GENERAL
WHY LOOP Q PRIZE WAS CREATED?
The Loop Q PRIZE, an annual university competition dedicated to accelerating the fields of Cognitive Computing and Machine Learning, was created to recognize students around the globe who can accelerate organization’s adoption of Intelligent Automation in order to benefit their country’s competitiveness and GDP. The 2021 edition is open to EU and GB university students.
The goal is to advance several areas of Cognitive Computing and Intelligent Automation, including knowledge acquisition, natural language understanding, natural language generation, hypotheses generation, predictive analytics, and dialog management.
The competition challenges skilled university students to focus their talents and develop novel Machine Learning approaches to tackle Intelligent Automation problems.
HOW DOES LOOP Q PRIZE SUPPORT RESEARCH?
The Loop Q PRIZE is a research testbed for university students to experiment and tackle real-life Intelligent Automation problems using knowledge acquisition, natural language understanding, natural language generation, hypotheses generation, predictive analytics, and dialog management.
Participants of the Challenge are encouraged to publish scientific articles on their work. Participants of the Challenge will agree to assign the Sponsor all rights, titles, and interest in and to their submission.
WHY IS THIS COMPETITION SO IMPORTANT?
Today all fast-growing companies are using Cognitive Computing and Intelligent Automation at scale for their products and businesses. Traditional organizations can no longer afford to compete with the Smart Companies, and the ones which are not investing heavily and quickly in automation will not last the next decade.
The more organizations invest in automation in a country, the more the country GDP will benefit from it. Leading countries who embrace Cognitive Automation at scale could capture an additional 20 to 25 percent in net economic benefits, considering that Artificial Intelligence has the potential to deliver additional global economic activity of around $13 trillion by 2030, or about 16 percent higher cumulative GDP compared with today.
The Loop Q PRIZE will convene and inspire skilled university students and innovators to cooperate and focus their talents to accelerating the fields of Cognitive Computing and Intelligent Automation. When these students enter their new jobs, they can actively help organizations in their country to quickly embrace and scale automation to be a front-runner and maximize the positive impact on the country’s GDP.
For instance, late adopters might find it challenging to generate impact from Cognitive Automation at scale because front-runners have already captured Artificial Intelligence opportunities in developing capabilities and attracting scarce talent.
HOW DOES LOOP Q PRIZE DEFINE COGNITIVE COMPUTING AND INTELLIGENT AUTOMATION?
AI is a vast field, encompassing a wide range of disciplines. Cognitive Computing technologies address the mechanisms underlying thought and intelligent behavior, integrating sensory inputs and actions with cognitive capabilities. These are systems that possess domain understanding, learn from experience, reason towards specific goals, and interact naturally with human collaborators. True Intelligent Automation will augment and scale human and organizational intelligence through deep symbiotic relationships with individuals or teams, applying their expertise to a wide range of tasks.
WHY IS LOOP AI GROUP SPONSORING THE LOOP Q PRIZE?
Loop AI Group, further referred to as Sponsor, shares the belief that Cognitive Computing and Intelligent Automation applications have the potential for significant human benefit. The Loop Q Cognitive Computing platform has pioneered redefining Machine Intelligence using unsupervised learning at scale. Loop AI Group is sponsoring this prize to keep stimulating the attention of young students to the field and pushing the frontiers of advancement in Cognitive Computing and Intelligent Automation. Loop AI Labs believes AI and Cognitive Computing technologies will play a role in dramatically improving our society and countries in the decades ahead.
DO I HAVE TO USE THE LOOP Q COGNITIVE COMPUTING PLATFORM TO COMPETE?
Participants are encouraged to investigate and evaluate all available Machine Learning and Intelligent Automation research available or show how they can innovate. The use of the Loop Q Cognitive Computing Platform is excluded for this competition.
WHY IS THE COMPETITION FOCUSED ON COGNITIVE COMPUTING AND INTELLIGENT AUTOMATION?
Cognitive Computing and Intelligent Automation will likely be this generation’s most significant advancement, on par with personal computing and the Internet. We believe that this competition can on one side accelerate the creation of breakthrough technologies and on the other stimulate the attention of a higher number of university students in this transformative field that impacts the way we all live and work, in the future and today.
WHY SHOULD I COMPETE IN THE LOOP Q PRIZE?
FUN. What's more exciting than solving challenging problems? Enjoy the opportunity to test your skills in a real Intelligent Automation problem!
EXPERIENCE. This experience is going to look awesome on your CV!
GLORY. As the Grand Prize winner you will have the crowning title as the winner of The Loop Q Prize Competition!
LEARNING. Expand your knowledge by learning new solutions to challenging Intelligent Automation problems and by creating your own solutions. Participants will have the opportunity to cultivate their abilities while developing some of the technical skills wanted for one of the most needed and paid jobs in any country. We believe the best way to learn something is by doing it!
WHICH COMPUTER SCIENCE DOMAINS DO YOUR CHALLENGES COVER?
