AIDA (International AI Doctoral Academy) is an initiative supported by the European Networks of Excellence AI4Media, ELISE, TAILOR, HumanE-AI-Net and VISION CSA, promoting world-level AI education and research. Created as a non-profit organisation of academic and industrial partners, AIDA aims to offer access to AI knowledge and expertise and attract PhD talents.

More precisely, AIDA’s main goals are: 

• To coordinate PhD/postdoc educational and training activities on AI of AIDA partners.
• To become a world-level reference for anything related to AI education and research.
• To define mechanisms for inter-university sharing of educational assets in the area of PhD-level AI.
• To envisage future efforts towards a charter for European universities to share, accredit and recognise PhD education credits in the area of AI.

Why become an AIDA-member

With its ever-growing educational resource repository, its active involvement in AI-related events (e.g. AI Excellence Lecture Series and AIDA Sponsored Events) and its AI-oriented PhD-curriculum, regularly updated to keep in line with the latest developments, AIDA promises excellence in the field; and this, at a global level.

Students and lecturers can benefit from becoming AIDA members in various ways. Course organizers (AIDA or external Lecturers) can enjoy AIDA’s seal of quality for their course, as well as robust course dissemination through AIDA-AUTH channels that maximize course registration and impact. And AIDA students (but also external course registrants) can attend high-quality AI courses delivered by distinguished AI lecturers worldwide and include such courses in their personal AIDA Certificate of Course Attendance.

AIDA offers a wide range of involvement opportunities thanks to its fairly large catalogue of courses, all offered by AIDA or external lecturers: 

• Short courses typically last 5h-16h and may grant 1-3 ECTS credits. 
• AIDA Tutorials typically last 2h-4h.
• AIDA Lecture series/Semester courses last around 40h and can offer 5-7 ECTS credits.
• AIDA Seasonal Schools (typically summer schools) are organized during summer usually in the format of short courses or lecture series.

In addition, senior qualified experts and junior talented researchers may participate in the AI Excellence Lecture Series that are offered alternatingly by top highly-cited senior AI scientists internationally or junior AI scientists with the promise of excellence. Notably, AI excellence is approached via a zero-cost route (free attendance), ensuring unimpeded access to recorded materials (e.g., by making them freely available online).

Last, AIDA Sponsored Events include conferences, workshops and other activities aiming to bring the global AI-community together.

*Check AIDA offers figure below

How to join

AIDA currently numbers 77 members. Students, lecturers and organisations can join AIDA via following the links below:

• How to become an AIDA Member (for organisations).
• Guide for AIDA lecturers.
• Guide for AIDA students.

We look forward to discussing any questions or ideas that you have with regard to AIDA. Do not hesitate to write to us in the comments section below, send us an email or reach out through our social media!

This blog post has been co-authored by:

• Prof. Ioannis Pitas (Aristotle University of Thessaloniki)
• Dr. Vasileios Mygdalis (Aristotle University of Thessaloniki)
• Mr. Georgios Bouchagiar (Aristotle University of Thessaloniki)

How to contact us

Website: https://www.i-aida.org/, Email: secretariat@i-aida.org

Social media: Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube

Acknowledgement

AIDA is supported by the AI4Media project. AI4Media has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 951911.