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Micro-hospitals offer personalised community care
 The growth of micro-hospitals, where small neighborhood hospitals offer care tailored to the specific needs of a community, has been dramatic in recent years. And companies that are building and operating these facilities are relying on telemedicine to help them provide faster, more personalized service.

Cited as a new trend in healthcare in U.S. News and World Report, micro-hospitals -- sometimes called neighborhood or community hospitals -- typically have eight to 10 short-stay beds and provide the inpatient care, emergency care, imaging and lab services typically performed in larger hospitals. Some also offer outpatient surgery.

[Also: Almost all large employers plan to offer telehealth in 2018, but will employees use it?]

Cropping up in communities in more than a dozen states, micro-hospitals offer an appealing combination: They are cheaper and faster to build than larger hospitals; they can be tailored to the specific needs of a community depending on age, economic profile and other factors; and they offer a wider range of services than an urgent-care center. Not to mention the quick service.

Research indicates these hospitals may engender a symbiotic relationship with telemedicine, with the growth of one helping to fuel the other. This is especially true given the projected growth in the number of nurse practitioners and physician assistants: A report by the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration estimates that by 2020, the supply of primary care NPs is projected to increase by 30 percent, from 55,400 in 2010 to 72,100; and the supply of primary care PAs is projected to increase by 58 percent, from 27,700 to 43,900 over the same period.

[Also: Are micro-hospitals the answer for systems looking for low-cost expansions? They might be]

The HRSA also reported a projected shortage of 20,400 primary care physicians against demand in 2020. A similar shortage of specialists like intensivists, pulmonologists, neurologists, cardiologists, psychiatrists and others, particularly in rural America, holds the door wide open for telemedicine to fill the gaps.

Telemedicine makes specialists available practically 24/7. A group of specialists who contract with the telemedicine provider handles calls, and can respond either by phone or text message. Or, if the situation warrants, the physicians can diagnose and prescribe treatment for the patient via two-way videoconferencing technology, a cart or robot equipped with diagnostic equipment and a monitor that provides for face-to-face communication with patients and staff.

The telespecialists might be in the same state and time zone, across the country or, in some instances, halfway around the world, but they must be licensed in the state and credentialed by the hospital at which they are practicing. Wherever they are, response time is usually fast. According to the research, teleneurology specialists typically achieve an average response time of 3.5 minutes and an average diagnosis and treatment time of 21.8 minutes.

A Nemours study recently supported the use of telemedicine to reduce costs for both the patient and hospital system, while maintaining high levels of patient satisfaction. Those who use telemedicine for sports medicine appointments saved an average of $50 in travel costs and 51 minutes in waiting and visit time, according to the study.

The research, which was conducted in a pediatric sports medicine practice, also found that the percentage of time spent with the provider was significantly greater for telemedicine than for in-person visits -- 88 percent versus 15 percent of visit time.

Twitter: @JELagasse

Email the writer: jeff.lagasse@himssmedia.com

Output: Micro-hospitals – smaller facilities offering community services – are using telemedicine technology to provide more personalised care. The hospitals are equipped with short-stay beds and offer inpatient treatment, emergency care, imaging and lab services. The facilities are less expensive to build and can be constructed more quickly than normal hospitals, and can be designed to target specific community needs based on age range, economic profile and more. Care can be extended via telemedicine, with diagnosis and prescriptions completed through video conferencing, making community care in rural America more accessible.


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KKR said to want to sell Acconia Energia stake
 US private equity firm KKR & Co LP (NYSE:KKR) is reportedly looking to sell its stake in the international business of Acciona Energia, the renewable energy unit of Spanish infrastructure group Acciona SA (BME:ANA).

El Economista reported yesterday that KKR has engaged investment bank Lazard to prepare the sale. KKR acquired 33% of Acciona Energia Internacional for EUR 397 million (USD 466m) in 2014. According to the article, the stake is now valued at more than EUR 600 million.

The newspaper said that KKR wants to take advantage of the liquidity on the market and favourable valuations of green energy assets to monetise the stake. There could be a deal before the end of the year.

Acciona Energia operates nearly 9 GW of own capacity, the biggest part of which is wind. It also has photovoltaic (PV), hydropower, concentrated solar power (CSP) and biomass power assets in its portfolio.

(EUR 1 = USD1.175)

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Output: US private-equity firm KKR is looking to sell its stake in the international unit of Spanish renewable energy business Acconia Energia, according to a report in El Econimista. KKR acquired 33% of Acciona Energia Internacional for EUR397m ($466m) in 2014. The stake is now valued at more than EUR600m. Acciona Energia operates almost 9 GW of power assets, including wind, photovoltaic, hydropower, concentrated solar power and biomass.


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Lagerwey to build wind turbine that produces hydrogen
 Dutch wind turbine manufacturer Lagerwey said today it will build a wind turbine that will produce hydrogen, the first of its kind in the world, together with hydrogen supplier Hygro.

The project also involves research institute ECN, which will host the turbine on its wind turbine testing field at Wieringerwerf in the Dutch province of North Holland. The plan is for the turbine to be completed at the start of 2019. It will be a 4.8-MW Lagerwey wind turbine that will incorporate electrolysis technology.

Lagerwey said the integration of the two technologies will allow many components to be omitted, leading to “cheaper, more efficient and more robust” hydrogen production.

The wind turbine will produce hydrogen for the Duwaal project, an initiative of a Hygro-led consortium, which aims to create sustainable hydrogen production and distribution for at least five hydrogen fuel stations and 100 hydrogen trucks simultaneously.

Lagerwey said that transporting hydrogen by pipeline is cheaper than transporting electricity by cable and also pipelines serve as a buffer, avoiding the supply-demand imbalances related to “regular” wind and solar power. The project is therefore expected to provide insights into future energy infrastructure.

"In the future, wind turbines will ideally be connected up to a hydrogen gas network rather than an electricity grid," the company said.

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Output: Dutch wind turbine manufacturer Lagerwey said it will build a wind turbine that stores excess energy as hydrogen. Lagerwey has partnered with hydrogen supplier Hygro and research institute ECN to incorporate electrolysis technology into its 4.8 MW turbine. Once completed in 2019, the turbine will produce hydrogen for the Duwaal project, which aims to create sustainable hydrogen for at least five hydrogen fuel stations and 100 hydrogen trucks.


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Drone company Nileworks raises $7m for crop-spray technology
 Japanese drone company Nileworks has raised a ¥800 million ($7.12 million) financing round to expand the capabilities of its automated crop sprayer drones.

The round, which the company expects to close later this month, includes a group of Japanese investors including public-private partnership the Innovation Network Corporation of Japan, agricultural chemical maker Kumiai Chemical Industry Co., one of Japan’s largest companies Sumitomo Corporation and its subsidiary Sumitomo Chemical Co., the Japanese National Federation of Agricultural Co-operative Associations, and The Norinchukin Bank.

Nileworks claims its multi-copter drones are able to see the shape of a field and spray just 30cm above, thereby reducing drift. Nileworks will use the new funds to accelerate improvements on its automated drone, refining its “crop health and growth diagnostic technology,” according to a press release. The company is also seeking to add diagnostic capabilities to the drones, enabling them to decide how much pesticide is necessary based on the appearance of the crop.

The Tokyo-based company, founded in 2015, will target rice farmers in Japan when the product goes on sale in 2019 but says it will move on to other rice-producing countries in Asia in 2020. The company plans to sell the hardware itself, as the drones are automated and do not require operators. Each drone can carry up to one liter of pesticide at a time and fly for 20 minutes, covering 1 hectare.

A similar group of investors, including the Innovation Network Corporation of Japan, the National Federation of Agricultural Cooperative Associations, the Norinchukin Bank and Sumitomo Corporation, all contributed to an investment round for Japan’s Farmnote, a Japanese startup manufacturing wearable technology to collect data from cattle, in May.

Agrifood tech deals in Japan have followed global trends over the last few years, according to AgFunder data, peaking in 2015 with $107.5 million of investment. Investment in Japanese agrifood tech startups dropped 77% between 2015 and 2016 to just $25 million of funding. Funding levels in the first half of 2017 suggest that the sector is unlikely to bounce back in 2017 as startups raised just $9.5 million in H1 2017.

Output: Japanese drone manufacturer Nileworks has raised $7m to develop technology enabling its automated crop-spraying drones to determine how much treatment each field requires. Investors include Kumiai Chemical Industry, the Innovation Network Corporation of Japan and the Japanese National Federation of Agricultural Cooperative Associations. Nileworks said its drones can detect field shapes and spray crops from just 30 cm above the ground. The technology should allow the vehicles to calculate how much pesticide is required, based on the crop’s appearance. The product is due to go on sale in 2019 in Japan and the rest of Asia in 2020, targeting rice producers.


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China's DMG Entertainment seeks to buy 10% of Forbes
 DMG Entertainment’s Chinese affiliate has offered to buy a 10 percent stake in Forbes, the U.S. business magazine and media company.

Along with the minority stake, DMG would acquire “greater China rights” to the Forbes brand in the proposed deal, helping to fulfill the company’s vision of “creating a global, high-level concept entertainment brand,” according to a stock market filing from DMG’s mainland Chinese affiliate Yinji Entertainment & Media.

