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Nigeria’s election was nearly derailed by technology

Nigeria’s election was nearly derailed by technology

Technology nearly derailed the conclusion of the 2023 presidential elections in Nigeria. The Independent National Electoral Commission could not be fulfilled its promise to transmit election results from the polling units on its result viewing portal (IReV). This led to calls by some political parties for cancellation and fresh elections. The Conversation Africa asked political scientist Abiodun Fatai how Nigeria can improve its election digitization.

Nigeria has been digitizing the voting process for 12 years. How has this worked?

Nigeria started using digital technology in the electoral process in 2011 when the Independent National Electoral Commission introduced the automated fingerprint identification system to stop voters registering more than once.

The permanent voter’s card and smart card reader were introduced in the 2015 general elections. At the polling station, a voter’s identity is verified by matching his or her biometrics to the voter’s card. The voter is then allowed to

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China leads US in global competition for key emerging technologies, the study says

China leads US in global competition for key emerging technologies, the study says

SYDNEY, March 2 (Reuters) – China has a “stunning lead” in 37 out of 44 critical and emerging technologies as Western democracies lose a global competition for research output, a security think tank said on Thursday after tracking defense, space, energy and biotechnology.

The Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) said its study showed that, in some fields, all of the world’s top 10 research institutions are based in China.

The study, funded by the United States State Department, found the United States was often second-ranked, although it led global research in high-performance computing, quantum computing, small satellites and vaccines.

“Western democracies are losing the global technological competition, including the race for scientific and research breakthroughs,” the report said, urging greater research investment by governments.

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China had established a “stunning lead in high-impact research” under government programs.

The report called for democratic nations to collaborate

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China’s leading US in technology race in all but a few fields, thinktank finds | China

China’s leading US in technology race in all but a few fields, thinktank finds | China

The United States and other western countries are losing the race with China to develop advanced technologies and retain talent, with Beijing potentially establishing a monopoly in some areas, a new report has said.

China leads in 37 of 44 technologies tracked in a year-long project by think tank the Australian Strategic Policy Institute. The fields include electric batteries, hypersonics and advanced radio-frequency communications such as 5G and 6G.

The report, published on Thursday, said the US was the leader in just the remaining seven technologies such as vaccines, quantum computing and space launch systems.

It said the findings were based on “high impact” research in critical and emerging technology fields, focusing on papers that were published in top-tier journals and were highly cited by subsequent research.

“Our research reveals that China has built the foundations to position itself as the world’s leading science and technology superpower, by establishing a

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Generative AI could be an authoritarian breakthrough in brainwashing

Generative AI could be an authoritarian breakthrough in brainwashing

Generative AI is poised to be the next free world’s great gift to authors. The viral launch of ChatGPT — a system with eerily human-like capabilities in composing essays, poetry and computer code — has awakened the world’s dictators to the transformative power of generative AI to create unique, compelling content at scale.

But the fierce debate that has ensued among Western industry leaders on the risks of releasing advanced generative AI tools has largely missed where their effects are likely to be most pernicious: within autocracies. AI companies and the US government alike must institute stricter norms for the development of tools like ChatGPT in full view of their game-changing potential for the world’s authoritarians — before it is too late.

So far, concerns around generative AI and autocrats have mostly focused on how these systems can turbocharge Chinese and Russian propaganda efforts in the United States. ChatGPT has

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