i3 | April 02, 2020

CTA Forum Addressing Emerging Tech

by 
Dave Wilson
New and emerging technology will be the focus of the CTA Technology & Standards Virtual Forum on May 11-14. Health, fitness, wellness, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and roboticsare on the agenda as CTA groups gather to discuss ways to help these technologies flourish.

Health Care

The Forum includes a day-long seminar exploring how emerging technologies like AI, robotics, XR and other advances are transforming the future of health care. Sessions will cover how AI is being used in health care, how virtual reality is making health care more efficient and accessible, robotics’ applications in health care, and what issues are most important to policymakers when it comes to emerging technology and health care.

Artificial Intelligence

CTA recently published two standards defining terms for artificial intelligence (AI), one broadly and one for AI in health care. Now CTA’s AI committee has turned its attention toward trustworthiness, with work underway on a document that will describe how one can determine the trustworthiness of an AI application. Customized guidelines for industry segments like health, financial tech, etc. might also be developed. The AI committee will meet at Forum.

Technology & Standards Forum

April 11-14, 2020 | Virtual Event

These are just some of the topics that will be on the agenda. Most meetings are open to all but media.

Robotics

A new CTA group is looking into robotics and what CTA can do to support that industry segment. One of the first issues it identified is security. Work is underway to create a new robotics working group under CTA’s Cybersecurity and Privacy Management Committee. Its first task will be to develop baseline cybersecurity requirements for private consumer robots. The robotics group, and perhaps a new cybersecurity robotics working group, will meet at the Forum. 

Cybersecurity

On the cybersecurity front — CTA is defining baseline security capabilities and related organizational security capabilities for devices and systems. These address individual connected devices, endpoint devices, components, hardware modules, chips, software, sensors or other operating components. The goal is to help developers consider not only how security breaches might affect their devices or systems, but also how breaches might affect the broader infrastructure in which their products operate such as how their devices might be co-opted into a botnet. CTA’s cybersecurity groups will be meeting at the Forum to address these and other issues.

Health, Fitness and Wellness

Several meetings will cover industry strategy for consumer health and fitness technology, and industry standards for products that help consumers live happier, healthier lives. CTA recently developed a standard regimen for people to follow so wearable stress monitoring devices can be tested for accuracy. The regimen involves relaxation, answering a set of written questions, speaking to a panel of judges, doing some arithmetic, and exercising — all with time constraints. There are expected results (stress or no stress) for each part of the test and they’re compared with actual readings of the device under test. If the device reports the expected results, it passes.

Another recent project is a framework for best practices and transparency when developing non-medical mobile health solutions. It aims to help stakeholders create and evaluate mobile health solutions around five key areas: accuracy, interoperability, privacy, quality practices and security. 

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