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IBM is opening the doors to the next round of the IBM Impact Accelerator programme, and this time it’s on the hunt for organisations that want to tackle education and workforce problems using artificial intelligence.
AI continues to affect the job market – one estimate suggests that up to eight million jobs could be lost to AI in the UK alone. Could the answer to the problem be more AI?
IBM hopes so: the company has put out a request for proposals for a new cohort of its Impact Accelerator, who will “collaborate with IBM on developing solutions that help people learn more effectively, navigate career transitions, and access the jobs needed to build economic resilience”, it said.
Workers are unable to upskill fast enough to keep up with the changes that AI is bringing, IBM added, and employers and educators are not adjusting quickly enough to the new labour market – a situation that’s exacerbated by financial pressures.
“This IBM Impact Accelerator initiative aims to address these challenges by supporting organizations working on how people learn, upskill, and find meaningful work amid rapid economic, AI-driven change,” it said.
For this year’s cohort, IBM is seeking projects that will use AI to address these problems across the fields of “teaching, learning and workforce preparation”.
It suggested applicants may want to look at initiatives that could help educational organisations predict future skills needs, creating AIs that can teach or assess learners, or developing AI tools that can offer career guidance to job seekers.
IBM’s Impact Accelerator was launched in 2022, and accepts five participants each year. Previous cohorts have focused on issues including supply chains, sustainable agriculture, clean energy, and water management.
The Impact Accelerator is open to non-profits, government organisations and academic institutions.
Successful applicants will need to sign up to work with IBM for two years, and will receive a “technology and implementation grant” which includes access to a suite of IBM products, including IBM watsonx, Granite AI models, IBM Cloud, IBM Quantum, and its Red Hat apps. Participants will also be offered support from IBM staff including the company’s researchers and consultants.
Organisations that want to submit a proposal can do so through the IBM Impact Accelerator portal. Submissions will be accepted until 25 March, and successful applicants will hear back this spring.
