The University of North Dakota (UND) will host a summit focused on artificial intelligence (AI) and autonomous systems on September 10, 2023. This event, organized by IEEE-USA, aims to gather key stakeholders, including academia, government officials, and industry leaders, to foster discussions on technological innovation in the region.
Spotlighting Innovation in North Dakota
The summit, part of the Innovation, Workforce and Research Conference series, is designed to highlight the advancements taking place in North Dakota. Melissa Carl, director of business development at IEEE-USA, emphasized the importance of showcasing local innovations that might not be widely recognized. “It’s a way for us to help put that spotlight on some really cool innovation that’s going on that maybe not the rest of the country would know about,” she stated.
Scheduled to take place in the Memorial Union from 08:00 to 16:00, the summit will focus on the intersection of AI, aerospace, and autonomous systems. According to Leah Laird, senior marketing and communications specialist at IEEE-USA, holding such events in smaller, rural areas promotes innovation and workforce development by bringing together influential figures from various sectors.
North Dakota Autonomy Week Celebration
The summit coincides with North Dakota Autonomy Week, proclaimed by Governor Kelly Armstrong. The proclamation recognizes the state as a national leader in the development and deployment of autonomous systems, positioning UND as a leading research institution in this field. It highlights collaborative efforts among industry leaders and public-private partnerships to advance AI, robotics, and autonomous technologies.
“Autonomy Week celebrates the innovators, educators, entrepreneurs, farms, and public servants working to ensure that intelligent and autonomous systems benefit all communities across our state,” the proclamation noted.
During his annual State of the University address, Andrew Armacost, President of UND, expressed the university’s ambition to establish itself as a leader in AI this academic year. He underscored the importance of preparing students for an AI-enabled future across various disciplines. “It’s not the blind adoption of new tools; it’s the critical inquiry about what the societal impacts are on AI,” he remarked.
At the summit, Armacost will engage in a fireside chat with Phillip Smith, Program Manager at the Tactical Technology Office of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). The event is expected to attract IEEE-USA members, UND faculty, business leaders, and other stakeholders.
Brandon Bochenski, Mayor of Grand Forks, will also deliver remarks during the summit, further emphasizing the significance of this gathering.
Following the summit, IEEE-USA plans to hold a more traditional technical conference at UND in October 2023. For those interested in attending, the full agenda and registration details are available at iwrc.ieeeusa.org/iwrc-grand-forks/.
