UMD Smith and Deloitte Launch Initiative to Expand AI Study and Outreach Opportunities

The Robert H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland (UMD) has joined Deloitte to launch the Deloitte Initiative for AI and Learning (DIAL), an artificial intelligence (AI) research initiative to help expand learning and development opportunities for faculty and students across the university’s various colleges. 

UMD, Maryland’s flagship educational institution, is a recognized leader in AI, data analytics and research. This new initiative leverages Deloitte’s experience as a leader in AI-enabled services and solutions for private and public sector clients.

DIAL will be based within UMD’s Robert H. Smith School of Business and will build upon previous Deloitte and Smith collaborations, such as the Smith Analytics Consortium. Funding for DIAL was provided by the Deloitte AI Institute for Government.

“The DIAL program enables Smith and Deloitte to continue their critical collaborations at the forefront of cutting-edge research and emerging technology,” said Wedad Elmaghraby, Dean’s Professor of Operations Management at UMD’s Robert H. Smith School of Business. “This includes partnering with local industry and federal partners to drive innovation for the public good, creatively pushing our students to embrace analytics challenges in new and unexplored areas of importance and investing in our understanding of ethical, trustworthy artificial intelligence to further its potential promise.”

The Deloitte AI Institute for Government serves as Deloitte’s hub for innovative perspectives, collaboration and research on AI and related technologies in the public sector. Through publications, events, workshops and collaborations like DIAL, the Institute helps government agencies use AI ethically to deliver better services, improve operations and facilitate economic growth.

Recent research from the Deloitte AI Institute for Government found that while government agencies and public sector organizations are beginning to use AI, many still need to build suitable AI governance structures, confront evolving security challenges, and identify impactful applications for this new technology. Through DIAL, Deloitte and UMD will collaborate on various activities to dive deeper into these and other critical issues to help public sector leaders more effectively manage and realize AI’s full potential.

“As the volume of available data grows, so too does the government’s need for technologies and policies that can generate valuable insights from it,” said Darren Schneider, principal, Deloitte Consulting LLP. “Alongside our longstanding work with the University of Maryland, DIAL will help provide policymakers, industry leaders, researchers and the broader public with a deeper understanding of artificial intelligence.”

The DIAL program will focus on:

• AI Ethics and Trustworthy AI: Furthering the adoption and development of ethical safeguards for privacy, fairness and transparency to protect against negative impacts of algorithmic bias and other AI risks.

• AI at Scale: Helping government agencies address and remove the barriers to implement AI and advance administration priorities with AI at the enterprise level.

• AI for Equity: Supporting the government’s use of ethical and trustworthy AI to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts.

• AI-Human Interaction: Improving AI-human interaction and collaboration as well as human perceptions of AI, whether among organizational leadership and the workforce or end users and citizens.

Additional information on DIAL is forthcoming via Smith’s Centers and Initiatives homepage.