Sydney — Hi-tech shark-spotting drones are patrolling dozens of Australian beaches this summer to quickly identify underwater predators and deliver safety devices to swimmers and surfers faster than traditional lifesavers. As hundreds of people lined up in early morning sun to take part in a recent ocean swimming race at Bilgola beach north of Sydney, they did so in the knowledge the ocean had been scanned to keep them safe. "I think it is really awesome," competitor Ali Smith told AFP. "It is cool to see technology and ocean-swimming getting together, and hopefully more people will feel safer and get involved." The drones being used are top notch. Artificial intelligence (AI) is built using thousands of images captured by a drone camera to develop an algorithm that can identify different ocean objects. The software can differentiate between sea creatures, such as sharks, which it can recognise with more than 90% accuracy, compared to about 16% with the naked eye. "We can identify 1...
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