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This weekly blog is to explore the news around the larger issues around Digital Health, data security, data privacy, AI / ML. technology, social media and any related matters.
I will also try to highlight ADHA Propaganda when I come upon it.
Just so we keep count, the latest Notes from the ADHA Board were dated 6 December, 2018 and we have seen none since! It’s pretty sad!
Note: Appearance here is not to suggest I see any credibility or value in what follows. I will leave it to the reader to decide what is worthwhile and what is not! The point is to let people know what is being said / published that I have come upon, and found interesting.
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https://medium.com/@ignacio.de.gregorio.noblejas/can-chatgpt-kill-google-6d59742ee635
Can ChatGPT kill Google?
AI is disrupting everything, even trillion-dollar businesses
Dec 29, 2022
Last month, all alarms went off in Google’s headquarters.
Even the New York Times has an entire article dedicated to this. According to them, ‘Code Red’ went off in the highest structures of the company.
Google is scared, very scared.
The reason?
Artificial Intelligence has recently made a giant leap that could put at very risk Google’s core business, search.
The question is then inevitable.
Could we be soon witnesses to the death of one of the so-called ‘trillion-dollar’ companies, and with it the demise of entire industries like SEO, SERPs, and ultimately digital marketing?
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The productivity promise (and perils) of generative AI
There's a lot of buzz around ChatGPT and DALL-E right now — and a lot of litigation brewing. But companies (and people) should embrace what's coming.
There’s a lot of tech industry excitement these days about tools like ChatGPT and DALL-E that fall into a class called generative AI. Generative AI looks at existing work and generates a result that seems unique, but is actually derived from what it’s viewed. (I’d argue this is how most people produce work — by taking what they’ve learned from others to create a skill set that can be used independently of those earlier references.)
Like many others, I really enjoy working out the concept of something I want to create, but I get bored quickly when executing that concept. This reminds me of an old friend who bought a knock-off Ferrari kit car. Coming up with the dream of driving it was easy and fun, but actually putting in the thousands of hours to build it was too much. It sat in his garage, unbuilt. With these tools, you can focus on the fun part of creation (coming up with an idea), and then let the tools step in to do the tedious part of bringing everything to fruition.
This new class of tools has a lot to offer, but there are some initial problems we’ll need to overcome.
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Chatbot essay cheating alarms schools
By NATASHA BITA
10:00PM January 13, 2023
Schools are scrambling to control a global chatbot that uses artificial intelligence to write “cheat” assignments and essays accurate enough to trick teachers.
State and territory curriculum authorities are brainstorming ways to detect computer-generated answers to assignments, exams and essays using ChatGPT, which evades traditional plagiarism checks.
“Goodbye homework!’’ was the response of tech billionaire Elon Musk, in a recent Tweet.
Australia’s school principals are alarmed that teachers will be expected to control the cheating.
The nation’s biggest education department is reassessing its assessment methods – potentially requiring students to give verbal or handwritten responses to assignments done in class – as part of reforms to the NSW curriculum. “We are reviewing student access to specific AI software, including ChatGPT, when using a department device or our secured network,’’ said a NSW Education Department spokesperson.
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https://www.afr.com/chanticleer/deep-tech-is-finally-in-the-spotlight-20221209-p5c4z8
Deep tech is finally in the spotlight
After years flying under the radar and being overshadowed by crazily overvalued software companies, Australia’s deep tech sector is finally winning acclaim.
Jan 13, 2023 – 7.14pm
Ask most Australians to name a local technology success story and they will likely come up with one of the three following software companies: Atlassian, Canva or WiseTech Global.
There is no doubt the achievements of these companies are impressive. They have created enormous wealth for their shareholders and employees, resulting in combined market value of about $108 billion.
Their founders – Atlassian’s Mike Cannon-Brookes and Scott Farquhar; Canva’s Melanie Perkins, Cliff Obrecht and Cameron Adams; and WiseTech’s Richard White – are making a difference to society through philanthropy and the pursuit of personal passions such as decarbonisation of the economy.
But when it comes to breakthrough scientific innovations, the more impressive tech success stories are blood group CSL and medical device companies ResMed and Cochlear.
