Category: News

Meet the 2023 Finalists

Best Application of AI to Achieve Social Good

Analytics Engines – for their AI solution in monitoring marine life populations to improve object detection and tracking in seabed imagery. It has transformed the AFBI’s (Agri-Food and BioSciences Institute) processes and demonstrated the potential of AI in ecological research.

Cilter Technologies – for the development of their embedded software to protect children from cyberbullying and online grooming. Their unique system operates at a deep level, blocking harmful messages and notifying parents, aiming to make smartphones safer for children. 

SEURO – for ProInsight, an AI-based tool aimed to help healthcare organisations assess readiness, predict the impact and make informed decisions regarding the implementation of digital health solutions for patients with multiple chronic conditions. 

Soapbox Labs – for tackling the global literacy crisis. They provide accurate and equitable voice AI that helps teachers assess and support students’ reading proficiency. They aim to deliver over 100 million voice-powered learning experiences to children worldwide. 

Best Use of Responsible AI and Ethics

ESB – for using responsible AI and ethical considerations combined with geospatial data, image processing and model deployment to classify electrical towers based on accessibility levels with the aim of improving tower management, safety and cost-efficiency.

Getvisibility –  for addressing the challenge of managing unstructured legacy data. Their platform classifies data and ensures trustworthiness through explainable AI models impacting over 150 enterprise customers globally, by promoting data security and compliance.

Soapbox Labs – for the development of unbiased voice AI for educational tools to address the literacy crisis, with a focus on equity in data handling and modelling. They’ve earned recognition for mitigating AI bias and aim to empower teachers and students worldwide.

Webio – for addressing debt collection challenges with empathetic, privacy-first and customizable conversational interactions. By addressing customer needs ethically, they enhance customer engagement, agent efficiency and financial outcomes. 

Best Application of AI in a Large Enterprise

ACI Worldwide – for their work in relying on accurate Interchange Cost forecasting for its pricing strategy. Their innovative approach uses Machine Learning models to adapt to changes and improve accuracy, empowering analysts for data-driven decisions.

Dell Technologies – for their Managed Services (DTMS) team’s collaboration with Service Operations Applied Science and Engineering (SOAS) to employ an ML-powered Multi-Layered Framework to enhance incident management and reduce ticket handling times. 

Etsy – for employing Machine Learning to enhance content moderation. By replacing manual heuristics with ML models, Etsy doubled precision and recall while maintaining a human-in-the-loop approach, ensuring safe and quality user-generated content at scale. 

ICON plc – for their Cassandra platform, which employs powerful machine learning models to predict FDA and EMA post-marketing requirements (PMRs) with 99% and 97% accuracy, helping pharmaceutical companies plan clinical trials effectively and reduce risks.

AI Person of the Year

Ciaran Gilligan-Lee – Head of Spotify’s Causal Inference Lab in Dublin, Ciaran’s primary focus is on advancing causal ML techniques to understand cause and effect in data, enabling more informed decision-making. 

Conrad Bernath – Head of Speech and Machine Learning at T-Pro, Conrad’s significant contributions to AI solutions in healthcare documentation include leveraging his data science background to streamline processes and improve patient outcomes. 

Luca Longo – for his innovative research in xAI, focusing on making AI models more interpretable and transparent which has the potential to impact human-AI interaction, responsible AI development, human capacity, international engagement and the economy. 

Maria Aretoulaki – Head of Conversational and Generative AI Design at GlobalLogic UK&I, Maria’s hybrid approach, combining linguistics with computer science, has led to innovative solutions in text summarization and conversational AI. 

Women in AI Person of the Year

Amy Awad – Co-founder of Opa Mind and LeanIn Ltd, Amy champions diversity and mental health in AI, earning global recognition, awards and speaking engagements. Her visionary leadership and ethical approach make her a trailblazer in the field of AI.

Gilyana Borlikova – Data Science Manager at ICON plc, Gilyana has pioneered impactful AI solutions for clinical trials, including the award-winning OneSearch system. A trailblazer for women in AI, her work reduces costs, improves efficiency and promotes innovation.

Nicole Baker – CEO of Biologit, Nicole is a seasoned professional in pharmacovigilance, with extensive experience in regulatory compliance and financial management. She is a leader in driving innovation, as well as promoting gender diversity and ethical AI in safety surveillance. 

Rena Maycock – CEO of Cilter, Rena leads a startup developing child protection software for smartphones, addressing cyberbullying and grooming. She’s a respected columnist advocating for women in tech, lobbies for funding equality, and mentors aspiring female founders.

Young AI Role Model of the Year

Ana Le Chevillier – for playing a pivotal role in the AI_PREMie project, which aims to transform preeclampsia diagnosis and risk assessment. Ana’s skills encompass data science and ethical AI, and she envisions leveraging AI for early disease detection and management in healthcare.

Chenyang Lyu – A final year PhD student at DCU with an impressive track record of research, particularly in the application of pre-trained Large Language Models to Question & Answering and Multi-modal tasks, resulting in over 15 publications in prestigious conferences and journals.

Conor Kelly – Head of Growth at Humanloop, Conor developed TaxBot, an AI Irish Tax Advisor, scoring over 80% in Irish Chartered Accounting Exams. Their solution addresses hallucination issues in AI and aims to impact the Irish tax advisory sector, offering a free, open-source tool. 

Meghana Rathi – for her significant contributions, including a novel algorithm combining reinforcement learning and control engineering. She led IBM’s role in the PLANET project, explored AI’s potential in COVID diagnosis and actively promotes diversity in tech.

