Important Innovations

Very Controversial Street Surveillance System Stock Image:  Surveillance Camera Purpose to Stop Violent Crime London is becoming one of the largest city in the Western world to utilize advanced and highly controversial facial recognition cameras on its streets.  China is the biggest user of the technology.  Critics are calling London "Beijing Lite".  Critics argue facial recognition technology violates individual's privacy and has an extremely high false positive rate of 81%, according to independent research. European Union, Google and Microsoft Snooping Wars Major players are weighing in on this emerging, disruptive technology.  The European Union has proposed a 5 year temporary ban on use of facial recognition technology until the kinks are ironed out and abuses can be thwarted.  At Davos this week, Alphabet/Google CEO Sundar Pichai revealed that he supports a temporary ban.  On the other hand, Microsoft CEO Brad Smith does ...

Facial Recognition via DNA Samples If Sherlock Holmes were real and around today, he would soon have a new technology tool to catch criminals.  Based on DNA retrieved at the crime scene, detectives may soon be able to accurately sketch the suspect's face.  That's because researchers have identified 15 genes that determine our facial features. 15 Key Genes Scientists have provided a database with 3D images of faces and the corresponding DNA.  Each face was subdivided into small modules.  Then it was determined if any locations in the DNA matched the modules. Unprecedented Accuracy The modular division technique made it possible to check for an unprecedented number of facial features, resulting in unprecedented facial recognition accuracy.  A team of university scientists from Stanford, Penn State and the University of Pittsburgh collaborated on this breakthrough technique to decode faces from retrieved DNA. Exciting Potential Uses This system not onl...

Experts Say 3D Recognition Systems May Eliminate Need for Personal Passwords Australian researchers have developed a first of its kind 3D facial recognition system.  It's breakthrough tech that improves security measures and may eliminate the need for personal passwords. Experts say this model for scaling 3D facial recognition could transform the biometrics industry. Millions of Pictures Analyzed and Compared The University of Western Australia research team created a unique model that analyzed 3.1 million 3D scans of more than 100,000 people.  The model was trained to learn the identities of a large dataset group of "known" persons and then match "test" faces to those identities. The system worked. Instant 3D Recognition The researchers found the 3D scans are more accurate and robust.  It recognizes individuals in an instant, no matter what the pose, sees through masks and determines if they're legitimate.  This could considerably upgrade secur...