Want a career in AI and robotics? One of the best ways to enrich your knowledge about the sector is to follow these AI influencers.
The world of artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics has never been more exciting. With questions around the ethics of AI and the ever-developing robotics sector, there are so many options for someone who wants a career in AI.
As with most careers, you’ll want to build a network, get to know the industry experts and learn as much about the sector as you can.
With that in mind, we’ve compiled a list of 10 top people to follow on Twitter if you want to work in AI. With a mixture of industry professionals, researchers and influencers, your AI Twitter feed will be rich with quality content, interesting insights and diverse opinions.
Dr Lucy Rogers (@DrLucyRogers)
With a passion for robotics and IoT, Dr Lucy Rogers’ career spans from robot dinosaurs to rocket science. She also spoke at Inspirefest 2015.
As of last summer, Rogers is a judge on the recently revived Robot Wars. She’s also the author of It’s Only Rocket Science.
If her robot Twitter picture weren’t a cool enough reason to follow the IoT anarchist, her tweets and retweets will provide ample inspiration for anyone looking for a career in AI and robotics.
Neill Gernon (@NeillGernon)
As the MD of Atrovate, Neill Gernon should be on your follow list if you have any interest in AI and machine intelligence.
He’s knowledgeable about the world of machine learning and what the future of AI will look like, and he also organises a quarterly Dublin AI community event.
Earlier this year, Gernon set up an AI hackathon to further strengthen the Dublin AI community.
Really enjoyed chatting about the future of #AI infront of a diverse room of 4th year students. Thanks for having me 😉 pic.twitter.com/cJJvMJuIhl
— Neill Gernon (@NeillGernon) March 10, 2017
Andra Keay (@RobotLaunch)
Andra Keay is at the heart of the robotics sector. As the MD of Silicon Valley Robotics, she’s bringing robots into the real world.
Keay is the founder of global robotics start-up competition Robot Launch, co-founder of Robot Garden hackerspace and a mentor at hardware accelerators.
She has also spoken widely about the future of AI and how to ensure there are more women in the industry.
Are robots sexist? @RobotLaunch talks about the danger of the lack of women in #AI and #robotics https://t.co/91mnQkYW4m
— SiliconRepublic (@siliconrepublic) March 8, 2017
Dr Randal Olson (@randal_olson)
Passionate about machine learning and AI, Randal Olson is a senior data scientist at the Penn Institute for Biomedical Informatics.
Following Olson on Twitter will give anyone who wants a career in AI some helpful advice, particularly in the realm of machine learning, programming and deep learning.
In between advice and insights, Olson also shares some humour from the tech industry.
Typical code comments… #programminghttps://t.co/hOU0uM8Zl7 pic.twitter.com/gfICGmZAVg
— Randy Olson (@randal_olson) March 20, 2017
Inmaculada Martinez (@inma_martinez)
An AI pioneer, Inmaculada Martinez built one of the first AI systems for personalising mobile data services.
For #InternationalWomensDay we asked some of our #inspirefest 2017 speakers who inspires them. Here's #AI pioneer @inma_martinez #iwd2017 pic.twitter.com/3Q9heBs6d5
— Inspirefest 2017 (@InspirefestHQ) March 8, 2017
Martinez is currently a venture partner at Deep Science Ventures, a sci-tech accelerator and investment fund launched by Imperial College London.
Martinez is a huge advocate for women in tech and, if you want to pursue a career in AI, you should definitely follow her.
You can also catch her speaking at Inspirefest in Dublin this summer, or at the Inspirefest salon in London on 23 March.
Peter Xing (@peterxing)
Peter Xing is an AI enthusiast who took a post at KPMG as tax technology and innovation manager in December 2016.
Based in Australia, Xing is also the co-founder of Transhumanism Australia, a community that educates and invests in AI research and technologies.
Follow Xing on Twitter for powerful insights from the world of AI.
The incredible inventions of intuitive AI | Maurice Conti https://t.co/Dht1EWNwTk
— Peter Xing (@peterxing) March 3, 2017
Kate Darling (@grok_)
The self-proclaimed ‘mistress of machines’, Kate Darling is passionate about AI and robotics.
A research specialist at the MIT Media Lab and a fellow at the Harvard Berkman Centre, Darling is particularly interested in how robots and technology integrate with humans and society.
Writing, speaking and giving workshops on the most interesting developments in human-robot interaction, Darling’s tweets will give anyone who wants a career in AI plenty of food for thought.
Kate Darling (@grok_ ), @nileshashra, & a pretty creepy KFC robot call out app. 90% of 2017's #SXSW sessions: AI? Actually still terrible… pic.twitter.com/VaVth3YWxG
— Lisa Radel (@LisaRadel1) March 16, 2017
Monte Zweben (@mzweben)
Co-founder and CEO of Splice Machine, which makes it easy to create real-time, scalable applications, Monte Zweben is a tech industry and AI veteran.
From an early career as the deputy chief of the AI branch at NASA, to founder of Red Pepper Software and Blue Martini Software, Zweben has two decades of technology and business experience.
Zweben is also the co-author of Intelligent Scheduling and has published several articles in the Harvard Business Review and various computer science journals.
Artificial Intelligence: 5 key attributes of all modern AI systems https://t.co/ZpG08HbOtL via @appdevelopermag
— Monte Zweben (@mzweben) January 5, 2017
Dr Angelica Lim (@petitegeek)
Working at Softbank Robotics, Dr Angelica Lim has a bachelor’s degree, a master’s degree and a PhD with a focus on informatics and AI.
Lim is passionate about AI and emotions, with research that focuses on combining neuroscience, machine learning and developmental psychology.
Lim is one of the top AI influencers and, if you are interested in an AI career, she’s the perfect person to follow.
VR's always been a bit meh for me, till I saw @felixandpaul's film @ #sxsw Characters make eye contact as they pass, so incredibly powerful.
— Dr. Angelica Lim (@petitegeek) March 19, 2017
Noel Sharkey (@NoelSharkey)
Having joined Robot Wars as head judge alongside Dr Lucy Rogers, Noel Sharkey is a professor in AI and robotics at the University of Sheffield.
Sharkey’s core research interest is in the ethical application of robotics and AI in areas such as the military, child care, surveillance, medicine, education and criminal activity.
With plenty of insights, knowledge and experience behind him, Sharkey is a key influencer if you want to know about AI.
#RobotWars nearly starting
judges are ready, stop the farting
Sharpen the knives to play at home
I don’t really mean that it’s only a poem pic.twitter.com/xf05tGme8N— Noel Sharkey (@NoelSharkey) March 19, 2017
Updated, 8.56am, 22 March 2017: An earlier version of this article stated that Dr Angelica Lim works at Soft Robotics. She actually works at Softbank Robotics. The article has been updated accordingly.