Best Application of AI in Sustainability

Analytics Engines – for their work in partnership with the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI) to develop an AI system for seabed object detection and tracking with the aim of improving analysis accuracy, reducing costs and setting new industry standards. 

Gemmo.ai – for developing an API for noise source identification to address noise pollution in Dublin and beyond to improve health and enhance the quality of life. It’s their vision to create a world where environmental surveillance safeguards the planet.

HireCompare – a 2023 startup aiming to revolutionise the traditional plant hire industry in Ireland by providing a digital, green and AI-driven platform that offers environmentally friendly alternatives, connects consumers with plant hire companies and promotes climate awareness.

ReLeafHubs – for using AI-driven solutions, including the myRWH.app recommender system and AI Digital Twins (AIDTs) to transform Remote Working Hubs (RWHs) in Ireland with the aim of reducing carbon emissions, boosting local economies and improving work-life balance. 

Best Application of AI in Healthcare

Embedded.Systems@UCC Group – for their project which addresses neonatal mortality in low-income countries caused by heart and brain issues. It employs AI to interpret physiological signals, improving early detection and healthcare access.

Global Logic & Head Diagnostics – for their HDx Neuro AI Platform which addresses late diagnosis and poor management of Parkinson’s Disease and other neurological conditions. It offers digital biomarkers and AI to enable early detection and personalised treatment. 

Kine-Mo – for addressing the challenge of quantifying athlete movement using 3D pose estimation technology. It offers precise measurements for coaching, injury prevention and athlete development with the aim of revolutionising human movement analysis in sports. 

LeanIn Wellness Ltd. – for addressing growing health issues related to obesity by offering a holistic wellness platform powered by AI. It covers mental, physical and spiritual health, using personalised tools and innovative lean methodology. 

Best Application of AI in a Startup

Data Science Wizards – for UnifyAI, which solves complex AI development challenges for enterprises, offering an integrated, automated, and open-source platform. It accelerates AI adoption and reduces costs, with a solid commitment to security and societal impact.

Galvia – for addressing the University of Galway’s pandemic-induced challenges with an AI-driven student engagement platform named Cara. It helped reduce staff workload by 40%, saving 1500+ hours, and instantly resolved 84% of student queries. 

Socialvoice.ai – for developing an AI solution to analyse video content, focusing on spoken words, sentiments and more. Their innovation fills the gap in video analysis, aiding marketers and brands to understand their market, competitors and influencers better. 

Whyze Health – for their work in aiming to solve the problem of fragmented and inaccessible health data using AI. Their platform transforms health records into digital assets, benefiting patients, healthcare providers and pharma/medtech companies.

Best Application of AI in an Academic Research Body

AI & Cognitive Load Research Lab, TU Dublin – Led by Dr. Luca Longo for their research focused on enhancing the interpretability and transparency of ML models with the aim to make AI models more understandable and compliant with ethical and regulatory standards.

Embedded Systems@UCC Group – for addressing high neonatal mortality from heart and brain diseases in low-income countries. It employs AI-assisted sound analysis to detect congenital heart defects and seizures, enhancing medical diagnosis and potentially saving lives.

ReLeafHubs, CeADAR – Led by Dr. Alireza Dehghani, ReLeafHubs proposes an innovative solution for Remote Working Hubs (RWHs) using AI-driven recommender systems and AI Digital Twins (AIDTs) to promote sustainability and reduce commuting in Ireland.

Tyndall National Institute – for their project aimed to develop a miniaturised wearable device with advanced machine learning algorithms for precise Parkinson’s Disease (PD) diagnosis and blood pressure estimation with the goal of improving PD assessment and treatment.

Best Application of AI in a Student Project

Balaji Padmanathan, UCD – for his project focusing on optimising electric vehicle charging station locations in Dublin, with the aim of making Dublin more sustainable and serving as a model for global efforts to combat climate change and promote responsible urban development.

Chenyang Lyu, DCU – for his research in addressing limitations in Large Language Models (LLMs) for Question Answering, focusing on integrating semantic and multimodal knowledge utilising his skills in NLP, unsupervised learning, multi-modal AI and mitigating bias in AI models. 

Jamie Ellis de Paor, MTU – for his research project addressing the challenge of providing training data for indoor robotics by creating a Unity-based semantic segmentation simulator. The project aims to advance indoor autonomous robotics, potentially impacting various industries. 

Lan Wei, UCD – for Epi-AI, an AI-powered tool for automated seizure detection in mouse EEG data, enhancing efficiency and objectivity in epilepsy research. It accelerates drug development and fosters global collaboration, promising advancements in treatment.

Best Use of AI in a Consumer/Customer Service Application

GlobalLogic – for their Generative AI-Based Knowledge Operator – powered by Natural Language Processing and content generation – which enhances user access to information, fosters collaboration and adapts to user queries. 

Lip – for addressing the challenge of language barriers in content creation by using AI to generate lip movements that make it appear as if you can speak another language. It aims to help creators reach broader language markets quickly. 

Tax World – for Ezylia, which addresses the complex issue of obtaining clear tax information with a personal AI assistant. They employ OpenAI’s ChatGPT, regex and Python to efficiently answer tax questions, simplify tax topics and reduce research time for professionals. 

Webio – for leveraging data analysis and custom language models to enhance customer engagement and agent efficiency. They achieved a 10% boost in collections performance and expanded client relationships while prioritising ethical AI and data control.