Applications are now open for attending the second Deep Learning Indaba that will take place at Stellenbosch University from 9 to 14 September 2018. This is a unique pan-African teaching event supported by Google DeepMind.

The aim of the Indaba, only the second of its kind to take place in Africa, is to strengthen the foundations of African machine learning, and to increase the participation of African researchers in the field. To date, Africa's attendance and participation in the internationally leading machine learning conferences have been extremely low or virtually non-existent.

“It is critical for the future trajectory of machine learning and artificial intelligence, for the types of teams we build and problems we address, that this imbalance and lack of representation be addressed. Africans must be contributors, shapers and owners of the coming advances in machine learning," says Shakir Mohamed, a South African research scientist at DeepMind.

Dr Willie Brink, an applied mathematician at SU and one of the organisers, says the Indaba will take the form a summer school, with advanced lectures by world-renowned experts in the field, practicals, poster sessions and networking events. Applications are open to all students, postdoctoral fellows, researchers, and industry professionals from across Africa and the world.

“We are particularly looking for people with a passion for machine learning, and who are committed to our mission of strengthening machine learning in Africa. Last year we had nearly 300 participants, and this year we are hoping to double that figure," he adds.

The list of confirmed speakers includes the legendary Jeff Dean from Google, Moustapha Cisse from Facebook, Katja Hofmann from Microsoft, and Nando de Freitas from DeepMind.

The closing date for applications is 30 April 2018. There is no registration fee for students. Students may also apply for financial support for travel and accommodation.

Click here to apply - http://www.deeplearningindaba.com/apply.html

Enquiries:

Dr Willie Brink

Division Applied Mathematics, Stellenbosch University

T: 027 _21 808 4218

E: wbrink@sun.ac.za