Freshworks lists on Nasdaq, Crosses $13 Billion

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September 23, 2021

Freshworks makes history; for the first time, an Indian Software as a Service providing company has been listed on Nasdaq.

Freshworks’ public offering of 28,500,000 shares of Class A common stock was priced at $36 per share. Soon after the announcement, the company’s shares went up 32% increasing its stock price to $47.55 per share.

This new development has increased Freshworks’ market valuation to over $13 billion. Morgan Stanley, J.P. Morgan, and BofA Securities are serving as the company’s lead book-running managers, along with others like Jefferies and Barclays.

“I feel like an Indian athlete who has won a gold medal at the Olympics. We are showing the world what a global product company from India can achieve. The fact that we are doing it first in the US markets is truly amazing,” said CEO Girish Mathrubootham.

The COVID-19 pandemic caused a surge in demand for SaaS products to adapt to the changing organizational needs. The increase in demand helped Freshworks grow many folds by increasing its revenue up to 40% last year. In the first half of 2021, Freshworks raised $169 million in revenue that is considerably more than the data from 2020.

Freshworks is a San Mateo-based tech startup founded by Girish Mathrubootham, Shan Krishnasamy, and Vijay Shankar in 2010. The company was first launched in Chennai, India. Freshworks specializes in providing SaaS customer engagement solutions and has a customer base of over 52,000 at a global level.

Mathrubootham said, “For our employees in India, we have more than 500 crorepatis and 70 of them are under the age of 30. They passed out of college a few years ago and they fully deserve it.”

Facebook Launches Captum v0.4.0, adding new functionalities to build AI responsibly

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Osheen Jain

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September 23, 2021

Facebook launches Captum v0.4.0, a library for explaining decisions made by neural networks with the deep learning framework PyTorch. Captum implements state-of-the-art versions of AI models like Integrated Gradients, Conductance, and DeepLIFT.

Captum v0.4.0 will allow researchers and developers to design, develop, and debug advanced AI models quickly. They can also interpret decisions made in multimodal environments that combine images, text, and video and allow them to compare results to existing models within the library. The new 0.4.0 version has more tools for new attribution methods, evaluating model robustness, and improvements to existing attribution methods.

Captum (“comprehension” in Latin), built on PyTorch, is an extensible, open-source library for model interpretability. Due to the increase in model complexity, understanding them has become both an area of focus for practical applications across industries using machine learning and an active area of research.

Captum, built on PyTorch, provides state-of-the-art algorithms so researchers, engineers, and developers can easily understand which features contribute to a model’s output.

With Captum v0.4.0, researchers and engineers can now assess how different user-defined concepts affect a model’s prediction through the concept activation vectors (TCAV) feature. They can also use TCAV for fairness analysis and check for algorithmic and label bias. Researchers have found that some networks can inadvertently add difficult to detect biases in the system.

With TCAV, researchers and engineers can also quantify the importance of various inputs. They can do this by quantifying the impact of concepts such as race or gender on a model’s prediction. In Captum v0.4.0, TCAV has been implemented generically, allowing users to define custom concepts with example inputs for different modalities, including vision and text. More information regarding these improvements can be found in the official release notes.

India Climbs Two Spots On Global Innovation Index 2021, Ranks 46

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Osheen Jain

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September 23, 2021

India Climbs Two Spots On Global Innovation Index by World Intellectual Property Organization and is now on the 46th rank. Over the last decade, India has been on a rising trajectory, moving from rank 81 in 2015 to 46 in 2021 in the Global Innovation Index (GII).

WIPO ranks 132 countries on their innovation ecosystems based on 81 indicators, including human capital and research, infra, institutions, business sophistication, market sophistication, knowledge, technology, and creative outputs. India leads the Central and Southern Asia region and also ranks 2nd in the lower-middle-income group.

The consistent improvement in India’s GII 2021 ranking is because of the vibrant start-up ecosystem, immense knowledge capital, and commendable work by the public and private research organizations. The Scientific Departments like the Department of Science and Technology, the Department of Space, the Department of Biotechnology, and the Department of Atomic Energy have played a pivotal role in enriching the National Innovation Ecosystem.

The NITI Aayog has been working to optimize the national efforts for bringing policy-led innovation into various industries, such as electric vehicles, space, biotechnology, nanotechnology, alternative energy sources, etc. Along with GII, the NITI Aayog played a significant role in monitoring and evaluating India’s global rankings.

The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has also been a torchbearer of India’s journey towards an innovation-driven economy. On September 21-22,2021, the NITI Aayog will virtually host the India Launch of the GII and the Global Innovation Conclave in partnership with the CII and the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO).

“As we progress further towards saving lives and livelihoods and shaping the national economic growth trajectory, the GII-2021 will be a significant reference point for all the countries to assess their innovation capabilities and readiness, which will go a long way in boosting economic recovery,” said Niti Aayog.

In a public release, Niti Aayog stated the GII is the fulcrum for governments worldwide to assess their respective country’s social and economic changes. Over the years, the GII has become a policy tool for various governments, helping them to reflect upon the existing status quo.

AI improves cancer diagnosis of B-cell lymphomas and related leukemia

By

Osheen Jain

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September 22, 2021

The presence of cancer in the lymphatic system is often determined by analyzing blood or bone marrow samples. In 2020, Prof. Dr. Peter Krawitz from the University of Bonn led a research team showing that AI improves cancer diagnosis of leukemias and lymphomas.

Compared to previously established processes, the new AI-powered tech uses the potential of all measurement values and increases the speed and objectivity of the analyses. The team has further developed the freely accessible machine learning method to benefit even smaller laboratories. The research showing that AI improves cancer diagnosis for B-cell lymphomas and related leukemia has been published in the journal “Patterns.”

Swelling lymph nodes is a typical symptom of malignant B-cell lymphomas and related leukemias, weight loss, fatigue, fevers, and infections. When a doctor suspects cancer of the lymphatic system, the physician takes a bone marrow or blood sample for testing in specialized laboratories. At present, labs use flow cytometry where the blood cells flow past measurement sensors at high speed to test cancer. During diagnosis, detecting and accurately characterizing pathological cells is important where the lab technicians can detect cell properties depending on their shape, structure, or coloring.

The flow cytometry method generates enormous data; over 50,000 cells are measured per sample. For data analysis, they have to plot the expression of the markers used against each other, where doctors have to compare about 150 two-dimensional images for 20 markers. Krawitz and the bioinformatician Nanditha Mallesh and Max Zhao studied how they can employ artificial intelligence to analyze cytometry data. The team trained the AI with over 30,000 data sets from patients with B-cell lymphoma.

“AI takes full advantage of the data and increases the speed and objectivity of diagnoses,” says lead author Nanditha Mallesh. Specialists from Munich Leukemia Laboratory (MLL), the Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, the University Hospital Erlangen, and the Bonn University Hospital institutions examined the results of AI. Researchers have crafted this solution as open-source software. The free accessibility of software and raw data ensures that small labs can use it. The AI can learn the specifics of the new laboratory during a short training phase and then draw on knowledge derived from thousands of data sets.

“With Hemo, we want to enable the exchange of anonymized flow cytometry data between laboratories and in this way create the conditions for even higher quality in diagnostics,” says Dr. Hannes Lüling.

The team sees enormous potential in this technology. Therefore, the researchers also want to collaborate with significant analytics equipment and software manufacturers to further advance the use of artificial intelligence. For example, in B-cell lymphomas, labs also collect genetic and cytomorphological data to confirm the diagnoses. In principle, the artificial intelligence software can also be helpful for the diagnosis of rheumatic diseases, which are often also based on flow cytometric data.

Research shows an upwards trend in Data and Artificial Intelligence Salaries

By

Dipayan Mitra

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September 21, 2021

research upwards trend artificial intelligence salaries

Recent research conducted by O’Reilly shows an upwards trend in data and artificial intelligence salaries in the United States and the United Kingdom. O’Reilly surveyed over 3000 professionals working in artificial intelligence and machine learning domains in both countries.

The survey reveals that the average salary of working professionals in the data science industry is $146,000 per year. California topped the chart by offering an average of $176,000 per year, followed by Massachusetts, Delaware, New Jersey, and New York.

A hike of 2.25% in salaries can be seen when compared to data collected last year. The survey was conducted while considering various factors like gender, education, job title, state, and programming languages.

The survey also pointed out that women employees earn only about 84% of what men workers earn regardless of their educational qualifications. “At the executive level, the average salary for women was $163,000 versus $205,000 for men (a 20% difference),” the report mentioned.

The difference was narrower at director levels, with $180,000 for women compared to $184,000 for men. A difference in salaries was also noticed because of the usage of various programming languages. The highest salaries are being paid to workers programming on Python, followed by other languages such as SQL, Javascript, Bash, and Java.

Vice President of content at O’Reilly and author of the report, Mike Loukides, said, “Our survey reveals just how dedicated data and AI professionals are to advancing their careers through skill development and training.”

He further mentioned that getting learning and development right is imperative for companies to retain and attract the best workers in this industry.

IIT Madras to offer Free Artificial Intelligence Workshop on High Performance Computing

By

Dipayan Mitra

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September 20, 2021

The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras announces its new free workshop on artificial intelligence, high-performance computing in semiconductors. It is a five day long workshop that can be attended by individuals from any background.

IIT Madras has collaborated with KLA Corporation to conduct this free workshop on artificial intelligence. The workshop will commence on 27th September and will continue till 1st October 2021.

Venerated speakers like Kris Bhaskar, Jacob George, Aravindh Balaji, Mark Ruolo, and Pradeep Ramachandran will be present in the workshop sessions. It is an online workshop, and all the necessary details will be mailed to attendees.

The free workshop will have one-hour sessions every day that would discuss topics like modern AI in manufacturing, challenges in adopting machine learning in manufacturing, TensorFlow – the path from model to HW, minimizing copy overhead while sharing GPUs in a single box, and artificial intelligence inference on CPUs.

Interested candidates need to fill up a Google Form in order to get themselves registered for the free workshop.

The core members of the organizing committee include the coordinator of NSM Nodal Center of Training in HPC and AI, Rupesh Nasre, and the director and head of research at KLA Advanced Computing Labs, Pradeep Ramachandran.

UN warns that Artificial Intelligence can Threaten Human Rights

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Dipayan Mitra

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September 20, 2021

UN warns artificial intelligence threat human rights

The United Nations (UN) warns that artificial intelligence technologies like facial recognition can pose a massive threat to human rights. The UN called for imposing strict restrictions against artificial intelligence technologies that have the potential of posing a negative and devastating threat to human rights.

According to the UN, a thorough investigation shall be done to identify risks created due to the adoption of AI technologies related to freedom of movement of expression and the right to privacy.

Michelle Bachelet, the UN high commissioner for Human Rights, said, “AI technologies can have negative, even catastrophic effects if they are used without sufficient regard to how they affect people’s human rights.”

Improper implementation of artificial intelligence technologies has led to people being unfairly denied access to social security benefits and has caused havoc in public, with innocent people being arrested for faulty facial recognition systems. Proper safeguards should be deployed to prevent misuse of new technologies, said Bachelet.

The UN accepts the capabilities of artificial intelligence to make people’s lives easier but raised concerns about automated decision-making technologies. The statements from the UN came soon after it published a report about the effects of artificial intelligence technologies on people’s right to privacy, freedom, education, and health.

“The complexity of the data environment, algorithms and models underlying the development and operation of AI systems, as well as the deliberate privacy of government and private actors, are factors that undermine meaningful ways for the public to understand the impacts of AI systems on human rights and society,” mentioned the UN report.

A human rights official at the Rule of Law and Democracy, Tim Engelhardt, also pointed out the severity of the issue by saying that the situation has only worsened over the last decade as some countries are not considering public security before adopting new AI technologies.

Microsoft to offer Internship in Artificial Intelligence, Cyber Security, Cloud Computing, and Data Science

By

Dipayan Mitra

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September 20, 2021

Microsoft Internship artificial intelligence

Technology giant Microsoft announces that it will offer internships in various domains, including artificial intelligence, data science, cloud computing, and cyber security, for talented Indian youths. The internship program offered by Microsoft inculcates vital technical skills that the industry currently demands to make Indian youth job-ready.

