Startup aims to make AI smarter
DarwinAI’s platform helps users know how artificial intelligence makes decisions
Startup boasts breakthroughs in AI
WATERLOO — A local startup says it has achieved two significant breakthroughs with artificial intelligence and plans to publicly launch its easy-to-use platform in the new year.
DarwinAI, based in the Accelerator Centre in the David Johnston Research and Technology Park, emerged from “stealth” mode this week and announced it has raised $3 million from Obvious Ventures, iNovia Capital and angel investors at the Creative Destruction Lab in Toronto.
“It is an exciting year for us,” said Sheldon Fernandez, DarwinAI’s chief executive officer.
Artificial intelligence is all the buzz in tech, and DarwinAI’s platform has two unique features.
First, it explains to users how and why the artificial intelligence software made a decision — important in regulated industries like financial services.
“You often hear in common parlance about the so-called ‘black box problem,’ which is the AI works fantastically well but you don’t know how it is reaching decisions,” said Fernandez.
“We can shine the light onto the black box and say: ‘This is why it classified this picture as a horse,’ for example.”
The second technology breakthrough is in the area of neural networks — a virtual model that simulates how the human brain makes decisions.
DarwinAI has greatly reduced the size and increased the efficiency of neural networks.
So far, neural networks have been too large for consumer electronics. DarwinAI’s breakthrough brings the promise of machine learning to smartphones and televisions, said Fernandez.
The startup’s platform is now being tested by a select group of large companies in automotive, consumer electronics and financial services prior to its public launch in early 2019, he said.
“This will allow us to test this and make it ‘battle ready’ before it goes to the general public,” said Fernandez.
“We have also had quite a demand from researchers and individuals to use the platform, so we will be putting out a software-asa-service version of the platform they can use online later in the year.”
DarwinAI has 18 employees. The chief scientist is Alexander Wong, a professor at the University of Waterloo and a Canada Research Chair in artificial intelligence.
The chief operating officer is Arif Virani, a former McKinsey & Co. technology consultant.
Along with Fernandez, they co-founded the startup. All three are UW graduates.
Wong is also a founding member of the Waterloo Artificial Intelligence Institute at the university.
The $3-million investment will be used to make the startup’s platform ready for the public launch in the new year.
“It gives us the runway to put this technology out into the marketplace, and really make a case to accelerate AI,” said Fernandez.
It takes considerable expertise to use a lot of AI software that is now available, but DarwinAI’s platform is designed to be easy to use.
“Our tool set allows nonexperts to start implementing this very impressive form of technology,” said Fernandez.
The startup was incorporated 18 months ago and just announced itself publicly this week. The artificial intelligence software it uses to build its neural networks emerged from years of research at the University of Waterloo.
“What makes us unique is we are actually using AI to build AI, so we are using artificial intelligence to understand these neural networks and it’s that understanding that helps us optimize them,” said Fernandez.
“It is kind of taking the complexity of AI and addressing that through AI, if that makes sense,” he said.