Category Archives: Automation

In its 36th annual general meeting held in Bengaluruon Saturday, IT giant Infosys admitted to releasing 11,000 jobs due to automation. According to Chairman R. Seshasayee, the revenue per full-time employee (FTE) increased by 1.2 percent as a result of automation, utilisation and productivity improvements.

[RELATED READ:The future of work: why all bets are on freelancing and robotics]

The rapid digitisation of everything around us is disrupting entire industries in an irreversible and profound way. As this revolution accelerates, the opportunity for us is two-fold, stated Seshasayee, the Economic Times reported.

The company has been actively encouraging the idea of bringing automation and software-led efficiencies to the core of their technological services for a while now. This, they said, would help them utilise the new technologies in order to innovate better, which in turn, would allow them to assist their clients through their own digital transformations.

Infosys annual report cited that the release of the 11,000 jobs on account of automation is a clear indication of the crucial role that software is to play in the business model of the second-largest IT company in India.

The meeting, which took place at Christ College, was an attempt by the company to clear up all the speculations that the media and others have conjured up, in the past few months. Another key issue that the company addressed was the accusations for wide compensation gap between its top management executives and employees. Recognising the fact that the administration could have worked more efficiently to reduce the gap, the company hoped to assure the masses by putting forth their plan of a restructured compensation package, which would include stock-based rewards.

Additionally, the company also announced their decision to undertake three key transformations for a better future for both itself and its clients. These include business transformation, cultural transformation and transition to independent board.

The first is business transformation from a traditional IT services to an innovation-led software-plus services company, which is formidable enough; second the cultural transformation that comes along when you induct global leadership talent; and third, the abrupt transition from the promoter-led Board to an independent Board, Seshasayee was quoted saying, at the meeting.

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Infosys says it has released 11000 jobs due to automation - YourStory.com

Photo Sudhakar Choudhari was recently laid off from his job at Tech Mahindra. Credit Atul Loke for The New York Times

That many workers in the United States will eventually be replaced by technology seems inevitable. The question is when not if it will happen. For the workers counterparts in India, the concerns are similar.

Over the last decade or so, Indian outsourcing companies have managed to lure a number of jobs out of the United States, leading to a growing tech middle class in their home country.

Now those Indian workers are worried that automation artificial intelligence, in particular will replace them. As Nida Najar reports, processes that can now be automated may lead the fast-growing Indian information technology industry to shed jobs in the coming years.

So far, the impact is not clear. But a 2015 study released by the National Association of Software and Services Companies, the Indian technology industry trade group known as Nasscom, and McKinsey India found that 50 to 70 percent of workers skills would be irrelevant by 2020, Nida writes.

The hope is that new jobs could be created by that automation. Just like in the United States.

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Daily Report: Automation's Effect on Developing Tech Economies - New York Times

According to a 2013 report from Oxford academics, 47% of workers in America have jobs at high risk of potential automation. Photograph: Mona Chalabi

The robots are coming, the robots are coming!

Regular reports warn us that an automation apocalypse is nigh. In January, a McKinsey & Company study found that about 30% of tasks in 60% of occupations could be computerized and last year, the Bank of Englands chief economist said that 80m US and 15m UK jobs might be taken over by robots.

Of course, not all jobs are created equally. In 2013, a highly cited study by Oxford University academics called The Future of Employment examined 702 common occupations and found that some jobs telemarketers, tax preparers and sports referees are at more risk than others including recreational psychologists, dentists and physicians.

In the past, reports of the death of human jobs have often been greatly exaggerated, and technology has created a lot more jobs than it has wiped out. Its called the Luddite Fallacy, in reference to the 19th century group of textile workers who smashed the new weaving machinery that made their skills redundant. Further, in the last 60 years automation has only eliminated one occupation: elevator operators.

While there have been optimistic predictions that new technology would increase prosperity and lower drudgery, very few of us are working the 15-hour work week that, in 1930, the economist John Maynard Keynes predicted would be the norm for his grandkids. If anything, were working 15-hour days.

