Scientists are teaching artificial intelligence to recognize animal emotions. Different research teams are simultaneously developing systems that will help to better diagnose diseases and assess the condition of animals. This is reported by the journal Science.
Scientists from the University of the West of England in Bristol and the Scottish Agricultural College are creating the Intellipig system, which analyzes images of pig faces and notifies farmers of signs of pain, illness or stress.
A team from the University of Haifa in Israel is working on a system for recognizing emotions on the faces of animals that have facial movements similar to humans. According to the study, people share 38% of facial expressions with dogs, 34% with cats, and 47% with primates and horses.
The researchers plan to release an AI application that will allow cat owners to scan their pets' faces in 30 seconds and get clear conclusions, for example: "Significant tension around the mouth is detected; pain level is moderate."
The same team has previously created an animal face recognition system that helps find lost animals by comparing their photos with images of animals in shelters.
Researchers in the Netherlands have developed a similar application that scans horses' faces and bodies to assess their pain levels. Scientists assume that AI can eventually be used in equestrian competitions to reward riders with happy and comfortable horses, as well as to increase welfare and fairness in sports.