The Latest on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to Washington (all times local):
12:20 p.m.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (neh-ten-YAH'-hoo) says Israel is "responding forcefully" to a morning rocket attack in central part of the Jewish state.
President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence, greet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Monday, March 25, 2019. (AP PhotoSusan Walsh)
Israel's military says it's started striking Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip after a rocket hit a house north Tel Aviv and wounded seven people.
Netanyahu spoke during a meeting at the White House with President Donald Trump, who later signed an official proclamation formally recognizing Israel's sovereignty over the Golan Heights.
Netanyahu calls the rocket attack "wanton aggression" and says "Israel will not tolerate this. I will not tolerate it."
The prime minister says he plans to return to Israel after the meeting with Trump.
12:05 p.m.
President Donald Trump has signed a proclamation recognizing Israel's sovereignty over the Golan Heights.
The document reverses more than a half-century of U.S. policy as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (neh-ten-YAH'-hoo) visited the White House.
Trump had previewed the move in a tweet last week that it was time for the U.S. to take the step after 52 years of Israeli control of the strategic highlands on the border with Syria.
Netanyahu has pressed for such recognition for months. Trump's action gives him a political boost just weeks before what's expected to be a close Israeli election.
Israel captured the Golan from Syria in the 1967 Mideast war but its sovereignty over the territory is not recognized by the international community.
9:35 a.m.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (neh-ten-YAH'-hoo) says he's cutting short his visit to Washington after a Gaza rocket attack on Israel.
Netanyahu describes Monday morning's rocket launch that struck a home in central Israel as a "criminal attack" and he's pledging to strike back hard. He says he'll return to Israel to handle the crisis shortly after his meeting with President Donald Trump.
An Israeli rescue service says the rocket from the Gaza Strip wounded seven people.
Netanyahu arrived in Washington on Sunday for what was to have been a three-day visit. He was going to speak at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee's policy conference and was to be hosted at a White House dinner.
HELSINKI (AP) — An artisan roastery based in the Finnish capital has introduced a coffee blend that has been developed by artificial intelligence in a trial in which it's hoped that technology can ease the workload in a sector that traditionally prides itself on manual work.
It is only apt that the Helsinki-based Kaffa Roastery’s “AI-conic” blend was launched this week in Finland, a Nordic nation of 5.6 million that consumes the most coffee in the world at 12 kilograms per capita annually, according to the International Coffee Organization.
The blend — an AI-picked mixture with four types of beans dominated by Brazil’s velvety Fazenda Pinhal — is the end result of a joint project by Kaffa, Finland’s third-biggest coffee roastery, and local AI consultancy Elev.
“Leveraging models akin to ChatGPT and Copilot, the AI was tasked with crafting a blend that would ideally suit coffee enthusiasts’ tastes, pushing the boundaries of conventional flavor combinations," Elev said.
Kaffa Roastery’s founder Svante Hampf told The Associated Press on Saturday that the two partners wanted to trial how AI and its different tools could be of help in coffee roasting, a traditional artisan profession highly valued in Finland.
“We basically gave descriptions of all our coffee types and their flavors to AI and instructed it to create a new exciting blend,” said Hampf, while showcasing “AI-conic” at the Helsinki Coffee Festival that annually brings together roasteries and coffee aficionados.
In addition to coming up with its chosen mixture of beans from Brazil, Colombia, Ethiopia and Guatemala, AI created the coffee package label and a detailed taste description saying “AI-conic” is “a well balanced blend of sweetness and ripe fruit.”
Hampf acknowledged he was surprised that AI “somewhat weirdly” chose to make the blend out of four different type of coffee beans, rather than the usual two or three which allows distinction in taste between flavors from different origins.
After the first test roasting and blind testing, Kaffa’s coffee experts agreed, however, that the tech-assisted blend was perfect, and there was no need for human adjustments.
According to Elev’s spokesman Antti Merilehto “AI-conic is a tangible example of how AI can introduce new perspectives to seasoned professionals” while offering coffee lovers new taste experiences.
Kaffa Roastery hopes the trial serves as an opener of dialogue between coffee professionals of things to come in the future in Finland, a nation that has both a strong coffee culture and a passion for technology with a flourishing startup scene.
“This (trial) was the first step in seeing how AI could help us in the future,” Hampf said, adding the project brought smoothly together “the artisan skills of a roastery” and AI-provided data. “I think AI has plenty to offer us in the long run. We are particularly impressed of the coffee taste descriptions it created.”
Kaffa Roastery's founder Svante Hampf shows package of "AI-conic" coffee blend generated by artificial intelligence in Helsinki, Finland, Friday April 19, 2024. Kaffa, an artisan roastery based in the Finnish capital has introduced a coffee blend that has been developed by artificial intelligence in a trial in which it's hoped that technology can ease the workload in a sector that traditionally prides itself on manual work. (AP Photo/Jari Tanner)
