IIT Madras ties up with Ericsson for joint research in Responsible AI

Under this agreement, Ericsson Research will support and participate in all research activities at IIT Madras' research centre CeRAI

The Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) Centre for Responsible AI (CeRAI) announced today that it is partnering with Ericsson for joint research in the area of Responsible AI. Ericsson has signed an agreement to become a "Platinum Consortium Member" with CeRAI for a duration of five years.

Under this agreement, Ericsson Research will support and participate in all research activities at CeRAI.

CeRAI is IIT Madras' interdisciplinary research centre focused on both fundamental and applied research in Responsible AI. It aims to facilitate the rapid deployment of AI systems within the Indian ecosystem. According to the company's statement, AI research is of high importance to Ericsson as AI algorithms will autonomously drive the future 6G networks.

"6G and future networks aim to seamlessly blend the physical and digital worlds, enabling immersive AR/VR experiences. While AI-controlled sensors connect humans and machines, responsible AI practices are essential to ensure trust, fairness, and privacy compliance. Our focus is on developing cutting-edge methods to enhance trust and explainability in Artificial intelligence algorithms for the public good," said Magnus Frodigh, Global Head of Ericsson Research.

"Our partnership with CeRAI at IIT Madras aligns with the Indian Government's vision for the Bharat 6G programme."

B Ravindran, faculty head of CeRAI at IIT Madras, stated that networks of the future will provide easier access to high-performing AI systems. Ravindran added that with the advent of 5G and 6G networks, many critical applications are likely to be deployed on devices such as mobile phones.

"This necessitates new research to ensure that AI models and their predictions are explainable and offer performance guarantees appropriate to the applications they are deployed in," he said.

"It is crucial that we incorporate responsible AI principles from the outset in such systems. Ericsson, being a leader in future networks, is an ideal partner for CeRAI to drive this research and facilitate the adoption of responsibly designed AI systems," he added.

Manu Santhanam, Dean of Industrial Consultancy and Sponsored Research at IIT Madras, said, "Research in AI will produce the tools for operating businesses of the future. IIT Madras strongly believes in impactful translational work in collaboration with the industry, and we are very pleased to collaborate with Ericsson for cutting-edge research and development in this subject."