Editor,

Developed countries are now being challenged by the developing world, particularly in the cutting edge areas of IoT or the "internet of things” and all areas of artificial intelligence as we see in Singapore and India.

The leading technology companies such as Microsoft and IBM are considering the best collaborative areas to advance their own research and position in the marketplace, looking towards these areas where governments are actively courting collaboration and sinking considerable capital.

There are other countries with considerable talent within the developing countries that are also seeking to participate in the emergence of AI (or artificial intelligence). For those countries, it makes sense to develop close ties with each other and with global leaders to share knowledge and personnel.

Africa is striving to become part of this emerging community. Rather than trying to outrace each other, it seems that a merging where researchers and students are able to transfer across geopolitical boundaries in an atmosphere of global collegiality and cooperation, leverages scarce intellectual capital and fiscal resources.

Such an effort would, in the case of Africa, accelerate the cross-border collaboration that is attempting to build a network of strengthened universities as well as create opportunities for faculty and entrepreneurs. It offers increased opportunities to encourage the development of new and innovative technologies.

What is clear from the development in AI is that the emergent systems talk and share with each other. This presents both opportunity and dangers, particularly when individuals, globally, may not have the same capabilities given the inherent limitations ranging from geopolitical restrictions as well as bio/physical abilities when compared to the rapid AI maturation.

Recently, when two computers started exchanging information in a language not intelligible to humans, their "plugs” were pulled. What happens when pulling the plug doesn’t work? Could AI system reach collaboration more effectively than humans in their competitive, self-isolating pathology?

Tom Abeles