The filing, issued Tuesday, explains that Yinji is using a Hong Kong-based, DMG-branded entity to establish a $256 million investment fund with several partners. The fund would then be deployed to acquire full control of an entity called FBS Entertainment and Leisure, which in turn would make the Forbes investment, according to the filing. It wasn’t immediately clear how much it would spend on the Forbes deal.

Forbes’ current controlling stakeholder is Integrated Whale Media Investments, an asset management firm based in Hong Kong, which acquired 95 percent of the publisher for $415 million in 2014. Earlier this year HNA Group, the acquisitive Chinese conglomerate, made a failed attempt to buy a controlling stake in Forbes for over $400 million.

DMG and Forbes couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.

DMG Entertainment, which began as a Chinese marketing company before diversifying into film and television, was reorganized in 2014, splitting into two parts. Yinji Entertainment & Media, which retained the company’s flagship advertising and marketing business, and remains its chief revenue driver, was brought to market on the Shenzhen stock exchange via a reverse takeover, with co-founder Peter Xiao taking the helm as chairman. The company’s American co-founder and CEO, Dan Mintz, meanwhile, assumed control of the company’s privately held U.S. entertainment assets, retaining the name DMG Entertainment and basing in Los Angeles.

Although technically separate, which allows them latitude in negotiating U.S. and Chinese financial and media regulations, the two companies operate under a contractual partnership agreement.

DMG Entertainment’s next U.S. film release will be Bastards, starring Owen Wilson and Ed Helms, and produced in partnership with Alcon Entertainment.

Output: DMG Entertainment, the Chinese-founded media company, is reported to be seeking a 10% stake in US business magazine Forbes. Under a complex deal, DMG's affiliate Yinji Entertainment & Media would create a $256m investment fund with several partners to make the investment in Forbes through another new company. Forbes is currently 95%-owned by Whale Media Investments in Hong Kong, which acquired its controlling state for $415m in 2014. The price for the proposed deal hasn't been disclosed, and neither party has commented on the reports.


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Start-up Built raises $15m to develop robo-bulldozer tech
 watch now

Noah Ready-Campbell's first job out of college was at Google . It was 2010, the year the company touted its plan -- or then, what seemed like a far-fetched dream -- to build self-driving cars. "They announced it and everyone looked at each other and we were like, why are we even talking about this," Ready-Campbell, who's now 29, told CNBC. "There's no way it's going to work." Seven years later, the technology is working. In fact, it's so far along that in California more than 40 companies have licenses to test autonomous vehicles, with the trucking industry not far behind. Ready-Campbell, whose dad was a general contractor, is getting in on the action and taking advantage of the dramatic advances in automation to go after construction. For the past two years, he's been developing software and sensors that can turn off-the-shelf excavators into robots that can dig holes with precision for hours without a break. From a small dirt field in a sparsely populated part of San Francisco, Ready-Campbell's 10-person start-up, Built Robotics, has been stealthily operating a retrofitted skid steer, directing it via a computer program to move around dirt.

Built Robotics co-founder Noah Ready-Campbell. Andrew Evers | CNBC

The software allows a contractor to geofence the project so the machine can't go rogue. Then you program in the exact parameters and where to move the dirt. If Built Robotics is a success, some job displacement is inevitable. But Ready-Campbell said there's currently not enough skilled labor to fulfill all the demand for new roads, dams and bridges, and much of the work is dangerous or tedious. "I've talked to some operators and they've said there are parts of my job that are really dangerous and there parts of my job that are really boring," Ready-Campbell said. "If you can have a robot do those things and I can focus on the parts that really take human judgment, then that's good for me."

Built Robotics geofence Andrew Evers | CNBC

Ready-Campbell said it's too soon to say how the technology will be priced. He's optimistic that there are multiple ways to make money, whether it's selling the sensor kits to companies like Caterpillar and John Deere for their machines, selling to contractors for retrofits or renting out the technology for projects. Carl Bass, the former CEO of Autodesk and a roboticist in his spare time, first checked out the Built Robotics technology about nine months ago, when he visited the start-up's headquarters. It's not much of an office. Rather, it's a white tent with a few work stations, a weight-lifting area, a couple couches and a coffee maker. "As somebody who's seen a lot of start-ups, this one may take the cake as far as the proverbial garage," said Bass, who's now a Built Robotics investor and board member.

'Better and cheaper'

Output: Built Robotics, an autonomous-machinery start-up founded by ex-Google employee Noah Ready-Campbell, has raised $15m in an NEA-led funding round. The proceeds will be used to hire engineers to help bring Built's robo-bulldozer technology to market. The 10-person team can retrofit heavy machinery to use the technology.


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Shell starts offering EV charging on UK forecourts
 Shell is opening a first wave of electric vehicle charging points at its UK petrol stations, in a sign of the far-reaching changes under way in the transport and oil sectors.

Drivers will be able to recharge 80% of their battery in half an hour at forecourts in London, Surrey and Derby from this week, with a total of 10 service stations to be equipped with rapid chargers by the end of the year.

The move marks the Shell’s first step into the UK electric car sector and comes days after the Anglo-Dutch oil company bought NewMotion, a Dutch firm with 30,000 private charging points at homes and offices in Europe.

Shell said the forays into charging were spurred by the swift growth in battery-powered cars, which now number more than 115,000 in the UK, up from almost zero a decade ago.

“There’s no doubt the electric vehicle market is developing fast. And we want to offer customers choice: it doesn’t really matter what kind of vehicle they’re driving, we want them to drive into a Shell station, refuel in whatever capacity the fuel is,” said Jane Lindsay-Green, UK future fuels manager at Shell.

The NewMotion acquisition and service station charging points could prove an important hedge by big oil against the impact of electric cars, which experts said this week would cause petrol demand to peak by 2030.

“We want to make sure we are positioning ourselves for the future,” said Lindsay-Green, who described the two schemes as complementary.

Shell acknowledged it was taking baby steps into the market, with just 10 out of its 1,000 fuelling stations in the UK adding charging points to begin with.

“The market is very young. We are learning here. We’ve started very small. It’s 10 sites, it’s certainly not a mass market yet for us,” said Lindsay-Green.

The company is also catering for the tiny number of hydrogen cars on UK roads – believed to number as few as 50 – and this year installed a hydrogen pump at its Cobham services on the M25. Shell will have three stations with hydrogen refuelling by the end of the year.

With rapid electric charging points typically costing $30,000-$50,000 (£22,700-£38,000) each, the 10 electric charging stations mark a minuscule fraction of the $25bn Shell spends on oil each year.

But industry watchers said the infrastructure and recent acquisition were noteworthy.

Colin McKerracher, an analyst at Bloomberg New Energy Finance, said: “I think it is significant that a major oil company is investing in charging infrastructure and that they bought NewMotion.

“I wouldn’t say it spells the end of the pump as we know it, but we are on the way to a world with a broader mix of vehicles on the road, and Shell are making a play to keep their stations relevant.”

Greenpeace, which has previously protested at Shell’s UK service stations over its oil drilling plans, said the country needed more charging points.

Rosie Rogers, clean air campaigner at Greenpeace, said: “In order to really kick start the electrification of our road network, we need to see a lot more rapid charge points in petrol station all over the country, as well as in supermarkets, car parks and motorway services.”

Branded Shell Recharge, the charging points will cost a discounted 25p per kilowatt hour of power until next June, when the price will revert to its normal level of 49p per kWh.

At the normal price, that means recharging a Nissan Leaf from virtually flat to a full charge would cost nearly £20, while a top-end Tesla Model S would cost almost £50. Customers pay via a credit card registered to an app on a pay-as-you-go basis rather than the subscription basis that some electric car charging schemes operate on.

The initial locations, all but one of which is in or around London, were chosen based on how busy they are. “Locations that have a lot of through-traffic, and also locations where perhaps the existing electric vehicle infrastructure needs boosting,” said Lindsay-Green.

Shell said that in a handful of cases it paid for upgrades to the local energy grid, to make it capable of handling the rapid charging points. The UK is the first market where Shell is piloting the Recharge offering, which is to expand next to the Netherlands.

Output: Shell has begun providing fast-charging points for electric vehicles at its forecourts in the UK. Batteries will charge 80% in half an hour at petrol stations in London, Surrey and Derby. It wants 10 of its 1,000 sites to be equipped with EV chargers by the end of the year. Last week, Shell acquired NewMotion, a Dutch company with 30,000 private charging points at homes and offices across Europe. Shell plans to have three stations with hydrogen refuelling by the end of the year.


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Google's AlphaGo AI learns to play without human help
 Surpassing the Masters

We've written before about how Google is one of the most prominent tech companies leading the way when it comes to the development of artificial intelligence. As each month passes, its AI division, DeepMind, continues to reveal increasingly advanced AI capabilities, especially when it comes to AlphaGo.

This particular AI is most well-known for mastering the ancient Chinese game of Go...and subsequently defeating 18-time world champion Lee Se-dol, which happened just last year.

Since then, DeepMind has started adding imagination to its AI, and they also used gaming to teach the AI how to better manage tasks. AlphaGo even went on to defeat another top go player, Ke Jie, once again showing off its (potentially) unlimited potential to learn.