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01-13-23 10:00 am
What leaders need to know about e-health, 5G, and mobile app security
The technologies available now provide all the building blocks needed—it’s simply up to leaders to ensure they are put together correctly and with the right priorities.
During London Tech Week’s HealthTech Summit earlier this year, the U.K.’s new health data strategy was introduced. The launch included some key announcements on making valuable health data more available to drive research, the importance of ensuring public trust in the storage, sharing, and use of this data, and a clear statement that as e-health grows, more data will be collected and used. For those who work in or with next-generation health care applications and the services that drive them, this was a clear message that there are both opportunities and risks here.
THE OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES WITH E-HEALTH
The definition of e-health is “the use of information and communication technology to support health and health care” and includes telemedicine, smartphone apps, and wearable technologies—both active and passive. E-health is already a big market—estimated at $84 billion in 2021 and growing to $455 billion by 2030—with solutions in the electronic-health-record space taking the lion’s share today. That’s predicted to change though; with an increasingly elderly population in many parts of the world, there will likely be strong growth in the wearables market given the benefits of more frequent, active monitoring of various health conditions.
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‘My Health Record for pets’ startup Vedi scores $3 million treat to go global
Perth veterinary tech startup Vedi has raised $3 million as it looks to become the pet version of the federal government medical database My Health Record.
SIMON THOMSON 13 January, 2023
The funds came from two international investors, with MSD Animal Health, a division of Merck & Co., once again backing Vedi, joined by pet-focused New York VC Companion Fund, and will be used to expand Vedi’s medical record technology for pets in Australia and into the UK.
Vedi was founded in 2017 and rebranded from VetDB in August last year. Cofounder and CEO Dr Steve Joslyn, a specialist veterinary radiologist, was inspired to launch the tech startup after growing weary of data mix-ups and manual record keeping processes for the pets he saw.
The result is a universal medical record platform, accessible via smartphone, with smart data collection tools, so vets to access pet health records via the animal’s microchip. Vedi is used by industry leaders such as Vetpath, Central Animal Records, Vetwest and Petstock, supporting 78,600 animal patients including more than 54,000 dogs, 12,000 cats and nearly 3,000 horses.
Veterinarians can use Vedi to capture health data with easily, including taking a photo of a vaccine vial with a smartphone, then locking the data to the animal’s microchip for others to access, share and update on over the animal’s lifetime using the platform.
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Vet-tech Vedi vies for UK paw print after securing $3m investment
By David Simmons
13 January 2023
Australian veterinary tech company Vedi has secured $3 million from investors MSD Animal Health - a division of US-based Merck & Co - and Companion Fund as it looks to expand its medical record platform for pet health into the United Kingdom.
Announced today, Perth-based Vedi hopes tails will be wagging internationally soon when it onboards UK customers to its universal medical record platform and smart data collection tools which it describes as being similar to My Health Record but for pets.
The technology enables veterinarians to access pet health records via the animal’s microchip, making the process effective and efficient.
Co-founded by veterinary radiologist Dr Steve Joslyn, Ross Wyness and Anton Tjea in 2017, Vedi is looking to make life easier for vets globaly - a mission supported by the new investors - two of the ‘most respected animal health funds in the world’ according to the scaleup.
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https://medicalrepublic.com.au/take-our-cybersecurity-quiz/83956
13 January 2023
Take our cybersecurity quiz*
*Clicking on this story may result in identity theft, financial damage and scary men knocking on your door.
Congratulations! It’s 2023 and despite your best efforts you’re back at work seeing patients.
Not only are you crushingly despondent but you’ve lost that really handy Post-it note which had your password on it and now you’re locked out of your computer as well.
Yes, it’s time to take Professor Candid’s annual cybersecurity quiz.