Todays technological revolution is an entirely different beast from the industrial revolution. The pace of change is exponentially faster and far wider in scope. As Stanford University academic Jerry Kaplan writes in Humans Need Not Apply: today, automation is blind to the color of your collar. It doesnt matter whether youre a factory worker, a financial advisor or a professional flute-player: automation is coming for you.

Before we get too deep into doom and gloom, its worth stressing that automation isnt synonymous with job losses. Speaking to me over the phone, Frey was quick to point out that his work doesnt make any explicit predictions such as 47% of US jobs will disappear. It simply says that these jobs are exposed to automation.

In other words, the jobs themselves wont entirely vanish; rather, they will be redefined. Of course, as Frey concedes, from the perspective of the worker there is not much of a difference between work disappearing and being radically redefined. Its likely theyll lack the new skillsets required for the role and be out of a job anyway.

H&R Block, one of Americas largest tax preparation providers, is now using Watson, IBMs AI platform

Professor Richard Susskind, author of The Future of the Professions and Tomorrows Lawyers, echoes this distinction. What youre going to see for a lot of jobs is a churn of different tasks, he explains. So a lawyer today doesnt develop systems that offer advice, but the lawyer of 2025 will. Theyll still be called lawyers but theyll be doing different things.

So which professions are at greatest risk?

Martin Ford, futurist and author of Rise of the Robots: Technology and the Threat of a Jobless Future, explains the jobs that are most at risk are those which are on some level routine, repetitive and predictable.

Telemarketing, for example, which is highly routine, has a 99% probability of automation according to The Future of Employment report; you may have already noticed an increase in irritating robocalls. Tax preparation, which involves systematically processing large amounts of predictable data, also faces a 99% chance of being automated. Indeed, technology has already started doing our taxes: H&R Block, one of Americas largest tax preparation providers, is now using Watson, IBMs artificial intelligence platform.

Robots will also take over the more repetitive tasks in professions such as law, with paralegals and legal assistants facing a 94% probability of having their jobs computerized. According to a recent report by Deloitte, more than 100,000 jobs in the legal sector have a high chance of being automated in the next 20 years.

Fast food cooks also face an 81% probability of having their jobs replaced by robots like Flippy, an AI-powered kitchen assistant which is already flipping burgers in a number of CaliBurger restaurants.

Ford, the futurist, classifies resilient jobs in three areas.

The first is jobs that involve genuine creativity, such as being an artist, being a scientist, developing a new business strategy. Ford notes: For now, humans are still best at creativity but theres a caveat there. I cant guarantee you that in 20 years a computer wont be the most creative entity on the planet. There are already computers that can paint original works of art. So, in 20 years who knows how far its going to go?

The second area is occupations that involve building complex relationships with people: nurses, for example, or a business role that requires you to build close relationships with clients.

The third area is jobs that are highly unpredictable for example, if youre a plumber who is called out to emergencies in different locations.

You can see these parameters at play in the jobs The Future of Employment identifies as least at risk of automation, which include recreational therapists, first-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, repairers, occupational therapists and healthcare social workers.

While being in a creative or people-focused industry may keep your job safe for the next 10 years or so, its very hard to predict what will happen 20 years into the future. Indeed, Susskind stresses that we should be wary of downplaying just how much computers might change the working world.

She says she believes that the 2020s are going to be a decade not of unemployment, but of redeployment. Beyond that, however, the picture is far less clear: I dont think anyone can do long-term career planning with any confidence. As Susskind notes, we make assumptions about the indispensability of human beings, but machines are already doing things we thought only humans might be able to. Theyre composing original music, for example, and beating professional players at complex board games with creative moves.

Theyre even helping us with our relationships with God. While the clergy only has a 0.81% probability of automation, according to data from The Future of Jobs, Susskind believes even algorithms might one day replace the ordained. As he notes, there are already apps like Confession which offer drop-down menus for tracking sin.

