The partnership between Unicamp, the multinational Samsung and Instituto SiDi, through the Viva Bem Project, was renewed on Friday, 4/2, with the inauguration of the Artificial Intelligence Hub, in a virtual ceremony. The activity was attended by the rector Antonio José de Almeida Meirelles, the general coordinator Maria Luiza Moretti, the State Secretary for Economic Development Patrícia Ellen, the director of Research and Development Planning at Samsung in Brazil Fernando Arruda, the pro-rector of Research João Romano and Hub coordinator Anderson Rocha. The event also featured representatives "Gleb Wataghin" Physics Institute (IFGW), the Computing Institute (IC), the Faculty of Electrical and Computer Engineering (FEEC) and the Faculty of Physical Education (FEF) at Unicamp will all have researchers involved in the project.
For 10 years, in 22 agreements, Unicamp and Samsung have carried out projects in partnership. The Viva Bem Project aims to create ideal conditions to be at the forefront of the convergent economy by focusing on cutting-edge research in AI and IoT aligned with the training of highly qualified human resources to promote an ecosystem appropriate to innovation, entrepreneurship and generation of knowledge in the health area and well-being. According to professor Andeson Rocha, from IC, the “Viva Bem will allow us to carry out innovative research that could lead to important advances in health and well-being for Brazil and the world”.
The participation of the SiDi Institute will enable the project to use a supercomputer. According to Rocha, SiDi IARA (Artificial Intelligence Revolutionizing Tomorrow) represents around two million notebooks operating together and offering innovations. It is a cluster of very high capacity GPUs, which is currently considered the third largest supercomputer in Latin America. IARA was built to execute Samsung's AI initiatives and, from now on, it will also be used by Unicamp researchers at Viva Bem. The project has 100% industry investment and hopes to have its research center within five years created.
For the rector of Unicamp, Antonio Meirelles, the partnership between Unicamp and Samsung, and SiDi's entry into the project, reaches its peak with the implementation of the Hub. “Our University has a great tradition in IT (Information Technology) and collaboration with industry. For Viva Bem, a world-class team was formed with renowned professors and researchers. It is important to continue the partnership with Samsung and the project will have the full support of the rectory to be successful”, he stated.
The general coordinator of Unicamp and doctor at Hospital das Clínicas, Maria Luiza Moretti, congratulated the project participants and said “she is happy that it is research in the health area”. “This project will bring many benefits to people and the country. Research that seeks to identify and anticipate treatments for chronic and silent diseases is very important. It is an honor for Unicamp to be in this partnership”, she concluded. As for the Secretary of Economic Development of the State of São Paulo, Patrícia Ellen, the partnership is a great opportunity for new investments to occur in this area with Unicamp and other universities in São Paulo. “It is important to optimize public, private and academic resources to present solutions that improve people’s lives,” she pointed out.
In Partnership with
Samsung has been working to promote the development of technologies related to Artificial Intelligence in the country, with investments in the creation of an ecosystem involving the company, R&D Centers and Universities. In order to ensure an integral and structural approach, the Samsung Artificial Intelligence Ecosystem is based on three basic pillars: education, research and application development.
In the area of education, the company has established partnerships with important Universities to promote Software Residency Programs in Artificial Intelligence that train professionals to combat the lack of qualified personnel in the technology area. In the research pillar, Samsung has been promoting the creation of Centers of Excellence in Artificial Intelligence, and the Viva Bem project is the first initiative in this direction. And the development of applications happens when the company collaborates so that the results obtained are implemented in society, including through its products and services, promoting frequent innovations on a global scale.
