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Jonathan Aitken

Research Fellow of Autonomous Systems and Robotics, University of Sheffield

Dr Aitken is an Academic with the Department of Automatic Control and Systems Engineering. As a Research Fellow he works in the Autonomous Control Laboratory within the Autonomous Systems and Robotics Group of ACSE. His work focuses on autonomous reconfiguration of robotic systems, especially on quadcopter platforms. He maintains an active interest in deploying autonomous robotics within the real world, and is a qualified and licensed commercial drone pilot within the UK. His primary research interests are in developing processes and policies for the safe use of autonomous drones. He is also active in the area of cobotics, enabling people to get up close to manufacturing robots and collaborate with them safely and enjoyably!

AI could threaten some jobs, but it is more likely to become our personal assistant

May 26, 2023 14:52 pm UTC| Insights & Views Technology

BT recently announced that it would be reducing its staff by 55,000, with around 11,000 of these related to the use of artificial intelligence (AI). The remainder of the cuts were due to business efficiencies, such as...

Economy

Barclays Warns U.S. Stock Rally May Be Detached From Fundamentals

U.S. equities have delivered strong gains in 2026, but Barclays analysts warn that the stock market rally may be increasingly disconnected from underlying fundamentals as investors continue chasing higher prices. The SP...

Gold Prices Rise as Weak US Retail Sales Cut Fed Rate Hike Bets

Gold prices edged higher on Friday and headed for a weekly gain as weaker-than-expected U.S. retail sales further reduced expectations for a Federal Reserve interest rate hike in September. Spot gold rose 0.5% to $4,374.30...

S&P 500 Retreats From Record High as AI Stocks Slide, Retail Sales Disappoint

The SP 500 closed lower on Friday, retreating from its latest record high as weakness in AI-related stocks and disappointing U.S. retail sales weighed on investor sentiment. The SP 500 fell 0.17% to 7,785.76, while the...

Trump Imposes New Tariffs on Drone Imports Over US Security Concerns

President Donald Trump has announced new tariffs on imported drones and drone components, citing national security concerns and the United States heavy dependence on foreign suppliers. Under a proclamation signed by Trump,...

Strait of Hormuz Shipping Near Standstill After New Vessel Attacks

Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz slowed to a near standstill on Friday after two more vessels were attacked, while the United States signaled it could maintain its naval blockade of Iran indefinitely. The disruption...

Politics

US Admiral Visits USS Abraham Lincoln as Carrier Prepares to End Deployment

The US admiral overseeing military operations involving Iran visited the USS Abraham Lincoln on Saturday as the aircraft carrier prepared to return home after a demanding nine-month deployment, according to a report by the...

AMLO’s Son Says U.S. Revoked His Visa

Andres Manuel Lopez Beltran, the son of former Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, said the United States has revoked his visa in what he described as a politically motivated decision. Lopez Beltran, widely...

DNC Makes South Carolina First in 2028 Democratic Primaries

The Democratic National Committee has officially selected South Carolina as the first state to vote in the 2028 Democratic presidential primaries, cementing a new nominating calendar designed to reflect the partys diverse...

Israeli Troops Enter Qusra Homes as Settler Siege Intensifies

Israeli troops took up positions inside Palestinian homes in the occupied West Bank village of Qusra on Thursday, according to local officials and residents, as a settler siege that has trapped several Palestinian families...

U.S. Pressures Nations to Choose Sides in AI Race

The United States is preparing to pressure dozens of countries to choose between joining a U.S.-led artificial intelligence alliance or supporting Chinas competing AI framework, according to a U.S. official and an internal...

Science

Blue Origin New Glenn Explosion Could Delay Launch Operations Until 2028

Blue Origin is facing a significant setback after a dramatic explosion involving its New Glenn rocket severely damaged a launch pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida. According to NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, repairs to the...

Blue Origin New Glenn Rocket Explodes During Launch Pad Test, Delaying Space Ambitions

Blue Origin suffered a major setback after its uncrewed New Glenn rocket exploded during a launch pad test in Florida on Thursday, raising new challenges for Jeff Bezos space company as it competes with Elon Musks SpaceX...

SpaceX Delays Starship V3 Launch Ahead of Potential Record IPO

SpaceX on Thursday postponed the highly anticipated launch of its 12th Starship rocket test from Texas after technical issues interrupted the final countdown. The company now plans to attempt the Starship V3 launch again...

Trump Administration Releases New UFO Files and Apollo Mission Records

The U.S. Defense Department has released dozens of previously classified UFO-related files following an order from President Donald Trump, sparking renewed debate over unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) and government...

China vs. NASA: The New Moon Race and What's at Stake by 2030

The space race is back and this time, its a direct competition between the United States and China for dominance on the lunar surface. NASAs Artemis II mission recently made history when four astronauts flew farther into...

Technology

Alphabet Shifts AI Strategy Toward Commercial Growth, Goldman Sachs Says

Alphabet is increasingly shifting its artificial intelligence strategy toward commercialization, scale and long-term revenue growth, according to Goldman Sachs analysts. The investment bank said recent management changes,...

Nvidia Eyes $3 Billion Investment in SoftBank-Backed AI Data Center

Nvidia is reportedly in discussions to invest up to $3 billion in SB Energy, a SoftBank Group-backed company developing a major AI data center campus in Ohio for OpenAI. According to a report by The Information, the...

Alphabet’s SpaceX Investment Soars 100-Fold to $94 Billion

Alphabets early investment in SpaceX has delivered extraordinary returns, with the Google parents stake valued at roughly $94.2 billion at the end of June. The company originally invested $900 million in Elon Musks rocket...

Stripe, Advent Reportedly Pursue $53 Billion PayPal Takeover

Stripe and private equity firm Advent International reportedly offered to acquire PayPal for $60.50 per share in July, valuing the payments company at roughly $53 billion. PayPal rejected the proposal as too low, but...

J.P. Morgan Upgrades SanDisk, Sets $2,250 Price Target on AI NAND Growth

J.P. Morgan upgraded SanDisk to Overweight from Not Rated and set a December 2027 price target of $2,250, citing stronger long-term growth prospects following the flash memory companys 2026 Investor Day in New York....