Author: Kath Williamson

On 26 February, CIRES welcomed Dr Barb Wixom and Dr Alan Thorogood from the MIT CISR (MIT Center for Information Systems Research). Barb is the Principal Research Scientist at MIT CISR & member of the CIRES International Expert Panel. She is a world authority in data with three decades of impactful academic work, & her insights uniquely bridge academia & industry. Her new book Data is Everybody’s Business aims to inspire workers across organisations to engage in data monetization.

CIRES CI Dr Ida Asadi Someh from the UQ Business School is a long-time collaborator with Barb. “Barb is simply an inspiration for me & the whole data field. She has been providing thought leadership into organisational aspects of data & has significantly shaped research & practice in this topic. Her new book really translates in-depth scientific work into concepts, approaches, frameworks that every professional will need to know & use as AI becomes an integrated part of every job. She is democratizing the knowledge we all need to upskill for the future.”

Yesterday’s workshop “Data Monetization Fundamentals: Decoding Three Decades of Academic Research about Data Value for Practice Success” included an interactive seminar covering the core concepts of data monetization, & a deep-dive forum on how companies can establish acceptable data use practices as a foundational step toward ensuring responsible AI.

The workshop audience included representatives across Australian industry, government, & academia, including the Centre’s PhD researchers, Postdocs, & Engineers who were keen to learn from Barb.

CIRES PhD researcher Daisy Xu. has utilised some of Barb’s case studies to inform her own research. “Barb has a very admirable skill in communicating research outputs to a wide audience, making academic work highly accessible and practical. I found the Data Monetization Capability Framework to be particularly inspiring. It can be immediately useful for practitioners; for instance, they can use it to self-assess their readiness for monetizing their data assets after participating in a benchmarking survey. What’s truly remarkable is that her team collaborates with many Australian organizations that are at the forefront of the data space.”

CIRES PhD researcher Jorge Retamales said “I’m really appreciative of Barb’s visit. She conveyed important ideas with such clarity. I especially liked the improving-wrapping-selling framework. It provides an easy vocabulary where anyone can understand how tangible value can be obtained from data. I also liked her practical advice on data capabilities. It’s a great tool for organisations to enable productive conversations to plan their data monetization goals while considering their current context.”

Our thanks again to Barb for such a dynamic & insightful session & to everyone who joined us for this event.

VIEW THE PHOTO GALLERY HERE

How do you think explainable (generative) AI and the ‘why’ and ‘how’ behind AI’s decisions could transform our trust in technology and its role in our lives?

CIRES CI, A/Prof Hassan Khosravi is thrilled to announce the publication of “Explainable Artificial Intelligence (XAI) 2.0: A Manifesto of Open Challenges and Interdisciplinary Research Directions” in the prestigious Journal of Information Fusion.

Read the paper open access at https://lnkd.in/gRJrXb3n

January 2024

Centre Director, Prof Shazia Sadiq was interviewed by ABC National Radio on the AI regulation plans announced by federal government.

The Australian Government has released an interim report on supporting responsible AI. This discussion paper focuses on governance mechanisms to ensure AI is developed and used safely and responsibly in Australia. These mechanisms include regulations, standards, tools, frameworks, principles and business practices. The paper builds on the recent Rapid Research Report on Generative AI delivered by the government’s National Science and Technology Council.

Comparatively, here are links to UK’s Bletchley Declaration and EU’s AI Act.

December 2023

Centre Director, Prof Shazia Sadiq, and CIRES CIs A/Prof Gianluca Demartini and Dr Rocky Chen networked with key leaders in AI at the National AI Leadership Summit in Sydney on 8 December. CEDA and CSIRO’s National Artificial Intelligence Centre presented a flagship Summit, convening leading voices on how AI can be leveraged in a positive and inclusive way to transform industries and advance the Australian economy. The Summit will outline how leaders can position their organisations, and Australia more broadly to enable the take up of responsible AI at scale.

CIRES CI A/Prof Gianluca Demartini was interviewed by  The Guardian about the use of Artificial Intelligence in law enforcement. ‘Some mistakes will happen’. Here is a link to the article.

An exciting week for AI as the Australasian Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence [AJCAI] at The University of Queensland yesterday from 28 Nov – 1 Dec 2023 with an agenda packed day of tutorials and workshops.

CIRES students, Hongliang Ni and Zirui Tan, participated in the AJCAI PhD Forum. Additionally, CIRES Centre Director Professor Shazia Sadiq chaired the conference keynote by Professor H. Peter Soyer internationally recognised leader in the field of dermatology.

Professor Soyer is internationally recognised in the field of dermatology, and a pioneer and world leader in the field of dermoscopy of pigmented skin lesions, a non-invasive diagnostic method. He has lead the development of the morphologic classification system currently used worldwide.

AI has made significant advancements in the field of dermatology, offering a wide range of applications and benefits. His talk will focus on some key areas in which AI is being used within this domain, including: Skin Cancer and Skin Disease Diagnosis; Telemedicine and Teledermatology; Clinical Decision Support; Research and Drug Development; and Wearable Devices and Monitoring.

On 16-17 October, CIRES Centre Manager Kate Aldridge and Coordinator Kathleen Williamson attended the 2023 ARC National ITRP Managers Symposium held in Adelaide; meeting with ARC representatives and fellow Managers from across Australia and sharing tips, insights and experience in the operational management of our ARC Hubs and Training Centres. This important knowledge sharing and problem solving event, also included a professional training session “Speaking with Influence” presented by Gary Edwards which provided many tactics and strategies to improve communication, and get better results in any situation. Below is a photo of the UQ representatives at the Symposium.