With the launch of the physical space of the Artificial Intelligence and Cognitive Architectures Hub (H.IAAC), on the 17th, Unicamp gains a new area dedicated to artificial intelligence. Linked to the University's Computing Institute (IC), the laboratory was built from a project that included investment from the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MCTI) and partnerships with the Eldorado Institute and Softex (Society for the Promotion of Brazilian Software Excellence), in addition to the support of companies such as Motorola.
In its third cycle of action, the H.IAAC is the result of a significant project prepared in 2020, which had a total contribution of R$ 20 million since its approval. It focuses on developing and disseminating knowledge about technologies capable of integrating artificial intelligence resources into mobile devices. His research aims, among other objectives, to amplify the decision-making capacity of smartphones, tablets and other devices, so that they become less dependent on human activation. At Unicamp alone, the team comprises more than 50 professionals, including 23 professors who are specialists in artificial intelligence and cognitive architecture. According to Stanford University, in the United States, some of them are included in the list of the most influential scientists in the world.
The consolidation of H.IAAC's activities illustrates Brazil's capacity to lead a new phase in world innovation, emphasizes the rector of Unicamp, Antonio José de Almeida Meirelles. “Our country now has the opportunity to take a leap forward and get closer to the developed world. Today, the development of research takes place through interaction between areas and partnerships. We, from Unicamp, are part of this movement in our work with innovation”, he evaluates.
This Monday (20th), around 45 researchers, including professors and undergraduate, master's and doctoral students at Unicamp, will start working in the new laboratory in person. The IC's director and project coordinator, Professor Leandro Villas, highlights the pioneering nature of the new H.IAAC laboratory. “We now have a state-of-the-art infrastructure, like the ones we find in the United States. The project was even awarded”, he celebrates. It has an appropriate meeting room to meet the need to hold meetings via teleconferences and an integration area “very welcome to receive staff after so much time working remotely”, points out the coordinator.
Villas also recalls that the H.IAAC would not have got off the ground if it weren't for the trust placed in the project by the partners. “This project was certainly born because the Rectory believed and made an opportunity available, and the Eldorado Institute provided R$ 400 for us to start construction”, he says, also pointing out the fundamental role played by MCTI, Softex and Motorola so that the work of the hub continued throughout these years. “Thanks to this support, we were able to offer scholarships with values much better than the standard. Without this, it would be impossible to keep our researchers with us, as the market in the sector has heated up a lot with the pandemic ”, he concludes.
For the director of the IC, with the H.IAAC, Unicamp serves as a reference for other initiatives involving universities and research centers, government and the private sector to be able to study solutions for the real pains of society. “There needs to be more unions like this one, to create sources of funding in a country with as many needs as ours. It is very gratifying to be able to make a project like this possible”, he concludes.
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Unicamp and partners launch Artificial Intelligence and Cognitive Architectures Hub
Hub of Artificial Intelligence and Cognitive Architectures (H.IACC)
