Quanta Computer founder Barry Lam (林百里) yesterday received the Ministry of Science and Technology’s First Class Science and Technology Profession Medal for his work in developing artificial intelligence (AI).
Minister of Science and Technology Chen Liang-gee (陳良基) said Lam was its first awardee after creating the system of gold, silver and bronze medals in July last year to honor people who have made outstanding contributions to science and technology.
Lam was chosen as he is a “missionary” for AI technology, the development of which is one of the ministry’s key policies, Chen said at the award ceremony at the ministry in Taipei.
Although some academics have criticized Chen for putting excessive emphasis on AI development over other branches of science, Chen said that developing AI could help sharpen core abilities across disciplines.
Academia Sinica academician and data scientist Kung Hsiang-Tsung (孔祥重) and Synopsys president Chan Chi-foon (陳志寬) are the other two recipients of a gold medal, the ministry said, adding that it is to hold their award ceremonies at a later date.
Quanta, along with Taiwan Mobile and Asustek Computer, is one of the ministry’s partners in developing the Taiwan Computing Cloud platform, which began commercial operations in October and is managed by the National Center for High-performance Computing.
Lam said that he was excited when Chen invited him to help develop the cloud platform, whose technical requirements, including adopting liquid cooling facilities, were stricter than other nations’ efforts.
Quanta was formed in 1988 to manufacture computers and related components, but new challenges and opportunities are pushing it to switch to an information and knowledge-based business by taking advantage of AI tools, Lam said.
Developing user-centric solutions in smart medicine, smart transportation, smart manufacturing, smart agriculture and smart entertainment is the company’s strategy to “reinvent” itself, he said.
It established the Quanta Medicine and Technology Foundation earlier this year in a bid to develop AI infrastructure for hospitals and precision medicine for everyone, he added.
A preclearance service to facilitate entry for people traveling to select airports in Japan would be available from Thursday next week to Feb. 25 at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Taoyuan International Airport Corp (TIAC) said on Tuesday. The service was first made available to Taiwanese travelers throughout the winter vacation of 2024 and during the Lunar New Year holiday. In addition to flights to the Japanese cities of Hakodate, Asahikawa, Akita, Sendai, Niigata, Okayama, Takamatsu, Kumamoto and Kagoshima, the service would be available to travelers to Kobe and Oita. The service can be accessed by passengers of 15 flight routes operated by
Alain Robert, known as the "French Spider-Man," praised Alex Honnold as exceptionally well-prepared after the US climber completed a free solo ascent of Taipei 101 yesterday. Robert said Honnold's ascent of the 508m-tall skyscraper in just more than one-and-a-half hours without using safety ropes or equipment was a remarkable achievement. "This is my life," he said in an interview conducted in French, adding that he liked the feeling of being "on the edge of danger." The 63-year-old Frenchman climbed Taipei 101 using ropes in December 2004, taking about four hours to reach the top. On a one-to-10 scale of difficulty, Robert said Taipei 101
Taiwanese and US defense groups are collaborating to introduce deployable, semi-autonomous manufacturing systems for drones and components in a boost to the nation’s supply chain resilience. Taiwan’s G-Tech Optroelectronics Corp subsidiary GTOC and the US’ Aerkomm Inc on Friday announced an agreement with fellow US-based Firestorm Lab to adopt the latter’s xCell, a technology featuring 3D printers fitted in 6.1m container units. The systems enable aerial platforms and parts to be produced in high volumes from dispersed nodes capable of rapid redeployment, to minimize the risk of enemy strikes and to meet field requirements, they said. Firestorm chief technology officer Ian Muceus said
MORE FALL: An investigation into one of Xi’s key cronies, part of a broader ‘anti-corruption’ drive, indicates that he might have a deep distrust in the military, an expert said China’s latest military purge underscores systemic risks in its shift from collective leadership to sole rule under Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), and could disrupt its chain of command and military capabilities, a national security official said yesterday. If decisionmaking within the Chinese Communist Party has become “irrational” under one-man rule, the Taiwan Strait and the regional situation must be approached with extreme caution, given unforeseen risks, they added. The anonymous official made the remarks as China’s Central Military Commission Vice Chairman Zhang Youxia (張又俠) and Joint Staff Department Chief of Staff Liu Zhenli (劉振立) were reportedly being investigated for suspected “serious
RSS