Now, a new development has just come to light.

This week, DeepMind unveiled the next iteration of the AlphaGo AI, dubbed AlphaGo Zero, saying it's "even more powerful and is arguably the strongest Go player in history." According to the company, Zero taught itself how to play Go on its own by playing games against itself — previous iterations of AlphaGo learned by studying data gathered from human players.

Zero began as a complete novice, but after just 3 days it beat the version of AlphaGo that bested Lee Se-dol, and it beat it by a staggering 100 games to 0. After 40 days, it proceeded to beat the superior version of AlphaGo that beat Ke Jie.

"AlphaGo Zero also discovered new knowledge, developing unconventional strategies and creative new moves that echoed and surpassed the novel techniques it played in the games against Lee Sedol and Ke Jie," said DeepMind in their press release.

Beyond the Game of Go

While AlphaGo Zero's Go capabilities are to be praised, it should be noted that playing a board game is much different than completing other tasks that have more variables. As Eleni Vasilaki, professor of computational neuroscience at Sheffield University, put it while speaking with The Guardian, "AI fails in tasks that are surprisingly easy for humans. Just look at the performance of a humanoid robot in everyday tasks such as walking, running, and kicking a ball."

When it comes to matching humans at more complex tasks, AI still has a long way to go — even AI like Siri and the Google Assistant have yet to surpass a fifth grader's level of knowledge.

But that doesn't mean that this development isn't utterly revolutionary.

DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis is also well aware of this gap between humans and AI, explaining how the development and growth of AlphaGo was more important than just mastering an ancient game, it was also "a big step for us towards building these general-purpose algorithms.”

Within the next decade, Hassabis believes AI will be working alongside people to advance development in fields like science and medicine — the latter of which can already be seen today.

For example, AlphaGo Zero is currently trying to work out how proteins fold, which is something that, if realized, could vastly accelerate drug discovery (the process through which new medications are discovered). This, in turn, could save countless lives and lead us into a new era in medicine.

"I hope that these kinds of algorithms and future versions of AlphaGo-inspired things will be routinely working with us as scientific experts and medical experts on advancing the frontier of science and medicine," Hassabis said.

Artificial intelligence may not be as smart and capable as us yet, but if AlphaGo Zero is an indication, AI are quick learners. Now it's just a matter of knowing what to do when the AI takeover inevitably happens.

Output: Google’s AlphaGo artificial intelligence (AI) system, created to challenge human players at the ancient Chinese game of Go, has been updated to AlphaGo Zero. The new version is “arguably the strongest Go player in history”, according to the company, having learned how to play the game after challenging previous versions of itself. Within three days it had beaten the AlphaGo version that had won against 18-time world champion Lee Se-dol, and after 40 days had was victorious against the latest iteration, which had defeated another leading player. The AI software is also being used to determine how proteins fold, a study that's hoped to help in drug development.


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Netherlands to hold subsidy-free wind auction in December
 The Dutch government will be accepting applications between December 15 and December 21 in its subsidy-free offshore wind tender for phases I and II of the Hollandse Kust Zuid zone.

The projects will have a combined capacity of about 700 MW.

The economic affairs ministry has published a Ministerial Order outlining the needed documents and the ranking criteria which will determine the winners. The extent of offshore wind project experience of the bidders, offered capacity, quality of the design, measures to ensure cost-efficiency and social costs are in the list of criteria.

The Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO) will hold an information meeting on November 1 to discuss the tender procedure.

The decision to sound the possibility of realising offshore wind projects off the Netherlands without subsidies has been prompted by Germany’s first offshore wind tender, where three of the four winning projects will be built without subsidies. If the subsidy-free competitive process is unsuccessful, the Dutch government will initiate a tender with subsidies.

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Output: The Dutch government will hold a no-subsidy tender for phases I and II of the 700 MW Hollandse Kust Zuid zone wind farm between December 15 and December 21. The extend of offshore wind project experience of the bidders, offered capacity, quality of the design, measures to ensure cost-efficiency and social costs are in the list of criteria. The decision follows a German offshore wind tender earlier this year in which three of the four winning projects will be built without subsidies. If the subsidy-free competitive process is unsuccessful, the Dutch government will initiate a tender with subsidies.


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UK's 'culture of low pay' keeps workers in badly paid jobs
 Low pay is endemic in the UK and there has been little progress in the number of people managing to escape from poorly paid jobs, a new report by the Social Mobility Commission reveals today (Thursday 19 October).

The ‘Great Escape?’ report, carried out by the Resolution Foundation, explores trends in low pay over recent decades and examines the factors linked to low pay and progression. It tracks individuals’ pay over 10 years and divides them into 3 groups:

‘stuck’ - those who are stuck in low pay every year

‘cyclers’ - those who move out of low pay at some point, but who have not consistently stayed above the low pay threshold by the end of the decade

‘escapers’ - those who earn above the low pay threshold in each of the last 3 years, suggesting they have remained in higher pay

The analysis finds that just 1 in 6 low-paid workers (17%) managed to permanently escape from low pay in the last decade. Meanwhile, a quarter of low-paid workers remained permanently stuck in low pay and nearly half (48%) fluctuated in and out of low pay over the course of the last 10 years.

The report finds that women are more likely to be low paid than men and are also far more likely to get stuck in low pay. It is particularly difficult for women in their early twenties to escape low pay, with the lack of good-quality, flexible work to fit alongside childcare responsibilities as the most likely barrier.

However, there has been some long-term progress for women. Excluding those who exit the data over the following decade, the proportion of women getting stuck has fallen from 48% in 1981 to 91 to 30% in 2006 to 2016. In contrast, the risk of long-term low pay has increased for men over the same period (from 20% to 25%). This is likely due to the increasing number of men working in low-paid, part-time work.

The report finds that nearly two-thirds (64%) of workers who are ‘stuck’ in low pay are working part time, while nearly three-quarters (71%) of people who escaped low pay were working full time.

Getting stuck in low pay carries a severe pay penalty. On average, people stuck in the low pay trap have seen their hourly wages rise by just 40p in real terms over the last decade, compared to a £4.83 pay rise for those who have permanently escaped.

Age is also identified as a factor, with older workers far less likely to escape low pay than their younger counterparts. The report finds that 23% of low-paid workers aged 25 or under escaped low pay over the following decade, compared to 15% of those aged 46 to 55.

The research also finds that in the last decade, low-paid workers were mostly likely to escape in Scotland and least likely to escape in the North East.

It adds that while the National Living Wage is reducing the number of people in low-paid work - last year saw the biggest fall in 40 years - there will still be around 4 million low-paid workers in 2020, highlighting the scale of Britain’s low pay challenge.

The Rt Hon Alan Milburn, Chair of the Social Mobility Commission, said:

Britain has an endemic low pay problem. While record numbers of people are in employment, too many jobs are low skilled and low paid. Millions of workers - particularly women - are being trapped in low pay with little chance of escape. The consequences for social mobility are dire.

Britain’s flexible workforce gives us global economic advantage, but a 2-tier labour market is now exacting too high a social price. A new approach is needed to break the vicious cycle where low skills lead to low pay in low-quality jobs. Welfare policy should focus on moving people from low pay to living pay. Government should join forces with employers in a new national effort to improve progression and productivity at work. Without concerted action, Britain will become more socially divided and social mobility will continue to stall.

Conor D’Arcy, Senior Policy Analyst at the Resolution Foundation, said:

Britain has one of the highest proportions of low-paid work in the developed work. And while three-quarters of low-paid workers did manage to move into higher paying roles at some point over the past decade, the vast majority couldn’t sustain that progress. This lack of pay progress can have a huge scarring effect on people’s lifetime living standards.

The National Living Wage is playing a massive role in reducing low pay, but it can’t solve the problem alone. Employers need to improve career routes for staff, while government should support them with a welfare system that encourages progression at work.

Notes for editors

Output: A "low-pay culture" in the UK pressures people to remain in badly paid jobs, according to a report by the government-supported Social Mobility Commission. The study found that just one in six workers earning less than two-thirds of the median hourly wage had succeeded in moving to higher paid roles in the last ten years, while the majority remained stuck in part-time or insecure work. A quarter of such workers remained permanently in low-paid positions, the report stated.


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UK's 'culture of low pay' keeps workers in badly paid jobs
 Britain’s low pay culture traps people in poorly paid jobs and prevents them from escaping into full-time work with better pay, according to a major study by the government-backed body that tracks social mobility.

Only one in six workers on low pay managed in the last 10 years to push themselves up the pay ladder and stay there, while most remained stuck in a cycle of part-time and insecure jobs.

The analysis by the Social Mobility Commission found that a quarter of low-paid workers remained permanently stuck in low pay and nearly half (48%) fluctuated in and out of it over the course of the last 10 years.

Alan Milburn, the former Labour MP and health minister who heads the commission, said the study showed that successive governments had failed to reduce inequality between rich and poor despite two decades of interventions.

He described the situation as “endemic” and warned that without “radical and urgent reform”, the social and economic divisions in British society will widen even further, threatening community cohesion and economic prosperity.

His warning follows a stinging report earlier this week by the thinktank, the OECD, that accused the government of allowing regional and intergenerational divisions to worsen, leaving millions of people outside London and the south-east working in low-skilled jobs.