Machines are already doing things we thought only humans might be able to: composing original music, for example

While weve been doing a lot of robot-bashing, it should be noted that automation isnt the only phenomenon having an impact on the job market. Saadia Zahidi, head of the education, gender and work system initiative at the World Economic Forum (WEF), says that we shouldnt forget that there are other drivers of change.

A 2016 WEF report identified such drivers as climate change, the rise of the middle class in many emerging markets, aging populations in certain parts of Europe and East Asia, and the changing aspirations of women as factors that will have significant impacts on jobs. Its really the coming together of these various drivers of change that then leads to disruptions in the labor market, Zahidi notes.

The report warns that were going to see significant ramifications from automation very soon. Zahidi explains: The next three years will be a period of flux and a period of relatively higher losses than gains. This is not meant to be alarmist in the sense that there will be heavy job losses. But if we do nothing then this will be where we end up.

Automation may also exacerbate gender inequality, Zahidi says. Women dont make up a large proportion of people who are going into science, technology, engineering and math (Stem) and IT fields, which are likely to be the areas in which jobs will grow. On the other hand, Zahidi notes, there do tend to be more women in care-related professions, such as healthcare and education, which are at a lower risk of automation.

In the long run, women may actually end up faring better from technological change. A recent PricewaterhouseCoopers report found that a higher proportion of male than female jobs are at risk of automation, especially those of men with lower levels of education.

Justin Tobin, founder of the innovation consultancy DDG, says he believes: More and more independent thinkers are realizing that when being an employee is the equivalent to putting all your money into one stock a better strategy is to diversify your portfolio. So youre seeing a lot more people looking to diversify their career.

Faith Popcorn, a futurist, echoes the idea that we will all have to become as agile as possible and have many forms of talent and work that you can provide the economy.

In the future, she says, well all have seven or eight jobs, with the average adult working for a number of companies simultaneously rather than working for one big corporation.

Were in the midst of this huge sweeping change that is going to impact all levels of society, Popcorn warns.

Predicting the future is Popcorns livelihood, and shes made herself a bit of a legend over the years doing so, but even she seems a little unsettled by the pace of change today. As she tells me with a world-weary sigh, it just makes you want to have some more tequila.

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What jobs will still be around in 20 years? Read this to prepare your future - The Guardian

President Trump promised to bring back the coal industry. Coal mining is now a highly-automated industry requiring far fewer miners than in decades past. However, Trump never discusses the fact that cheap abundant natural gas is replacing coal along with renewable sources. Modern combined-cycle natural gas plants are nearly twice as efficient as our older single-cycle coal power plants.

Most of our coal plants are 40 to 50 years old and are at the end of their life cycles. Wall Street banks refuse to finance new coal plants while the costs of renewable sources and natural gas power plants are replacing coal plants everywhere. The Sierra Club tracks coal plants saying over 200 coal plants have been shut down in the last decade with hundreds more coal plant closings on the way in coming years. The coal industry analysts say coal is on a bleak permanent decline that will never be reversed because natural gas, solar and wind turbines are more cost effective period.

The Trump cult also blames undocumented immigrants and global trade agreements for the decline of the manufacturing labor force in America. Most economists will tell you immigrants and global trade agreements make our country stronger.

Trump also promised to bring back labor intensive manufacturing jobs in the Rustbelt states. At least 85 percent or more of the decline of manufacturing jobs in the industrial Midwest over the last 30 years have been because of automation in the workplace.

Trump has promised to revive the steel industry as well. Modern steel minimills are now highly automated but produce large amounts of recycled steel with only a few highly-skilled workers. Most modern manufacturing plants only employ about one-fifth the number of workers they did 30 years ago. A General Motors plant that employed 25,000 workers in 1980 would today only employs about 5,000 workers to produce the same number of cars. Most industrial jobs require a worker to have excellent computer skills as a precondition of employment.

