timing. Ted Senator suggested that we
also consider Spring or Fall symposium
opportunities.
AAAI ACM SIGAI
Dissertation Award
Tom Dietterich reported that a draft is
ready for a final edit and will have that
ready for review for the next meeting,
or possibly by email in the interim.
AIHub
Tom Dietterich reported that AIHub is
still seeking an additional $20,000 in
funding before moving forward. They
have a couple of pending proposals out
and are waiting to hear back on decisions. Gene Freuder inquired whether
the test site was ready for viewing, and
Dietterich reported that it is not yet
ready.
Education Committee / AAAI
Webinars / Membership
Committee
Kiri Wagstaff noted that the Education
Committee has not launched its first
big initiative yet, but has continued to
respond to general inquiries that come
in from the public or young students.
She reported that the next project will
be focused on the subject of AI and
Ethics, likely to include a special issue
of AI Magazine and potentially a short
email to members pointing them to
good resources on this subject.
Kambhampati proposed that AAAI
begin a series of webinars, which could
achieve over time the same influence
as the AI Magazine or the potential of
AIHub. He noted that this also relates
to the idea of moving forward with the
AAAI Distinguished Speaker Series that
the Membership Committee is spearheading. The previous proposal had
been to provide travel funds for speakers to go to various conferences or universities, but providing the opportunity to give a webinar might make more
sense and reach more people. Hamilton will make Kapil Patnaik aware of
this initiative and ask him to establish
the necessary infrastructure as he
develops the website.
Gene Freuder inquired about the
general charge of the Education Com-
mittee, and whether they also handle
public engagement. He wondered if we
need another committee to concen-
trate on outreach to the press and gen-
eral public via social media and other
outlets. Tom Dietterich noted that
AIHub will serve an outreach function
once it is launched. He also explained
that the Education Committee was
formed in response to the membership
survey, which demonstrated that
members were looking for more oppor-
tunities for continuing education.
Kambhampati added that the webina-
rs would definitely fill a need in the
public engagement area. He also men-
tioned that pieces of outreach activities
are being handled by several different
committees, such as government, con-
ference outreach, international, mem-
bership, and education. Steve Smith
mentioned that the charge of the Con-
ference Outreach committee might
need to be examined and better
defined.
Blai Bonet reported that the Membership Committee has approved the
applications for the Distinguished
Speaker Series, but the program needs
to establish a web page to implement
the conference application function.
He also inquired about whether the
chapters are incorporated and require
an Federal Identification Number (FIN)
if in the US. Hamilton explained that
the AAAI chapters are formed to be
affiliated with AAAI, but AAAI does not
have any fiscal involvement with them
and they are not legally linked to
AAAI. They are essentially interest
groups, and do not have any formal
connection to the corporation. Kiri
Wagstaff wanted to clarify that the
committee has the authority to
approve or deny requests. Kambham-
pati confirmed that this is correct.
International Committee
The chairs could not be present, but
their recent activity has centered
around destinations for the conference
after 2019. As noted earlier, they do
not recommend going to Asia in 2020
or 2021 because IJCAI plans to be there
for two upcoming years. They do think
having a Fall or Spring Symposium in
Asia is worth considering and they will
be sharing more details about that idea
soon. Spaan also mentioned that
Europe (UK) might be a possibility for
the symposia. Kambhampati noted
that other destinations would not be
for additional programs, but for the
relocation of current programs.
Kambhampati thanked everyone for
their time and participation, and
wished them happy holidays. The
meeting was adjourned at 1: 10 PM PST.
AAAI News
Rao Kambampati Delivers His Presidential Address at AAAI- 18.