STORY: Pakistani, Chinese AI researchers joining hands to make cities smarter
SHOOTING TIME: Jan. 23, 2024
DATELINE: Feb. 21, 2024
LENGTH: 00:01:49
LOCATION: Islamabad
CATEGORY: TECHNOLOGY

SHOTLIST:
1. various of the Pakistan's National University of Sciences and Technology
2. SOUNDBITE 1 (English): SEEMAB LATIF, Associate professor at NUST and director of CPInS lab
3. SOUNDBITE 2 (English): SEEMAB LATIF, Associate professor at NUST and director of CPInS lab
4. SOUNDBITE 3 (English): SAHAR ARSHAD, PhD student at NUST and researcher at CPInS lab

STORYLINE:

Collaboration on artificial intelligence (AI) research and its applications is in full swing at the China-Pakistan Intelligent Systems (CPInS) lab at Pakistan's National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST).

Established in 2022, the lab is a collaborative effort between NUST and the Guangzhou Institute of Software Application Technology under the Chinese Academy of Science.

Several of its projects focus on developing innovative solutions personalized for addressing Pakistan's urban challenges.

SOUNDBITE 1 (English): SEEMAB LATIF, Associate professor at NUST and director of CPInS lab
"Under this lab, we are working in four dimensions, which include image processing, video processing, then natural language processing, which includes text and speech code. So these are the four major areas in which we are working."

The lab is helping Pakistan develop smart cities with efficient traffic and management systems, surveillance solutions, and infrastructure monitoring, Latif said, adding that Pakistan is able to leverage upon already tried and tested technological solutions and utilize them according to its local requirements.

SOUNDBITE 2 (English): SEEMAB LATIF, Associate professor at NUST and director of CPInS lab
"China's AI industry is far more developed than ours. I think it is one of the leading industries worldwide if I say. We have to learn a lot. We are trying to catch up. So that's why we are collaborating so that we know we match their speed, we know in which direction they are moving. So that we can work together in that direction."

To make headway in the field of technology, Latif said several Pakistani students are doing their post-doctoral research in China and more will follow in coming years, supporting Pakistan to cultivate a skilled workforce proficient in cutting-edge technologies.

SOUNDBITE 3 (English): SAHAR ARSHAD, PhD student at NUST and researcher at CPInS lab
"We have regular contact with them (Chinese AI researchers), especially in summers, we have the training sessions, we have different collaborative platforms where they do guide with us and train us on different equipment they have shared with us, we discuss the state of the AI technologies being deployed in China."

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Islamabad.
(XHTV)