Milburn said workers on low incomes, defined as those earning below two-thirds of the median hourly wage, were caught in an “endemic low pay problem” that is “dire for social mobility”. The median hourly wage in 2016 was £13.59, defining those on low pay as earning below £9 an hour.

The study found that on average, people stuck in the low-pay trap have seen their hourly wages rise by just 40p over the last decade after inflation is taken into account, compared with a £4.83 pay rise for those who have permanently escaped.

The government has defended itself against claims that inequality has widened in the last 10 years by pointing to the Gini coefficient, which is an internationally recognised measure of income inequality that has remained constant in recent years.

But the Gini coefficient includes pensioners and those on benefits, while the commission’s research focuses on those in work.

Conor D’Arcy, a policy analyst at the Resolution Foundation, which carried out the research, said: “Britain has one of the highest proportions of low-paid work in the developed world. And while three-quarters of low-paid workers did manage to move into higher-paying roles at some point over the past decade, the vast majority couldn’t sustain that progress. This lack of pay progress can have a huge scarring effect on people’s lifetime living standards.

“The national living wage is playing a massive role in reducing low pay, but it can’t solve the problem alone. Employers need to improve career routes for staff, while government should support them with a welfare system that encourages progression at work.”

Milburn added: “Britain’s flexible workforce gives us global economic advantage but a two-tier labour market is now exacting too high a social price. A new approach is needed to break the vicious cycle where low skills lead to low pay in low quality jobs.

“Welfare policy should focus on moving people from low pay to living pay. Government should join forces with employers in a new national effort to improve progression and productivity at work. Without concerted action Britain will become more socially divided and social mobility will continue to stall.”

Output: A "low-pay culture" in the UK pressures people to remain in badly paid jobs, according to a report by the government-supported Social Mobility Commission. The study found that just one in six workers earning less than two-thirds of the median hourly wage had succeeded in moving to higher paid roles in the last ten years, while the majority remained stuck in part-time or insecure work. A quarter of such workers remained permanently in low-paid positions, the report stated.


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Input:
Gene therapies hold promise for treating blindness
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Genetic therapies offer new pathways for ophthalmic disorders

Biotechnology companies such as Hemera Biosciences, Spark Therapeutics and AGTC have several ophthalmic treatments in the clinical pipeline.

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Genetic therapies for ophthalmic disorders such as inherited retinal dystrophies are moving forward in the field and taking steps toward becoming a clinical reality.

The future of gene therapy in retinal disease is a bright one, with many gene therapy companies offering exciting possibilities, Jay S. Duker, MD, a co-founder of Hemera Biosciences, a privately held biotech company, told Ocular Surgery News.

“Gene therapy is being tested in many organ systems, but the retina is one of the best organs in the body to consider gene therapy for several reasons. First, the eye is relatively isolated from an immunologic view. This makes inflammation less of an issue. Second, the ordered topography of the retina is an advantage. Third, the eye volume is such that relatively small amounts of material are needed to treat an eye. Finally, we have many tests of structure and function that are safe and easy to perform in the office to determine the effectiveness of the gene therapy,” he said.

Therapies in the pipeline

Hemera Biosciences is developing anti-complement therapies delivered via gene therapy. Its lead product, HMR59, is an AAV2-based gene therapy designed to be injected intravitreally into the eye in an office setting to treat advanced dry age-related macular degeneration, according to Duker, an OSN Retina/Vitreous Board Member. This is the first gene therapy for dry AMD ever tested in humans.

Jay S. Duker

The therapy induces intraocular cells to produce a solubilized form of a naturally occurring protein blocker of membrane attack complex, “the final step in the complement cascade,” he said.

“The phase 1b dose-escalating trial of HMR59 in eyes with severe geographic atrophy from dry age-related macular degeneration is fully enrolled. Initial safety results should be available this fall or early winter. A phase 2 multicenter placebo-controlled trial of HMR59 is in the advanced planning stages,” Duker said.

Duker also noted that Spark Therapeutics is anticipated to receive FDA approval for Luxturna (voretigene neparvovec), a gene therapy treatment of confirmed biallelic RPE65-mediated inherited retinal disease.

Katherine A. High, MD, co-founder, chief scientific officer and president of Spark Therapeutics, told Ocular Surgery News that Luxturna has completed a phase 3 clinical trial. The therapy began a phase 1 clinical trial in 2007, she said, before the creation of Spark Therapeutics in 2013.

The gene therapy was developed when High was the director of the Center for Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). Because the hospital was not in the business of licensing products, a decision had to be made for the future of Luxturna, she said.

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“We considered a number of options, including partnering with a biotech or a pharmaceutical company, but most had very little experience with gene therapies. This was an ultra-rare indication, and sometimes ultra-rare indications can be lost in the shuffle of a big company. After a lot of deliberation, we made the decision to spin out an independent company from our unit at CHOP. The unit employed about 80 people; when we spun out, we took a number of those people and added a number of other individuals. The company, even though it was formed in 2013, had a running start. When it was formed, we had an asset in phase 3. That’s unusual,” High said.

Targeting inherited retinal dystrophies

Spark Therapeutics has two additional ocular gene therapies in the pipeline. High said SPK-7001 has been advanced to an open-label, dose-escalated phase 1/2 trial to assess the safety and preliminary efficacy of subretinal administration for choroideremia. The company is also investigating a preclinical gene therapy for the treatment of Leber’s hereditary optic neuropathy.

“Gene therapy has a great deal to offer in the area of inherited retinal dystrophies. This has been a target tissue that has really not been amenable, for example, for repeated protein administrations. It hasn’t been amenable for small molecule therapy, either. So, I think that presents a niche for gene therapy. It’s interesting to me because vision is one of the most complex mechanisms in the body, with over 250 genes involved. Of course, most of these don’t have treatments, and so I believe we should be able to leverage the work that we’ve done in RPE65 and take advantage of the lessons learned to shorten clinical development timelines,” High said.

Since its creation, Spark Therapeutics has secured $1 billion in financing to support the growth of its clinical programs and platforms, according to the company website.

Bright future

Applied Genetic Technologies Corporation (AGTC), a publicly traded company developing gene therapies for rare lung and eye diseases, also has several therapies in clinical trials. One, a phase 1/2 trial, will evaluate the safety and efficacy of recombinant adeno-associated virus vector expressing retinoschisin for the treatment of X-linked retinoschisis, according to the company.

According to a company investor presentation given in August, AGTC reported it had $148.7 million in cash and investments as of March 31 and $135 million to $140 million expected at the fiscal year end on June 30. This will allow the company to complete enrollment and analysis for the phase 1/2 trials of X-linked retinoschisis and achromatopsia.

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Gene therapy for ophthalmic disorders is bright, and the future offers some exciting advancements for retinal diseases, Duker said.

“As mentioned, we should have an FDA-approved gene therapy for one form of inherited retinal dystrophy soon. Other corrections of mutations will follow. Drug delivery via gene therapy will not be too far behind. The future will include more retinotrophic viral vectors, allowing for better gene delivery, as well as some non-viral vectors,” he said. – by Robert Linnehan

References:

Our scientific programs and platforms. Spark Therapeutics. http://sparktx.com/scientific-platform-programs/. Accessed Sept. 12, 2017.

Products. Applied Genetic Technologies Corporation. https://www.agtc.com/products. Accessed Sept. 14, 2017.

Russell S, et al. Lancet. 2017;doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(17)31868-8.

Safety and efficacy of rAAV-hRS1 in patients with X-linked retinoschisis (XLRS). ClinicalTrials.gov. https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02416622. Updated Aug. 31, 2017. Accessed Sept. 13, 2017.

Treatment of advanced dry age related macular degeneration with AAVCAGsCD59. ClinicalTrials.gov. https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03144999. Updated May 16, 2017. Accessed Sept. 13, 2017.

Visionary Science for Life Changing Cures 2017. Applied Genetic Technologies Corporation. http://files.shareholder.com/downloads/AMDA-2H6BI7/5243637568x0x954037/4044D075-C3ED-483E-9DCC-466D012B14A7/AGTC_Summer_2017_Investor_Presentation.pdf. Published Aug. 15, 2017. Accessed Sept. 14, 2017.

For more information:

Jay S. Duker, MD, can be reached at New England Eye Center, 800 Washington St., Box 450, Boston, MA 02111-1533; email: jduker@tuftsmedicalcenter.org.

Katherine A. High, MD, can be reached at Spark Therapeutics, 3737 Market St., Suite 1300, Philadelphia, PA 19104; email: kathy.high@sparktx.com.

Disclosures: Duker reports he is a co-founder of Hemera Biosciences. High reports she is co-founder, chief scientific officer and president of Spark Therapeutics.

Output: Gene therapies for ocular disorders are close to becoming a reality, with a number of firms testing new treatments, according to Dr Jay Duker, co-founder of Hemera Biosciences. His firm is carrying out the first human trials of HMR59, a gene therapy for advanced dry age-related macular degeneration, with results set to be available in the coming months. Additionally, Spark Therapeutics recently completed a phase 3 clinical trial of its product Luxturna, which aims to treat inherited retinal disease.


