Chinese e-commerce stalwart Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. has founded its first overseas research institute in partnership with Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University as the pair look to explore practical real-life solutions for artificial intelligence.
The duo penned a memorandum of understanding and pooled 50 researchers from their staff rosters to carry out studies, Singaporean newspaper Lianhe Zaobao reported.
Alibaba announced its USD15-billion research program, the DAMO Academy (Discovery, Adventure, Momentum and Outlook) last year, with plans to set up labs in the US, Russia, Israel and Singapore and to study disruptive technologies, such as Big Data, the Internet of Things and man-machine interaction. Chief Technical Officer Jeff Zhang confirmed the new lab is part of the strategy.
The two parties will study the applications of artificial intelligence across a range of sectors over the next five years, including retail, urban transport, hospitals and nursing homes, and residential communities.
Source: yicaiglobal.com
