OBJECTIVES

“Research, advocacy, capacity-building and dissemination of information about AI.”

RESEARCH
Conduct theoretical and applied research in the field of artificial intelligence and advanced digital technologies.

DEVELOPMENT
Develop open solutions to help achieve Sustainable Development Goals with specific focus on SDGs 4, 5, 8, 9, 10, 13, 16 and 17.

SUPPORT
Provide policy support to help Member States address the technical, legal, social and ethical challenges at the intersection of technology and policy.

TRAINING
Provide training for upstream and downstream capacity enhancement for artificial intelligence.

PARTICIPATION
Encourage multi-stakeholder participation and decision making in addressing the challenges raised by artificial intelligence.

DISSEMINATION
Disseminate information and encourage literacy about artificial intelligence.

PROMOTION
Promote measures for removal of gender bias in the development and deployment of artificial intelligence.

COOPERATION
Facilitate North-North and North-South cooperation in the development of artificial intelligence with special emphasis on supporting the development of a vibrant AI ecosystem in Africa.

STRATEGIES

“Applying cutting-edge science to solve real-world problems.”

RESEARCH

The goal will be to develop artificial intelligence-based tools, products and services to help UNESCO Member States accelerate their efforts to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Legal, ethical, economic and societal implications of these technologies will be addressed to make AI fair, transparent, and ethical. Researchers will be provided access to data, tools, services, platforms and indicators relevant to AI.

Open AI Solutions, Build-Measure-Learn Model of Adopting AI, AI Future Scenario Planning, Cross-Disciplinary Reflections on AI, AI Observatory of SDGs data

POLICY INNOVATION

By exploring wider implications of AI on society the Centre will provide expert advice to policy- and decision-makers on how best to apply AI for SDGs. A set of guidelines, information collection protocols, AI tool kits, policy briefs and regional analysis of AI ecosystem will be prepared. Based on them the Centre will help build effective policy decisions and operational frameworks related to AI for public service delivery, greater transparency and accountability.

Development of Indicators, Policy Support, Multi-Stakeholder Platform, Civil Society Outreach

POLICY INNOVATION

By exploring wider implications of AI on society the Centre will provide expert advice to policy- and decision-makers on how best to apply AI for SDGs. A set of guidelines, information collection protocols, AI tool kits, policy briefs and regional analysis of AI ecosystem will be prepared. Based on them the Centre will help build effective policy decisions and operational frameworks related to AI for public service delivery, greater transparency and accountability.

Development of Indicators, Policy Support, Multi-Stakeholder Platform, Civil Society Outreach

AI TALENT

Education systems need to anticipate changes in the skills required in a world where interactions with people and environment are increasingly mediated by technology. The Centre will collaborate and partner with other institutions to address challenges to education in the digital age and develop tools, guidelines and content to address the changing education needs of the world. A connected network of centres will bring together academic expertise from world-class universities, industries, governments, and other stakeholders will provide insights for updating education systems.

Training, Networking

IMPACT AND OUTREACH

The Centre understands the need to communicate scientific research and to engage with the wider public in the spirit of Citizen Science. This will be achieved through public events, workshops and conferences specifically tailored to address AI research in developmental topics and specific SDGs. By boosting technology transfer, research results and policy support the Centre will reach out to other AI initiatives from public to private sector.

Advocacy, Engagement

IMPACT AND OUTREACH

The Centre understands the need to communicate scientific research and to engage with the wider public in the spirit of Citizen Science. This will be achieved through public events, workshops and conferences specifically tailored to address AI research in developmental topics and specific SDGs. By boosting technology transfer, research results and policy support the Centre will reach out to other AI initiatives from public to private sector.

Advocacy, Engagement

CORONAVIRUS WATCH

“Stay safe, stay informed: follow the latest COVID-19 developments in your country in real time with this AI-powered tool.”

The researchers at IRCAI approached the incumbent COVID-19 outbreak by quickly building on its proven in-house AI technologies with the intention to engage in raising public awareness and solving the challenge of understanding the pandemic across different computational dimensions and AI models and techniques. The team almost overnight launched a distinctively European dashboard the Corona Virus Media Watch that uses global and national news updates to create powerful narratives and visualizations, that ultimately can take us further into future predictions of how the pandemic is evolving across the world. The application is already being used by intergovernmental agencies such as UNESCO and OECD, including national policymakers, media and the public to observe the emerging trends related to COVID-19 in their respective country and the world at wide.

https://coronaviruswatch.ircai.org/