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MIT to issue degree certificates using blockchain technology
 The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is offering some students the option to be awarded tamper-free digital degree certificates when they graduate, in partnership with Learning Machine. Selected students can now choose to download a digital version of their degree certificate to their smartphones when they graduate, in addition to receiving a paper diploma.

Using a free, open-source app called Blockcerts Wallet, students can quickly access a digital diploma that can be shared on social media and verified by employers to ensure its authenticity. The digital credential is protected using block-chain technology. The block chain is a public ledger that offers a secure way of making and recording transactions, and is best known as the underlying technology of digital currency Bitcoin.

A news release Tuesday described how MIT has been thinking about using block-chain technology to secure digital credentials for the past two years. In 2015 Philipp Schmidt, the director of learning innovation at the MIT media lab, began issuing nonacademic digital credentials to his team, but he did not have a good way of managing these credentials digitally.

In collaboration with Learning Machine, Schmidt and his team began to develop an open-source tool kit, called Blockcerts, that any college can use to issue credentials using block-chain technology. With the addition of the Blockcerts Wallet app, this information can be encrypted, and students can prove ownership of their diploma through the generation of a unique numerical identifier.

The technology means that students can quickly share their virtual certificates with potential employers without involving an intermediary. Third parties can verify the legitimacy of the diploma by pasting the URL of the certificate into an MIT-hosted portal. This portal can instantly verify the legitimacy of the certificate, negating the notarization step often required in the verification of paper certificates.

Chris Jagers, CEO of Learning Machine, said that many of today's students expect to be able to just send digital copies of their academic credentials to employers and institutions, but that until now there wasn’t good technology to support this. “We heard of students trying to Snapchat their grades to admissions; they didn’t understand why they couldn’t just text a picture,” said Jagers. “It should be that easy to share records, and this generation of digital natives expects that. But before this technology came along, this wasn’t possible.”

Mary Callahan, university registrar and senior associate dean at MIT, said that a key motivation behind the pilot was to “empower” students to take greater ownership of their academic qualifications. She said the technology enables students to share their achievements with whomever they wish in a way that is secure, verifiable and efficient. “I think it’s got real potential,” said Callahan. “We wanted to lead the way, and we expect others to follow.”

The first cohort of 111 students who were able to take part in the pilot graduated this summer, with 43 choosing to take part. Callahan said that potentially all students graduating in February 2018 would be given the digital diploma option. Asked whether she thought this could one day replace paper, Callahan did not rule it out but said that the change would take time.

Aside from convenience for students, the technology also tackles another issue facing universities -- fake degrees. “There are a lot of people who pretend to graduate from MIT with fake diplomas,” said Jagers. “This provides a format that people can’t fake.”

Callahan confirmed that verifying authenticity was an important aspect of the technology for the university, which she said “definitely gets its fair share” of fraudsters.

While some students may struggle to understand the technology behind the app, understanding how the block chain works is not necessary to use it, said Jagers. He noted that there has been strong interest in the technology from dozens of academic institutions, as well as companies and governments. The University of Melbourne is already piloting digital diplomas with the app.

Though some companies are looking to sell their block chain-based products, Jagers said that keeping the Blockcerts app and tool kit free and open source is important. “If everyone is doing this in a proprietary way, then the records won’t be universally verifiable. The whole point is to create records that don’t have any dependence on an issuer or vendor.”

While MIT may be among the first institutions in the U.S. to use block-chain technology to award digital degree certificates, Thomas Black, assistant vice provost and university registrar at Johns Hopkins University, said that other institutions are experimenting. He noted that his institution was also looking to use block-chain technology to award degrees, but he would be taking a different approach than MIT.

Instead of working with third parties, Johns Hopkins is building its own system and creating a private ledger -- rather than using Bitcoin's public one, like MIT. “Universities are very protective of their authority to certify learning. I don’t know that we need to have this public ledger approach,” he said. “You can use block-chain technology very nicely by establishing a private ledger.”

Black noted that many institutions already use digital signing services to verify the authenticity of their PDF documents through Adobe. Companies such as Parchment and Paradigm also offer verified digital versions of diplomas, said Black. “The concept of digital signatures is nothing new,” he said. “But perhaps universities could start to replace Adobe and others in these roles.”

Output: The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has partnered with blockchain firm Learning Machine to create the Blockcerts Wallet, an open-source app offering secure, verifiable digital versions of degree certificates. MIT is among the first institutions to use blockchain to offer digital certificates, which can reduce fraud and enable graduates to share their qualifications more easily. The University of Melbourne is using the Blockcerts Wallet app to pilot its own digital diploma scheme, while Johns Hopkins is working on a solution using a private blockchain.


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Google to automatically update Shopping data in Amazon challenge
 by Laurie Sullivan @lauriesullivan, October 18, 2017

Google has created technology that automatically updates price and availability in Google Shopping ads that will allow it to complete better with Amazon and other ecommerce marketplaces.

The "automatic item updates" feature, scheduled to launch October 31, will allow Google to automatically update a merchant's product price and availability in a Google Shopping ad based on the advertiser's website listing and other triggers without placing codes containing the schema.org markup that was previously required.

A combination of statistical models and machine learning detect and extract product data from a retailer's website to update a product's price and availability in shopping ads.

"The worst thing for a consumer is to see one price in a Google Shopping ad and then other price on the merchant's website," said Tien Nguyen, founder at CPC Strategy.

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Two emails sent from Google to merchants earlier this week describing the feature, "automatic item updates," left retail clients using Google Shopping a little confused. On Tuesday, search agencies began getting a flood of emails and calls asking about the change.

The first email from Google was sent to merchants that are not currently using automatic item updates, and the second email was sent to merchants currently using it.

Beginning at the end of the month, the feature will turn on by default, but merchants can opt-out. Google developed the technology to look for and identify coded signals on a website page that would determine price and availability. This way merchants are not required to have the Schema.org markup in place to function properly.

The feature isn't new, but the ability to trigger it without the Schema.org markup in place is new.

Nguyen said sometimes Google will reject the Shopping ad if it doesn't match the merchants' price and description on the webpage. Then the ad never serves at all.

The most current price and availability for the products will be determined by "structured data annotations" or additional information when structured data isn't available.

"It’s not anything to be alarmed about, but it can’t be completely ignored," said David Grow, digital media director, Chacka Marketing. "Advertisers can opt out."

Output: Google is to enable the automatic updating of merchants' product prices and availability on its Shopping pages. The feature, which refreshes details via links into merchants' own websites, will be triggered on 31 October, whether sellers have the Schema.org markup in place or not. The move is seen as an effort to compete with Amazon. "The worst thing for a consumer is to see one price in a Google Shopping ad and then another price on the merchant's website," said Tien Nguyen, founder at CPC Strategy.


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More efficient cellulose breakdown could lead to cheaper biofuels
 Scientists have gained new insight into the functioning of hydrolytic enzymes, in a study that could pave the way to more competitive biofuels.

The current technical complexity and costs of obtaining biofuels from biomass restrict their cheap, efficient and sustainable production. At a time when oil prices are at record lows, this is hindering their ability to compete on the fuels market.

One of the major challenges is breaking down cellulose, a polysaccharide and plant constituent which is not water soluble and thus difficult to process.

Biorefineries use a mix of hydrolytically active enzymes which utilise water molecules to break down plant materials, replicating the natural degradation processes. Recently, oxidative enzymes were discovered which utilise oxygen and work together with hydrolytic enzymes to break down cellulose more efficiently. Scientists at the Graz University of Technology are now working to find out how this process works.

Using atomic force microscopy, the researchers were able to observe enzymes at work on the surface of cellulose particles for the first time and provide direct evidence of their activity. The insights gained have been published in the journal Nature Communications.

As well as observing the actions of the hydrolytically active enzyme Trichoderma reesei CBH I, the researchers were able to observe how the behaviour of the enzyme changed when oxidative enzymes, also known as LPMOs (lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases), were added to mix. The Graz scientists established both that the LPMOS generated more binding sites on the surface of the hydrolytically active enzymes, and that the enzyme dynamics on the surface increased considerably.

“This study will contribute to a better understanding of these processes at a basic research level, and in a further step will facilitate the production of biofuels. Usually, in chemistry we are focused on soluble products, which can be easily measured, to deepen the understanding of a reaction. However, for a reaction taking place on a solid surface such an approach is not feasible. We wanted to observe and document the step before that, that is, the process of cellulose breakdown," says Manuel Eibinger, lead author of the study at the Institute of Biotechnology and Biochemical Engineering.

Bernd Nidetzky, head of the Institute of Biotechnology and Biochemical Engineering at TU Graz: "The saying comes to mind 'a picture is worth a thousand words'. In this study we wanted to document the processes as they occur in time. And this is what we managed to do."

The team’s study is available from Nature Communications, here.

Output: Scientists at the Graz University of Technology are investigating oxidative enzymes that utilise oxygen and work together with hydrolytic enzymes to break down cellulose more efficiently. Traditionally, biorefineries use a mix of hydrolytically active enzymes that utilise water molecules to break down plant materials, replicating the natural degradation process.


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YouTube claims AI tech now finds 83% of extremist videos
 YouTube has published its second report on how it's dealing with extremist videos since announcing plans to deal with the problem back in June, after brand safety concerns caused a number of advertisers to pull their spend from YouTube.

