One man’s opinion: Sharing the wealth of AI

As a loyal Georgia Bulldog, it stings a bit to have to admit how much our rival university, the Georgia Institute of Technology, is leading and contributing to the advancement of practical uses for Artificial Intelligence (AI) in a wide array of settings and industries. The Georgia Tech Enterprise Innovation Institute recently organized and partnered with dozens of middle and high schools, technical and trade schools, as well as other colleges and universities and numerous private sector partners to celebrate Georgia Artificial Intelligence in Manufacturing (AIM) Week across the state.

The week, and three years worth of programs and pilot initiatives were made possible by a $65-million federal grant, intended to widen adoption of AI across the manufacturing sector. Judging by their results and the stops along the way of this statewide tour, they have been achieving some pretty solid results.

From Carrollton to Albany and from Athens and Augusta to Macon and Savannah and LaGrange and Fort Valley, Georgia, AIM made strides at reaching all corners and 159 counties in Georgia. At Southwire in Carrollton, 100 middle school students are learning how to write code to write and create music with AI. At Albany Technical College, this Georgia AIM Week stop highlighted blockchain data applications and innovation in hydroponics and aquaponics, shaping the future of agribusiness.

As this tour coincided with the announcement of nearly a half-billion in additional post-Hurricane Helene devastation federal disaster recovery funding, many farmers across southwest Georgia are still rebuilding from that natural disaster a year ago. Albany is the Pecan Capital of the World, and thousands of pecan trees were uprooted and destroyed, taking decades for new trees and seedlings to reach maturity.

But even there, Georgia AIM found ways to be of assistance, Alex Willson, the President and CEO of one of the nation’s largest pecan farms, Sunnyland Farms, found the fast rising costs of free shipping were eating a bigger and bigger bite out of company profits each year. Reaching seven-figures, and using older technology, the third-generation family business was a bit unclear on who all of their customers were, what they typically ordered and their costs of shipping to those same customers, which remain much more profitable than the wholesale and market resale of pecans.

“We really didn’t have a detailed view of exactly where boxes were going, and how much it was costing us. We wanted a more granular view of that, and it’s challenging for a business our size because we have people that are stretched fairly thin,” said Sunnyland’s President and CEO, Alex Willson.

Through Georgia AIM’s Rural Supply Chain Initiative, a Georgia Tech undergrad, Arpita Gupte, came to work at Sunnyland for three-months, as a Georgia AIM funded intern. During that time she organized all of the company’s shipping data using ChatGPT. This allowed for analysis of spreadsheets of shipping data, uncovering insights about package sizes, average box shipping weights, shipping zones, etc… This armed Sunnyland with data to compare rates and go to the negotiating table with all the major shippers with confidence. The result was a reduction of shipping costs by several hundred thousand dollars, and faster shipping for Sunnyland customers.

“We know that we have a challenge today with workforce and workforce development, so this is an opportunity to change that through partnerships and coalitions, as well as investments from the private sector,” said Donna Ennis, C0-Director of Georgia AIM and an Associate Vice President for Georgia Tech’s Enterprise Innovation Institute.

Georgia Tech has also found that building such a broad array of partnerships, as well as visibility for the college has helped to secure even more corporate support. Tech’s School of Mechanical Engineering recently received a donor estate gift of $100-million, and the Hyundai Motor Group is paying Tech $55-million over several years for the naming rights to Bobby Dodd Stadium, as well as funding an undisclosed amount into roughly a dozen other research projects at Tech in areas such as new electric-vehicle technologies and the use of hydrogen as clean fuel.

By sharing its wealth of AI knowledge, partners and initiatives, Georgia Tech is planting seeds, which should grow rapidly in Georgia’s fertile farm soil, or perhaps via hydroponics. Georgia peach farmers will have an opportunity to learn more about both on the Albany tour stop as both the Georgia AIM traveling lab and the Fort Valley State Fab Lab will be available to interact with. It seems that much like a pollinating honey bee, the technology shared by those Yellowjackets can pack quite a punch.

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