Imperial College Computing

We're delighted to announce that two PhD students from the Department of Computing at Imperial have been awarded the Placement Award on the prestigious Enrichment Scheme of The Alan Turing Institute. The award is presented annually to students who demonstrate exceptional contributions to artificial intelligence research. Lisa Alazraki’s research focuses on natural language processing (NLP) and machine learning, with a particular interest in improving the performance of large foundation models on tasks that involve complex reasoning, such as solving mathematical problems, answering knowledge-intensive questions, and navigating virtual environments. In addition, she is exploring how to make these models more robust when faced with input perturbations. Her PhD work seeks to push the boundaries of what large language models (LLMs) can achieve by tackling challenges related to their reasoning abilities and ensuring they can withstand variations in input without losing accuracy. These areas of research are crucial as LLMs are increasingly used in real-world applications where robustness and precision are key. Alberto Croquevielle’s research lies at the intersection of artificial intelligence and database systems, focusing on "learned indexes," which use machine learning techniques to optimize database queries. By developing these innovative data structures, Alberto aims to accelerate query performance beyond what traditional indexing methods can achieve. His work explores the potential algorithmic advantages of learned indexes, particularly in AI applications like retrieving word embeddings from LLMs. Alberto is also delving into generative AI, which involves creating models capable of generating new content such as text, images, or music. His research in this field has implications for areas ranging from biomedical imaging to data synthesis. Both recipients will receive funding to continue their research and join the Turing Institute network, a collaborative platform aimed at advancing AI research across the UK. Congratulations to Lisa and Alberto for this remarkable achievement! Lisa Alazraki Luis Alberto Croquevielle Rendic #computing #stem https://lnkd.in/ec2PB3BS

Prof Enrico Biffis and I are delighted to offer a fully-funded Hitachi-Imperial PhD Studentship in Sustainable Blockchain Applications for Decarbonisation from January 2025 to March 2028. Open to both home and overseas students and based at Imperial's South Kensington Campus in London. Ideal candidates for the PhD studentship will have an interest and existing background in computer science, and a strong interest in climate finance, climate risk analytics and blockchain. For more details and instructions on how apply, see: https://lnkd.in/eNW8hHDV #phd #blockchain #sustainability

This week, I had the pleasure of graduating from my MEng Computing degree with first-class honours and an overall grade of 80% from Imperial College London in the wonderful Royal Albert Hall. The past four years have taken me all the way from remote studying in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic to my year abroad where I did my Master's thesis in medical natural language processing at Universidad Politécnica de Madrid. Beyond the academics, I made very special memories in various societies at both universities and I was honoured to win a Student Activity Award for my extracurricular contributions and Matrícula de honor during my exchange programme. I'm extremely grateful and appreciative for all the support from my friends, family, project teammates, supervisors, academic staff and everyone else who contributed to my university experience. I am thrilled to have returned to Imperial where I am thoroughly enjoying my role as a software engineer with teaching fellow duties, supporting the amazing teaching at Imperial College Computing. Pasé un año maravilloso en Madrid y quiero agradecer a todos que formaron parte de mi experiencia allí: mis tutores con los que hice mi trabajo fin de máster sobre la traducción de textos biomédicos, todos los amigos que hice allí y las oficinas de relaciones externas que me becaron. La organización ESN contribuyó muchísimo a mi experiencia y ahora pongo mi granito de arena como voluntario en la sección de Imperial.

🗣 “Artificial intelligence can sound scary, but used in the right way it can be hugely beneficial to individuals’ health while bringing down the costs of treatment. Independent scientists have a critical role in shaping ethical guidelines and regulations to ensure AI is used appropriately in the search for cures and directly in peoples’ medical treatment, and I look forward to taking up this position.” Read the full article⬇️ https://lnkd.in/eF42mKq3 #AI4Health #DigitalHealth #healthcare #innovation

The first day of term is here. Welcome to our new and returning students. 👋 Thanks to incident.io for sponsoring this year's #rubberduckdebugging. The duck will debug your code. 🦆 🔗 incident.io/careers Pete Hamilton, Alicia Collymore, Mark Wheelhouse, Jamie Willis, Josiah Wang

