UP sets AI conference amid recognition of the technology’s social impact

QUEZON CITY, Philippines – As the 2024 Nobel Prize hails scientific breakthroughs which made artificial intelligence (AI) technology possible, the University of the Philippines is set to gather the country’s experts for a conference underscoring AI’s profound impact on society, modern science, and the research community.

The university-organized “AI Horizons PH ’24: Conference on AI-Powered Research and Innovation” on October 24 and 25 at the UP-BGC campus in Taguig City will also highlight AI-driven solutions that can potentially transform the Philippines’ unique challenges in food security, sustainable agriculture, quality education, good governance, materials and energy, and health and wellness.

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences Nobel Committee honored physicist John Hopfield and computer scientist Geoffrey Hinton recently for their “foundational discoveries and inventions that enable machine learning with artificial neural networks.” It underlined how Hopfield’s work on associative memory and Hinton’s contributions to deep learning had laid the groundwork for today’s AI revolution, from language translation to image recognition and beyond.

“The 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics shows that investing in AI is not just an option but an imperative for our nation’s future,” UP President Atty. Angelo A. Jimenez noted. “As one of the world’s most prestigious science awards recognized AI’s global significance, UP has been taking concrete steps to harness its power for national progress.’’

Dr. Gisela P. Concepcion, UP’s Special Adviser to the President on Research and Innovation, drew parallels between the Nobel-winning work and UP’s initiative: “The breakthroughs recognized by the Nobel Prizes – from fundamental machine learning to protein structure prediction – demonstrate AI’s potential to accelerate discovery and innovation across all fields.”

Concepcion added that “just as Hopfield and Hinton laid the foundations for modern AI, UP aims to lay the groundwork for AI-driven national development. This conference is our step towards positioning the Philippines at the forefront of AI innovation in Southeast Asia.”

Conference chair Dr. Prospero Naval, Jr. of the UP Diliman Department of Computer Science said the organizers “aim to ignite AI transformation in our country, championing a vision where AI is integrated into everything and made accessible to everyone.”

“AI’s transformative potential hinges on our commitment to digital infrastructure and data-driven strategies across all sectors,” emphasized Peter Sy, UP Assistant Vice President for Digital Transformation.

AI’s pivotal role across many sectors will be discussed during the two-day conference. Confirmed keynote speakers per track include Department of Education Secretary Sonny Angara, Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte, Department of Agriculture Undersecretary Allan Q. Umali, Department of Health Undersecretary Glenn Matthew Baggao, and Executive Director Enrico Paringit of the Department of Science and Technology-Philippine Council for Industry, Energy.

AI in Food, Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries will feature talks by UP scientist and professor Dr. Maria Victoria Ortega Espaldon (“Smarter Approaches to Reinvigorate Agriculture as an Industry in the Philippines”), Dr. Homer Pantua of the Institute of Biological Sciences and BioAssets (“AI-Guided Approach to Livestock Vaccine Design and Development”), UP Marine Science Institute Director Dr. Laura David (“Fish-I for Fisheries Biodiversity, Aquaculture, and Fisheries”), De La Salle University professor and NAST academician Dr. Elmer Dadios (“Automated Agriculture Machinery”), and Lowell Sy of Precision Path Technologies, Inc. (“Path Precisions Technology Drones”).

AI in Education and Governance will be discussed by Dr. Prospero Naval, Jr. of the UP Diliman Department of Computer Science (“Data Science and AI: UP Degree Programs and Short Courses”), Ateneo Laboratory for the Learning Sciences professor Dr. Maria Mercedes Rodrigo (“AI in Education”) and UP Diliman College of Science Dean Dr. Giovanni Tapang (“Versatile Instrumentation System for Science and Research’’), UP Diliman professorial lecturer Romeo Gabriel Solis (“Tanza Child Development Centre’’) and UP Diliman National Institute of Physics professor Dr. May Lim (“AI in Traffic and Road Systems”).

AI in Materials and Energy will include topics that will be presented by the Philippine Space Agency Director-General Joel Joseph Marciano Jr. (“Role of Artificial Intelligence in Space Technology”), Governor’s Chair Professor at University of Tennessee-Tickle College of Engineering Dr. Rigoberto Advincula (“Advanced Manufacturing and Chemical Industries”), Advanced Science and Technology Institute Director Dr. Franz de Leon (“AI Initiatives of ASTI”); UP Diliman Engineering Research Development for Technology Project Leader Dr. Roel Ocampo (“High Performance Computing for AI”), and Dr. Lea Bronuela-Ambrocio, Prototype Automated Visual Survey Equipment (PAVE) Project Leader, UP Diliman National Institute of Civil Engineering (“AI in Transportation”).

AI in Health and Wellness (Mental, Physical, Socio-Cultural) will be discussed by NAST academician and UP Professor Emeritus Dr. Antonio Miguel Dans (“AI assisted UHC/PMC electronic records), UP Philippine Genome Center Executive Director Felicitas S. Lacbawan (“AI in Molecular Diagnostics and Genetics”), Dr. Johanna Patricia Cañal, professor of Radiology in UP Manila and Philippine General Hospital (“AI in Radiology”), Dr. Nathaniel Orillaza Jr., associate professor in Orthopedics at UP Manila and PGH (“AI in Orthopedics”), and Dr. Iris Thiele Isip Tan of the Medical Informatics Unit, College of Medicine, UP Manila (“Mental Wellness and AI”).

UP Vice President for Academic Affairs Leo Cubillan MD and UP Diliman Chancellor Atty. Carlo Vistan will deliver the closing remarks for Day 1 and Day 2 of the conference, respectively.

More information and registration details at https://ai-horizons.up.edu.ph/