Dr Ehud Reiter from the University of Aberdeen was among a group of scientists specialising in artificial intelligence (AI) who took part in a recent event exploring how to design robust natural language generation models for explainable AI.
The event in Nancy in France brought together members of the NL4XAI research project, an initiative funded by the Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme which involves the University of Aberdeen and several other European universities.
Organised by scientists and representatives from technology companies including Google and Orange in France, the event investigated transparency in AI within the context of EU legislation which states that people have a right to explanations of decisions affecting them, including when (AI) based systems make those decisions.
Dr Reiter, who is an expert in natural language generation (NLG), an AI technique capable of generating text from various types of input, such as numerical data or text, gave a talk on how to evaluate NLG systems to ensure they are fit for purpose.
The main goal of the NL4XAI initiative is to train early-stage researchers who face the challenge of designing and implementing a new generation of self-explaining AI systems. The NL4XAI network also facilitates sharing state-of-the-art knowledge on the subject of Explainable AI.
Further information about NL4XAI ((Natural Language Technologies for Explainable Artificial Intelligence)
In addition to the event in Nancy, The NL4XAI has already hosted four training events, including events focused on Ethics/Law in Natural Language Processing, more broad natural language technology, and Interaction/Interfaces. In addition to these official training events, the ESRs have been learning from fellow scientists at different universities and companies. In 2021, we saw fruitful exchanges with the University of Malta, Maastricht University, Warsaw University of Technology (WUT), IIIA-CSIC, and CITIUS-USC. With fewer COVID-19 related travel restrictions in 2022, the ESRs will also be able to visit Utrecht University, the University of Twente, TU Delft, ARG-tech, as well as the companies Orange, Wiznoze, and Info Support.
NL4XAI is funded by the Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme, through a Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant, in the framework of the European Union’s bet for Explainable Artificial Intelligence. The network is coordinated by the research team at the Research Centre in Intelligent Technology of the University of Santiago de Compostela (CiTIUS-USC), headed by Senén Barro. NL4XAI is a joint academic-industry research network, that brings together 19 beneficiaries and partners from six different European countries (France, Malta, Poland, Spain, The Netherlands, and UK). The partners correspond to two national research institutions (IIIA-CSIC, CNRS), ten universities (University of Aberdeen, University of Dundee, L-Universitá ta’ Malta, Delft University of Technology, Utrecht University, University of Twente, Warsaw University of Technology, Université de Lorraine, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, Universitat Autonòma de Barcelona and Maastricht University and six private companies (Indra, Accenture, Orange, Wizenoze, Arria, InfoSupport).