining user base is still giant and dedicated. Now, the company is revamping the gym system and adding cooperative play to keep those fires lit, and hopefully win over more new folks. |