1. Keeping track of multiple passwords can be a real pain. Should you
A. Do what everybody else does and use the same password for absolutely everything
B. Write your password down on a Post-it note and stick it on your computer
C. Use Google manager to manage all of your passwords
2. Which of the following passwords appears to be the strongest?
A. Password
B. Password123
C. Password1234
D. F#ckyou!!ucra!zy24dumbass33691821mutha!f*cka!!1509xx264##251
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https://www.afr.com/chanticleer/microsoft-s-ai-play-could-put-bing-in-google-s-face-20230112-p5cc5e
Microsoft’s AI play could put Bing in Google’s face
Microsoft’s rumoured $US10 billion bet on artificial intelligence software maker OpenAI has the potential to cause a titanic tech disruption.
Jan 12, 2023 – 8.12pm
Microsoft’s deepening partnership with the hottest tech start-up in the United States, OpenAI, could deliver a killer application that threatens Google’s $US160 billion ($230 billion) a year in search engine revenue.
Reports abound that Microsoft will invest $US10 billion in OpenAI at a valuation of $US29 billion. Not bad for a four-year-old company.
Silicon Valley venture capitalists are closely watching Microsoft’s move into search using OpenAI’s generative artificial intelligence software called ChatGPT.
This software, which is on version 3.5 and could soon upgrade to version 4, has the potential to trigger exponential growth in the use of Microsoft’s search engine, Bing, according to fund manager Gilad Grinbaum.
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https://www.victorharbortimes.com.au/story/8046148/few-businesses-have-natural-disaster-plan/
Few businesses have natural disaster plan
By Luke Costin
Updated January 12 2023 - 1:38pm, first published 1:32pm
Most small businesses lack an up-to-date disaster plan and need far more support to rebound after flooding, bushfires and other natural disasters, the sector's ombudsman says.
Bruce Billson said it was clear that preparation was key to small and family businesses building resilience and coming through natural disasters in the best possible shape.
"It is equally clear that small and family business owners cannot do this on their own and require clarity and certainty of the support available," the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman said on Thursday.
He pointed to his office's survey of more than 2000 businesses, each with fewer than 100 employees, that showed a lack of disaster plans.
For every four businesses, one has a current plan, another has a plan that's out-of-date and the other two have nothing at all.
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https://wildhealth.net.au/medical-board-sets-sights-on-tele-only-docs/
12 January 2023
Medical board sets sights on tele-only docs
Doctors who prescribe medicines to patients they’ve only interacted with via text, email or online asynchronous appointments should be prepared to justify their actions, the Medical Board warns.
The board, which is supported by AHPRA, laid out its stance on telehealth-only medicine in a draft set of new guidelines for telehealth consults.
The current guidelines for technology-based consults have not been updated since 2013.
Most of the proposed changes are relatively minor – e.g. changing the terminology from “technology-based consultations” to “telehealth” and shuffling the order of sections – but the section on prescribing without live consulting is brand new.
It appears to zero in on a certain style of telehealth that has been adopted by some corporates.
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This program can tell if ChatGPT did your homework
Tess Bennett Technology reporter
Jan 12, 2023 – 11.51am
A new online tool conceived by two Australians has been launched to help teachers and academics detect when homework and assignments have been churned out by the powerful ChatGPT.
Teachers preparing for the return of school and university are facing a new challenge following the launch of ChatGPT in late 2022, which can generate humanlike responses on any subject when prompted.
The New York City public school system last week banned its students from accessing ChatGPT to generate text, in response to fears that students will soon outsource their homework to robots.
Friends David Cyrus and Aaron Shikhule saw the problem coming last year and set about building an online tool capable of detecting AI-written work. They connected with Arend Groot Bleumink, an AI engineer from the Netherlands and by the end of November the team had built a working prototype based on the earlier GPT 3 models. It is called AICheatCheck.
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A dystopian future? Why facial recognition may be coming to a stadium near you
By Vince Rugari
January 12, 2023 — 6.00am
Facial recognition technology identified six blacklisted fans who tried to sneak into a previous A-League grand final in Sydney, but experts have warned it’s not necessarily the best way to tackle the difficult task of practically enforcing stadium bans.
Football Australia has issued a total of 17 bans to people who were involved in last month’s violent pitch invasion at AAMI Park, including three life bans and others ranging from five to 20 years.
