Photo courtesy of ITRI

Taipei, June 26 (CNA) The government-sponsored Industrial Technology Research Institute's Industrial Economics and Knowledge Center (IEK) hosted a symposium Monday on the emerging trend of artificial intelligence (AI) that drew over 300 participants.

The event brought together AI experts from the world's top institutions to share their experiences on AI research and new business creation.

They included Stanford University professor Chuck Eesley, who provided his insight on venture investment in AI startups, including top venture capital investments in AI and recent IPOs/acquisitions. He also shared his perspectives on future commercial opportunities for AI applications.

According to IEK General Director Stephen Su (蘇孟宗), the AI sector has been moving forward at a rapid pace this year, in particular in areas such as image recognition, speech recognition, and medical diagnoses.

The market scale for AI technologies and applications worldwide is expected to grow and will help drive both the manufacturing and service sectors, Su said.

As such, Taiwan should utilize its industrial expertise and ICT technology to integrate AI into various applied service systems, he added.

National Taiwan University professor Hsu Yung-jen (許永真) said during the symposium that Taiwan needs to develop intelligent technologies to enhance human-machine collaboration and real-time interaction, which can be used in areas such as smart manufacturing.

Meanwhile, researchers in Taiwan should collaborate with local industrial players to provide vertical integration solutions for AI, she said.

According to the IEK, the ITRI established a collaborative platform with Stanford University in 2004 to encourage annual visits and conferences to both sides, while also enhancing exchanges between Taiwan and Silicon Valley in the United States.

(By Wei Shu and Ko Lin)
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