Interviewing Andrew Ng

Ted and I are going to interview Andrew Ng tomorrow. You don't know who he is? QUICK READ THIS: http://ai.stanford.edu/~ang/

We're going to use this interview as part of a multimedia story on the mainstream use or readyness of robotics (from Rosie to the Roomba).


So Ted was thinking our story will go something like this....

Main story: Andrew Ng, an assistant professor of computer science, leads the wireless Stanford Artificial Intelligence Robot (STAIR). The project consists of a mechanical robot arm mounted to a set of wheels. Ng sees STAIR as a consumer/office robot that could unload the dishwasher, clean up after a party, locate items in an office, or assemble an IKEA bookshelf. The robot is smart enough to perceive an object and determine how to grasp and operates without human oversight. Ng leads a team of 30 students and 10 professors.

Story shells:
- Who is Ng? Think “day in the life.” We gain an understanding of who Ng is, why he got interested in robots, and what he hopes to achieve. We could also focus on some of the students and research assistants. Story elements: text, video, audio.

- What does STAIR do? Show it in action and demonstrate its potential uses. Story elements: video, text, interviews.

- How does it work? Have Ng discuss the mechanics of STAIR and how its artificial intelligence works. Explain how it’s different from a robot that is merely programmed to perform tasks rather than think on its own. Story elements: video, interviews.

- Why does this matter? Our pop culture has always been fascinated with robots; STAIR shows just how close consumer robots are to being a reality. This could be a funny recitation of some of our more famous Hollywood robots (Rosie from the Jetsons, Kitt in Knightrider, etc.) with a side-by-side comparison of real-life counterparts at Stanford. Story elements: text, pix.

- Who could benefit? What’s the market for STAIR? The disabled. Lazy, rich people. Technophiles. Homemakers. Discuss how Stanford’s robots could affect these markets. Story elements: interviews, text, graphics.

- What is the future of STAIR? When might it hit the market? What would it sell for? Who would buy it? Story elements: interviews, text, graphics. (Could be combined with the market piece.)

- Where does this fit in historically? Stanford has a history of leading the way in artificial intelligence. In 1966, scientists at the Stanford Research Institute built Shakey, the first robot to combine problem solving, movement and perception. Flakey, a robot that could wander independently, followed. In 2005, Stanford engineers won the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Grand Challenge with Stanley, a robot Volkswagen that autonomously drove 132 miles through a desert course. Story elements: slides, text.


WHAT DO YOU THINK?