In a significant stride towards preparing India’s next generation of AI leaders, the Indian Institute of Information Technology, Design and Manufacturing (IIITDM), Jabalpur, launched its 1st Summer School on ‘Deep Learning: Shaping the Future of AI’ which will continue till June 14. At the inaugural session, Professor Bhartendu Kumar Singh, Director and Chief Patron, emphasized the transformative role of AI and ML in the 21st century, and celebrated the active involvement of experts from across the ecosystem. Dr Rakesh Kumar Sanodiya, Program Convener, briefed about the program.

 

Adding academic depth, Professor Aparajita Ojha articulated the integration of AI into formal curricula and elucidated core ML concepts for participants. Professor Pritee Khanna, Dean (RSPC), commended the organizational vision behind the event and underlined IIITDM’s research prowess and international collaborations. Professor Atul Gupta traced AI’s evolution from rule-based systems to LLMs, highlighting its profound impact on every domain within computer science. Chief guest Dr Gopichand Katragadda, CEO, Myelin Foundry, called for building India into a global hub of intelligence innovation, referencing India’s deep-rooted contributions to the AI revolution, including the influential “Attention is All You Need” paper. Guest of honour M Balasubramaniam, CEO, StratInfinity and Deputy Chair, MoE Investor Committee, framed India’s growing leadership in AI as part of a global shift. Citing the UNESCO AI Competency Framework, he proposed that the Summer School be scaled up to a national-level initiative under the Ministry of Education. The initiative marks a major academic-industrial collaboration aimed at strengthening foundational expertise in artificial intelligence while aligning with global innovation trends.

 

This four-week programme’s curriculum spans the full spectrum of AI advancements from the basics of deep learning to cutting-edge developments like Large Language Models (LLMs), Generative AI, ChatGPT, Diffusion Models, and Explainable AI. Over 550 participants representing academia and industry and the lineup of 35 distinguished speakers from leading institutions such as IITs, IIITs, NITs, and tech giants like Google, Amazon, LinkedIn, and Samsung, reflects a rich confluence of academic depth and industrial relevance.