On March 9th, over 120 people braved freezing temperatures and snow to attend the inaugural AI CONNECT event at the Future Mobility Campus Ireland in Shannon, Co. Clare, Ireland. The event, organized by AMAX EMEA, brought together international experts, keynote speakers, local businesses, academic researchers, and Artificial Intelligence (AI) enthusiasts for a full day of discussions on the latest applications of AI.
The event featured technical keynote speakers from NVIDIA, Jaguar Land Rover, and local startup Provizio. One of the busiest sessions was a training session on Graph Neural Networks led by Ekaterina Sirazitdinova, a Senior Data Scientist from NVIDIA in Munich.
In the afternoon, attendees had the opportunity to participate in practical workshops where they could explore new technology and concepts related to the use of AI. Researchers from Confirm and Insight, both research centers for Science Foundation Ireland, were also in attendance, along with delegations of research students from the University of Limerick, University of Galway, and Technological University of the Shannon.
AI CONNECT attendees
Attendees were impressed by the quality of the speakers, the equipment on display, and the opportunity to workshop practical issues related to AI. The new AI writing tool, Chat GPT, was even discussed as just one example of the many implementations of AI technology.
The success of the event has led to hopes that it will become an annual gathering, growing in size and scope in the future. Despite the chilly weather, AI Connect warmed up the Mid-West with excitement and interest in the future of AI.
Keynote: “Breakthroughs Enabling Next-gen Autonomous Vehicles” Felix Friedmann, NVIDIA DriveWorks Product Manager & DRIVE EMEA Developer Relations
Keynote: “Delivering next-generation automated driving systems and AI-enabled services” Olivia Wynne, JLR Domain Software Architect / Senior Manager – Assisted & Automated Driving Mirko Maehlisch, JLR Chief Engineer & Product Owner AAD Software Dev
Panel Discussion: “Driving Innovation: The Power of AI in the Automotive Industry” Olivia Wynne, JLR Domain Software Architect/Senior Manager – Assisted & Automated Driving; Barry Lunn, Provizio Founder & CEO; Andreas Prinz, AEye Technical Sales Director – Europe; Felix Friedmann NVIDIA DriveWorks Product Manager & DRIVE EMEA Developer Relations
Keynote: exida Machine Learning Assessment
Molly O’Brien, Senior Safety Engineer, Exida
Keynote: “Tips & Tricks for AI at the Edge”
Ekaterina Sirazitdinova, NVIDIA Data Scientist for Computer Vision, Video Analytics and Deep Learning
Talk & Q&A Session: “How to get started; Ecosystem Enabling AI development”
Niall Smith, AMAX EMEA General Manager
Panel Discussion: “Transforming Business with NVIDIA – Overview & Insights”
Niall Smith, AMAX EMEA General Manager; Courteney Peter, NVIDIA Enterprise Channel Sales EMEA; David Kohnstamm, Leaf Cloud Hardware Lead & Chief Sustainability Officer
Panel Discussion: “Funding and scale-up opportunities for AI innovations”
Wassim Derguech, FMCI COO and Co-Founder; Helen Downes, Shannon Chamber Chief Executive; Padraic McElwee, Local Enterprise Office
Panel Discussion: “Accelerating the Adoption of Academic Research in Industry”
Wassim Derguech, FMCI COO and Co-Founder; Carmel McGroarty Mitchell, Business Development Manager at Insight SFI Research Centre for Data Analytics| University of Galway; Martina Prendergast International Funding Manager with Lero, SFI Research Centre for Software; Dave Griffin, Business Development Manager at Confirm – Smart Manufacturing