The research and development arm of ed-tech platform Scaler, Scaler Innovation Lab has announced an innovative collaboration with Gahan AI, a deep-tech startup based in Bengaluru that is working towards providing autonomous mobility solutions.
The joint project will focus on the development of highly-advanced autonomous navigation systems designed for increased safety and productivity in the challenging mining environment.
According to the agreement, the memoran of understanding the (MoU) will work developing navigation systems that work in unstructured and unknown environments, which they said was a pitfall of traditional systems based on GPS.
Such systems will be absolutely essential for enhancing safety and productivity of vehicles in Indian and overseas mining locations, especially in challenging weather conditions including dust, fog and heavy rains.
An important strain in the partnership is the engagement of students from Scaler School of Technology and Scaler School of Business.
Engineering students will help build AI models that can make decisions in real time in an uncontrolled environment, while business students will develop go-to-market strategies, pricing plans and operational models for the new technology.
This programme attacks immediately crucial risks for mining. Statistics shows that a large percentage of deaths in mining are due to vehicle accidents, especially in areas of poor map coverage or structure. And the solution to marshal away those risks is precisely the keyword – autonomous – transportation where vehicles do NOT need any kind of pre-loaded maps to operate safely on their own.
As a part of this collaboration, Gahan AI will have presence at the Scaler Innovation Lab, and will also mentor early stage startups. The startup will also organise special workshops and hackathons for Scaler students where they will work on the technology development accessing-rich hands on learning in the autonomous mobility space.
Some students will also be eligible for internships at Gahan AI itself, where they will learn the ropes of running a real business.
According to Abhimanyu Saxena, Co-founder, Scaler, the advent of real world problem-solving avenues for students is crucial and said, “Our partnership with Xamarin University is a testament to our belief – real-world impact is the best classroom. We are thrilled to be able to give our students the chance to tackle some great hard problems that have an impact, and support a local startup like Gahan AI to accelerate innovation.”
According to Uddalok Majumder, the co-founder of Gahan AI, especially given the increasing demands for autonomous mobility in hostile areas, “This partnership has the potential to develop innovative solutions for autonomous mobility in challenging environments.”
“Scaling a company through recruitment is hard and partnering with Scaler gives us the opportunity to work with some of the sharpest up and coming engineering & business talent.
“We are incredibly excited to have the opportunity to engage with students who are not passively studying theory but actively building, testing, innovating alongside us.”
Scaler Innovation Lab’s partnership with Gahan AI is a major milestone in the future of autonomous innovation, and represents a major step forward in the use of autonomous technology in mining; delivering increased safety, more efficient operations, and valuable leadership experience for the next generation of technology and business professionals.”
