Tech Industry Alliance and RDI Hub launch AI skills programme
The four-week pilot aims to give graduates the opportunity to work on real industry challenges, learn from experienced professionals and build the confidence to apply AI in practical workplace settings.
The Tech Industry Alliance and RDI Hub have teamed up to launch the Graduate AI Launchpad pilot, a new programme designed to prepare graduates, employers and industry professionals in Ireland’s south-west for AI enabled workplaces.
The inaugural programme, which aims to further expand across Cork and Kerry in the future, welcomed its first cohort this week to the RDI Hub in Killorglin. The four-week model aims to give graduates the opportunity to work on real industry challenges, learn from experienced professionals and build the confidence to apply AI in practical workplace settings.
Participants will work alongside industry mentors, collaborate on practical projects and hear from experienced speakers before presenting their own work at a showcase event upon the conclusion of the programme, according to its organisers. Graduate AI Launchpad is built around practical learning, giving participants the opportunity to develop skills that will likely apply to future careers, they said.
The first group of graduates involved were nominated by Astellas, Aspengrove, Fexco, Stingray Labs, TLI Group, ViClarity and Munster Technological University, and are representative of a range of disciplines, such as engineering, quantity surveying, business, psychology and technology.
Commenting on the launch, Juliette Crowley, the COO of the Tech Industry Alliance, said, “One of the Tech Industry Alliance’s core objectives is to strengthen the technology ecosystem across Cork and Kerry by creating meaningful collaboration between industry, education and the wider community.
“Graduate AI Launchpad is a wonderful example of that in action. By working alongside the RDI Hub and employers from across the south-west, we are creating opportunities that help graduates develop practical AI skills while giving businesses the talent they will need for the future.
“We hope this pilot will become the foundation for a programme that will support many more graduates across Cork and Kerry in the years ahead.”
Maeve Lyons, the programme manager at RDI Hub, added, “AI is one of the RDI Hub’s key focus areas and for years we have been helping organisations understand, adopt and apply AI to solve real business challenges.
“Graduate AI Launchpad is a natural extension of that work, giving graduates the opportunity to learn directly from industry, work on practical projects and build confidence using AI in real-world settings.”
Don’t miss out on the knowledge you need to succeed. Sign up for the Daily Brief, Silicon Republic’s digest of need-to-know sci-tech news.
