Professor Luca Gambardella, the Is our Canton at the forefront, beyond your presence, as far as AI is concerned or is it still behind?
"My perception is that there is a great deal of excitement around these methodologies. We have the recent Swiss Innovation Park with competence centers related to fashion and lifestyle, drones and life sciences where Artificial Intelligence is central to many projects. New companies have settled in the area and in a short time have hired dozens of specialists and the CSCS computing center is equipping itself with computers that facilitate the use of Artificial Intelligence. At our DOORS Startup Center new startups are settling on these issues. Then, let's not forget that we are talking about a topic where competition is now global: we should therefore ask ourselves if Switzerland is competitive, perhaps Europe, compared to giants like the United States and China. It is comforting that a recent study placed Switzerland in ninth place in this sector worldwide".
Do you think that the obstacles to the diffusion of AI in Ticino could be of a strategic and technological nature or more of a mindset?
"I have always found Ticino to be a sensitive territory and motivated to innovate, both at the Canton level and in individual cities. Then, after good intentions, investments must follow, and here, just this year we have had cuts to research and universities. Of course, we are in a period of sacrifice for everyone, but this fact cannot be forgotten. One note, however, comes naturally to me: perhaps this looking at Ticino as a self-consistent innovation system capable of doing everything on its own, especially in these sectors, is limiting. The real challenge is to find internal resources but above all allies and partners at the Swiss and international level."
Usually, we talk about Artificial Intelligence in companies to improve processes, in industries to automate and improve them, in medicine to personalize diagnoses, in administrations to rationalize work flows, in training to help in studying and preparing materials: are these the main possible declinations at the moment, also in Ticino?
English: «The topics mentioned are all of great interest and current relevance and for this reason they have come out of the academy and have significant implications for society, the market and industries. I quickly mention the reality of Artificialy SA, a company that I helped co-found in Lugano in 2020 and which deals with the transfer of Artificial Intelligence methods to the market. Today, thirty people work there, including our former students, we are opening offices in Zurich, we work with the main companies in the Canton and we also bring innovation to SMEs. As regards IDSIA, which today employs 140 professors, researchers and PhD students, the latest interesting results, also with local companies, concern the study of optimized policies for energy distribution, the real-time analysis of images of infesting insects, support for the analysis of defects in the production of electronic boards and more. The topics are numerous and today there is much more confidence because the projects are created, delivered and certified in a few weeks and the concrete results in the area can be viewed and verified».
With AI, in fields such as primary care for example, isn't there a risk of replacing the human factor?
"I have always been a supporter of the hybrid world, where artificial intelligence must support the human being. I refer to the teachings of Angelo Dalle Molle who, by founding IDSIA in 1988, transmitted these values to us. Machines will be increasingly used to support decisions, to evaluate scenarios, to analyze situations in real time. This information must become part of the knowledge that a human being must use to decide and make diagnoses and assessments."
Will every company have to train people internally who, without being experts, know how to use AI or will it only be necessary to resort to professionals? Are they already doing this?
"Companies equip themselves with internal specialists, often not easy to motivate and keep, or with figures who act as an interface between the company (and its data) and an external world where third-party companies provide modern and constantly updated services. However, there are many training opportunities that should also be considered for those who already work and this must enter the mentality of companies and workers. Today, continuous training and proximity to the academic world remains a tool for remaining competitive at a corporate and personal level."
In your opinion, does a massive use of AI entail the risk of a loss of mental flexibility and problem solving, especially in fields such as study? The problem, as always in these cases, is both ethical and practical, don't you think?
"I have great faith in the new generations. They are young people accustomed to using digital technologies. On the other hand, all the generations I remember from my parents' to ours, have had to face change and adapt to transformations and, fortunately, Mother Nature has equipped us with great skills in this sense too. I would add that I was a judge in a robotics competition for teenagers a few weeks ago and I can assure you that if you had seen them design, discuss, present, work in a team you would have been afraid for the future of Artificial Intelligence, not for theirs!"
AI could cause the loss of many jobs, which could be replaced by automated processes, and at the same time create others, with other skills required. Is Ticino ready or is there a risk of losing jobs currently present and not being able to offer trained personnel for those needed, thus having to import them?
"To fully answer this question, skills that go beyond mine are needed, in a Ticino labor market that is constantly evolving. However, I find that the Ticino system is attentive to these issues, the contacts we have with trade associations, citizens, institutions and schools reassure me that if there is a problem we will be ready to face it and solve it. Today, therefore, I am more willing to use the concept of rebalancing the labor market, reaffirming the need to pay attention to training without excluding the future possibility of a fair redistribution of the benefits deriving from AI".
