FEBRUARY 15th, 2023

Read our 2021-2022 Report

Curious about our work this past year? Have a look at our interactive report, learn about our goals, success stories, our members’ work and its educational, research, and social impact.

This conference, hosted by Nagoya Zokei University, is organized in collaboration with the Ritsumeikan Center for Game Studies, the University of Alberta, the University of Delaware, Bath Spa University, Seijoh University, DiGRA Japan, and Liege Game Lab. This conference, the 11^th collaboratively organized event, focuses broadly on Japanese game culture, education, and industry. It aims to bring together a wide range of researchers and creators from many different countries to present and exchange their work.

The main theme of the conference this year will be “Local Communities, Digital Communities and Video Games in Japan.” With the recent interest in the Metaverse and the continuing popularity of titles with strong social elements, digital games are seen more and more as social platforms in their own rights — virtual meeting spaces for digital communities. At the same time, from department store rooftop amusement parks and pachinko parlours, to living room and portable consoles, the history of gaming in Japan is inextricably tied with the changing social fabric of local communities.

After the initial screening of 98 entries in the first round of evaluation, we requested Jurors to select the top ten entries out of 68 that they find particularly effective and thought-provoking, both because of the graphics, composition, creativity, use of mixed media and ideas included in the accompanying text. Based on the jurors’ votes on the top 10 entries, we have arrived at the first cut of the top 20 illustration finalists. In this second round of evaluation, the jurors were invited to the virtual exhibition gallery to visit the top 20 illustration entries.

Read: Ali Shiri article on Information Matters

One of the noteworthy and powerful features of ChatGPT is its ability to generate text that is difficult to distinguish from a human-generated text. This feature has the potential to provide numerous possibilities for generating automatic text, summaries, paragraphs, essays, articles, and other types of writing without human intervention.

AI Events

Opportunities

Science and Engineering-ELITE Program-IBET PhD Fellowships

The Faculty of Engineering and the Faculty of Science at the University of Alberta are pleased to announce a national call for new PhD candidates for four-year fellowships. Built into this novel initiative is a collaborative effort to create the Indigenous and Black Engineering and Technology (IBET) Momentum Fellowship supported by the Indigenous | Black Students in Engineering and Technology (IBET) PhD Project, the Experiential Learning in Innovation, Technology, and Entrepreneurship (ELITE) Program for Black Youth, and the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Alberta to provide financial support to Indigenous and Black scholars to pursue full-time PhD studies in any engineering discipline at the University of Alberta.

Recipients of the fellowship will receive a $30,000 stipend per year for four years, which includes funding for tuition and fees, plus $4,000 over four years to support attendance at technical conferences or workshops where they are encouraged to present their research work. Funding will be from the Faculty of Engineering or the Faculty of Science at the University of Alberta ($25,000 or $15,000 per year), the PhD program supervisor ($5,000 or $15,000 per year), and the ELITE Program for Black Youth ($4,000 total). PhD program supervisors will agree to provide a supplementary cash contribution of either $5,000 or $15,000 per year, as determined by the fellowship award amount received by the PhD candidate from the Faculty of Engineering or the Faculty of Science at the University of Alberta.

2023 Canadian #AI
Misinformation Hackathon

The Social Media Lab at TMU is hosting the 2023 Canadian #AI
Misinformation Hackathon. This is a virtual event for undergraduate
and graduate students to propose solutions using the OpenAI API.
Students will gain hands-on experience with cutting-edge AI tech,
challenge themselves and make an impact in the fight against
misinformation. Plus, there are great prizes up for grabs - $2,000 for
first place, $1,000 for second, and $500 for third!

The registration period is open from Feb 2 to March 10, 2023.

Free Access to AI Ethics and Governance Standards

IEEE, the world’s largest technical professional organization dedicated to advancing technology for humanity, and the IEEE Standards Association (IEEE SA) announce the availability of a program that provides free access to global socio-technical standards in AI Ethics and Governance that provide guidance and considerations towards trustworthy AI.

Under the IEEE GET Program, selected standards are made available, free of charge, to encourage adoption and use of standards that contribute to advancing technology for humanity in key areas.

“The IEEE Standards Association and industry collaborators have taken a significant step toward supporting global AI literacy by creating this new program,” said Konstantinos Karachalios, Managing Director, IEEE SA. “We believe in this need so substantially that we intend to include additional approved socio-technical IEEE global standards in the oncoming years.”

• Read the full press release here.
• Access the standards here (note: you will need to create a free IEEE email account to access).

River City Venture Clinic

The River City Venture Clinic is a free legal clinic that provides support to start-ups, entrepreneurs, non-profit organizations and change-makers in the Edmonton area of Treaty 6. Our capabilities include: providing legal information on legal areas employment and incorporation; writing drafts of contracts, privacy policies, service agreements, and terms and conditions; and drafting incorporation documents, including shareholder agreements.

The River City Venture Clinic is operated by University of Alberta law students. As such, we can deliver our services entirely free, in exchange for the valuable experience that our student caseworkers receive from your business. All draft documents and memos that we produce are reviewed by practicing lawyers, who advise the students’ work. We know that budgets can be tight for start-ups. Reaching out to RCVC is an excellent opportunity for you to have your legal questions answered or to receive assistance with your legal matters, without paying for a lawyer.

We would greatly appreciate your business! If you think that you could benefit from our free legal services, please fill out our contact form and we will reach out to you as soon as possible.

Who
Any UofAlberta community member (faculty, researcher, or student) interested in any and all aspects of Artificial Intelligence!

Why

• To stay informed about AI-related funding opportunities and events (research grants, internships, competitions, ...)
• To access AI4Society support for research and teaching initiatives
• To profile your research and to collaborate with other community members, through our Forum.

How
Send an email with a brief description of your affiliation, interests, and activities related to artificial intelligence to ai4s@ualberta.ca.