IIM Bangalore celebrates artificial intelligence day

The Data Centre and Analytics Lab (DCAL) at IIM Bangalore, in association with IBM Research – India , organised ‘Research AI Day’ recently at IIMB. The theme of the event was ‘Usable Artificial Intelligence’ featuring expert speakers from academia and industry, a panel discussion, quizzes, demos, posters and tutorials for students and practitioners of AI. The program aimed to showcase the current trends in AI, what it takes to do research in AI, and applications of AI such as AI & Law, AI & Heath, AI & Education, AI & Retail, AI & Fashion, Adversarial AI, AI: Ethics & Responsible Use, AI & Privacy, AI & Policy/Govt, Dangers of Data, etc.

The event also witnessed the launch of the book, titled, ‘Machine Learning using Python’, by Professor U Dinesh Kumar and Manaranjan Pradhan, IIM Bangalore. The book is written to provide a strong foundation in Machine Learning using Python libraries by providing real-life case studies and examples. It covers topics such as Foundations of Machine Learning, Introduction to Python, Descriptive Analytics, Predictive Analytics, Prescriptive Analytics, Advanced Machine Learning, Recommender Systems and Text Analytics. The book takes a balanced approach between theoretical understanding and practical applications.

While launching the book, U Dinesh Kumar, Professor, Decision Sciences, Chair of the MBA in Business Analytics and Chair of Career Development Services, and the Data Centre and Analytics Lab at IIM Bangalore, said: “The age of technology is on us and it’s changing the way we live. It has reduced the human effort through automation that helps solve current day problems. But, what goes behind this is all AI and ML. All the topics included in the book are real-world examples and provide step-by-step approach on how to explore, build, evaluate, and optimize machine learning models.”

Manaranjan Pradhan, founder and director at AwesomeStats Consulting Pvt. Ltd., observed: “Students who want to specialize in Machine Learning will enjoy reading this book. The book is designed to facilitate structured learning for people who want to begin from the intermediate level. This book is written to provide a strong foundation in Machine Learning using Python libraries by providing real-life case studies and examples. I am overwhelmed that this book has been launched at IIM Bangalore on Artificial Intelligence Day event and would urge readers to share their feedbacks on the book.”

IIM Bangalore will be offering an MBA in Business Analytics in 2020. It will be a multi-disciplinary program intended to equip students to solve business and social problems. The program will equip students with skills to define problems using analytical tools and techniques to identify patterns, gain insights, develop business strategies and help make better decisions.

The Research AI program was followed by panel discussion on ‘Applying AI : Challenges and Road Ahead’ by leading experts such as Sridharan Devarajan, Assistant Professor, IISc Bangalore; Subrat Panda, Heading AI and Data Sciences, Capillary Technologies;Vidhushi Marda, Legal Researcher, Technology, Policy; Gargi B Dasgupta, Director, IBM Research India and CTO, IBM India & South Asia.