UAA College of Business and Public Policy

Webinar Series on Artificial Intelligence To Begin January 20

The College of Business and Public Policy (CBPP) has developed a four-part webinar series on Artificial Intelligence, which will debut on Wednesday, January 20, 2021 from 12-1 Alaska Time with Russell Frew, most recently Chief Engineer for Lockheed Martin. Russell will discuss how AI has evolved and impacted industry, the Department of Defense and the intelligence community.

"AI is revolutionizing the business world and our daily lives, including in Alaska," said Dr. Helena S. Wisniewski, a professor and department chair with UAA's College of Business and Public Policy. Her career in government and industry included directing advances in facets of artificial intelligence and their implementation. She now teaches a popular course on the topic.

"At CBPP we are determined to ensure that students are ready to meet the challenges of a rapidly changing work world. We want them to understand how AI is driving much of that change. Students are fascinated with the rapid evolution of AI and how it provides an environment for re-envisioning nearly everything around us - from national defense to healthcare to transportation. We developed this webinar series to explore these topics with a broader community in Alaska and beyond."

The free AI Webinar Series will be held on January 20, February 17, March 17, and April 21 from 12-1 pm Alaska Time. Participants may select one or more sessions during a quick registration process. Future speakers will be announced at a later date.

More about Russell Frew

As Chief Engineer for Lockheed Martin Corporation, Russell Frew oversaw 58,000 engineers and led teams that tackled some of the corporation’s most challenging engineering issues in outer space, aeronautics, maritime and sensor systems. Russell was a military intelligence officer and has extensive experience leading next-generation research in support of advanced technology hardware and software solutions for defense applications.

In our January 20, 2021 webinar, he will discuss how AI has evolved and impacted industry, the DOD and intelligence community. He will link AI topics such as neural networks, image understanding, natural language and fusion systems to examples of real world systems, including the F-35 Lightning II tactical fighter jets, of which 54 are headed for Alaska.

More about Dr. Helena S. Wisniewski

Dr. Wisniewski is Chair of CBPP’s Department of Management, Marketing, Logistics and Business Analytics (MMLBA) and Professor of Entrepreneurship. She has extensive executive and leadership experience including as a senior executive at the Lockheed Corporation, a Vice President at the Titan Corporation, and Vice Provost for Research and Graduate Studies at UAA. She is a technological entrepreneur who has formed numerous startups across diverse areas, raised investment and sold companies. While at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), she identified and directed many breakthrough advances in science and engineering including AI, as the Manager of the Applied and Computational Mathematics Program. Prior to DARPA, she served at the CIA. She is a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors.