Computer Science professor Yoshua Bengio, head of the Montreal Institute for Learning Algorithms, says the institute has attracted interest from "most of the major IT companies,” some of which have also provided funding. “(AI) will affect pretty much every economic sector; right now is just the tip of the iceberg,” Bengio told The Canadian Press. Now, tech giant Google is jumping in, investing $4.5 million over three years to support the institute’s research, as well as opening an AI research group at its Montreal office. This fundamental research has led to breakthroughs in translation programs, personal assistance, “smart” cameras and self-driving cars, among others, Bengio says. He says it’s a hopeful sign that former Montrealer Hugo Larochelle will be returning to the city to head up Google’s new research group.

Source: thestar November 21, 2016 13:40 UTC