Thapar Institute partners with World Leader in Artificial Intelligence Computing ‘NVIDIA’ to launch AI-enabled University in India
Kanwar Inder Singh/ royalpatiala.in News/ July 9,2024
Thapar Institute of Engineering & Technology (TIET) announced the signing of an MOU and collaboration with NVIDIA to establish the Thapar School of Advanced AI & Data Science (TSAAI), with technical support from the NVIDIA AI University program.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) continues to revolutionize industries worldwide, driving innovation, reshaping the future of education, and changing lives. Under the Memorandum of Understanding signed between TIET and NVIDIA, TSAAI will be established at TIET’s campus, Patiala. This groundbreaking initiative aims to offer a comprehensive range of academic programs, research opportunities, and innovation projects to empower both students and faculty with essential AI skills and knowledge. AI has become an integral part of daily life, from navigation systems to facial recognition technologies. However, India faces a significant gap in AI expertise, highlighting the urgent need for skilled professionals in this field.
“We are excited about the opportunity to establish this AI school, in technical collaboration with NVIDIA,” said Dr. Padmakumar Nair, Director of Thapar Institute of Engineering & Technology. “This work will not only bridge the gap in AI expertise but also pave the way for cutting-edge research and innovation in this transformative field. This also establishes our vision of providing education that creates future-ready students.”
“As a key player in the global AI education initiative, Thapar Institute will integrate cutting-edge NVIDIA technologies to cultivate a new generation of AI experts across India,” said Vishal Dhupar, Managing Director of Asia South at NVIDIA. “The new AI school will help bridge the gap in AI expertise and pave the way for breakthrough research and innovation in the industry.”
TIET will set up state-of-the-art AI infrastructure leveraging NVIDIA DGX systems with NVIDIA H100 Tensor Core GPUs, NVIDIA A100 Tensor Core GPUs, and the NVIDIA AI Enterprise software platform for the development and deployment of generative AI. This dedicated data center will offer 227 petaflops of AI performance with nearly 8 terabytes of GPU memory. Apart from core accelerated computing infrastructure, TIET is setting up edge computing infrastructure with 500 Jetson Nano developer kits to build up the startup ecosystem, taking leaps forward to turn graduates into job creators rather than job seekers.
This AI university program aims to offer a comprehensive range of courses, labs, research opportunities and innovation projects to empower both students and faculty with essential AI skills and knowledge. By the dawn of the first semester 2024-2025 academic year, the infrastructure will be ready to support a full undergraduate AI degree program, AI mandatory/elective courses across all disciplines, technical training for faculty and staff, research collaborations, and establishment of an AI startup ecosystem powered by NVIDIA edge computing. Within a span of 2-4 years, TIET will make sure any student who is graduating will be “AI literate” by making required curriculum changes and additional requirements. First on the block is to initiate the Thapar Digital Twin project, followed by a number of mega interdisciplinary projects in areas ranging from food security, urban planning, healthcare, and cybersecurity to robotics and more.
Key highlights of the Thapar School of Advanced AI & Data Science (TSAAI)
- Academics
- Develop a new undergraduate engineering program in AI (B.E. in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning) focused on building deep AI skills over four years.
- Offer AI elective courses across all programs to ensure all students are AI literate.
- Launch a Master’s Program in AI, ML, and DS targeting working professionals.
- Provide professional development courses for industry professionals seeking AI training.
- Irrespective of the program, all students of TIET will receive nine credits of AI training
- Faculty and student training
- Train identified faculty in the NVIDIA Deep Learning Institute (DLI) Ambassador Program.
- Conduct DLI workshops for identified students and faculty members.
In addition, NVIDIA plans to extend the benefits of its Inception program to qualifying TIET-incubated AI startups.
Thapar Institute of Engineering & Technology: Thapar Institute of Engineering & Technology (TIET) is one of India’s oldest and finest educational institutions, founded in 1956, it boasts a green campus spread over 250 acres in Patiala with the School of Management situated on a 28-acre campus near Chandigarh. TIET offers undergraduate, postgraduate, and doctoral programs aligned with global academic standards across engineering, basic sciences, humanities, management, and liberal arts and sciences. TIET is ranked 20th among engineering institutions and 22nd among all universities in India, according to the 2023 Rankings by the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF). It is accredited by NBA & ABET (as per Washington Accord) and features in the top-ranked institutes as listed by Times Higher Education and QS world subject rankings. TIET boasts award-winning student accommodation and structures like the Central Library, supporting a rich learning environment.
