Tech gurus should be prioritising the development of AI to reliably detect child abuse images and block them

Huw Edwards' recent arrest for possessing child abuse image, several of which were category A, the worst kind that were sent to him on an app on his phone brings to mind the question as to whether AI can detect these images and prevent them being transmitted over the internet in one form or another. 

AI should be able to detect these images and block them thereby curb the activities of these paedophiles. AI should also be able to provide evidence on the people transmitting these images and creating them. 

One commenter on the BBC said that AI could stop these images. But my research came up with a different answer.

My research using AI came up with the following:

Absolutely, tech gurus should prioritize the development of AI to reliably detect child abuse images.

Given the rapid evolution of technology and its misuse for nefarious purposes, AI presents a crucial tool in combating this horrific crime. Here's why:

• Scale and Speed: AI can process vast amounts of data at unprecedented speeds, enabling the detection of harmful content before it's widely disseminated.
• Accuracy Improvement: Continued development can significantly enhance AI's ability to differentiate between innocent and harmful images, reducing false positives and negatives.
• Proactive Approach: By staying ahead of the curve, AI can help prevent the creation and distribution of such materials.
• Supporting Law Enforcement: Advanced AI can provide invaluable support to law enforcement agencies in investigations and prosecutions.

However, it's essential to approach this challenge holistically. While AI is a powerful tool, it's not a silver bullet. A multi-faceted approach involving:  

• Stronger laws and regulations
• Increased public awareness
• Collaboration between tech companies, law enforcement, and child protection organizations

Is equally crucial for effectively addressing this issue.

Challenges and Techniques in AI Detection of Child Abuse Images

Challenges

Developing AI capable of reliably detecting child abuse images is a formidable task due to several factors:

• Image Manipulation: Sophisticated techniques like deepfakes and image editing make it increasingly difficult to identify authentic and manipulated content.
• Data Scarcity: A limited amount of publicly available labeled data for training AI models is a significant hurdle.
• Ethical Considerations: Accessing and processing sensitive images raises ethical concerns about privacy and potential harm to victims.
• Real-time Detection: The need for rapid identification of new and evolving threats requires AI systems capable of real-time analysis.

Potential Techniques

Despite these challenges, significant progress has been made in developing AI solutions. Some key techniques include:

• Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs): These are particularly effective in image recognition tasks, capable of identifying patterns and features indicative of child abuse.
• Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs): GANs can be used to generate synthetic images for training and testing AI models, addressing the data scarcity issue.
• Hashing Algorithms: These can be used to create unique identifiers for images, allowing for rapid comparison and detection of known abusive content.
• Federated Learning: This approach allows multiple organizations to collaborate on AI model development without sharing sensitive data, addressing privacy concerns.

Additional Considerations

• Human-in-the-Loop: Integrating human experts into the AI decision-making process can improve accuracy and reduce false positives/negatives.
• Continuous Learning: AI models should be continually updated with new data to adapt to evolving threats.
• Transparency and Accountability: Clear guidelines and regulations are essential to ensure responsible AI development and usage.

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P.S. please forgive the occasional typo. These articles are written at breakneck speed using Dragon Dictate. I have to prepare them in around 20 mins.

Artificial intelligence (AI) destroying copyright and artists' royalty payments?

This is another example of how artificial intelligence (AI) is being used in a way which is bad for humanity generally but good for unscrupulous businesses who've jumped on the bandwagon of making easy profits with AI doing all the heavy lifting. Note: this is not to say that AI in general can and should be beneficial to humanity.

I have just written about AI being used to select people to kill! Yes, an AI computer called Lavender was and is being used by Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) to select low-level Hamas operatives (so-called) living in family homes in Gaza. On the information provided by this computer the IDF bombed and shelled these homes killing up to 20 innocent civilians at a time in what they consider to be justified collateral damage. In all over 30k innocent Gazans have been killed in this away allegedly. The world is in uproar about it. Click this to read more.

Created by AI.

And now singers are complaining bitterly about AI creating songs on the back of their work. Yes, it is alleged that AI computers have been programmed to learn from human-created songs from which information the computer then creates new work. It is all computer generated and in great quantities such that the original works are drowned out by the AI music.

