On May 11th, IT Academy STEP Cambodia hosted a fascinating workshop led by AI expert Sam Seng. Seng, who works in research, development, and engineering from New York City, introduced participants to the exciting world of artificial intelligence (AI). This workshop specifically focused on how to use AI to recognize images, with a fun and practical project: building your own drink classifier!
Coffee vs. Boba Tea: Unveiling the Power of AI
Forget picking sides – this workshop was about using AI to tell your coffee from your boba tea in a photo! Participants learned the basics of AI and image recognition, and then put those skills to work by creating a program that can automatically identify these two popular drinks.
Learning by Doing: A Hands-on Introduction to AI
The workshop used a "learn by doing" approach, guiding students step-by-step through the creation of their drink classifier. Here's what they covered:
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Understanding AI and Image Recognition: The session started with a clear introduction to AI and image recognition, ensuring everyone had a solid foundation before diving into the project.
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Setting Up Your AI Toolkit: Participants learned how to set up their coding environment using Jupyter Notebooks and essential libraries. This is like building a workbench with all the tools you need for your AI project.
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Data: The Fuel for AI: The workshop used existing sets of coffee and boba tea images, providing the "data" that the AI model needs to learn.
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Training the AI to Recognize Drinks: Students learned how to fine-tune pre-trained AI models, specifically teaching them to distinguish between coffee and boba tea in photographs. Think of it like training a dog to recognize toys!
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Testing Your AI Creation: After building their models, participants tested them on new images to see how well they could identify drinks.
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Seeing Inside the AI Machine: The workshop went beyond just building the model. Students also learned how to visualize how the AI actually works to differentiate between coffee and boba tea images.
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Q&A and Exploring the Future: The session concluded with a question and answer segment where participants could discuss potential applications of their new skills and explore resources for further learning in AI.
More Than Just Coffee vs. Boba Tea
This workshop wasn't just about creating a fun drink classifier. It aimed to spark curiosity and open doors to the exciting world of AI. By giving students the tools and knowledge to build their own AI creation, the workshop empowered them to explore the vast possibilities of this rapidly growing field.
Ready to Join the AI Revolution?
IT Academy STEP Cambodia offers a variety of workshops and programs designed to equip students with the latest technology skills. Stay tuned for upcoming events and take the first step towards your future in AI!
