ITAM held its 2024 Seminar in Computing Perspectives, organized by the Alumni of Office at ITAM, where experts from different sectors discussed the impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in society, business and human development. The event was inaugurated by Fernando Esponda, Director of the Division of Computer Science, ITAM , who pointed out the importance of AI in all areas of human knowledge and its recent increase in influence, both in the academic and private sector.
During the seminar, Ivan Tashev, Partner Software Architect at Microsoft, was the keynote speaker. Tashev spoke about Microsoft’s advances in artificial intelligence, emphasizing in how the company has published more research than their competitors. He explained that the current research at Microsoft is focused on integrating AI in an ethical way to its products, with a special focus in the direct control between the human mind and computers, looking to minimize the human intervention through direct reading of he activity in the system’s central nervous system.
Analysis table: Where are we headed with AI?
The first analysis table, moderated by Fernando Esponda, ITAM academic and founder of the Computing Science Master’s Program, explored the subject “Where are we headed with AI?”. The speakers, Delia Marin, senior cloud support engineer in AWS; Brenda Olivas, PhD in computer science and senior solution architect in NVIDIA; and Carlos Osaya, Director of corporate services in BAL, discussed the evolution of AI since ChatGPT irruption. They pointed out that a lot of the technological structures supported by GPT have existed since 2008, but the limited processing capacity prevented its development. Today, thanks to companies like NVIDIA and their open codes, the exponential growth of AI are being facilitated by technological platforms accessible for a broader public.
Analysis table: innovation, artificial intelligence and their impact in business
The second table, moderated by Daniela Ruiz Massieu, EPIC Lab director at ITAM, focused on the subject “Innovation, artificial intelligence and their impact in business development”. Ruiz Massieu pointed out the importance of the lab, that has pushed innovation during the last 10 years, transformed the way in which Mexican companies adopt technology. She emphasized that AI has turned in a fundamental tool for competition and its integration is unavoidable for companies to keep their relevance in an even more digital world.
Among the speakers, Federico Antoni, one of the most active AI investors in the region, explained how Latin American companies have been able to compete at the same level of their international counterparts thanks to the access to advanced technologies. Julián López Portillo, CEO of SensAI, shared his experience leading a start up based on AI, Alfonso Garrido, from PALANTIR Technologies, highlighted AI’s impact in sectors like energy, where the capacity of analyzing big volumes of data is transforming the decision making.
The table also addressed the challenge of explainability of decisions taken by AI, pointing out that the regulation is starting to ask for transparency in these processes. The speakers concluded that AI is not only changing the operating efficiency, but also the work environment, requesting a continuing adaptation of employees and company leaders to make the most of the new opportunities that offers this technology.
Analysis table: Technology and responsibility
The third analysis table, “Technology and responsibilyty: impacts and responsibilities of Artificial Intelligence”, was moderated by Juan Manuel Casanueva, director of the Data and Algorithm Center at ITAM. The attendees discussed the risks and opportunities of AI, particularly in relation with company responsibility to use it in an ethical way. Fernando Chavez, founder of Cuéntame, spoke about the impact of AI in mental health, while José Pantaleón Domínguez, ITAM professor, and Dr. Gabriela Sued, researcher of Tecnologico de Monterrey, explored the philosophical and humanistic implications of AI in today’s society. They pointed out that, although AI can be perceived as a magical solution, it also represents a significant risk if not regulated properly.
The seminar concluded with a few words from Humberto Lopez Gallegos, who encouraged the attendees to dive deeper in the opportunities that the master’s programs in computer science at ITAM offer, highlighting its relevance in an increasingly technology-driven world. Marco Antonio Morales, of the Artificial Intelligence Engineering program, closed the event by pointing out how exciting it is to see how issues that were once discussed only in the technical sphere are now part of a broader social debate. He highlighted the dizzying pace at which this technology is advancing and expressed his excitement for the development that will come out next year, anticipating with interest the discussions that will be taking place during the next seminar.
ANUNCIO