Microsoft has collaborated with other companies and institutions like NASSCOM, All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), GitHub, EY, FutureSkills Prime, and Quess Corp to provide this internship opportunity for students.

Students who will graduate in 2022, 2023, or have graduated in 2021 are eligible to apply for the internship program. CEO of AICTE, Dr. Buddha Chandrashekhar, said, “The Future Ready Talent program provides students with a unique opportunity to prepare for employment by focusing on future skills such as cloud computing, data, AI and cybersecurity.”

Microsoft plans to use its learning platform named Microsoft Learn to provide study modules and certifications to the selected students. AICTE will look after the adherence of the program to the new education policy of the country.

GitHub will enable students to get access to the GitHub Student Developer Pack that comes with best-in-class developing tools. GitHub will also give students a chance to work alongside professional developers to collaborate on projects on GitHub.

EY will provide the best possible industry and technology mentorship to students that would help them to gain a better understanding of the working of industries.

The registration process for the first batch has already begun from 15th September 2021. Microsoft speculates that the internship program will impact over 1.5 lakh students pan India and make them industry-ready by 2024.

Interested candidates can apply for the internship program from its official website.

Microsoft partners with Honor to develop AI and Smart Technologies

By

Dipayan Mitra

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September 20, 2021

microsoft partners honor ai technologies

Tech giant Microsoft and smartphone manufacturing company Honor announced their partnership to develop groundbreaking artificial intelligence (AI) and smart technologies.

With this partnership, both companies want to create integrated solutions that support Honor’s 1+8+N strategy. Honor’s unique strategy aims at building a connected ecosystem with products catering to every consumer’s needs.

The companies also plan to collaborate on Microsoft Cloud adoption, personal and mobile computing, and various other technologies. According to a blog posted by Microsoft, Honor plans to adopt artificial intelligence speech and translation services based on Microsoft Azure.

CEO of Honor, George Zhao, said, “HONOR and Microsoft will continue to strengthen our strategic partnership and develop solutions that can incorporate different software and hardware technologies for various user scenarios.”

He further mentioned that he believes together both the companies will be able to establish an interconnection between end-devices and the all scenario ecology for creating a new intelligent world.

Last year, Honor became an independent firm after separating from its former parent company Huawei. This is the first major collaboration of Honor after its separation. Microsoft will provide assistance to Honor to further enhance its smartphone, laptop, watch, earphone, and smart screen capabilities.

They would also work on developing artificial intelligence solutions to improve the smartphone user experience. Corporate Vice President, Chairman, and CEO of Microsoft GCR, Dr. Hou Yang, said, “With the rise of hybrid work and environmental intelligence, customers expect more convenience, security, and better interaction from their mobile computing devices, systems, and applications, for both work and home.”

He also added that in this era of new normal, all parts of the world are accelerating digital transformation.

Facebook to develop Machine Learning Chips

By

Dipayan Mitra

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September 19, 2021

According to recent reports, it is rumored that Facebook is developing new machine learning chips. The primary functionality of the chip will be to provide recommendation services to its users.

The information regarding the chip was revealed by two undisclosed individuals claiming to be closely associated with the project. Facebook is also developing a chipset solely for video transcoding.

The chip will enhance the watching experience of record and live videos of its smartphone application. Experts believe that this development comes after other industry leaders like Google, Apple, and Amazon started to develop their own chipsets in order to provide uncompromised top-notch performance to their customers. This will also help Facebook to reduce buying costs of chips from third-party manufacturers.

A Facebook spokesperson said, “Facebook is always exploring ways to drive greater levels of compute performance and power efficiency with our silicon partners and through our own internal efforts.”

He further mentioned that the company doesn’t have anything new to share about their future plans and endeavors at that moment. Earlier in 2019, Facebook said that it was developing a custom microchip designed for artificial intelligence processing that would deliver greater power at minimum power consumption.

Facebook mentioned that it is willing to collaborate with other players like Qualcomm, Intel, and Marvell Technology for developing these custom microchips as they don’t know enough infrastructure to manage the entire manufacturing process effectively.