NJIT Offers Concrete Examples of Artificial Intelligence in Bloomberg Radio Broadcast
Artificial intelligence shows tremendous potential in forecasting, be it in identifying a vulnerable power line via a drone photo or analyzing body camera footage to flag a police officer who may be at risk for using excessive force, according to Michael Johnson, president of the New Jersey Innovation Institute, an NJIT corporation that accelerates innovation.
Johnson shared his examples of promising AI-fueled projects at NJII during a string of Bloomberg Radio interviews about AI and its real-world applications in business, sports and municipalities. The interviews were led by anchors Alix Steel and Paul Sweeney, who were on campus to produce live segments for Bloomberg Intelligence.
Johnson, five months into taking the reins of NJII, clearly is bullish on AI, though he acknowledged that technology can be disruptive and change the nature and focus of jobs.
That said, AI “has been around for decades, right? But we’ve had a couple of technologies that came out in the last two years that have really transformed the way we see AI when we’re talking about it,” Johnson said. “And the reason is now it’s accessible.”
Body cams and drones
The body camera project arose out of a collaboration between NJII and local law enforcement agencies. It’s designed to reduce the risk of excessive force and therefore improve public safety and police effectiveness.
“So, you’re tracking behaviors that model behavior later?” Steel asked.
“Yes. For example, let’s say we see an officer running more frequently or yelling more frequently — that’s probably indicative of some behavioral outcome, such as excessive force. So, you might identify this officer as having a much higher likelihood of using excessive force in the future. Let’s interview him and get him training before something bad happens.”
For the drone project, NJII is partnering with an aviation tech consultancy. Ultimately, it would enable utilities to lessen the frequency of power outages, at least those caused by wear and tear.
Sports applications
The Bloomberg anchors also interviewed NJIT alumna Ivana Seric about the application of AI in sports. Seric, who holds both a bachelor’s and Ph.D. in math from the university, is a senior product scientist at Zelus Analytics, which helps teams and players analyze data — including patterns of play and body movements — to maximize their success collectively and individually. Such data also helps estimate the value of players.
Seric also was a forward on the NJIT women’s basketball team and clearly found a career that combines her passions for math and sports.
The other two interviewees were Beth Simone Noveck, an academic who serves as chief AI strategist for the state of New Jersey, and Anita Jivani, global head of innovation at Avanade, a business consultancy co-founded by Microsoft and Accenture. Avanade is longtime supporter of NJIT, funding a scholarship that helps students — particularly women — pursue studies in STEM and providing mentorship via a program that pairs a student with an Avanade employee for a full academic year.