Automation will likely displace at least five million more workers by 2020. How will the cult of Trump compete against industrial robots and machine tools controlled by artificial intelligence in the 21st-century workplace?

We need a Medicare public option that makes health care more portable for workers with vastly improved vocational and technical retraining programs that help displaced workers find the high-tech jobs that exist. We must learn to adapt to automation in the information technology economy of the future. The Trump cult wants to go back to the industrial age of the 20th century that is the road to nowhere in the automated computer information age of the 21st century.

Stoutenburg lives in Moorhead.

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Letter: Automation rapidly changing 21st century workplace - INFORUM

The industrial automation market for oil & gas is expected to reach USD 15.52 billion by 2023, at a CAGR of 3.2% between 2017 and 2023.

Key driving factors for the growth of the industrial automation market for oil & gas are the need for optimum and effective exploration of aging reservoirs and the Internet of Things adding value to the industrial automation for the oil & gas industry.

DCS is expected to hold a major share of the industrial automation market for oil & gas during the forecast period.

Distributed control system (DCS) is expected to hold a major share of the market by 2023.

The distributed control system controls various components that are distributed in the overall system of industrial automation for oil & gas, enabling the maintenance of digital communication between various components such as distributed controllers, workstations, and other computing elements.

The DCS controls processes such as oil & gas refineries, pipeline transport, and extraction in the oil & gas industry.

Field instruments market expected to hold the largest size of the industrial automation market for oil & gas

The field instruments market is expected to hold the largest size of the industrial automation market for oil & gas in 2017.

Field instruments comprise three types of transmitterspressure, temperature, and flow, which are used for various processes involved in instrumentation.

Pressure transmitters are extensively used in the oil and gas sector for the measurement of flow, level, pressure, density, and viscosity, among which flow measurement is the most common application area.

"The industrial automation market for oil & gas is expected to exhibit significant growth potential between 2017 and 2023" The industrial automation market for oil & gas is expected to reach USD 15.52 billion by 2023, at a CAGR of 3.2% between 2017 and 2023. Key driving factors for the growth of the industrial automation market for oil & gas are the need for optimum and effective exploration of aging reservoirs and the Internet of Things adding value to the industrial automation for the oil & gas industry. However, the instability of the oil & gas market in Middle Eastern countries, increasing shift toward the adoption of renewable energy sources, and declining and fluctuating oil and gas prices are considered to be major restraints for the industrial automation market for oil & gas.

"DCS is expected to hold a major share of the industrial automation market for oil & gas during the forecast period." Distributed control system (DCS) is expected to hold a major share of the market by 2023. The distributed control system controls various components that are distributed in the overall system of industrial automation for oil & gas, enabling the maintenance of digital communication between various components such as distributed controllers, workstations, and other computing elements. The DCS controls processes such as oil & gas refineries, pipeline transport, and extraction in the oil & gas industry.

"Field instruments market expected to hold the largest size of the industrial automation market for oil & gas" The field instruments market is expected to hold the largest size of the industrial automation market for oil & gas in 2017. Field instruments comprise three types of transmitterspressure, temperature, and flow, which are used for various processes involved in instrumentation. Pressure transmitters are extensively used in the oil and gas sector for the measurement of flow, level, pressure, density, and viscosity, among which flow measurement is the most common application area.

"The industrial automation market for oil & gas in APAC expected to grow at the highest rate during the forecast period" The industrial automation market for oil & gas in APAC is expected to grow at the highest rate between 2017 and 2023. The demand for industrial automation for oil & gas is very high in APAC owing to the increase in the number of refinery plants and other related plants in the oil & gas industry. The implementation of automation is increasing in APAC because of the rising demand for high-quality products along with increased production rates. It also helps reduce labor costs and human interference.

