AI Summit 2023: ‘Putting Pakistan on the map for artificial intelligence’

The AI Summit 2023, organized on February 25 by 10Pearls and now in its third iteration, aimed to highlight all the work being done in the country in relation to artificial intelligence (AI), a technology that has garnered renewed interest thanks to smart bots like ChatGPT.

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The event hoped to “put Pakistan on the map for the work being done in AI and bring together the industry,” said Syeda Sana Hussain, Senior Director, People & Programs at 10Pearl.

She added that the summit included a conference featuring panel discussions and fireside chats; an expo where AI startups displayed their products; and hands-on knowledge about various AI tools, technologies, and techniques for university students.

“All the emerging AI startups who showcased their products received phenomenal response, attracting the interest of potential investors and the public alike.This incredible success of AI Summit 2023 shows the transformative role AI can play in addressing the complex challenges of today’s world,” she said.

Included in the demos was Lahore-based SeeVitals Solutions’ proprietary palm-sized device that, without the need for any wires, can monitor a patients’ vitals and predict their risks for stroke and heart attacks, and can help hospitals manage their load better.

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Also in the health space was AI Care from Islamabad which uses AI based techniques and approaches on different image modalities, such as MRI, CT-Scan, X-ray, and ultrasound .

Meanwhile, Deutics Global that helps businesses optimize operations through an AI-empowered platform that “transforms security measures and data insights into breakthrough outcomes” was also at the event, as was VisionRD, which helps automobile and part manufacturing companies automate the manual quality inspection process using AI.

The event was orgnaised by digital services company 10Pearls at the ITCN (Information Technology & Telecom Show) Asia in Pak-China Friendship Center, Islamabad.

It highlighted the theme of “exploring the transformative world of AI”, shared latest developments in the space and recognized innovations by AI entrepreneurs.

Some 30-plus speakers conducted tech talks, panel discussions, and fireside chats.

A session on ‘Explainable AI & Healthcare 5.0’, moderated by Samar Hasan (Founder & CEO, Epiphany) discussed the role of Explainable AI (a set of tools and frameworks to help understand and interpret predictions made by machine learning models) in healthcare, including its potential to support clinical decision-making, drug discovery, and medical imaging.

A talk on ‘Cybersecurity Gets Smart’ was given by Peter Hesse (EVP and CSO, 10Pearls) while Tariq Mali, who was former Chief Technology Officer at GHQ, spoke about ‘AI & National Governance’.

Ammar Karim, Head of BI and Data Science, Telenor Easypaisa, spoke on how AI is transforming the fintech space by improving efficiency, enhancing customer experience and reducing fraud.

Earlier, President Arif Alvi, who had launched the Presidential Initiative for Artificial Intelligence and Computing in 2018 to promote education, research and business opportunities in areas like AI and blockchain, highlighted the need for the world’s fifth populous nation to gain knowledge in contemporary fields, particularly AI, cyberspace, and data-driven technology.