RDP Robotics_AI

We are actively researching new types and applications of AI, along with solving problems that can be aided by AI methods.

Projects to date involve embodied AI, applied AI, DNA sequencing analysis using AI/ML methods for disease modeling and control, AI for Robotics and more. Some projects are currently in stealth mode but have tremendous capability already. At RDPRobotics we are merging real world hardware, sensing, data and computation with novel AI algorithms and approaches.

What is A.I.?

A.I. stands for "Artificial Intelligence" and it is a broad, often poorly understood term. One very useful way to think about it simply is AI is any artificial (usually computer-based but not necessarily) solution for a problem that would normally require an intelligent biological system to solve. This is why it can be difficult to define - AI encompasses a vast space of scientific and engineering knowledge. There are many forms of AI, some being the conversational AI systems such as ChatGPT, others as simple as a single artificial neuron trained to fire when a number goes above some threshold like 5, or even simpler fitting data to a straight line (remember y=mx+b from high school? We are talking about those unknown parameters "m" and "b") using an algorithm that computes the best fit for the line through the data.

Why are people so excited about A.I.?

There are a few reasons people are so excited about A.I. Some of it is 'hype' of course, as with any new technology. A.I. is not exactly new, but the combination of new tools and hardware available have accelerated the usefulness and ease of application of these methods. The exciting thing about A.I. is that it enables the solution of problems that would normally take much longer to solve. For example, one does not need to explicitly solve a complex equation to fit some complex curve representing variations in heart rate to detect an oncoming heart attack. One can apply A.I. and Machine Learning methods to build a system that can detect a heart attack in the data without significant effort on the part of the programmer. It is now possible to build A.I. systems to recognize patterns and act on them to save lives as well as generally enhance our lives. Complex systems that were beyond our mathematical capability to model previously can now be modeled with an Artificial Neural Network using a single line of code. So what is exciting is the opportunity, the door that has been opened to new capability. We must develop good judgment in the application of A.I. but there is no doubt about the fact that AI/ML have enabled anyone to create and solve problems previously intractible.

To apply A.I. or not to apply A.I.

Sometimes we can apply AI to a problem, but it might be simpler to use other methods or manually tune something. AI has its pluses and minuses, and must be applied with good judgment. While an artificial neural network with a million weights running on a specialized chip with hundreds of processors or thousands, gigabytes of memory and more running linux along with several large libraries can solve a problem, it's possible the same problem could be solved with an equation that runs on a small 8-bit embedded microcontroller without any neural networks, libraries, and in less than 1k of program memory. Human beings have our wonderful brains with about as many neural connections as stars in our galaxy, and we can solve simple problems but also complex ones, and many different types we can switch between upon demand. Solving one problem does not require an artificial brain and hardware to match our wetware. A.I. is powerful and useful, but nothing is a panacea. We aim to employ A.I. where it can solve the important problems appropriate for its capability.

Our committment to humanity

We at RDPRobotics_AI are committed to responsible and productive applications of AI to improve the human condition.