Title: On the AI, IE and HI (human intelligence)
Time: 9:00 to 11:00, Friday, May.26, 2023
Place: Zhenhua Conference Hall, School of Mechanical Engineering
Host: CHEN Lu, Professor (Department of Industrial Engineering and Management)

Biography
Chen Zhou focuses on the broad area of sustainable supply chain with a focus on food supply chain and industrial and systems engineering education. He has been the Associate Chair for Undergraduate Studies at Georgia Tech for 15 years. He has published over 30 referred papers on IIE Trans, Operations Research, INFORMS Trans on Education, Technometrics, etc. He had won the best paper award in IIE Transactions in 2009, SME President Award, IIE Phoenix Award, etc. He has published a book Supply Chain with Economics and Human needs. He is instrumental in the design and development of the undergraduate and graduate curricula for the top ranked industrial and Systems Engineering.

Abstract
Artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), robotics and automation have brought rapid changes to our lives, such as what to see, to eat, to wear, to work, to play, to relax, to move, or to pay. These changes are accelerating in 2023. How should Industrial Engineering (or any other major) adapt to this new reality? Every engineering major has its unique foundations and domains. For IEs, these include probability and statistics, operations research, engineering economy and human factors. In the past, industrial engineers applied these fundamentals in production, logistics, quality, supply chain, human-machine systems and management systems. Today, AI and robotics can already do some of the things as well as an educated industrial engineer can do! Surprisingly, a lot of AI and ML techniques are rooted in industrial engineering and operations research. How should we adapt our major for the future? A great objective for the future is found in the definition of ergonomics and human factors by the International Ergonomics Association (IEA): to optimize human well-being and overall system performance. This objective links the humans and the social, environmental and economic systems IEs intend to improve. More and more AI will join HI in human cognitive decisions. IEs are in an excellent position to bring AI and HI to serve human well-being. This talk will provide an overview of the recent development in AI and ML and open a dialog about how to adapt for the future of our profession.