AI4EU Wheels Start Moving

A European commission on Artificial Intelligence (AI) on Demand has successfully been constituted in the form of the AI4EU project. The exact scope and mandate of the project is broad, however, according to the grant provided by the EU (originally called for back in December 7, 2018), the aim is to mobilise artificial intelligence to increase accessibility for the entire European community and to create a collaborative AI platform for economic growth.

The initiative is set to work with 79 research institutes and businesses from several countries to build an artificial intelligence resource, with access to expertise, support, and training required to make the technology more accessible to society. Among the consortium members are well known names like Unilever, Siemens, and Telenor. Currently, the website contains a few graphs and a mention for returning later in January with more information on the progress of its initiative. It seeks to explore five research areas with reference to ethical and strategical research on AI that is human centred. According to the information on the website this includes analysing AI from an – explainable, physical, verifiable, collaborative, and integrative – point of view. Its pilot experiments are supposedly focused on the areas of citizens, robotics, industry, healthcare, media, agriculture, IoT, and cyber security. The information also specifies a mandate to look at the acronym ELSEC, short for Ethical, Legal, Socio-Economic, and Cultural Issues with reference to artificial intelligence.

Its main goal is to enhance the access and quality of data to develop AI systems. It is well known that technologies like deep learning and machine learning perform their best with greater access to data, from which they “learn” how to interpret and process information from the world in a manner that humans can find practically useful. We will keep an eye out on this project and report back on any of its development.