It reports that 83 per cent of the extremist videos removed from the platform in September were automatically caught by the machine learning technology it introduced in June before they received a single human flag – compared to 75 per cent in August.

YouTube says the technology has been trained to recognise this content using over 1m videos, which have been manually reviewed by its staff to pick out examples of terrorist and violent content.

"Inevitably, both humans and machines make mistakes, and as we have increased the volume of videos for review by our teams, we have made some errors," reads YouTube's report. "We know we can get better and we are committed to making sure our teams are taking action on the right content. We are working on ways to educate those who share video meant to document or expose violence on how to add necessary context."

The company also provided updates on the other approaches it's using to tackle this problem. Videos that aren't illegal, but do contain 'controversial religious or supremacist content', have been kept on the platform, but with a warning interstitial beforehand, and with recommendations, monetisations and comments all turned off. YouTube is investing more in its Creators for Change programme, which supports the makers of videos attempting to tackle social issues, with new chapters opening in Israel and Spain.

Finally, the Trusted Flagger inititative has added 35 NGOs (Non-Government Organisations), including King's College London and Indonesia's Wahid Institute, to help advise YouTube on policies around issues like hate speech and radicalisation, and to improve the training of its systems by flagging content.

Join us at the 2017 Effective Mobile Marketing Awards Ceremony, taking place in London on Thursday 16 November, to mix with the industry's best and brightest, and raise a glass to the year's best campaigns and solutions. To find out more, and to book your place, click here.

Output: Google-owned video-sharing site YouTube has said it automatically caught and removed 83% of extremist videos using its machine learning technology in September, compared with 75% in August, according to a report from the provider. The study also revealed YouTube has added 35 non-governmental organisations to its Trusted Flagger initiative to help create policies on hate speech and radicalisation, and is expanding its Creators for Change programme. In addition, content featuring "controversial religious or supremacist content" is stripped of comments, recommendations and monetisations, and is preceded by a warning.


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Jacobs signs sulphur recovery agreement with Shell JV
 Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. has signed a sulfur recovery technology licensor agreement with Paqell, a joint venture between Shell Global Solutions and Paques BV, for use of its THIOPAQ O&G (oil and gas) technology in refineries and gas treating facilities across the globe. This agreement positions Jacobs as the only gas treating and sulfur recovery licensing company to license THIOPAQ O&G to low capacity sulfur facility owners, which eliminates the chemical waste produced by alternative technologies.

THIOPAQ O&G is a biological process which integrates gas purification with sulfur recovery in a single unit, resulting in high sulfur recovery levels at reduced installation and operating costs. This process involves sulfur components, such as mercaptans (R-SH) and hydrogen sulfides (H 2 S), being removed from a gas stream and converting them into biologically formed sulfur. Expanding Jacobs’ Comprimo® Sulfur Solutions technology, this process is becoming increasingly important to the industry as it looks for ways to reduce chemical waste, which poses both environmental and safety hazards.

“Refining and gas treating facility owners and operators require reliable technology that delivers low CAPEX and OPEX, provides high sulfur recovery efficiency, and minimises environmental impact,” said Jacobs Mining & Minerals and Specialty Chemicals Senior Vice President and General Manager Andrew Berryman.

Output: Jacobs Engineering Group has agreed to licence sulphur recovery technology from Paqell, a joint venture between Shell Global Solutions and Paques. The technology, THIOPAQ O&G is a biological process that removes mecaptans and hydrogen sulphides from a gas stream.


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Progressive Insurance debuts AI-powered Facebook chatbot
 The Progressive Corp. headquarters is seen in Mayfield Village, Ohio on Wednesday, January 18, 2006. John Quinn/Bloomberg News

Progressive Insurance has launched a Flo Chatbot on Facebook Messenger to communicate with policyholders and offer quotes to prospective customers on social media.

The artificial intelligence tool is now available to 1.4 billion monthly active Messenger users via Flo’s Facebook fan page, according to the company. A Progressive representative will also be available to carry on conversations through phone or private message in the event the AI bot cannot answer particular questions.

Progressive says it will continue to enhance its AI technology over time as it learns from customer inquiries. To begin with, Flo Chatbot will only answer basic questions around deductibles, claim status and the quoting process.

"We know our customers are busy and they're looking for convenient ways to access information about insurance," said Dan Witalec, customer acquisition leader at Progressive, in a statement. "By creating the Flo Chatbot for Messenger we are able to make the process of getting an auto quote as simple as possible by talking with them exactly where they are."

Output: US insurance giant Progressive has launched Flo Chatbot, an artificial intelligence-powered chatbot integrated with Facebook. The bot, named after the company's fictional spokeswoman, will be accessible via Progessive's Facebook page. It will offer prospective customers quotes, while also allowing existing policyholders to ask questions regarding their coverage. "By creating the Flo Chatbot for Messenger we are able to make the process of getting an auto quote as simple as possible by talking with [our customers] exactly where they are", said Customer Acquisition Leader Dan Witalec.


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Email platform created by insurance broker Worry + Peace
 Firm predicts new service will help generate leads for brokers.

Broker Worry + Peace has developed bespoke email addresses for customers who have signed up to use its insurance marketplace Pouch and claimed that brokers who use the system will be able to generate leads using the platform.

Founder James York explained that the emails will use the firstname.surname@pouch.fyi format.

According to York, Pouch is a platform where customers can keep all of their insurance transactions – even those not bought through Worry + Peace – in one place. The email system

Output: Insurtech Worry + Peace has introduced bespoke email addresses for customers who use its platform as part of a beta testing phase. The UK firm said by doing this it will allow brokers also making use of its platform, dubbed Pouch, to generate more leads. Pouch is designed to allow policyholders to organise different insurance policies in one place. The new email platform will be developed further once feedback from the testing is received.


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US aerial imaging firm wins drone inspection patent
 (Image source: EagleView.)

EagleView Technologies (Bothell, Wash.), a provider of aerial imagery and property data analytics, reports that it has won an authoritative patent for property inspection using an unmanned aerial system (UAS), or drone. The United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) granted EagleView Pat. No. 9,612,598, Unmanned Aircraft Structure Evaluation System and Method.

EagleView reports that its new technology automatically generates a flight path around a structure to capture imagery and data using the drone. The flight path is defined based on the characteristics of the drone camera and the known outline and height of the structure. A pilot is not needed to create the flight path.

“This patent enables us to continue streamlining our processes in the most advanced way possible to provide consistent imagery and information to our customers,” comments Rishi Daga, President, EagleView. “We will continue to invest in protecting our technology and capture capabilities as we advance our solutions.”

EagleView says that the patent has already been used by the USPTO to constrain other companies in the roof inspection industry from obtaining patent protection for UAS Rooftop Inspection applications, demonstrating the vendor’s leadership in the field.

EagleView’s OnSite solution, introduced earlier this year, creates property data and imagery from multiple camera sources, including drones, that can be accessed directly by claims adjusters. Through the EagleView OnSite Solutions network, field representatives are assigned to capture imagery of the property by drone. That imagery, combined with machine learning technology resulting from EagleView’s acquisition of OmniEarth, can identify damage and other anomalies on properties before and after the claim event.

Assisting in High-Volume Claim Events

“Following Hurricane Irma, EagleView captured thousands of drone images for claims inspections within the first week of being permitted into the airspace,” comments Kenneth Cook, Senior VP, EagleView OnSite Solutions. “This capability is essential for insurance carriers who receive high volumes of claims following a weather event. Drone inspection provides detailed imagery to help save claims adjusters time and ensure their safety after a natural disaster.”

EagleView reports that it holds more than 130 domestic and international patents related to its aerial image capture and measurement technology. The vendor says that its newest patent precludes its competitors from developing or implementing automated flight planning around a structure using an outline and the height of the structure for unmanned aircraft capture of imagery and data. EagleView says it is actively working with the USPTO to obtain even broader UAS flight path coverage.

Output: US firm EagleView Technologies has won a patent for its drone-based property inspection system. The technology is intended for use by insurance companies' claims teams, to assess damage on structures before and after catastrophic events. EagleView's tech allows for the automatic generation of flight paths by enabled drones, without input from a pilot. The firm says it used its technology to generate "thousands" of images for claims adjusters following Hurricane Irma.


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Qantas to use 50% biofuel mix from LA airport from 2020
 Qantas has announced that its Los Angeles based aircraft will be powered by biofuels from 2020, in a bid to reduce the airline’s carbon emissions on its US to Australia services.

Over the next ten years, Qantas will purchase eight million gallons (30 million litres) of renewable jet fuel each year from US based biofuel producer SG Preston. The fuels will be used in flights from Los Angeles Airport (LAX) to Australia.

The fuel from SG Preston consists of 50% renewable jet fuel produced from non-food plant oils, blended with 50% traditional jet fuel. Compared to standard jet fuel, the biofuel emits half the amount of carbon emissions per gallon over its life cycle.

According to Qantas, the commercial biofuel agreement is the first of its kind in Australian aviation history.

“The partnership with SG Preston is part of our commitment to lowering carbon emissions across our operations and sees us becoming the first Australian airline to use renewable jet fuel on an ongoing basis,” said Gareth Evans, CEO of Qantas International and Freight.

