Most Read: Honeywell, Qualcomm Team on AI-Enabled Agent for Mobile Devices; Google Funds New AI-Assisted Satellites to Detect Wildfires Faster

Here are the most-read stories on AI Business this week.

Honeywell, Qualcomm Team on AI-Enabled Agent for Mobile Devices

Honeywell is developing an artificial intelligence-enabled multi-model intelligent agent for its mobile devices.

Powered by Qualcomm Technologies, it would allow customers and workers in distribution centers and retail to seamlessly interact with their handheld devices using voice, images and barcodes. 

Honeywell said the AI agent was built to help today’s modern workforce get answers and achieve outcomes more efficiently and accurately. They can ask practical questions like if a certain item is in stock or where a particular item can be found. They could also use it to assist customers more efficiently.  

The agent is expected to be available early next year through a software development kit that integrates with an organization's existing applications and systems. 

Find out more about Honeywell's partnership with Qualcomm >>>

Google Funds New AI-Assisted Satellites to Detect Wildfires Faster

Google Research has partnered with fire community leaders to launch a new purpose-built satellite constellation designed to detect and track small wildfires within 20 minutes.

Called FireSat the system will use AI and satellite imagery to spot fires as small as a classroom – around 16 by 16 feet. Once detected, the technology will provide near real-time information about the location, size and intensity of early-stage wildfires so firefighters can respond quickly and effectively.

Due to hotter and drier climates, wildfires are becoming increasingly common across the world. Currently, firefighters rely on satellite imagery that’s either low resolution or only updated a few times a day, making it difficult to detect fires until they’ve grown larger than a soccer field.

Find out how Google Research developed the system >>>

Phishing Attacks, Deepfakes Top AI-Powered Threats

Phishing attacks and deepfake-enhanced fraud pose the greatest AI-powered threats to organizations, according to a new survey of chief information security officers (CISOs) from top firms. 

A notable 75% of respondents said phishing attacks and 56% said deepfake-enhanced fraud through voice or video were their biggest concerns. Seventy percent of the CISO questioned said their budgets increased in 2024 compared to 2023 in response to these growing threats.

This is supported by a Gartner report projecting that global spending on security and risk management will reach $215 billion in 2024, a 14.3% increase from 2023.

The respondents also highlighted a lack of expertise (58%) and balancing security with usability as the two main challenges organizations face when defending AI systems.

See what else respondents had to say >>>

Smartphone App Uses AI to Detect Diabetes-Related Vision Disorder

Indian medical technology company Remidio Innovative Solutions has developed a smartphone app that uses AI to detect diabetic retinopathy (DR), an eye condition that can cause blindness in people with diabetes.

The app, Remidio Medios DR AI, can be downloaded onto a smartphone, which is then connected to the company’s handheld retinal camera. The setup allows for DR screening in remote locations without access to graphics processing unit-based servers or even the internet, the company said, adding that it is currently being used in Himachal Pradesh, rural West Bengal and other areas with limited access to screening. It also has the benefit of not requiring the patient’s pupils to be dilated.

Read more about the app’s development and use >>>

AI Disrupts Risk Landscape for CEOs

Professional services company EY recently released the latest edition of its CEO Outlook Pulse Survey.

Based on the firm’s quarterly survey of 1,200 global executives and 300 institutional investors completed in August, it reports corporate chiefs’ expectations for future growth motivations and strategies.

The report found that against a rapidly evolving business landscape, CEOs consider disruptive technology – including AI – changing customer behaviors and macroeconomic uncertainty as key disruptive forces.

Read more from EY’s global vice chair of strategy and transactions Andrea Guerzoni >>>