Dr. Shreeram Iyer is associated as an honorary scientist with Nehru Planetarium Mumbai for his astronomical activity and the development of consoles in the solar telescope. He received quality training and sales training from the Motorola Asia Pacific Division.

He finished his degree in Bachelor of Engineering (B.E.), Mechanical Engineering, from the University of Mumbai in 1995. He went on to pursue his postgraduate diploma in computer science. He then completed his Masters in Science and Astronomy from Kansas State University. He has also pursued EP, artificial intelligence, and business specifications from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) (2018–19).

INDIAai interviewed Shreeram to get his perspective on AI.

It's great to know that you have a diverse educational background. So how was a mechanical engineering student inspired towards data science and AI? 

Thank you. God has been kind. Learning is an ongoing process, and we learn until our cognitive senses support it. Mechanical gave me the acumen of an engineer, but the journey of experience with corporations and the last few assignments gave birth to the desire and zeal to dig deep and dive into data science and AI with business specifications. 

What do your roles and responsibilities involve as the Chairman and Group CEO of Prisma AI Corporation and Entire Group? 

When we first started, there were a few people peering to acquire the German entity and a semi-finished product. The initial phase included the formation of partners for sales, product development, and implementation, as well as the platform architecture and financial responsibilities. as a ten-year-old business. I still get involved in products and partnerships and am presently focusing on structuring, acquisition, funding, and getting public soon. 

How is India progressing in AI and machine learning? In this perspective, what would you say are our strengths and weaknesses? 

India is for sure on top, with a few major economies and so-called developed countries, and going shoulder to shoulder, or, I would say, a little upper-handed, on the technology spectrum. 

Strengths: knowledge and acumen in technology adaptation. 

The age factor and the young population in India are among the highest in the world. With the right kind of training and knowledge transfer, India would be at the top of the list of countries globally for the adaptation of AI implementation in various sectors and the creation of nuances of AI in everyday life, human intelligence, and beyond for humanness. 

Weakness: I would say diversity and still compliancy in methodology and thought process, which in some way can be prevailed over with literacy, accountability, and self-policing. 

The artificial intelligence industry is becoming increasingly competitive. What strategies does Prisma AI have in place to maintain its competitive edge? 

Prisma has always focused on quality product building. Our products and platforms are core technology with algorithms supporting decades of self-learning through implementation and upgradation by client and customer enhancement. 

Prisma has an excellence center concept for product creativity and improvisation methodology through domain/vertical based on client site deployment. Prisma has been successful in adapting the client thought process and requirement-based upgradation and productization on the platform. 

These decade-based learning and improvising, along with the clients’ enhancements being curated on the platform, shall by themselves make the platform adaptive and stronger in cognitive learning, giving it a competitive edge. 

Besides this, Prisma will be investing in the acquisition of products and platforms in various industries, focusing on computer vision. 

Enterprises started moving away from on-premises data centers and applications and toward cloud and SaaS-based solutions. How likely is this move to the cloud, given the many security concerns and ransomware attacks? 

Prisma has been very seriously involved in creating protective layers and zones of wrappers to secure data, and on Prem, where data is relatively more secure and protected with SOPs and security norms in place, with reference to cloud-based solutions, we have still been successful in creating these layers, zones, and wrappers with layered authentication processes. 

Prisma offers both on-premises and cloud-based SAAS solutions. 

What, in your opinion, are the essential requirements for students who want to work in AI?  

I've been working in the field of education, interacting with the younger generation, and seeing firsthand how flexible and open-minded they can be. This innate capacity is in perfect harmony with AI, in which reasoning becomes a cognitive process that is applied to a wide range of domains and everyday life. 

Emphasizing business specifications with logical reasoning, common sense, mathematical prowess, and an adaptive approach based on physics is crucial for students who want to pursue careers in AI. Furthermore, it becomes clear that knowing cognitive compliance and integrating cognitive psychology are important components that help them create reliable products and solutions. This all-encompassing skill set guarantees a thorough and future-ready basis for success in the rapidly changing AI landscape. 

What advice do you have for those looking to work in AI research? What should they concentrate on to advance? 

The field of AI is emerging and has a vast scope of deployment in sectors and domains. I would suggest that they focus on creating use cases for new cognitive thought processes on the humanization of AI, wherein AI-based decision science can be supportive of mankind in healthcare, emergency management, and creating human-valued AI solutions. 

Could you suggest some reputable books and articles on AI? 

These are a few suggestions based on my taste. 

Books: 

• The Artist in the Machine: The World of AI-Powered Creativity 
• The Creativity Code: Art and Innovation in the Age of AI 
• Industrial AI 
• Life 3.0: Being Human in the Age of Artificial Intelligence 

Articles: 

http://www.technologyreview.com/topic/artificial-intelligence/ 

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