“As an airline group we are constantly looking for ways to become more fuel efficient and embrace new technologies and this partnership is a significant step on that journey.”

“Our agreement with SG Preston allows us to secure a supply for our Los Angeles based aircraft where we have a large fuel demand and where the biofuel industry is more advanced.”

Evans continued: “Through our biofuel programme we are also exploring renewable jet fuel opportunities in Australia and continue to work with suppliers to develop locally produced biofuels for aviation use.”

Randy Delbert LeTang, CEO of SG Preston, said: “Qantas is showing great leadership in its commitment to biofuels. We look forward to providing a high-performances renewable fuel for one of the most important routes on their international network.”

The International Air Transport Association (IATA), has reacted positively to the news.

“IATA congratulates Qantas and SG Preston on this landmark agreement, being the first commercial biofuel offtake for an Australian airline.

“Deals such as these are critical to the development of an aviation biofuel sector globally and the achievement of the aviation industry’s climate goals.”

According to a statement announcing the biofuels switch, SG Preston’s biofuel is produced from renewable plant oils which do not compete with food production. These fuels meet Qantas’ “stringent” sustainability certification requirements.

Qantas Group carried out a series of successful biofuel trial flights in 2012.

Output: Qantas said it will begin using a 50/50 mix of renewable jet fuel produced from non-food plant oils and traditional jet fuel on all flights between Los Angeles and Australia from 2020. SG Preston will supply the biofuel, which emits half the amount of CO2 as regular jet fuel over its lifetime.


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Influencer marketing bypasses traditional publishers
 Advertisers are known to use social stars as creative agencies, where media buyers send those active social media users RFPs and briefs, then have these individuals promote the content on their own channels. Now, advertisers are taking influencer marketing one step further by placing paid media to amplify influencer content beyond the individual’s social accounts. This turns to be a cheaper alternative to branded content purchased from major publishers, said agency executives.

The definition of “influencers” is subjective, as it depends more on how an agency executive evaluates a social user’s content than on the size of the person’s following, according to conversations with agencies. But the thinking is working directly with publishers on content creation and content distribution usually costs brands a fortune, so why not hire influencers to do it if they can produce equally good content? Advertisers can then place paid media behind the influencer content and find a similar audience to that of a publisher through ad-targeting tools.

Megan Jones, senior director of strategy and service for January Digital, said her agency has taken an approach she calls “syndication of influencer content” for a while, where her team promotes influencer content as an alternative to publishers’ ad offerings. Jones’ clients are mostly in the fashion and beauty category, and many can’t afford the $100,000 it costs for a branded video created by a big publisher, for instance. In comparison, video production by a social star typically costs between $20,000 and $30,000, said Jones.

In terms of content distribution, if a cosmetics brand wants to target BuzzFeed’s readers to promote its new lipsticks, for example, Jones’ team can run ad targeting on Facebook

against followers who liked BuzzFeed’s content and layer in targeting for those who are interested in lipsticks to find people in market for the product and are BuzzFeed readers. Or her team can run keyword targeting through programmatic platforms like TripleLift against the publisher to find a similar audience, Jones said. She added that boosted influencer content will either show up as sponsored posts in a social media user’s news feed or as native ads on a publisher’s website if the publisher has inventory to sell on open exchanges.

“Syndication of influencer content will continue to be a trend because it makes no sense to just pay influencers for content creation. Influencers are the new publishers, and we want to leverage that,” said Jones. “Publishers still have value, but their pricing model doesn’t evolve fast enough. If I can find the same audience through keyword targeting against a publisher, for example, I don’t need the publisher’s platform anymore.”

Ashley Banks, director of digital strategy and media for agency Iced Media, echoed Jones’ sentiment. Banks said her team often uses influencers to reach and connect with people at a more cost-efficient CPM compared to working directly with publishers.

“There are some benefits like content quality and relevancy when you work with publishers’ content creation arms,” said Banks, “but the partnership is usually turnkey, and native formats created by publishers’ content studios still feel like ads.” She added that influencer content usually receives audience interaction naturally, and clients can craft media contracts with influencers on their own terms.

Without a direct relationship with a publisher, though, Banks wouldn’t know the demographics of a publisher’s readers, as that is proprietary information. But she said advertisers can use Facebook Business Manager to target people who liked or shared the publisher’s content and further narrow down the target audience with people’s interests, like travel and food, based on the campaign strategy, for instance.

Lauren Tetuan, evp and media director for Deutsch, on the other hand, said her agency doesn’t necessarily use influencers for lower CPMs. Since her clients want to balance performance and reach, her team usually pays influencers on a cost-per-click or a cost-per-engagement basis that is typically unavailable from big publishers. But her team still works with publishers when a brand needs more immediate scale or higher-quality custom production, she said.

“We often produce our own custom content in house, which influencers are willing to help us distribute — not all of the larger publishers will distribute a brand’s own content,” said Tetuan. “We typically start with the influencer’s organic channels. We can then place paid media and do our own targeting through Facebook’s or Instagram’s ad tools.”

Output: Advertisers are turning to influencers as a means of exposure on social media networks, at a fraction of the cost charged by publishers. Megan Jones, senior director of strategy and service for January Digital, argued that publishers' pricing models hadn't kept pace with industry changes, and said: "if I can find the same audience through keyword targeting against a publisher, I don’t need the publisher’s platform anymore". Other agencies said they relied on influencers for cost-per-click or cost-per-engagement campaigns, but still used publishers for more high-profile ads.


Instruction: create a high quality summary of the given input

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AlphaPoint, Intel launch smart contracts solution
 One way to make a smart contract even smarter is to enhance document access and security. Digital currency exchange platform AlphaPoint has achieved that with today’s partnership with Intel. The two have teamed up to launch TrustedVM, a solution for secure smart contracts that enhances AlphaPoint’s Asset Digitization solution.

TrustedVM leverages Intel’s Software Guard Extensions (SGX) technology to enable smart contracts and any set or subset of blockchain data to remain confidential. The data is protected against access by intermediaries and network participants to boost the security of AlphaPoint’s Distributed Ledger Platform (ADLP).

“Our collaboration with AlphaPoint aims to deliver enterprise-ready blockchain solutions to the financial services community,” said Rick Echevarria, Vice President of Software and Services Group and General Manager of the Platforms Security Division at Intel. “AlphaPoint is expanding blockchain use cases to include illiquid assets; art, collectibles, and real estate, and [the] use of Intel SGX will help increase the security and privacy of those transactions.”

AlphaPoint’s President and COO Igor Telyatnikov noted that the company’s customers seek the benefits of the blockchain but don’t want the security and privacy issues that typically come with existing blockchain solutions. Since smart contracts execute inside TrustedVM, the hardware layer ensures that unpermissioned parties never have access to the data.

Founded in 2013, AlphaPoint powers digital asset networks and maintains the AlphaPoint Distributed Ledger Platform (ADLP), the platform on which the asset issuance and custody solution is based. The ADLP interoperates with more than 20 ledger technologies. Earlier this year, the company launched a crowdfunding capability on the ADLP, which enables users to host ICOs. The ICOs issue newly created digital assets on the exchange, which is hosted on AlphaPoint’s infrastructure.

At FinovateFall 2017, the company showcased the ADLP Reconciliation Platform, which combines blockchain-based asymmetric access controls and machine-enforced domain compliance for order management and other activities. The Reconciliation Platform reduces time and cost associated with manual, post-trade reconciliation processes. The company was recently selected by Capital Trust Group and W Ventures to create a blockchain infrastructure for Trust City. AlphaPoint is headquartered in New York, has raised $3 million, and has 30 employees.

Output: Global fintech firm AlphaPoint has partnered with Intel to launch smart contract solution TrustedVM. Using Intel’s Software Guard Extensions (SGX) technology, TrustedVM ensures the security of smart contracts or blockchain data subsets. Rick Echevarria, the vice-president of the software and services group and general manager of the platforms security division at Intel, said the SGX technology would help increase security for illiquid assets such as art, collectibles and property, areas AlphaPoint is expanding its blockchain use cases to cover.


Instruction: create a high quality summary of the given input

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3D printer capable of building rockets on Mars
 Oct 19, 2017 | By Benedict

Orbital launch company Relativity Space plans to use “Stargate,” which it says is the largest metal 3D printer in the world, to fabricate rockets on Mars. The 3D printer uses multiple print heads to process strong proprietary alloys.

Founded in 2015, Los Angeles-based Relativity Space is shooting for the stars. Or Mars, for that matter.

After receiving $10 million in funding from various high-profile backers, the ambitious orbital launch company is developing a giant metal 3D printer called “Stargate,” which the company says is the largest metal 3D printer in the world—and perhaps the galaxy.

This monstrous 3D printer consists of multiple Kuka robotic arms mounted with lasers, and uses metal wire feedstock as a 3D printing material. As you can imagine, it’s a very complex machine.

“Stargate is constantly getting smarter and faster by using sensors and intelligent learning,” Relativity Space says. “We are creating an entirely new type of evolvable production line.”

Relativity Space says Stargate is the largest metal 3D printer in the galaxy

And perhaps a "production line" is a more appropriate way to think of the Stargate than just a 3D printer. After all, most printers don’t utilize giant robotic arms.

