DC’s AI Hub recognized with Tech-Access Canada’s Tri-Pillar Excellence Award Posted on November 14, 2024 at 10:27 am. Durham College’s (DC) AI Hub has been awarded the Tri-Pillar Excellence Award for its ongoing work to help businesses conduct research and development, adopt new technology and education and training. The award comes from the national non-profit Tech-Access Canada, which supports a network of Technology Access Centres (TAC) across the country, including the AI Hub, which became a TAC in 2023. Natalie Arthurs, Senior Manager of the AI Hub, says that the award was especially meaningful because it recognizes that her team is meeting multiple needs in an evolving field. “As a fairly new TAC, this award reflects that we’ve made considerable progress in the three key areas of research, training and technology,” she said. “We have done a really good job of looking systematically across this moment in time in AI at how to put the right tools in the right place to overcome barriers to AI in a holistic way.” Key initiatives from the AI Hub include the development and launch of the AI Guide ethics training program to help non-technical professionals gain an in-depth knowledge of AI governance and regulations. The Hub also offers a webinar and workshop series to help small- and medium-sized businesses learn about ways they can use AI in their organizations. The Hub’s AI Strategic Roadmap service helps companies to test the feasibility of an AI tool before fully committing to a larger investment. The AI Hub has also positioned itself as a thought leader in the community, hosting a flagship annual AI in Action event in February, which attracted more than 180 participants in 2024. In addition to partnering with local organizations including the Whitby Chamber of Commerce, Invest Durham and the Spark Centre, and Angel Investors of Durham, the AI Hub also engaged with more than 60 companies in various industries over the last year, including health care, finance and marketing among others. For Arthurs and her team, the AI Hub’s focus is always on practical solutions and meeting the needs of industry and the community. “When we set out to research something, it’s specifically solving a problem that industry has brought to us,” she said. “We looked across the board and asked: What are key barriers companies are facing? Why are companies struggling to integrate AI into their businesses? And then we developed programming specifically around that.” She points to the AI Guide as an example to emerge from the realization that a possible barrier to AI adoption was concern over emerging regulations. Given the ecosystem that the AI Hub has created, Arthurs says she was thrilled to share the news of the win with her team. “The best part was we had an event here at DC the day that we got home from the conference where the award was presented. Being able to share it with the team was the most rewarding part, because this award is really about diversity and diversity of services, and that diversity is reflected in our team and their strengths and their dedication.” The AI Hub serves as a strategic advisor to help companies assess the value of AI. They currently have more than 30 research and development projects underway, serving partners in every province and in sectors from energy to consulting to health to marketing. Companies are encouraged to reach out to the AI Hub with an AI problem and request a consultation. Overcome the fear of messing up: Durham College AI Hub course for executives helps address barriers to businesses adopting AI Posted on September 25, 2024 at 11:53 am. When it comes to adopting Artificial Intelligence (AI), businesses have two fears: missing out and messing up. To tackle that second fear—messing up— and ensure that businesses don’t miss out on the transformative power of AI, Durham College’s AI Hub has partnered with the Council of Canadian Innovators to launch the AI Guide Program. The innovative program is a six-week intensive executive development program for non-technical professionals in Canada’s business and innovation sectors, including leaders in HR, sales, operations and public affairs. “One of the things that was coming up again and again with companies and individuals was this trepidation around adopting AI in a responsible way,” explains AI Hub Senior Manager Natalie Arthurs. “These sticky issues of governance, responsible AI ethics, how data is being used, those are the issues that a lot of non-technical leaders and executives grapple with and it’s creating an impediment to moving forward with AI.” Dr. Priyamvada Tripathi, a DC faculty member who teaches AI and data analytics, is the lead instructor for the program. She explains the 90-minute online sessions will feature a series of industry guest speakers who will bring practical scenarios to the table. “We’re getting real-world perspectives and the guest speakers have the experience of how AI is being implemented, what are the road blocks to adoption and how to balance all the concerns about AI with innovation,” said Tripathi. That means the course will focus on practicalities and business concerns like key performance indicators and value generation. “How do you balance all that, how do you remain ethical while not losing out on the race to adopt AI,” she said. “Especially for us Canadians, how do we stay competitive while maintaining our core values?” The program targets non-technical leaders because in many cases they are the people making overarching decisions for businesses. “We’re helping address the fear of messing up component here by giving people that literacy, by giving them hands-on, real-world case studies and session leaders who have been there, done that,” Arthurs adds. The AI Guide Program runs between October 23 and November 27. Registration closes October 13. MRC Studio, AI Hub make a splash at virtual reality conference Posted on August 21, 2024 at 1:00 pm. Durham College (DC) students and employees showed off their applied research work at the VRTO Spatial Media World Conference & Expo in July, displaying their talent and ingenuity and making connections in the tech industry. Representing DC’s Office of Research Services, Innovation and Entrepreneurship (ORSIE), the MRC Studio and AI Hub attended the conference to showcase their latest breakthroughs. A team of work-study students showed off a mixed reality demo using the Meta Quest 3 virtual reality (VR) headset. By scanning real world objects and digitizing them for manipulation in 3D space, the demo allows users to pick up and examine items within an augmented reality. The mixed reality demo was prepared by Game – Art students Joshua Vandergeer, Alexis Mantler and Nathan Lang and Computer Programming and Analysis students Connor Vandergeer and Manu Sugunakumar. The experience of showing off their own work while rubbing shoulders with accomplished industry veterans was a highlight for the students, according to Connor Vandergeer. “It felt really rewarding to be a part of the community,” he said. “Speaking to professionals, seeing what they think and how impressed they were and just enjoying the demo, it was a really great experience.” The applications for the demo are practically limitless according to Jason Hunter, Manager of the MRC Studio. “A lot of people still relate VR to entertainment and games only, but there’s a lot of applications within other industries that the hardware and software can be used for,” he said. “We have a lot of industry partners who want to find ways to do digital twinning, either of spaces or of objects, particularly for training and simulation.” For example, an industrial company could use the technology to train new employees on heavy machinery, remotely and with no risk to their safety. A second demo, developed by Game – Art student James Gleeson, used a Looking Glass display and Unreal Engine to create holographic 3D models that could be turned and rotated manually. Both demos wowed the crowd, according to Hunter. “There were a lot of smiling faces and minds blown,” he said. “It’s really satisfying to see that we could still impress people who have been working within the field for a long time. That’s really gratifying for the students.” Working with the MRC Studio over the summer has been an invaluable experience for them. “It’s a great opportunity for students to start getting industry experience within their field, and it’s a great place to test what you’re learning,” said Joshua Vandergeer. Students weren’t the only ones making us #DCProud at the event. MRC Principal Investigator Harrison Forsyth was invited as a guest speaker to discuss his recent work digitizing real world objects and environments for virtual applications. “It was a great pleasure to speak at the event on behalf of Durham College,” said Forsyth. “Most importantly, the teams from the MRC Studio and AI Hub got an opportunity to engage with leaders in the extended reality community. This was a huge win for our teams and I am certainly very proud of the work we do.”
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