'This is the place': Tech leaders, Shapiro tout Pittsburgh as AI hub

With top-notch universities, a plethora of tech companies and support from local and state leaders, Pittsburgh is at the forefront of innovations in artificial intelligence, industry experts said Monday during an artificial intelligence summit in the city’s East End.

Artificial intelligence is becoming increasingly prevalent in daily life, bringing conveniences, like helping shoppers choose what to buy — as well as pitfalls, like deepfake images, said Andrew Moore, CEO of Pittsburgh-based Lovelace AI.

Much of the work to advance the technology and navigate how to use it responsibly, Moore said, will be done in the Steel City.

“This is the place,” Moore told hundreds of people who gathered in Bakery Square for the inaugural AI Horizons summit. “We are the people who can take on that responsibility.”

Already, Pennsylvania is a leader in the realm of artificial intelligence, Gov. Josh Shapiro said.

The governor touted the research being done at Pittsburgh-based universities, investments in K-12 education and apprenticeship opportunities to ensure Pennsylvanians are prepared for jobs in the ever-evolving technology industry.

“If you have these big dreams, if you have these capabilities, if you want to be part of the next big thing, you shouldn’t have to leave the zip code you love in order to go somewhere else to find it,” Shapiro said. “We are poised for this greatness here because of the investments we made, because of the people we have here and because we managed to get everybody rowing in the same direction.”

Shapiro last year signed an executive order that deployed artificial intelligence tools to 150 state workers, including those at the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and in human resources positions. The workers were instructed to use the technology to improve services and efficiencies to better serve constituents — and they did, according to the governor.

“They have 105 more minutes in their day to deal with the really complex challenges a fellow Pennsylvanian might approach our government with,” Shapiro said.

Officials touted artificial intelligence as an opportunity to solve a variety of problems.

Artificial intelligence can make accurate medical diagnoses and provide real-time language translations, said Carnegie Mellon University President Farnam Jahanian. It’s helping CMU researchers discover the shape of proteins and invent new proteins, leading to new drug discoveries that could revolutionize health care.

Shapiro’s administration is using the technology to help map where abandoned wells and mines are located. Using the technology, the governor said, has helped officials more efficiently plug wells, stopping methane from leaking into the air.

In the last year and a half, Shapiro said, the technology has allowed the state to cap and plug more wells and mines than had been capped in the last decade.

Last week, California-based Nvidia announced a new collaboration with CMU and the University of Pittsburgh that named Pittsburgh its first AI Tech Community.

Details about the partnership were not immediately available, but it will include two joint technology centers with the universities that will aim to accelerate artificial intelligence innovations.

Shapiro said he’s a cheerleader for encouraging investment in artificial intelligence and other technology throughout the commonwealth.

Last week, he said, he spoke with entrepreneur Elon Musk about potential investments that could bring additional jobs and innovation opportunities to Pennsylvania.

“The future, I know, is going to run right through Pittsburgh,” Shapiro said.