Qirong Ho, co-founder and CTO of Petuum Inc., will be contributing to the "ML Systems for Many" initiative. Petuum is recognized for creating standardized building blocks for AI assembly. Ho also holds a Ph.D. from Carnegie Mellon University and is part of the CASL open-source consortium. Why it matters: Showcases the ongoing efforts to democratize AI development and deployment, making it more accessible and sustainable, although the specific initiative is not further detailed.
MBZUAI Assistant Professor Qirong Ho is researching AI operating systems to standardize algorithms and enable non-experts to create AI applications reliably. He emphasizes that countries mastering mass production of AI systems will benefit most from the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Ho is co-founder and CTO at Petuum Inc., an AI startup creating standardized building blocks for affordable and scalable AI production. Why it matters: This research aims to democratize AI development and promote widespread adoption across industries in the UAE and beyond.
MBZUAI faculty Eric Xing and Qirong Ho are developing AI operating systems (AI OS) for efficient AI development, similar to mobile OS. They co-founded AI startup Petuum and lead the CASL community, which focuses on composable, automatic, and scalable learning. CASL provides a unified toolkit for distributed training and compositional model construction, with contributions from MBZUAI, CMU, Berkeley, and Stanford. Why it matters: The development of AI OS aims to optimize AI applications by efficiently connecting software and hardware, fostering innovation and broader adoption of AI solutions across industries in the region.
KAUST hosted the KAUST Research Conference: Advances in Well Construction with Focus on Near-Wellbore Physics and Chemistry from November 7 to 9. The conference was co-chaired by Eric van Oort, a professor at UT Austin, and Tadeusz Patzek, director of the University’s Upstream Petroleum Engineering Research Center. Attendees included professors from the University of Queensland and UT Austin, and directors from GenesisRTS and Labyrinth Consulting Services, Inc. Why it matters: The conference facilitates international collaboration on advancements in petroleum engineering and well construction technologies, which are strategically important for Saudi Arabia.
Patrick van der Smagt, Director of AI Research at Volkswagen Group, discussed the use of generative machine learning models for predicting and controlling complex stochastic systems in robotics. The talk highlighted examples in robotics and beyond and addressed the challenges of achieving quality and trust in AI systems. He also mentioned his involvement in a European industry initiative on trust in AI and his membership in the AI Council of the State of Bavaria. Why it matters: Understanding control in robotics, along with trust in AI, are key issues for further development of autonomous systems, especially in industrial applications within the GCC region.
This paper presents a decentralized multi-agent unmanned aerial system designed for search, pickup, and relocation of objects. The system integrates multi-agent aerial exploration, object detection/tracking, and aerial gripping. The decentralized system uses global state estimation, reactive collision avoidance, and sweep planning for exploration. Why it matters: The system's successful deployment in demonstrations and competitions like MBZIRC highlights the potential of integrated robotic solutions for complex tasks such as search and rescue in the region.
KAUST researchers found Y-series nonfullerene acceptors enhance the outdoor stability of organic solar cells, enabling energy-efficient windows. They also used satellite data to show managed vegetation can mitigate rising temperatures across Saudi Arabia's agricultural regions. Additionally, they developed DeepKriging, a deep neural network, to solve complex spatiotemporal datasets and tested it on air pollution. Why it matters: This research addresses critical challenges in renewable energy, climate change, and AI data privacy relevant to Saudi Arabia and the broader region.