Beijing, China — The Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI) and Squirrel AI Learning announced the establishment of a new $1M annual award for the societal benefits of AI. The award will be sponsored by Squirrel AI Learning as part of its mission to promote the use of artificial intelligence with lasting positive effects for society.
The new Squirrel AI Award for Artificial Intelligence to Benefit Humanity was announced jointly by Derek Haoyang Li, Founder and Chairman of Squirrel AI Learning, and Yolanda Gil, President of AAAI, at the 2019 conference for AI for adaptive Education (AIAED) in Beijing.
This new international award will recognize significant contributions in the field of artificial intelligence with profound societal impact that have generated otherwise unattainable value for humanity. The award nomination and selection process will be designed by a committee led by AAAI that will include representatives from international organizations with relevant expertise that will be designated by Squirrel AI Learning.
“AAAI is excited to team up with Squirrel AI Learning for this award, and to involve diverse organizations in the process,” said Gil. “We are sure it will inspire the broader AI community to be persistent in tackling the most challenging problems facing our society. At a time when many regard AI with caution, it is important to bring to the forefront how this technology can improve our lives with profound and long-lasting benefits.”
Li and his team at Squirrel AI Learning originally conceived the idea of this prize “because it is important to recognize how AI can improve our lives and our future.”Although the focus of Squirrel AI Learning is in education, Li insisted that the award will recognize AI innovations across all sectors. “We want the world to know that there are many efforts by AI innovators internationally to benefit humanity and even create great business value for human beings. The establishment of a significant award like this one can call attention on that important work.”
“Only world-renowned recognitions such as the Turing Award and the Nobel Prize carry monetary rewards at the million-dollar level, and this award will be unique in recognizing the positive impacts of AI for humanity,” said Gil. The Turing Award is focused on recognizing significant and lasting technical contributions to computer science, and is widely described as the Nobel Prize for computing. Both the Turing Award and the Nobel Prize carry a reward of US$1M and are also awarded annually.
The Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI) is the leading international scientific society for AI. Established in 1979, its officers have included many AI pioneers such as Allen Newell, Ed Feigenbaum, Marvin Minsky, John McCarthy, and Raj Reddy. AAAI has more than 200 elected Fellows and over 4,000 members, and confers several influential AI awards, including the Feigenbaum Prize, the Newell Award (jointly with ACM), and the Engelmore Award. AAAI’s mission is to promote research in, and responsible use of, artificial intelligence, to increase public understanding of AI, to improve teaching and training of AI practitioners, and to provide guidance for research planners and funders concerning the importance and potential of current AI developments and future directions. For more information, please visit https://www.aaai.org/.
Established in 2014, Squirrel AI Learning Intelligent Adaptive Education by Yixue Group is the first artificial intelligence company in China to apply AI-powered adaptive learning technology to K12 education. Squirrel AI Learning products use an artificial intelligence + human teacher model to teach students in accordance with their aptitude to effectively solve problems with high cost of traditional education, lack of resources for teachers, and low learning efficiency. Squirrel AI Learning has reached nearly 2 million students and more than 2000 learning centers in over 300 cities in China in the last three years. It has raised 1 billion RMB (150 Million USD) and is now worth almost 8 Billion RMB (1.1 Billion USD) with a compound Annual Growth Rate of 500% from 2015-2018. Squirrel AI Learning won the 2018 Alconics Award on greatest contribution to ethics, gender equality, and diversity in AI, the 2018 EdTechXGlobal All Stars Growth Award, and the 2018 Reimagine Education Asia Pacific Regional Silver Award. More information is available at Squirrel Ai Learning.
AAAI Media Contact
(for press inquiries only)
Meredith Ellison
AAAI
1900 Embarcadero Road, Suite 101
Palo Alto, CA 94303, USA
aaai-exec-director@aaai.org