Breakdown of the profiles of primary participants for the report has been given below:

By Company Type: Tier 1 = 49%, Tier 2 = 30%, and Tier 3 = 21% By Designation: C-Level Executives = 58%, Directors = 28%, and Others = 14% By Region: The Americas = 35%, Europe = 19%, APAC = 30%, and the Middle East and Africa = 16%

The key players in the industrial automation market for oil & gas include ABB (Switzerland), Emerson Electric Co. (US), Honeywell International Inc. (US), Schneider Electric SE (France), Siemens AG (Germany), Endress+Hauser AG (Switzerland), General Electric Co. (US), Mitsubishi Electric Corporation (Japan), Rockwell Automation Inc. (US), and Yokogawa Electric Corporation (Japan).

Research Coverage The research report analyzes the industrial automation market for oil & gas based on solution, instrument, and geography. The market has been segmented on the basis of solution into supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA), programmable logic controller (PLC), humanmachine interface (HMI), distributed control systems (DCS), safety automation, advanced process control (APC), and manufacturing execution system (MES). On the basis of instruments, the industrial automation market for oil & gas has been classified into field instruments, control valves, leakage detection system, and flow computer. The report covers the market segmented on the basis of 4 major regions: the Americas, Europe, APAC, and the Middle East and Africa.

Key Benefits of Buying the Report: Illustrative segmentation, analysis, and forecast for the market based on solution, instrument, and geography have been conducted to give an overall view of the industrial automation market for oil & gas. The value chain analysis has been utilized to provide an in-depth insight into the industrial automation market for oil & gas. Major drivers, restraints, opportunities, and challenges for the industrial automation market for oil & gas have been detailed in this report. The report includes a detailed competitive landscape along with key players and their revenue. Read the full report: http://www.reportlinker.com/p04960853/Industrial-Automation-Market-for-Oil-Gas-by-Solution-Instruments-and-Geography-Global-Forecast-to.html

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Industrial Automation Market is expected to reach USD 15.52 billion by 2023 - PR Newswire (press release)

What will the world of technology look like 30 years from now? Megatech: Technology In 2050 tries to tackle this question. Edited by The Economists executive editor Daniel Franklin, the book is a collection of essays by eminent personalities like Frank Wilczek, Alastair Reynolds, Nancy Kress and Melinda Gateseach one of whom tells their version of the future. An essay by Luciano Floridi, professor of philosophy and ethics of information at the University of Oxford in the UK, talks about Artificial Intelligence (AI). In The Ethics Of Artificial Intelligence, he says the threat of monstrous machines dominating humanity is imaginary, but the risk of humanity misusing its machines is real. In an email interview, Prof. Floridi talks about how real, or not, the threat of AI is. Edited excerpts:

Is AI a threat to human jobs?

Yes, in the simple and yet important sense that AI applications are now challenging white-collar jobs everywhere. However, we need to remember that many other jobs are going to be in great demand. Let me point out some evidence. The automotive industry is one of the most heavily (and earliest) automated sector, and yet jobs in the US have grown since 2009 to almost back to where they were in 2007. In Germany, the demand for engineers is higher than the supply. The same holds true in the UK.

And a report by the World Bank estimates that by 2030 the world will need 80 million healthcare workers, double the number in 2013.

Clearly things are more complicated. Automation will create new needs and new jobs, and make uneconomical jobs economical. This does not mean than millions of people will not feel the impact of AI. Society needs to intervene to alleviate this radical transition.

Where does AI score over humans besides storing and analysing huge amounts of data?

AI scores over humans not just in obviously data-based jobs, like accountancy, but also in any job that can be transformed into tasks that can then be performed handling data. Driving a shuttle bus in an airport is a good example. The more we device ways of translating activities requiring intelligence if a human were to perform them into tasks that require no intelligence but rather the right sort of data, sophisticated algorithms and engineering artefacts like robot arms, the more such jobs will be replaced by AI solutions.

