CAN AI HELP HUMANS UNDERSTAND ANIMALS AND RECONNECT WITH NATURE? A NONPROFIT RESEARCH LAB THINKS SO
AppleMagazine|January 17, 2025
Peeps trickle out of a soundproof chamber as its door opens. Female zebra finches are chattering away inside the microphone-lined box. The laboratory room sounds like a chorus of squeaky toys.
CAN AI HELP HUMANS UNDERSTAND ANIMALS AND RECONNECT WITH NATURE? A NONPROFIT RESEARCH LAB THINKS SO

“They’re probably talking about us a little bit,” says McGill University postdoctoral fellow Logan James.

It’s unclear, of course, what they are saying. But James believes he is getting closer to deciphering their vocalizations through a partnership with the Earth Species Project. The nonprofit laboratory has drawn some of the technology industry’s wealthiest philanthropists — and they want to see more than just scientific progress. On top of breakthroughs in animal language, they expect improved interspecies understanding will foster greater appreciation for the planet in the face of climate change.

The Earth Species Project hopes to decode other creatures’ communications with its pioneering artificial intelligence tools. The goal is not to build a “translator that will allow us to speak to other species,” Director of Impact Jane Lawton said. However, she added, “rudimentary dictionaries” for other animals are not only possible but could help craft better conservation strategies and reconnect humanity with often forgotten ecosystems.

“We believe that by reminding people of the beauty, the sophistication, the intelligence that is resident in other species and in nature as a whole, we can start to, kind of, almost repair that relationship,” Lawton said.

At McGill University, the technology generates specific calls during simulated conversations with live finches that help researchers isolate each unique noise. The computer processes calls in real time and responds with one of its own. Those recordings are then used to train the Berkeley, California-based research group's audio language model for animal sounds.

NEW INSIGHTS INTO HOW ANIMALS COMMUNICATE

This story is from the January 17, 2025 edition of AppleMagazine.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the January 17, 2025 edition of AppleMagazine.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM APPLEMAGAZINEView All
CHINA COUNTERS WITH TARIFFS ON US PRODUCTS.IT WILL ALSO INVESTIGATE GOOGLE.
AppleMagazine

CHINA COUNTERS WITH TARIFFS ON US PRODUCTS.IT WILL ALSO INVESTIGATE GOOGLE.

China announced retaliatory tariffs on select American imports and an antitrust investigation into Google on Tuesday, just minutes after a sweeping levy on Chinese products imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump took effect.

time-read
4 mins  |
AppleMagazine #693
APPLE LASHES OUT AT IPHONE PORN APP MAKER AND THE EU RULES ALLOWING ITS DOWNLOAD
AppleMagazine

APPLE LASHES OUT AT IPHONE PORN APP MAKER AND THE EU RULES ALLOWING ITS DOWNLOAD

Apple has chided a newly available pornography app available in the European Union, and warned that the bloc's digital rules opening the way for third-party app store downloads undermines consumer confidence in the tech giant.

time-read
2 mins  |
AppleMagazine #693
DeepSeek A NEW BIG PLAYER FROM CHINA TO SHAKE UP THE AI BATTLEFIELD
AppleMagazine

DeepSeek A NEW BIG PLAYER FROM CHINA TO SHAKE UP THE AI BATTLEFIELD

A new player has taken the tech world by storm, climbing to the top of the App Store charts and surpassing even established giants like ChatGPT.

time-read
6 mins  |
AppleMagazine #693
JAPAN GAME MAKER NINTENDO REPORTS LOWER PROFIT AS DEMAND FOR SWITCH CONSOLES WANES
AppleMagazine

JAPAN GAME MAKER NINTENDO REPORTS LOWER PROFIT AS DEMAND FOR SWITCH CONSOLES WANES

Nintendo's profits tumbled as sales of its Switch console lost momentum, prompting the Japanese video-game maker to lower its full-year forecasts.

time-read
1 min  |
AppleMagazine #693
TEXAS GOVERNOR ORDERS BAN ON DEEPSEEK, REDNOTE FOR GOVERNMENT DEVICES
AppleMagazine

TEXAS GOVERNOR ORDERS BAN ON DEEPSEEK, REDNOTE FOR GOVERNMENT DEVICES

Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott issued a ban on Chinese artificial intelligence company DeepSeek for government-issued devices, becoming the first state to restrict the popular chatbot in such a manner.

time-read
1 min  |
AppleMagazine #693
GOOGLE'S RISING HOLIDAY'S SEASON AD SALES AREN'T ENOUGH TO EASE WORRIES ABOUT AI LETDOWN
AppleMagazine

GOOGLE'S RISING HOLIDAY'S SEASON AD SALES AREN'T ENOUGH TO EASE WORRIES ABOUT AI LETDOWN

Google's digital ad sales continued to grow at a healthy clip during the holiday season, but that wasn't enough to offset investors' worries about whether its big bet on artificial intelligence will be lucrative as once envisioned.

time-read
3 mins  |
AppleMagazine #693
CHINA LAUNCHES AN ANTITRUST PROBE INTO GOOGLE. HERE'S WHAT IT MEANS
AppleMagazine

CHINA LAUNCHES AN ANTITRUST PROBE INTO GOOGLE. HERE'S WHAT IT MEANS

The Chinese government's move to open an antitrust probe into Google is the latest development in a long and tangled relationship that goes back to the early 2000s.

time-read
2 mins  |
AppleMagazine #693
APPLE'S IPHONE SALES DURING THE HOLIDAY SEASON SLIPPED DESPITE A HIGHLY ANTICIPATED AI ROLLOUT
AppleMagazine

APPLE'S IPHONE SALES DURING THE HOLIDAY SEASON SLIPPED DESPITE A HIGHLY ANTICIPATED AI ROLLOUT

Apple disclosed its iPhone sales dipped slightly during the holiday-season quarter, signaling a sluggish start to the trendsetting company's effort to catch up to the rest of Big Tech in the race to bring artificial intelligence to the masses.

time-read
3 mins  |
AppleMagazine #693
A WEDDING NECKLACE AND POLISH DUMPLINGS WILL BE PART OF A MISSION TO THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION
AppleMagazine

A WEDDING NECKLACE AND POLISH DUMPLINGS WILL BE PART OF A MISSION TO THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION

What do a wedding necklace, Polish savory dumplings and a photo of Hungary's first astronaut have in common?

time-read
1 min  |
AppleMagazine #693
JAPAN'S TOYOTA ANNOUNCES EV AND BATTERY PUSH IN CHINA AND U.S., AS ITS QUARTERLY PROFIT SURGES
AppleMagazine

JAPAN'S TOYOTA ANNOUNCES EV AND BATTERY PUSH IN CHINA AND U.S., AS ITS QUARTERLY PROFIT SURGES

Toyota is developing and making electric vehicles and EV batteries in China, the Japanese automaker said Wednesday, under a new partnership with the Shanghai government.

time-read
2 mins  |
AppleMagazine #693