But as the dust settles after the incident that shocked Australian sport and brought powerhouse club Melbourne Victory to its knees, now comes the tricky part for the clubs, competitions and venue staff responsible for putting these measures into action, which appears to be far easier said than done.
While four people on Football Australia or A-Leagues banned lists were prevented from attending the Melbourne derby, one of the main perpetrators was subject to a 10-year ban from all football activities by Football Victoria but still managed to get into the stadium and has since fled the country.
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https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=5c8f9e8a-1c95-4a73-a8dc-c51a2fc35507
Getting Your Head Around Artificial Intelligence
Gilbert + Tobin Lesley Sutton, Stephanie Essey , Sophie Bogard and Molly Allen
Australia January 9 2023
The human brain is the body’s very own supercomputer. It uses approximately 100 billion neural connections and is capable of processing 11 million bits of information each second. Neurotechnology is a rapidly developing field of technology that is attempting to harness that powerful and complex brain power. With that growth in “mind control” comes a narrowing of the border between humans and machines.
What is neurotechnology and what are brain-computer interfaces?
Neurotechnology refers to any technology that provides greater insight into, or control over, the activity of the brain or nervous system. An example of currently available neurotechnology is brain-computer interfaces (BCIs). BCIs are quite varied in their forms and uses but, in short, BCIs establish a direct communication channel between a brain and an external device, such as a computer, prosthetic limb or mobility system. BCIs can also vary in their levels of invasiveness. In some cases, they can be used to rehabilitate patients with debilitating physical conditions, such as muscular disorders and paralysis, by re-establishing neural connections. In 2021, the global BCI market size was valued at US$1.52 billion, and it is anticipated to grow at an annual rate of around 17% over the next few years.
While the potential for this technology is vast, there are also complex ethical, medical and legal issues that still need to be considered. In this article, we unpack some of the key legal and ethical issues that will need to be addressed with the rise of this technology.
How have developments in AI and machine learning affected BCI technology?
BCIs are not new (the first human trials were conducted in the 1990s), but in recent years there has been a growing interplay between BCIs and new technologies such as machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI). One of the main issues with BCIs is that they generally require training from the user before they can be successfully used. This is where AI and machine learning offer great potential.
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https://www.afr.com/chanticleer/canva-embraces-openai-as-it-threatens-its-business-20230110-p5cbhn
Canva embraces OpenAI as ChatGPT looms as a threat
Online design powerhouse Canva is wise to embed OpenAI’s ChatGPT in its product suite. The revolutionary generative AI software poses a serious threat to its business and its growth could weigh on a Canva IPO in 2023.
Updated Jan 11, 2023 – 1.24pm, first published at 12.01pm
When online design software company Canva was started in a lounge room in 2013 by Melanie Perkins and Cliff Obrecht, it proved to be a phenomenally successful challenger to the then reigning software design company of choice, Adobe.
This was a classic David and Goliath tussle of the tech world. At the time, Adobe had a market capitalisation of $US20 billion and Canva, the fledgling start-up from Perth, had just completed its first seed funding round with a valuation of $8 million.
The brilliance of Canva’s challenger product was that it was free to access and much easier to use compared with the clunky and expensive Adobe offering.
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Hackers use ChatGPT to improve scam emails texts: Check Point Research
By Joseph Lam
4:12PM January 10, 2023
Poor English will no longer be a sign a hacker is trying to scam you as new research finds artificial intelligence software and technology is increasingly being used to script fraudulent messages.
ChatGPT in particular is increasingly being used by hackers to script messages free of errors which were being sent to scam victims, according to Check Point Software cyber security expert Ashwin Ram.
The software was not only being used to draft messages but to write computer script and research further methods of hacking. Threat actors were also developing tutorials on how to use ChatGPT among other AI-based technologies to improve scamming methods, Mr Ram said.
“Now this is very interesting. We’ve learned that cyber criminals and threat actors are also using AI technologies, just like security vendors are, to address the threat landscape,” Mr Ram said
“This is a classic example of a double-edged sword. ChatGPT was created for useful purposes but of course threat actors are finding very interesting ways of being able to use the tool for malicious purposes.”
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David.
