Noubar Afeyan: We should have our own Armenian artificial intelligence

11:39    5 October, 2022

At a time when the Armenian state as a whole is at risk, is a bit difficult to talk about machine learning, biology or other scientific technologies, but challenges are familiar phenomena to us as Armenians and as businessmen engaged in startups. Noubar Afeyan, co-founder of the Foundation for Armenian Science and Technology (FAST), founder and executive director of Flagship Pioneering, and co-founder and president of Moderna Inc. of the US, stated this during his speech at the Global Innovation Forum 2022 in Yerevan.

"We choose these conditions where we are fighting an ontological battle. Challenges make us focus, concentrate forces. The challenges of our young state are numerous. We have inadequate resources, an underdeveloped economy, a lack of institutional capacity, a difficult geographical position, and as always, many political conflicts. We have huge regional insecurity. In the [Armenian] diaspora, we did not think that Armenia's independence could be at risk. We have concern and that concern can become a constructive force," he said.

According to Afeyan, we are living in an age where biology, which is already connected with technology, will have the greatest impact on humans.

"For example, in the case of Moderna, in 2010 we thought that there could be a substance that we could inject into the patient's body and get the drug that we needed. We were engaged in this work for 5-10 years while others were developing other drugs. Then came Covid, and there was a need to use new technologies. We created a new medical platform where the solution that was needed at that time was formed," the co-founder of FAST emphasized.

"Our goal is to have our own—Armenian—artificial intelligence. It is difficult to compete with the present, the past is a pressure, but I would like to have such an idea in Armenia that would welcome artificial intelligence and develop it. If you are afraid of the future, then try to find a way to resolve that problem, and AI can help you in that matter," Afeyan said, in particular, concluding his address.

The official opening of the Global Innovation Forum 2022, the annual key event of the Foundation for Armenian Science and Technology (FAST), was held Wednesday in Yerevan.

Armenian News-NEWS.am is the information partner of Global Innovation Forum 2022.



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