Professor Hiroaki Kitano recognized as AAAI Fellow
Dr. Hiroaki Kitano, adjunct Professor at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, has been named as a fellow of the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI) for 2021.
Proessor Kitano was recognized for “significant contributions and leadership in robotics, massively parallel AI, and the use of AI for scientific discovery and systems biology”.
At OIST, Prof. Kitano leads the Integrated Open Systems Unit, which aims to create sustainable architecture through the incorporation of AI. He is also using AI to develop software platforms and models that can process large quantities of information to more accurately simulate biological processes and pathways within cells, including cancer cells.
Prof. Kitano said, “Artificial intelligence has a long tradition tracing back to Alan Turing and has contributed to broad ranges of industrial applications and scientific research. Today, the importance of AI is unquestionable and deployed in many critical industrial and social systems, with many more to come. My recent interest is to develop an AI Scientist by creating an AI system that can make major scientific discoveries highly autonomously. It will change the way we do science in coming years.”
Alongside his work at OIST, Prof. Kitano is President of the Systems Biology Institute, Executive Vice President and Officer in Charge of AI Collaboration for Sony Group Corporation, President and CEO of Sony Computer Science Laboratories, Inc. and CEO of Sony AI Inc. His early work at Sony included development of the iconic entertainment robot, AIBO, and ultimately led to Prof. Kitano founding the RoboCup in 1997 – one of the biggest grand challenge projects with the goal to develop a fully autonomous robot team that can beat the human world champion team in soccer. The competition currently has researchers participating from 35 countries.
Reflecting on his nomination, Prof. Kitano added, “This is a great honor for me. AAAI, together with IJCAI (International Joint Conferences on Artificial Intelligence), has been playing pivotal role in promoting AI research and deployment in the society.”
About the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence
Founded in 1979, the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI) is a nonprofit scientific society devoted to advancing the scientific understanding of the mechanisms underlying thought and intelligent behavior and their embodiment in machines. AAAI aims to promote research in, and responsible use of, artificial intelligence, and to increase public understanding of the field.
