In this episode of Bytes of Ingenuity, host Nick Newsom is joined by Paul Barakat Diab and Elie Nahas, co-founders of the e-learning company Augmental. The learning platform they’ve developed turns traditional teacher-centric models of education on their head, using AI to personalise students’ learning paths. By tailoring course material to each student’s abilities and learning stye, this adaptive learning model helps students stay engaged and achieve better results. In this episode we discuss how personalisation enhances learning outcomes, how AI ed-tech platforms help teachers, and the need for holistic change within public education. We also learn about the story of Augmental and how the company has navigated Lebanon’s financial collapse and grown.

Episode Overview

1:10 - Augmental's origin story and evolution

4:46 - How personalisation enhances learning outcomes

7:56 - Accelerating course creation

12:48 - From navigating Lebanon's financial and economic collapse to future growth

24:03 - The need holistic change to equip students with 21st century skills

25:48 - Freeing teachers up to focus more on students

28:19 - Trends to watch in education and ed-tech

31:10 - Meeting students where they're at

32:12 - On bridging digital divides over looking to the metaverse

Further reading

Innovation and New Directions: Searching for Novel Paths in Arab Education Reform

Evolve Or die: How A Modern Student Information System Can Elevate Education Institutions

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In this episode of Bytes of Ingenuity, host Nick Newsom explores the transformative power of Large Language Models (LLMs) in the legal realm with computer science professor and AI expert, Amer Mouawad. As LLMs capture the public's imagination, this discussion delves into how they can revolutionize legal research and elevate legal practice. Amer reveals how LLMs can provide relevant suggestions and efficient assistance to legal professionals, saving them valuable time. The episode also highlights exciting legal AI tools in development, including those that simplify legal jargon for citizens and fact-check public statements for legality. Addressing concerns about data confidentiality, Amer emphasizes the importance of offline LLM hosting to ensure confidentiality. Additionally, he critiques the politicisation of AI development, advocating for open-source models and collaboration between diverse experts to create tools that serve the public good.

01:20 - What are LLMs and how do they work?

02:15 - Grounding LLMs in legal context

05:33 - Legal AI and the future of legal practice

10:56 - Confidentiality and data protection

13:59 - The impact on labour and education

17:22 - Democratizing legal expertise

19:04 - Legal fact-checking and misinformation

20:34 - Digital literacy, AI safety and open-source models

25:00 - The role of the state and data availability

29:04 -The state of AI in the Middle East

33:19 - Blending theory and practices

Further reading

AI's transformative potential for the legal sector

On removing bias from legal LLMs

Legal checking: putting law back at the heart of public debate

Read a full transcript of the episode here.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.