Staff Reporter: The second season of GREAT Talks, a part of the GREAT Campaign initiative taken by the UK government to promote the country internationally, has recently been held in 4 different locations of Dhaka and Sylhet city with an intense focus on robotics and artificial intelligence. The lecture series focused on areas most pertinent to Bangladesh's changing dynamics, including the application of AI in different industries as a contribution to Smart Bangladesh. The 'GREAT Talks 1' focused on climate change and its impact. 

The GREAT Campaign promotes the UK as a tourism, education, and business hub for excellence. It also provides financial support for students to pursue education in the UK through scholarships, for example, the GREAT Scholarships and Women in STEM Scholarships. Through the experience of studying in the UK, Bangladeshi students return to unlock wide-ranging collaborations, empowering the next generation of leaders and innovators.

The 'GREAT Talks 2' lecture series, in partnership with the British Council, was held from 10-14 February 2024. The sessions were held at the British Council's Fuller Road Auditorium- Dhaka; Shahjalal University of Science and Technology (SUST) – Sylhet; Metropolitan University Sylhet and BRAC University (Dhaka).  

David Knox, Director Programmes, British Council, said, 'At the heart of our 'GREAT Talks', we aim to inspire, educate, and connect the UK with Bangladesh through showcasing expertise in areas where UK innovation leads the world. We strive to ignite students' curiosity and foster professional collaboration in the talks.'

Professor Sethu Vijayakumar from the University of Edinburgh, UK, was the speaker for the sessions who has pioneered the use of large-scale machine learning techniques in the real-time control of several iconic robotic platforms such as the SARCOS and the HONDA ASIMO humanoids and iLIMB prosthetic hand.  

He said, 'There is no denying that AI and robotics are the future, and we cannot stop its intervention in everyday life. Rather than worrying about it, we must find ways to best utilise new-generation robots and AI to benefit humans and different industries. All of us can benefit from the emerging technologies if we focus on the latest algorithmic and hardware developments and learn how to deploy robots analysing the right situations and needs.' 

Tom Miscioscia, Director Bangladesh, British Council, shared, ‘We are delighted to have renowned Robotics Professor Sethu Vijayakumar with us as the speaker of the GREAT Talks on AI and robotics. In this current digital era, it has been crucial for our young generation to be better equipped with AI and Robotics knowledge and skills to support humankind more smartly and efficiently.

These 'GREAT talk' sessions will ignite their appetite for learning the most critical topics in the current world, such as climate change, machine learning, and artificial intelligence.’

During the lecture, the speaker emphasised introducing powerful machine learning technologies, including robust multi-modal sensing, shared representations, and scalable real-time learning & adaptation for reaping the benefits of robotics while having control over technology like AI.

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