In a world where even our spending patterns are dictated (or anticipated) by the Web, are we giving away too much information about ourselves to smart technologies?

Whether it is too much or too little is a personal question, and I would argue that the problem is one step before and one step after: whether we do this consciously or not, and what society allows people to do with the collected data. Sharing personal information may be a good or terrible idea, giving it to smart technologies may actually facilitate and improve our lives, or make us subject to manipulation and even discrimination. We should be aware of our choices on the one hand, and society should protect them, to avoid abuses, on the other hand. The question in the middle, namely how much information is given away, becomes secondary.

Are there any privacy issues related to AI at the workplace?

Privacy is one of the defining issues of our time. AI will increase its significance, because the more we live a connected life, the more AI will be able to fill the gaps in our profiles, monitor our behaviour, and predict our choices. The trend seems to be unstoppable, technologically. It is the policies and strategies driving it that can be shaped, that is, the point is not what can be done (feasibility) with AI and personal information, but what may (legality) and should (ethics) be done. On the legal and ethical side, we should ensure that the capabilities developed by AI will be at the service of people. In the workplace, this means a protection of the privacy of employees, even over and above what is mere compliance. The possibilities of monitoring and profiling people will increase, it is how we handle them that will make the difference.

First Published: Sun, Jun 25 2017. 03 23 PM IST

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Automation will create new needs, new jobs, says Luciano Floridi - Livemint

Automation error sends tremors through California

A software issue is being blamed for accidentally sending out a U.S. Geological Survey alert for a 6.8 magnitude earthquake near Los Angeles.

Such an earthquake did occur -- in 1925.

The June 21 alert -- which was dated June 29, 2025 -- was sent after researchers at Caltech corrected location data in records of a past earthquake, according to reporting by the Los Angeles Times. A seismologist at the University of California at Santa Barbara had informed USGS' National Earthquake Information Center that its database contained inaccurate location information for the 1925 Santa Barbara earthquake. Researchers at Caltech were then asked to update the location in the Advanced National Seismic System database, according to the Times.

Washington State Seismologist John Vidale, who directs the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network, told GCN that people around the world sign up to get earthquake alerts from the USGS through the Earthquake Notification Service. Users can customize their alerts by deciding when they want to receive them, what magnitude of earthquake is needed to trigger a notification, etc.

We all saw a magnitude 6.8 off Santa Barbara as being reported, Vidale said about the alert. They passed the information along, but were able to determine in a matter of minutes that it was not accurate, he said.

Caltech Seismologist Egill Hauksson told the Times that the change in location was entered correctly, but because the notification scripts relied on Unix time, 1925 wrapped around in the software and became 2025. The system interpreted that as a new event, and out went the notification.

Neither USGS nor Caltech responded to requests for comment.

Vidale said this isnt the first time that alerts have been accidentally sent out. An alert was sent out for a magnitude 8 earthquake in southern California when officials running a training exercise forgot to adjust their system to training settings; a center in Hawaii did something similar for a quake in the Pacific, he said.

This one, I think, caught more attention than most, partly because we are starting to implement systems that act automatically, he said.

USGS quickly posted to Twitter that an error had occurred, and soon after sent out a correction via the Earthquake Notification Service. But the Times, which has its own automated software running, had already published a website article and a tweet about the quake, further spreading the false news.

As were getting into an era of responding automatically, people are going to notice these things, and [officials] are going to have to work harder to make sure they dont happen very often, Vidale said.

About the Author

Matt Leonard is a reporter/producer at GCN.

Before joining GCN, Leonard worked as a local reporter for The Smithfield Times in southeastern Virginia. In his time there he wrote about town council meetings, local crime and what to do if a beaver dam floods your back yard. Over the last few years, he has spent time at The Commonwealth Times, The Denver Post and WTVR-CBS 6. He is a graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University, where he received the faculty award for print and online journalism.

Leonard can be contacted at mleonard@gcn.com or follow him on Twitter @Matt_Lnrd.

