Considering Careers: Artificial Intelligence at work

Photo of the Ming Ming Chu interview

Ming Ming CHIU is the Chair Professor of Analytics and Diversity from the Education University of Hong Kong. He uses artificial intelligence, statistics, and technology to conduct studies to answer research questions, working in conjunction with bodies such as the Ministry of Education across countries. 

Professor Chiu was interviewed regarding his career in applying AI to his work, and the path potential students aiming to follow a similar career can take.

How do you use analytics to solve a problem?

Analytics is when you analyse data. You have a small or large data set, but this analysis can be done by making a system that can interpret the data; that is, by writing a program.

You first need to view the set of data, then come up with a hypothesis or a preliminary model of how things work in your head. Then you use other skills like maths, statistics, artificial intelligence (AI), to create a representation of what you are thinking of as an analytic program. Then, you can apply it to big pools of data. The program interprets results, to make a table that is legible. You program it in the way that if it is not happy with results, it rewrites itself to make a new statistical analysis that produces a result; this is an example of how you combine AI and statistics. 

What are some paths one could take to follow a career of analytics with AI?

I think in terms of milestones to achieve, in high school, you would take computer science. In college, you would major in one of either AI or statistics and minor in the one you didn’t choose to major in. If you are really smart and ambitious, you could do a double major. This can be a struggle with a high workload and having to pursue both fields at the same level, but such balanced skill is what makes your research projects obtain valuable results as you can see the patterns in the data from the perspectives of both fields. You can get a master's degree in one of those fields, then you can do a PhD. You can then go on to join academia by becoming a professor. This path however involves exchanging time to get flexibility of where and how you want to be using AI, though this is risky since if you choose to pursue further education to become a professor, but don’t have enough creativity, you may fail to achieve your goal and not be able to continue in the field. The alternative and more popular path is to work under a company. It has much less flexibility, because you usually only use a few analysis methods for a set sort of designated problems, but it is also easier and less risky.

What is an example of how you were able to apply your knowledge of AI and statistics?

I invented statistical discourse analysis, which is putting statistical methods into an artificial intelligence system to analyse conversations. I then applied it to detecting online sexual predators. The process was first finding a pattern, and my team and I analysed text messages between adults and children. This pattern had to be specific to sex offenders, and not other categories these adults could fall into. So after many comparisons, I found a pattern that adults can talk about unhappy experiences to attract unhappy children to share similar experiences, gain trust and then meet. We can capture such unhappy experiences by first-person pronouns in combination with unhappy words. The program would identify such combinations in online conversations and trace the predators. 

Do you think this job is flexible and would allow you to branch out easily to different fields?

Yes, AI is a very definite skill, but the application could be made in different areas, and it’s very flexible. You can use artificial intelligence on maths proofs or translation, or you can use it to try to write songs. If you are an expert in artificial intelligence, in terms of your career path, it allows you to do many things. But in any case, it is important to learn knowledge from many fields, be open-minded, and have a broader understanding. Eventually, you will use AI and apply it to a particular area. For instance, I needed AI, statistics but also some social psychology and criminology for the statistical method to catch online sexual predators. 

What is an important skill in this field?

Collaboration, because you have to work with so many parties. Usually, you are doing the programming, and when you apply AI, you will have to work with many other people.  This is why it is very important to be both sociable and technical. The combination is rare, but through schooling and extracurricular activities you can learn these skills. 

Do you think this is a high demand job for the future? Is this a desirable job?

Definitely. There will be more computers and more need for AI in the future, the computers are faster and can do more things. These days, all normal household items are being merged with technology, so if you have the knowledge, you can make things easier for people.

Would you have any advice for people who are considering this career? 

If possible, try to get an internship when you are young, so you can get relevant experiences. You can be sure that there is a huge demand for your skills.