With a focus on fostering an ecosystem of AI practitioners, and enabling Abu Dhabi to become a global hub for Artificial Intelligence (AI) innovations, Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence MBZUAI has been focussed on leading and building new technologies. The MBZUAI Incubation and Entrepreneurship Centre (MIEC) has equipped over 22 graduates with the needed skills, tools, and networks needed to commercialize their AI solutions in the UAE.
The five most innovative and influential innovations are:
- AI Operating System – AIOS – greening AI
AI stands out as the preeminent solution sought after by industries worldwide, including the sustainability sector. However, while AI presents opportunities to combat climate change by enhancing industrial efficiency, it also carries a substantial carbon footprint of its own.
In response to this challenge, the university has spearheaded the development of the AI Operating System (AIOS), a technology aimed at significantly mitigating the environmental impact of AI computing. By addressing the three major costs of AI computing—energy consumption, time, and talent—MBZUAI’s AIOS marks a pivotal advancement in sustainable AI innovation. Through the reduction of model size, optimization of computing operations, and the streamlining of training processes, AIOS endeavors to minimize energy consumption and accelerate AI development.
- Jais – Arabic Large Language Model
While most of the large language models (LLMs) today are primarily in English, there is a growing need for regional language based language models, thus MBZUAI has built Jais, one of the most advanced Arabic LLM. Collaborating with Core42 and Cerebras Systems, MBZUAI’s efforts extend beyond Jais to advocate for green LLMs and promote transparency in LLM development through initiatives like the Institution of Foundational Models (IMF) and LLM360 framework.
- US- Patent for AI-based handwriting generation
The university has gained a recent US patent for AI-based handwriting generation. A computer vision solution developed by a team from MBZUAI, this solution has the power to mimic individual handwriting styles based on relatively small input samples. This technology holds promise across various applications, from aiding individuals with impaired motor skills to enhancing machine transcription capabilities.
The invention is one of 20 that MBZUAI faculty and students currently have registered with international patent organizations and underscores the university’s commitment to translating cutting-edge research into innovation.
- AI for remote patient monitoring and triaging
MBZUAI’s interdisciplinary approach to healthcare integrates AI solutions for remote patient monitoring and triaging, addressing the evolving needs of aging populations. With ongoing developments in human activity recognition and hardware prototypes, the university is poised to revolutionise healthcare delivery systems worldwide.
The team is developing unique algorithms for human activity recognition, where it has made significant progress and has developed several hardware prototypes that will provide key functionality for the system. The team intends to continue testing and optimising the prototypes. It is also seeking a collaboration with a healthcare clinic to run a study to determine the effectiveness of the system in monitoring the health and safety of older people. Within a few years, it is hoped the system will be commercialised and available in hospitals, clinics, and the next generation of smart houses for the elderly such as in retirement villages and over 50s communities.
The team is also working on healthcare in the metaverse or digital twin systems for people of all ages, abilities, that can be triaged from their homes.
- MBZUAI Metaverse Centre
The team along with collaborators from ETH Zurich, Vin AI, and Pinscreen, have introduced a new technology for generating high-fidelity photorealistic 3D avatars from a single photo, which can be animated using a webcam and potentially integrated sensors from a VR headset.
Called as the VOODOO 3D, researchers believe this telepresence technology will displace traditional video conferencing and in the future people will communicate, interact, and collaborate remotely in 3D as if they are in the same space.
This new generative AI approach is 3D aware, which means, it can produce consistent expressions and likenesses from arbitrary views or any person in real time, which makes this solution suitable for holographic displays and VR headsets.
The method is based on a new approach called volumetric disentanglement which uses AI to fully analyse how a face, its expressions, and its pose would look in a 3D neural radiance field, given an arbitrary input 2D photo. The team is now working on integration into popular VR headsets and is planning to open source the solution to encourage adoption of the technology by the academic community.