Click here for previous articles by Leonard.

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Automation error sends tremors through California -- GCN - GCN.com

NEW DELHI: Infosys on Saturday said the company's board has no differences with the promoters and the so-called problems were media creation. The company held its 36th annual general meeting in Bangalore on Saturday.

Here are the key takeways:

Compensation to key personnel: In its AGM, a company spokesperson said that the IT major was aware of the fact that the compensation gap between the top management and employees has widened. The spokesperson recognized that the company's communication on compensation could have been better. To address that, it has restructured compensation to stock-based rewards, it said. Here's a look a remuneration of key personnals at Infosys:

Rising protectionism: In a letter to shareholders, CEO Vishal Sikka said that FY17 brought with it environmental challenges such as rising protectionism, accelerating commoditization, elevated client expectations and new competition.

"Internally, we had challenges to bring stability to our consulting business and growth to our Finacle and BPO businesses. But amidst all of this, it behoves us to stay focused on our longer-term mission to drive rapid growth in software-led offerings, to capture demand in newer service lines and to renew our core services a mission to deliver consistent, profitable growth for the benefit of all our stakeholders," Sikka said.

Automation impact: The company said that more than 11,000 jobs have been released due to automation. Revenue per full-tie employee (FTE) increased by 1.2 per cent as a result of automation, utilisation and productivity improvements, the company said.

"It is a clear demonstration of how software is going to play a crucial role in our business model," it said.

No differences with promoters: The board's relationship with founders is subject of inaccurate media reports, the company said. The company's Executive Chairman R Seshasayee said that when comments are made by founders, it is considered more seriously and respectfully. Executive leadership compensation dominated the narrative on governance, it said.

Cash balance: The IT major said it was sitting on Rs 12,222 crore in cash and cash equivalent as of March 31, 2017. This was against Rs 24,276 crore of cash it was sitting on at the end fo FY16. Deposits with institutions stood at Rs 6,931 crore as of March 31, compared with Rs 4,900 crore in the year-ago period.

Investor corner: Infosys said that its board has identified an amount of up to Rs 13,000 crore or $2 billion to be paid out to shareholders during FY18. This would be done by the way of dividend and/or buybacks which will be decided later.

Dividend declaration: Infosys has declared a final dividend of Rs 14.75 per share for FY17. This would result in a cash outflow of appromimately Rs 4,061 crore - excluding dividend paid on treasury shares - inlusive of corporate dividend tax.

R Seshasayee to retire in May 2018: Seshasayee said it will be his last AGM before he retires next year in May and plans a smooth transition to his successor.

"Finally, as this will be my last AGM, before I retire upon reaching the age of 70 in May 2018... During the remaining part of my tenure, I would be committed to further enhancing governance standards, improving shareholder value and planning a smooth transition to my successor," he said in his speech at the 36th AGM of Infosys.

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Infosys: Infosys releases 11,000 employees due to automation: Key ... - Economic Times

Ever get the feeling you are being listened in on? I'm referring to home automation and devices like Amazon's Alexa technology. Amazon's platform has multiple home automation devices that can play music, offer up entertainment, local weather forecasts, news and much more when given voice commands. The devices are known as Echo productsand can also be controlled by a cell phone, tablet, or another Internet-connected device.

I bought into Amazon's offering of Echo and the Echo Dot, a smaller version,last year, and glad I did even though I find it a stretch on claims you can save you money over time, more on that in bit.

One of the favorite features is the vast music libraries that are available, and being able to play any music you can think of by asking the device. The original Amazon Echo has a built in speaker, but if you want to rock the house, as they say, you're better off getting the cheaper Dot and connecting your own speakers.

Having dabbled with music services like Pandora, I ended up with Amazon's Unlimited package based on price and usage. It comes in a bit cheaper if you're an Amazon Prime member, but there are other options to suit what you're looking for. As of 6/23/17, Amazon is now offering the option to stream your Sirius audio subscription right to your Echo for you "Stern" lovers. All-in-all music features are a driving force behind home automation's growing popularity, and I can see why.