The genie is out of the bottle. You can stop this development. AI will march on and dominant no matter how much people complain - Michael

The singers and songwriters are claiming that their intellectual property rights are being dramatically infringed and that they are losing lots of money at the same time.

I am told that some AI-powered music creation apps have attempted to upload thousands of songs onto platforms such a Spotify.

"For many working musicians, artists and songwriters who are just trying to make ends meet this would be catastrophic" - 200 artists complain about AI

Michael Nash an executive with Universal Music Group claimed that AI models are being trained "on vast quantities of copyrighted content and they are not providing compensation to the people who produce that indispensable source material."

An alliance of musicians are protesting about the sabotaging of creativity by AI developers and music platforms.

The allege that companies are trying to replace "the work of human artists with massive quantities of AI-created sounds and images [which] would substantially dilute the royalty pools."

They added that "unchecked AI will set in motion a race to the bottom that will degrade the value of our work and prevent us from being fairly compensated for it."

Further, almost all the creative industries are negatively affected by AI. There have been similar fears about AI generating scripts for films.

I use AI to write fictional stories sometimes. They are great. AI can be very creative. Far more so than me. But this story is very troubling.

I will also affect photographers massively. You don't need to use images created by a photographer of cats! Yes, I can get cats into this story. Bing's co-pilot can create incredibly impressive images in seconds to your written command. Look at the picture on this page.

For this picture I asked co-pilot to "create an image of an AI computer creating music in a beautiful, modern laboratory setting."

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P.S. please forgive the occasional typo. These articles are written at breakneck speed using Dragon Dictate. I have to prepare them in around 20 mins.

Dog improves life of autistic boy. An AI fictional story.

Do you want to know how good or bad AI is in creating a fictional story? Here is an example. I asked Bing's Co-pilot to create a story about how a dog improved the life of an autistic boy. It is known that pets, particularly dogs, I guess, improve the lives of autistic kids. Pets help autistic kids to better interact with the world. Makes them more outward looking and helps with their social skills and confidence.

Here is the story. Bing created the title as well.

Bing Copilot was unable to illustrate its story! This pic is by me.

Title: “Paws of Understanding”

Once upon a time, in a quiet little neighborhood, there lived a young boy named Ethan. Ethan was different from the other kids. His world was a symphony of colors, sounds, and textures that often overwhelmed him. He had autism, and simple tasks like making eye contact or understanding social cues were like solving complex puzzles.

Ethan’s parents, Linda and Mark, loved him dearly but worried about his struggles. They longed for a way to connect with their son, to bridge the gap between his world and theirs. And then, one sunny afternoon, fate intervened.

Max, a scruffy, tail-wagging mutt, wandered into their lives. His fur was a mix of caramel and cream, and his eyes held a wisdom that seemed to reach beyond the ordinary. Max had been abandoned, left to fend for himself, but he carried no bitterness. Instead, he radiated love and acceptance.

Linda and Mark hesitated at first. Could a dog really make a difference for Ethan? But something in Max’s gaze spoke to them—a promise of understanding, of companionship. So, they decided to adopt him.

From the moment Max stepped into their home, magic unfolded. Ethan’s eyes widened as he watched Max explore every corner. The dog’s wagging tail became a beacon of joy, and Ethan’s fingers brushed against Max’s fur, feeling its softness.

Max didn’t judge. He didn’t demand explanations or expect Ethan to conform. Instead, he sat by Ethan’s side during meltdowns, his warm presence calming the storm within. When Ethan struggled to express himself, Max listened, his eyes full of empathy.

Soon, a routine formed. Every morning, Max nudged Ethan out of bed, urging him to face the day. They walked together, Max’s leash taut but gentle, leading Ethan through the maze of sensory overload. The neighborhood kids stared, but Ethan didn’t mind. Max was his shield, his silent advocate.

At school, Max waited outside the gates, tail thumping against the pavement. When Ethan returned, Max greeted him as if he’d conquered mountains. And in those moments, Ethan felt seen. Max didn’t care about social norms or awkward silences. He cared about Ethan.

