listen to this articleThe first New Jersey AI Summit, held earlier this month at Princeton University in partnership with the New Jersey Department of Economic Development and Governor Phil Murphy's Office, brought together more than 600 leaders from a variety of disciplines, organizations, and sectors. A day of networking was held. Conversation, discussion, and sharing of ideas about artificial intelligence.
“The AI hub advances two of Princeton's top strategic priorities: helping foster a strong regional ecosystem and accelerating AI innovation and education,” said school president Christopher Eisgruber. . “This hub provides us with an incredible opportunity to come together to make bold investments that have a positive impact on our region and state, as well as our nation and the world.”
“The conversations we're going to have. All of the ideas generated in the sessions will go back to the teams that are developing plans for the AI hub,” said Princeton University President Jennifer Rexford. “As we leave here tonight, exhausted but elated, we will have a shared understanding of the state of AI, the region’s unique benefits and opportunities, and we will have new friends and collaborations. There will be potential partners who can.”
Through a series of “light talks,” a panel of experts took to the stage to discuss areas such as the fundamentals of AI. AI for technology and engineering. AI for finance. Education and Workforce Development. AI for health. AI for sustainable energy. Compute and data resources for AI. AI, society and policy.
In these lightning talks (rather than a panel discussion format), which lasted approximately 10 minutes or less per speaker, leaders explained their business or enterprise perspective on AI and current or future applications of AI. The lineup included a mix of AI experts, business leaders, academic leaders, and other stakeholders from Princeton and the region.
“I know we are still in the very early stages of building this hub, but this summit was a great reminder to me that it was absolutely the right step, and even more so than Princeton for us. “We have made it perfectly clear that there is no better partner than the University,” Murphy said. “And look at the wide range of topics covered at today's summit.”
Here are some examples of insights provided during Lightning Talks.
- “Given that we are at the beginning of this journey, there is really no reason why New Jersey cannot lead this journey,” said Thierry Klein, president of Bell Labs Solutions Research. Nokia Bell Laboratories. “There's a perception that maybe other states and companies from other states are the leaders, and we should give up. I believe New Jersey has a lot of assets: a variety of academic institutions, a technology sector, There's no reason we can't provide leadership in New Jersey, and we all need to work together.''
- “This is a great opportunity for us to work together through our corporate research facility and AI hub and work with universities across New Jersey to really drive this forward and make this possible,” said Johan Grape, vice president of technology. says Mr. and innovation, Siemens Digital Industries. “We look forward to working with the great state of New Jersey.”
- “We understand, accept and welcome the fact that AI continues to evolve rapidly both technologically and regulatoryly,” Chief Data Officer Kersten Moody said. Prudential Financial Co., Ltd. “And it's also our responsibility to have an ecosystem that co-innovates with artificial intelligence, and to innovate the governance and frameworks that govern that underlying functionality.”
- “New Jersey has a teacher supply problem. So instead of thinking about replacing teachers with adaptive technology and the learning process, let's think about how to make teachers' jobs viable. Let’s start a different conversation,” said Jennifer Jennings, professor of sociology and public affairs. Princeton University. “If teachers have the time to build deep, meaningful relationships with children, and with the help of AI they can target specific areas that need support, get feedback and re-practice, this situation can be improved. jobs – and keeping top talent in the classroom.”
- “I think this is a huge opportunity for us as leaders in New Jersey to reimagine and embed general education as AI. That means we need to consider specialized courses,” said Brenden Rickards, provost and vice president. Rowan University in South Jersey. “They don't just know how to read, they know how to write; they know how to do math. How they do science – because those are all important. Is it possible to understand it?”
creating a new economy
The keynote address for the NJ AI Summit was given by Brad Smith, a 1981 Princeton graduate and vice chairman and president of Microsoft. Mr. Smith leads a global team of approximately 2,000 employees and oversees the company's large-scale AI investments.
“I think creating an AI hub requires us to unite the community. Unite the nation. Unite the people,” Smith said. “And you can't do that unless you can connect with people, unless you can communicate with people. When it comes to AI, one of the things I've learned is that AI is a formidable challenge. .”
Smith likened AI and its potential to the invention of the printing press.
“Printing presses themselves were not very useful; creating movable type required advances in paper, ink, and foundries,” Smith explained. “But more than that, the printing press created a whole new economy. An economy that created new categories, businesses, jobs. You needed bookbinding machines. Then you needed bookstores. That's people writing for newspapers. And in the end, it all served the two most important groups: readers and writers.”
He went on to point out that looking back at the printing press, it created not just a new economy, but a better world.
“Not always. What the printing press was used for was sometimes a little trivial,” Smith said. “But more than that, what the printing press gave us was extraordinary, and it's pretty much everything that people hold dear on this campus. It led to the Renaissance and the Reformation, and from the scientific method to the Enlightenment. Basically, it enabled the spread of democracy itself.
“I think the same is true for AI,” Smith emphasized. “Like the printing press, it's not a single technology. Today's topic reflects that. It starts with land, electricity, electricity, chips, data centers. Whether it's a company like Microsoft Even a great company like CoreWeave here in New Jersey requires a lot of data, and hey, it costs a lot of money. New opportunities arise for those creating AI-powered applications for everything.If there is a problem in today's world, there is likely a solution based, in part, on the use of generative AI. There will be.”
New Jersey can lead the way.
Emphasizing that you don't have to invent technology to become a place that makes the most of it, Smith pointed to ways New Jersey can become a leader, nodding to the state's long tradition and history of innovation. did. “I think we have an opportunity here in New Jersey to create the next generation of great technology,” Smith said. “But I would also say this: If that's all you do, you'll be missing out on the tremendous potential that New Jersey has to offer.”
He cited former New Jersey residents Albert Einstein and Robert Oppenheimer for balancing advancing technology with the potential harm of its overreach or misuse.
“If that was needed for the atomic bomb, in my opinion, we need it today,” Smith said. “Part of the reason is that bad actors are already putting artificial intelligence to difficult, unfortunate, and sometimes terrifying uses. But we also need to recognize this. We are the first generation to create machines that can make decisions that humans have never made before. We must ensure that we do not disappoint the future. generation must do their part to ensure that this new generation of technology serves humanity.”
“But as the first generation, we have no choice but to get it right,” Smith emphasized, urging all parties to collaborate in efforts to ensure this technology is used appropriately. called out to the person.
“I think what's important is that we come together to think ahead about one of the most positive, promising, and potentially devastating developments in human history,” Murphy said. “But more importantly, whether we are legislators, academics or industry leaders, we are united in the belief that we have an obligation to innovate responsibly when it comes to this area. And that's especially important here in New Jersey, where I believe our state is perfectly positioned to lead the way in leveraging generative AI to address some of the world's biggest challenges. ”
Citing its innovation heritage, location, talented workforce, resources and thriving innovation ecosystem, Murphy said the Garden State is on a path to leveraging this technology to address some of the world's biggest challenges. He said he was in a position to lead the way.
“The goal is for state leaders to pioneer a series of AI-powered breakthroughs over the next 10 years that will change the lives of billions of people for the better,” Murphy said. “In the process, we will establish New Jersey as a home for AI research and development. I hope it will be the catalyst that opens the new century.”
“From discovering new drugs and treatments to developing personalized educational tools, we help every student reach their full potential and everything in between,” Murphy said. I continued. “We want New Jersey to take the lead in shaping the future of AI, not for the benefit of a few stakeholders, but for the benefit of everyone.”