But then again, most 3D printers aren’t made to fabricate rockets, which is exactly what Stargate has been tasked to do.

According to Relativity Space, the Stargate 3D printer can turn raw materials (proprietary metal alloys) into a viable rocket in less than 60 days. These materials are made at an in-house metallurgy and material characterization lab.

Relativity Space has test fired the Aeon 1 engine more than 70 times

The huge 3D printer also features intelligent process and quality controls, including cloud-based simulations, advanced imaging and detection sensors, and more.

In terms of printing hardware, the Stargate printer utilizes multiple print heads for a faster build rate, while in-situ machining allows parts to be made with highly complex geometries. The printer also has a “flexible” and “scalable” system architecture.

All of this enables the giant 3D printer to make an entirely 3D printed rocket. That rocket is dubbed the Terran 1, and reduces vehicle part count from nearly 100,000 to under 1,000 components.

The Terran 1 rocket could be 3D printed on Mars

The Terran 1 is propelled by oxygen and methane, and uses 10 Relativity Space Aeon 1 engines (nine for first-stage propulsion; one for second-stage propulsion), which offer 19,500 lbf of thrust. Relativity Space says it has carried out over 70 test fires of the Aeon 1.

Perhaps the most exciting area of Relativity Space’s grand strategy is where it intends to carry out its ultra-fast 3D printing of rockets. If the company can someday take the Stargate 3D printer to Mars, the printer will be capable of fabricating multiple Terran 1 rockets there.

“In the early days of settlement, there will be few people living on Mars,” the company explains. “Intelligent automation and lightweight, compact 3D printing are fundamental technologies needed to quickly build a new society with scarce resources—and the most scalable means to get back home.”

The Los Angeles company has the experience to back up its bold ambitions. CEO and co-founder Tim Ellis worked as a 3D printing specialist at Blue Origin for two years, while CTO and co-founder Jordan Noone worked at SpaceX.

Blue Origin, headed by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, is using 3D printed parts in its BE-4 rocket engine, while SpaceX has also carried out important additive manufacturing work.

Find out more about Relativity Space, its giant Stargate 3D printer, and its mission to take rocket-building to Mars here.

Posted in 3D Printing Application

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Output: Los Angeles-based firm Relativity Space is developing what it claims to be the world's largest 3D printer, capable of producing complete rockets. The printer, called Stargate, can transform proprietary alloys into a working rocket in 60 days, and the company said it is "constantly getting smarter and faster by using sensors and intelligent learning". Relativity Space's ultimate vision is to use Stargate on Mars, where it said: "compact 3D printing would be a fundamental technology to quickly build a new society with scarce resources".


Instruction: create a high quality summary of the given input

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Redrow Hedgehog preservation scheme wins biodiversity award
 Hedgehog Highways, a scheme developed by Redrow West Country, has won a prestigious award at the Big Biodiversity Challenge Awards 2017.

Providing a simple way of making gardens hedgehog-friendly, the scheme was announced as the winner of the Small Scale Permanent Award.

Redrow worked closely with the People’s Trust for Endangered Species and the British Hedgehog Preservation Society, who have been running the nationwide campaign Hedgehog Street since 2011, to introduce small, square marked holes into the new garden fences in phase two of their popular Barnstaple development, Glenwood Park. Hedgehogs can roam up to one mile a night, so these holes allow hedgehogs to move freely between gardens whilst they forage for food and mates.

Redrow committed to the scheme after learning that since 2,000, it is estimated that between a third and a half of all hedgehogs have disappeared from Britain with impermeable fences being criticised as one of the main reasons for the decline. Workers and staff have been engaged in the project from planning and designing the fencing to promoting the scheme to prospective buyers in the sales centre.

Every year, The Big Biodiversity Challenge Awards which are run by the Construction Industry Research and Information Association (CIRIA), recognise businesses that go beyond normal business practice to incorporate biodiversity enhancements into construction projects.

Rob MacDiarmid, Group Sustainability Director at Redrow commented: “We are delighted the Hedgehog Highways scheme has been acknowledged at the national Big Biodiversity Awards. Since its launch, the scheme has been met with such enthusiasm from residents and prospective buyers at Glenwood Park. It is a simple yet innovative concept which can make a huge difference to the hedgehog community.”

Emily Wilson, Hedgehog Officer at Hedgehog Street, commented: “Redrow are the first developer in the south-west to consider hedgehogs. With careful planning there is no reason why new residential developments cannot have thriving hedgehog populations, and we hope this cheap, easy and attractive feature becomes the norm for all gardens.”

Redrow creates thriving communities by building responsibly and valuing people. Biodiversity plays a key part in this approach and enhancing natural habitats which are easily accessible for local families and communities to enjoy.

For more information on Redrow’s approach to sustainability visit: www.redrowplc.co.uk/sustainability. For more information on the Big Biodiversity Challenge visit: http://www.bigchallenge.info

For more information about Hedgehog Street and how you can help hedgehogs in your garden, visit www.hedgehogstreet.org

Output: UK housebuilder Redrow West Country has won a Big Biodiversity Challenge Award for its role in a scheme aimed at keeping hedgehogs safe as they move around one of its housing estates. Hedgehog Highways, created in partnership with the People’s Trust for Endangered Species and the British Hedgehog Preservation Society, saw the introduction of square marked holes in fences, allowing the creatures to travel freely between plots on the Devon development.


Instruction: create a high quality summary of the given input

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Climate change and warmer oceans threaten global reef ecosystems
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Climate change and warmer oceans are likely to change reef ecosystems worldwide, reducing the diversity of invertebrates such as crabs, lobsters and sea urchins, a latest Australia-led research has found.

As the oceans get warmer, fish, which seem to be better predators in warmer waters, will extend their range from the equator to feed in colder latitudes where the number of large invertebrates is higher, Australia’s Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies said in a media release on Thursday.

The findings were made using data collected by a research team under the institute, which is based at the University of Tasmania.

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“As fish extend their range further from the equator with warming water, their advantage as predators will affect the abundance and diversity of large mobile invertebrates,” the institute quoted the study’s lead author, Professor Graham Edgar, as saying.

“Broad changes will likely spread across the ecosystem, affecting human activities such as fishing.”

The “tropicalisation” of marine life is already happening in southeastern Australia and Tasmania, “but similar effects have not yet been detected in New Zealand,” he said.

The southern island state of Tasmania exports much of Australia’s seafood, including crustacean and mollusk products, to Asian consumers, industry figures showed.

Source: Xinhua

Output: Ocean life on reef ecosystems is at risk of "tropicalisation", due to rising sea temperatures as a result of global warming, according to research by Australia’s Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies. Scientists said warmer waters would encourage fish, which perform better as predators in such conditions, to hunt in regions further from the equator that are home to large invertebrates such as crabs and lobsters, putting a delicate ecological balance in jeopardy. The study's lead author Professor Graham Edgar said tropicalisation had already begun in southeastern Australia and Tasmania but had not yet affected New Zealand.


Instruction: create a high quality summary of the given input

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Regus Regus partners with Powermat wireless charging in Israel
 TEL AVIV, Israel, Oct. 18, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Powermat has partnered with Regus Israel, supplying wireless charging services to Israel co-working offices. Business customers at Regus & Spaces live busy lives; they are on the road and work long hours. Now they can trust Regus & Powermat to wirelessly charge their smartphones seamlessly, even if they forgot their charger at home. Powermat will also be installed in Regus's two new locations expected to open soon (Sarona & Or Yehuda).

Regus Innovate With Powermat Wireless Charging

"We at Regus strive to stay ahead-of-the-curve and always bring innovation into all of our office spaces in order to improve our customers' connectivity and efficiency," said Einat Dzigan, Regional Marketing Manager for Regus. "Powermat's wireless charging services is an innovative way to bring added value to our customers, providing them with the power they need so much throughout their day."

"We are happy to work with Regus, market leader in co-working offices," said Elad Dubzinski, Powermat CEO. "We are continuing to deploy wireless charging across public venues, materializing our vision for Life at 100% - seamless wireless power accessible throughout your day."

About Regus

Regus is the world's largest provider of flexible workspace solutions, with customers including some of the most successful entrepreneurs, individuals and multi-billion dollar corporations.

Our network includes almost 3000 business centers, spanning almost 900 cities across 120 countries. Through our range of office formats, as well as our growing mobile, virtual office, and workplace recovery businesses, we enable people and businesses to work where they want, when they want, how they want, and at a range of price points.

About Powermat

Powermat is the leader and pioneer of the wireless power industry. Enjoyed by millions of consumers worldwide, Powermat's technology is the platform of choice for such global leaders as Starbucks, Samsung, General Motors and Flex. To find out more, visit www.powermat.com.

Press Contact

Gilly Kinsky, Director of Marketing

[email protected]

(646) 878-6527

SOURCE Powermat

Related Links

http://www.powermat.com

Output: The Israel office of global flexible workspace solutions provider Regus is partnering with Powermat to offer customers the ability to wirelessly charge smartphones and other devices. Einat Dzigan, regional marketing manager for Regus, called the move an "innovative way to bring added value to our customers". PowerMat will be installed at forthcoming Regus locations in Sarona and Or Yehuda.