Affirming UB’s Leadership in AI for Social Good
UB President Satish K. Tripathi with New York State Gov. Kathy Hochul at an Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month event.
Beyond the Digital Age
“A calculated risk.” Whenever I reflect on my professional path with others, that’s how I describe my decision to venture outside the established field of statistics—my original area of expertise—to pursue advanced degrees in computer science. At the time, as a recent college graduate, I could see that computer science had the potential to transform the way we work and live. However, in the early 1970s, only a handful of scholars were specializing in the field. The Digital Age was still in its infancy. Notwithstanding the intellectual thrill of immersing myself in a rapidly evolving discipline, it was a bit daunting to stake my future in a field still coming into its own.
It has been many years since any college graduate would consider it risky to pursue a career in computer science. As its applications continue to expand, many contend that we have eclipsed the Digital Age. This new era has brought what were once thought experiments, like artificial intelligence—a subdiscipline of computer science—into the mainstream. From virtual assistants and smart speakers to navigation apps and ChatGPT, AI is enmeshed in the everyday.
Beyond AI creating efficiencies in our routines, it is increasingly demonstrating its capacity to address a range of complex needs and problems. That’s where UB comes in. Across disciplines, more than 200 UB faculty researchers are tapping AI and other frontier technologies to create interventions for children with speech disorders, help first responders reach disaster victims quicker, improve farming methods, gauge Americans’ view on racial inequality—and that’s just the tip of the “AI-ceberg”!
Changing the game
Earlier this year, as you’ll read in this issue of At Buffalo, New York State Governor Kathy Hochul designated UB the home of Empire AI, her proposed $400 million consortium that will put the State at the forefront of artificial intelligence research and innovation. Empire AI will include SUNY, CUNY and private research universities in New York State, as well as private foundations. It will attract significant federal funding while expanding 21st-century business and industry across the region and state. As the home of Empire AI, UB will be the premier center of its kind in the nation.
The governor’s game-changing designation affirms not only UB’s national and international leadership in artificial intelligence, but our longstanding commitment to harness AI for social good. Much like the dawn of the Digital Age, we’re at an inflection point in this so-called Fourth Industrial Revolution. There’s still a great deal that’s unknown about AI. In the wrong hands, it can give rise to manipulation, deception and worse. Understanding how to leverage artificial intelligence for the betterment of humanity, I would argue, is one of the defining challenges of our time. At UB, I am pleased to tell you, we are meeting this challenge head on.
Published May 31, 2024
