The African Institute for Mathematical Services (AIMS) is set to launch a one-year intensive Africa Master’s in Machine Intelligence (AMMI) with support from Google and Facebook.
The program which will take off in September at the AIMS-Rwanda campus in Kigali, seeks to address the positioning of the continent at the rung of technology development in the world. Africa is said to be lagging behind other continents on machine intelligence learning and research that focuses on the unique problems the continent faces.
Machine intelligence (MI) is another term for artificial intelligence (AI) and it refers to the ability of a digital computer or computer-controlled robot to perform tasks commonly associated with intelligent beings.
The creators of the program named it African Master’s in Machine Intelligence to direct attention on challenges and insights relevant to Africa.
“Over the past decade – thanks to large public and private investments – MI has progressed rapidly in both basic research and the development of a vast array of applications,” Mouhamadou Moustapha Cisse, founder and director of AMMI program said in a statement. “However, the talent pool currently advancing MI is modest and unrepresentative of the diversity of our world, leaving us less capable of facing global challenges. Our goal with AMMI is to train a generation of young scientists who will bring a fresh perspective to machine intelligence research and contribute to advancing its development across Africa, for the benefit of its society.”
For Google deepening machine intelligence and closing the technology gap is strategic as it enables tap into the many innovative opportunities the continent offers. Later this year, Google will open its first AI research centre in Accra, Ghana.
“The field of machine intelligence is advancing rapidly, and it is imperative that industry leaders including Google and Facebook continue to partner with academic institutions like AIMS to develop the next generation of students who will build MI that benefits everyone,” Jeff Dean, Lead of AI at Google said. “We look forward to working with AIMS to drive this effort through the AMMI program. Along with our recent announcement of a Google AI centre, scheduled to open later this year in Ghana, this partnership with AIMS is another example of our long investment and commitment to Africa.
Participants in the AMMI program which is free will benefit from a state-of-the-art training in machine learning and its applications. Lectures will be provided by African and international institutions including Amazon, Imperial College and California Institute of Technology among others.
