For a Human-Centered AI

Thirty Years of Commitment to Responsible Research and Innovation

February 16, 2018

FBK research on artificial intelligence as a demanding and patient practice to keep together technological progress and human development

The quality of our day-to-day life depends on the quality of the interaction between science and democracy.

Science has allowed humanity to explore the infinitely large in the structure of the universe and the infinitely small in the fundamental components of matter; it has made available discoveries about birth, life and death of cells; it has made possible new treatments for previously incurable diseases; it has provided tools for new forms of intelligence, in the first place the collective one induced by the spread of the Internet and of social networks.

Yet, if science becomes the property of the few at the expense of the many, it becomes a source of new inequality, and its influence on democracy alters the quality of human society.

This underlying tension between the multiplication of technical possibilities and of the fields of inquiry, on the one hand, and human development – always under discussion and each time to be demonstrated – on the other, make progress, innovation and economic transformation driven by technology a complex and stimulating area of ​​democratic debate.

One of the big issues that now attracts old or new concerns and at the same time the most visionary energies is that of artificial intelligence.

In recent years, “summer” has exploded for artificial intelligence.

What is the point of view of FBK, as results from this experience on this topic?

At FBK, research in artificial intelligence lies at the basis of its strategy for impacting businesses, with three strategic objectives in particular such as Smart Factory, Smart Cities and Communities and Health and Healthcare.

This is the reason why we have dedicated 2018 to artificial intelligence and we propose FBK*AI 2018 – Future built on Artificial Intelligence, a rich program of initiatives dedicated to this topic.

On April 9 ​​and 10, with “The Pleasure of AI Research“, we will have the opportunity to celebrate thirty years of research (combining IRST first and FBK later) in artificial intelligence, gathering the gotha ​​of the international research in Trento for a reflection on the state-of-the-art in the field of artificial intelligence and its various applications, from technology to finance.

Taking a step back, taking into account man has been a feature of IRST’s orientation: focused not just on systems that could achieve some typical functions of intelligence and replace man, but also that knew how to interact with man, thus also taking into account the characteristics of human cognition.

Therefore, we believe we need to integrate pure learning techniques with modeling techniques and representation of knowledge, where neural networks work together with logical representations and statistical techniques together with formal models.

During these years, several tools have been developed that are ready to be applied in different market sectors.

On the side, a document briefly presents some significant examples of tools developed at FBK, most developed in open source, therefore with the contribution of the international community, and available to the community of researchers and interested companies. In another document we summarize the stages in the history of artificial intelligence research at FBK.

In the coming weeks, until the end of March, we will be presenting a couple of articles with in-depth analysis that will look at current challenges from various points of view introduced on this first occasion.

Don’t miss the upcoming events!


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