*By Conor White* If you thought artificial intelligence took major strides in 2018, buckle up; 2019 may well be an even bigger year for the industry. What are insiders watching ー and what will make the biggest entrance in 2019? Cheddar's Crystal Ball has generated a prediction: Open source A.I., which allows information to be shared freely across many platforms. "This isn't just like throwing a website together using open source," said Lauren deLisa Coleman, digi-cultural trend analyst for Forbes. "This is replicating our intelligence," she said. But there's a glaring danger that accompanies open source A.I.: It may be co-opted by bad actors. "Technology is always neutral," Coleman told Cheddar in an interview Friday. "Until you decide to use it for good or bad." Adding to the complexity is that A.I. is virtually unregulated. "There aren't any standards in place. No one is really checking for cultural bias \[for example\],"deLisa Coleman said. "We know that policy makers on the Hill are looking at this," she added. Twenty-three percent of respondents have a negative perception of artificial intelligence, according to a study by The Brookings Institute, a number the industry would like to see shrink ー and fast. "It's kind of astounding and terrorizing at the same time," she said of the technology. Although many workers fear A.I. will render them irrelevant, Coleman said that theory is a product of "panic." In fact, "we're going to see human judgement needed more than ever," Coleman added.

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