We are looking for participants to take part in a study which aims to look at the effect of the Self-Attachment Technique, a new way of treating people with depression, using a virtual environment. Kirsty and Jess are trainee clinical psychologists completing this research study as part of their doctorate in clinical psychology with Royal Holloway University. This study is in collaboration with the Algorithmic Human Development Research Group at Imperial. What will taking part involve? You will be invited to attend a 50 - minute online group session each week for eight weeks Are you? Aged 18+ Experiencing symptoms of depression A resident in the UK Able to access a computer Fluent in written and spoken English Able to commit to weekly sessions and practicing strategies twice a day Why Participate: Gain insights into cutting-edge therapeutic techniques. Help shape future treatments for depression. Contribute to scientific research at prestigious institutions. Full details about the study and what it involves can be obtained by emailing: NLJT181@live.rhul.ac.uk or IKJT046@live.rhul.ac.uk RHUL Ethics ID: 337

“#AI: Friend or Foe?” Join us at “The Beyond Ethnicity Career conference (BECC)" at Imperial College London. the full day conference is aimed at early career professionals in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, medicine (STEMM) and business who are from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) backgrounds or other minoritised groups. My talk will be on “Innovating with Purpose: #WomeninAI Paving the Way for #InclusiveTechnology” This year’s theme is #AI: Friend or Foe? Discover how emerging tech may impact your career. Attend talks on AI and creativity, developing your career in a new tech landscape, AI fairness and bias and the environmental impacts of using AI tools. This conference creates a space to expose you to inspiring role models and provides practical advice on how to make the most of AI in your careers, now and in the future. The conference will be a full-day event with a variety of keynotes and AI talks from academia and industry, panels and networking opportunities. Talks will include -AI and creativity -Innovating with Purpose: Women in AI Paving the Way for Inclusive Technology -A Day in the Life of an AI Professional -Social justice and environmental impacts of using AI tools https://lnkd.in/eHa6gfem Wayne A Mitchell Alex Dawes Imperial College Computing

👀 From 'smart dust' to data, data everywhere. Professor Julie McCann from Imperial College Computing looks back over the past ten years, and the changes in ways in which sensor technology is created, deployed and improved upon, as part of Imperial Tech Foresight's Decade of Discovery series. Imperial College London #SmartDust #BigData #SensorTechnology

Tom Smail, a dedicated computing student at Imperial, recently returned to the place where his passion for hackathons was first ignited: Hack the 6ix, Canada’s largest summer hackathon held at the University of Toronto. However, this time, Tom returned not just as a participant, but as a speaker, mentor, and judge—a full-circle moment in his journey from enthusiastic hacker to an a voice in the tech community. Read the full story 📰 https://lnkd.in/eUTRpz6Q

Can AI agents help students in their learning journey? 🎓 This is the question that MSc student Elsa Polo Laube (Imperial College Computing & Department of Mathematics) set out to explore during her recent placement with I-X Business Partner, Fetch.ai. Over the past four months, Elsa, who was affiliated with I-X during her internship, collaborated with Frederick Anness Lorenz (Department of Computing & Department of Mathematics) and Kush Patel (University of Warwick) on the “Rewise4” project, developing an AI-powered educational tool designed to help students with their learning. Here is how it works: students learn from #AI tutors powered by Fetch.ai’s agent technology, and practice using quizzes based on their specific course or from their previous learning sessions. The aim of this project is to make learning more accessible and affordable: students learn at a pace they are comfortable with and receive tailored support that might not be available in a traditional classroom setting. Additionally, AI tutors can be customised to align with a student's interests, offering a personalised learning experience to ensure that a student remains engaged with the lessons. The Rewise4 may also serve as a support tool for teachers and parents, allowing them to track student’s progress. The project is a great example of how artificial intelligence can help make learning more personalized, engaging and effective! 📚 Elsa’s internship was part of the Fetch.ai Internship Incubator Programme. Designed as a 16-week on-the-job training, the Programme provides the next generation of tech talents an in-depth immersion in AI/ML and decentralised technology. Through the Fetch.ai Innovation Lab’s Internship Incubator programme, the interns had been empowered to build with Fetch AI’s latest multi agent-based technology being engaged in group and individual projects exploring various dimensions of personalisation and responsiveness to real-time data. As Elsa’s internship comes to an end, we wish her continued success in all her future projects! #AIinEducation #EdTech #LearningInnovation Imperial College London | Imperial Enterprise Lab | Imperial Enterprise