The Global Gaming Expo is underway at the Venetian Expo Center, bringing manufacturers and developers together to showcase the latest gaming technology—including a growing, but still evolving, role for artificial intelligence in casinos and hospitality.

John “Duffy” Conley was just 22 in 1985 and not yet known as the kingpin of video gambling in western Pennsylvania with over 4,000 illegal video poker machines.

I'm not spending a Wednesday evening in June watching Game 4 of the NBA Finals on the big screen TV in my friend's family room because I'm a fan of the New York Knicks or San Antonio Spurs. I’m here because I placed my first-ever bet with an online sportsbook today.

For this year’s session, Professor Alan Feldman, chair of the Nevada Advisory Committee on Problem Gambling, chair emeritus of the International Center for Responsible Gaming, and director of the Strategic Initiatives of the International Gaming Institute of UNLV, taught participants how to recognize the signs of gambling disorder and communicate effectively to engage with individuals with gambling problems.

Speaking exclusively to SiGMA News, Dr. Bo Bernhard, professor at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas’s hospitality and gaming program, frames this transformation as part of the “Global Fun Economy”, a sector that now accounts for one in every seven dollars spent worldwide.​

Adding money to your bar-top slot machines could become easier with a new contactless, cashless system. Officials with UNLV’s International Gaming Institute say this system will also capture data, helping researchers understand gamblers' habits.