I have found, though, that you end up spending more money on necessary additions to take full advantage of Amazon's home automation features. For example, I had to upgrade my thermostat to be able to change the temperature in the house with the system, same goes with the lights separate devices are needed for each lamp, or you go a little more expensive with a hub covering an area of your home.

There are some great add-on devices that can control your home security, ceiling fans and more. Add-ons for lighting are probably the most diverse and fun to play with, with options ranging from standard overhead light to colored track lighting controlled with simple commands. I run with the TP Link bulbs (cheaper) as they handle my basic lighting needs. The TP Link is a modest but more affordable way to turn on anything plugged into it, like a lamp you want to turn on and off. The lighting features and remote control options are great when you're controlling lights from afar.

Lastly, unless you're living in a smaller home or apartment, you will want more than one Echo device, or at least a portable accessory so you don't have to shout your requests and can hear the output another extra cost.

Amazon is rolling out a video version of its home automation system called Echo Show in summer 2017. Echo Show displays a video screen showing video messages, photos, security cameras, and and more, according to the Amazon website. It sounds intriguing, and perhaps a necessary product given growing competition in home automation systems. Google's offering, Google Home,which provides many of the same features, adds the ability to do simple searches on queries similar to using their search engine,a feature that needs more attention in Amazon's system.

My overall take on Amazon's Echo and the whole home automation movement is that it's coming your way, and if you can afford to make the plunge, it's a prime time to do it.

Brian Koch is an avid techie who's worked in the tech field for dozens of years with Compaq/HP, his own pc business Techpertise, outdoor photography, and more. He has lived with his wife Stacy in Colorado for over 16 years. E-mail questions, comments, suggestions to Brian: info@techpertise.com and follow him on Twitter @Techpertise.

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You talkin' to me? Home automation with Amazon - Colorado Springs Independent

It's a misanthrope's dream.

You can go through an entire day working, commuting, shopping, dining, recreating without encountering another human being.

OK, you can't do that now. But, it's coming.

Thanks to automation.

I was reading that cashiers in stores and restaurants and retail workers are the next group with a bull's eye and sign painted on their backs: Replace with robot.

A report by the McKinsey Global Institute states that half the tasks done by cashiers and salespeople can be automated using technology available today. And two-thirds of tasks done by grocery store workers can be automated.

Proponents of automation say it will replace only routine jobs, routine tasks.

Routine? What's routine? A 90 mph fastball is routine to Chicago Cubs pitcher Jake Arrieta, but not to the rest of us.

It takes skill and ability to do the routine. Does anyone claim robots do these routine jobs better than people? No, what's behind automation is money. Robots are cheaper and less trouble than human beings.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 8 million people (six percent of American workers) are cashiers or in retail sales. What will happen to them?

Again, automation enthusiasts say these workers will be freed to do other tasks. Or, they will be trained to do jobs that aren't replaceable (yet) by robots.

Do you honesty believe honestly that this will happen? Isn't it much more likely businesses will fire the former routine task workers, that millions of people without the skills and perhaps the aptitude to learn these new jobs will be out on the street? Will there even be enough of these brave-new-world jobs to go around?

And who is thinking about us the customers, the consumers? When I shop or dine I like to deal with people.

I like chatting with the cashier at the grocery store.

I like to explain my needs to a sales clerk.

And most of all, I like to be a regular at a restaurant where the servers know me and make me feel welcome. Yet, horribly, waitresses and waiters are on the automated hit list.

We are creating a society of isolated individuals, of people who don't have don't want to have interaction with other humans.

And that is unhealthy, dangerous and very sad.

But I don't see any way to stop it.

Paul Sassone is a freelance columnist.

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Column: Automation is dangerous and sad for American workers, consumers - Chicago Tribune