Recently, I completed the short course AI Python for Beginners by DeepLearning.AI, taught by Andrew Ng. I am not a programmer, so I was thrilled when immediately after completing the first course in the sequence — which took about an hour — I managed to create my first program in Python.
I started my journey in Machine Learning and Deep Learning with Professor Andrew Ng’s Coursera courses. Without these courses, I would probably have zero knowledge in this field. Being a part of this community allowed me to access valuable resources and courses. It also provided a supportive network of peers who shared my passion for AI. As I continued to learn and grow, I found myself increasingly engaged in organizing events, workshops, and discussions to help others navigate the complexities of deep learning.
I want to assist my community of young Africans to be in the know about cutting-edge technologies. The DeepLearning AI Event Ambassador role has given me so many opportunities within the technology and AI community. I have been able to connect with like-minded individuals from across the globe. As a STEM educator, I believe that now is the time for many young Africans to exponentially grow their acquisition of digital skills. AI will feed into every aspect of our lives, and DeepLearning AI is the right place to get started.
I have been interested in AI for Good-type work for the majority of my career. Almost 20 years ago, a good friend of mine lost a child to SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome). As a result, I started volunteering with Seattle Children’s Hospital, helping to understand the causes and preventative steps that could be taken to reduce the risk of SIDS. This volunteer engagement led to the opportunity to create the Microsoft AI for Good Lab. I could have never imagined the scope and scale of the work we’re fortunate to do today. From improving health outcomes to biodiversity conservation and humanitarian response, the relevance and need for AI in every sector has never been more pronounced.
During my time as a PhD student, I realized that my biggest professional and personal interests are artificial intelligence and community building. As a PhD student in astronomy, I used to organize communities for astronomy enthusiasts, bringing together scientists, amateur astronomers, and astrophotographers to connect and learn from each other. And, since my research required knowledge of deep learning algorithms, I completed the courses on deep learning and TensorFlow from Deeplearning.AI and subscribed to the newsletter. During that time, I realized that my biggest professional and personal interests are artificial intelligence and community building.
I joined the Deeplearning.AI community as an event ambassador because my primary goal is to help promote the community and its events and to provide information and assistance to those who are interested in learning more about deep learning and AI. I noticed that a lot of students and professionals want to get into tech, and that inspired me to help them. I am passionate about building the Deeplearning.AI community in Nigeria.
Being an Event Ambassador for the DeepLearning.AI community provides an opportunity to play a crucial role in bridging the gap between academia, industry, and enthusiasts. It offers me a platform to share the knowledge, experience, and insights I’ve gained from pursuing my Master’s degree in data science.
Andrew Ng persuaded me that AI is the new electricity. We are plunging into the fourth industrial revolution, and as a professional educator I need to prepare my students to contribute to, and compete in, the new economic landscape unfolding before us. As an organization, what DeepLearning.AI cares about most is sharing knowledge about this remarkable technology, which makes it a rare organization in a sector marked by sensational corporate profits and enormous societal costs.
Gerry Fernando Patia leads AI infrastructure projects at Robinhood, an online platform for investors. Having emigrated from Indonesia and attended a lesser-known U.S. university, he didn’t find it easy to break into AI. He spoke…