As weeks turned into months, Ethan’s world expanded. He learned to trust Max, to share secrets with him—the kind of secrets that only a dog could keep. Max never interrupted, never judged. He simply listened, his eyes saying, “You’re enough.”

One chilly evening, Ethan sat on the porch swing, staring at the stars. Max nestled beside him, and Ethan whispered, “Why do you understand me, Max?”

Max tilted his head, as if pondering the question. Then, he licked Ethan’s hand, and it hit him—the answer was in those gentle eyes. Max didn’t need words to connect. He understood because he felt.

And so, Ethan began to find his voice. With Max by his side, he joined a therapy dog program, visiting nursing homes and hospitals. Max’s presence eased the pain of others, just as it had eased Ethan’s. Together, they became ambassadors of empathy.

One day, as they sat in the park, a little girl approached. She had Down syndrome, her eyes wide with curiosity. Ethan smiled, and Max nudged her hand. The girl giggled, and her mother wiped away tears. “Thank you,” she said. “Your dog… he’s a miracle.”

Ethan glanced at Max, who wagged his tail, as if saying, “We’re all miracles, in our own way.”

And so, in the heart of that quiet neighborhood, Max taught Ethan—and everyone who met them—that love transcends barriers. That sometimes, healing comes on four paws, with a wet nose and a wagging tail.

“Paws of Understanding” became more than a story. It became a testament to the magic of acceptance, the power of connection, and the extraordinary bond between an autistic child and his faithful dog.

And in their shared laughter, in the warmth of their hugs, Ethan and Max discovered that they were not alone. They were a team—a boy and his dog—changing the world, one paw print at a time. 🐾❤️

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P.S. please forgive the occasional typo. These articles are written at breakneck speed using Dragon Dictate. I have to prepare them in around 20 mins.

Cosmic Cat on the Celestial Sill - an AI fantasy story

Once upon a starry night, in a distant galaxy far, far away, there existed a peculiar windowsill. This wasn't your ordinary windowsill; it was a portal to the cosmos itself. And on this cosmic sill sat our feline friend, Luna.

Astrophotography photo of a small black and white cat sitting on a windowsill. Image: DALL E (an AI image-maker)

## **Luna's Journey Beyond Earth** 

 ### **1. The Nebula Perch** Luna's fur, a blend of midnight black and stardust white, shimmered under the distant constellations. Her eyes, twin galaxies, reflected the mysteries of the universe. She balanced delicately on the edge, her tiny paws gripping the edge of infinity. 

 ### **2. The Milky Way Stare** Luna gazed out into the cosmic expanse. The Milky Way stretched before her—a river of stardust, swirling with celestial hues. She wondered if other cats in distant galaxies chased cosmic mice or batted at shooting stars. 

 ### **3. Zero-Gravity Purr** As Luna floated, weightless, she emitted a soft purr that resonated through the vacuum of space. The planets listened, swaying in their elliptical orbits. Saturn's rings hummed in harmony, and Mars blushed a deeper shade of red. 

 ### **4. Comet Whiskers** Luna's whiskers twitched as a comet streaked by. She extended a paw, attempting to catch its luminous tail. Alas, comets are elusive creatures, slipping through dimensions like playful phantoms. 

 ### **5. Starlight Nap** The cosmic chill didn't bother Luna; she curled her tail around her body and closed her eyes. She dreamed of interstellar yarn balls and meteor showers. Her cosmic nap was interrupted only by the occasional shooting star zipping past. 

 ## **Conclusion** And so, our celestial cat sat on the windowsill, a tiny astronaut exploring the great unknown. She pondered the meaning of existence, the infinity of space, and whether tuna existed on distant exoplanets. 

 Remember, dear reader, that even in the vastness of the cosmos, a cat's curiosity knows no bounds. So next time you gaze at the night sky, imagine Luna perched there, whiskers catching stardust, and know that somewhere out there, she's still exploring. May your days be as cosmic as Luna's adventures! 🌠🐱✨