WATERTOWN — News about AI (Artificial Intelligence) is nearly ubiquitous in the media due to recent advances and their practical applications in various fields. As AI rapidly becomes incorporated into many aspects of our lives, in what some deem to be a new and more expansive version of the Industrial Revolution, people can’t help but wonder what transformations lie ahead. The Tekeyan Cultural Association Boston Chapter sponsored a presentation on September 12 at the Baikar Building in Watertown by two specialists in different fields, Prof. Joseph Shahbazian and Harry Glorikian, to discuss these issues and touch upon related developments in Armenia.
Dr. Shahbazian is a physicist, medical engineer, author, inventor, and philanthropist, who has taught at Northeastern University, Wentworth Institute of Technology, and Bunker Hill Community College. The Shahbazian Charitable Foundation was founded in 2014 by the efforts of Shahbazian and Dr. Bella Margarian in memory of his beloved brother, Janson Shahbazian. The couple supported hundreds of pupils and students from the remote villages of Armenia since 2014 with computers, scholarships, and stationery. Furthermore, they have been supporting the students of schools in different regions of Armenia, such as Tavush, Martuni, and Ijevan, since the 1990s when they were still university students.
Healthcare entrepreneur and global business expert Glorikian, based in the Boston area like Shahbazian, is the author of The Future You: How Artificial Intelligence Can Help You Get Healthier, Stress Less, and Live Longer (Dering Harbor, New York: Brick Tower Press, 2021). The book was on the top ten list of Amazon.com best-sellers. Today, Glorikian is a general partner at Scientia Ventures, a venture capital firm focusing on promising tech companies using AI and big data to make diagnostic devices and new therapies, and serves on the boards of various companies.
Shahbazian’s Presentation
Shahbazian provided a general introduction, accompanied by slides, to the development of AI, starting with the coinage of the term at a conference at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire in 1956. He observed that there are some problematic effects of its spread evident already, such as job displacement. In just the last seven months, more than 12,000 people were laid off in the gaming industry, which is a booming field. Everything from entry level cashiers to English teachers are being affected. He also gave the example of how AI works dispassionately, imposing unbendable rules, unlike humans.
Yet there are many advantages. AI allows repetitive processes to be conducted with few errors, such as through robots. It can be used to conduct many tasks as a virtual personal assistant or provide customer service and even transportation.