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Epistemic AI

Project description

Changing how we think about artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence, or AI, is an area of strategic importance and a key driver of economic development. From treating diseases to minimising environmental impact of farming, AI can bring solutions to many challenges. In this context, the EU-funded E-pi project will develop a paradigm for a next-generation AI. It will use a proper modelling of real-world uncertainties to provide worst-case guarantees on its predictions. Overall, the project will improve AI’s capacity to confidently make predictions robust enough to stand the test of data generated by processes different from those studied during training. Without a solution, AI will continue to find it difficult to operate in new situations, such as driving in heavy rain.

Objective

Although artificial intelligence (AI) has improved remarkably over the last years, its inability to deal with fundamental uncertainty severely limits its application. This proposal re-imagines AI with a proper treatment of the uncertainty stemming from our forcibly partial knowledge of the world.

As currently practised, AI cannot confidently make predictions robust enough to stand the test of data generated by processes different (even by tiny details, as shown by ‘adversarial’ results able to fool deep neural networks) from those studied at training time. While recognising this issue under different names (e.g. ‘overfitting’), traditional ML seems unable to address it in non-incremental ways. As a result, AI systems suffer from brittle behaviour, and find difficult to operate in new situations, e.g. adapting to driving in heavy rain or to other road users’ different styles of driving, e.g. deriving from cultural traits.

Epistemic AI’s overall objective is to create a new paradigm for a next-generation artificial intelligence providing worst-case guarantees on its predictions thanks to a proper modelling of real-world uncertainties.

Keywords

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Programme(s)

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Topic(s)

Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.

Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

RIA - Research and Innovation action

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Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

(opens in new window) H2020-FETOPEN-2018-2020

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Coordinator

OXFORD BROOKES UNIVERSITY
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 1 207 795,00
Address
HEADINGTON CAMPUS GIPSY LANE
OX3 OBP Oxford
United Kingdom

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Activity type
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
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Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

€ 1 207 795,00

Participants (2)

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