(12/17/20) Artificial intelligence is already part of our everyday lives. From smartphone apps to personalized reading and purchase recommendations on the internet to navigation systems in our cars – AI is everywhere around us. At this year's NeurIPS (Neural Information Processing Systems) conference, scientists exchanged their views on AI research and further developments in this field.

Due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic, NeurIPS, like all other major events this year, took place solely online from December 6 to 12. The large number of participants and exhibitors who came together virtually for the conference from around the world showed that a shift to the virtual space is not necessarily as limiting as it seems. With over 20,000 participants, the conference was more popular than ever before.

Virtual Booth

At a virtual booth, the “Research in Germany” initiative was able to present itself with a wide range of offerings. With the help of videos, brief descriptions, and downloadable information material -- in online seminars, at “Coffee Talks” or directly via chat -- visitors were able to learn about the possibilities of AI research and of course research funding in Germany.

The participating institutions presented various facets of AI research in Germany and invited visitors to the booth for an exchange of ideas. Visitors were able to get in touch with representatives of Cyber Valley, the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Künstliche Intelligenz, DFKI), Cluster of Excellence “Machine Learning: New Perspectives for Science,” and the Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics.

At the same time, German research funding organizations were able to showcase their specialized funding programs focusing on AI research. The new "AI Initiative" of the DFG, the Humboldt Professorship for AI, and the Postdoc Tour for AI researchers of the DAAD were presented in detail in video, text and in personal chats by representatives of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, the American Friends of the AvH, the German Academic Exchange Service (Bonn, New York and San Francisco) and the DFG (Bonn and Washington).

“AI research means lifelong learning”

The IT team and the research marketing team of the DFG organized an additional event, especially for young international researchers, as a “Research in Germany” information seminar on “AI research careers in Germany.”

At this event, the invited panelists Prof. Dr. Isabel Valera (Saarland University), Prof. Dr. Laura Leal-Taixé (TU Munich), Dr. Gerard Pons-Moll (MPI for Informatics) and Dr. Federico Raue (DFKI) talked about their respective career paths. Over 50 participants from around the world heard why they came to Germany and which funding programs from the AvH, DAAD, and DFG are supporting their research on various AI topics.

The audience had the opportunity to take part in the discussion via chat, to enter into direct dialogue with these successful scientists, and learn from the experiences and tips of the panellists. Prof. Laure Lael-Taixé, for example, gave this valuable advice: Research in the AI field means committing to lifelong learning. The research field is so dynamic that even as a professor, one cannot sit back and relax.

Further information about the conference:

• https://neurips.cc/

Further information about AI research and funding in Germany:

• https://www.research-in-germany.org/en/spotlight/ai-research-and-funding-in-germany.html