Cognitive Computing, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Deep Learning, Data Science, and Engineering.
WHERE CAN I SUBMIT FEEDBACK OR OTHER QUESTIONS NOT ANSWERED HERE?
If you have any questions not addressed in this FAQ, including any questions that require an answer while a Challenge is active, please use the
contact form, and we will respond as soon as possible.
COMPETITION DETAILS
WHAT ARE THE GOALS OF THE LOOP Q PRIZE
The goal of Loop Q PRIZE is to advance several areas of Cognitive Computing and Intelligent Automation, including knowledge acquisition, natural language understanding, natural language generation, hypotheses generation, predictive analytics, and dialog management.
The Challenge’s objective for each Participant is to solve a real-life Intelligent Automation problem.
HOW WILL THE WINNERS BE SELECTED?
THE
CHALLENGE
The evaluation will be based on the completeness of the results, the audaciousness, and utility of the proposed solution, and the comprehensiveness of the test suite.
Official decisions made by the Judging Panel will be approved by a majority vote of
the Judges. The vote will be based on a rating on each of the following criteria:
INNOVATION: The potential scientific contribution to the field: Is the proposed solution to the Machine Learning problem innovative?
SOLUTION CORRECTNESS: The Judging Panel will verify that the proposed solution actually provides a good answer to the problem in scope.
PREDICTION PERFORMANCE: The Judging Panel will evaluate the performance of the proposed model.
SOLUTION COMPLETENESS: For each case, you will be asked to discuss the limits of the dataset provided and your solution.
SCALABILITY POTENTIAL: How effective the proposed solution is from the standpoint of generalizability. Will the approach scale efficiently and cost-effectively? Is it replicable in other contexts and circumstances? Is the code easily understandable and well documented?
WHEN AND WHERE IS THE AWARD CEREMONY?
The final judging will be held in June 2021, with the final results announced to the winners after the judging process. The winners will be announced to the public during the Loop Q PRIZE Award Ceremony on June 30th, in an online event.
WILL WE PUBLISH OUR RESEARCH FROM THE LOOP Q PRIZE?
Publishing research papers as an outcome of your work on the Loop Q PRIZE can eventually be done upon review and approval of the Sponsor only after the competition is over, although Participants should not publish confidential information, as described in the official rules.
WHO WILL OWN THE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS IN MY SUBMISSION?
Participants in the Challenge will agree to assign the Sponsor all rights, titles, and interests in and to their submitted IP.
All accepted applicants participating to the competition will receive a Competitor Agreement to sign before the contest begins.
The Winner of the competition will receive the Winner Declaration Agreement to sign before we confirm the win.
CAN PARTICIPANTS AGGREGATE IN TEAMS?
This year 2021, the Challenge is designed to be an individual assessment, so collaboration is not allowed.
WHEN DOES THE COMPETITION START, WHEN DOES IT END?
Competition Key Dates:
March 8, 2021 - Application Period Opens
April 25, 2021 - Application Period Closes
April 26, 2021 - Challenge Opens
June 14, 2021 - Challenge Closes
June 30, 2021 - Award Ceremony, Winner Declaration
WHAT ARE THE DELIVERABLES OF THE CHALLENGE?
The Loop Q PRIZE requires all Participants of the Challenge to submit their code, data set and a 2-page PDF Abstract describing their solution. The Abstract should be structured as a technical paper and should include an architecture diagram, a text explanation of key components, a data flow, a summary of all the main arguments, evidence, and the results and conclusions of the submitted solution. The Abstract should also include an Exhibit citing authors and the paper name(s) of any prior article referenced or used as inspiration, and a list of any open source code or packages used in the solution.
AM I ALLOWED TO DISCUSS THE CHALLENGES WITH OTHER PARTICIPANTS?
Yes, but be mindful the copycats! If we receive two identical or very similar solutions, in the Challenge, we will be looking at the details (including citations and approach taken) presented in the extended abstract and video. Our judges will pick only one winner.
HOW CAN I CONFIRM THAT I AM REGISTERED?
When your application is submitted, you should receive a confirmation message. Your eligibility will be confirmed later via email. Please be sure also to check your spam folder.
ELIGIBILITY
WHO CAN APPLY TO PARTICIPATE?
The Loop Q PRIZE is open to full-time students enrolled in an accredited university in European Economic Area (EEA)*, Switzerland, and United Kingdom. Proof of enrollment will be required to participate.
*The EEA countries in 2021 are: Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and the EU countries Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden.
CAN I PARTICIPATE IF I AM NOT ENROLLED IN A UNIVERSITY?
No, The Loop Q PRIZE is only open to full-time enrolled European university students.
DO I NEED TO BE ENROLLED IN A UNIVERSITY PROGRAM THROUGHOUT THE DURATION OF THE COMPETITION?
All participating persons must remain full-time students in good standing at their university while participating in the competition.
CAN I ENROLL IF A FAMILY MEMBER IS A SPONSOR EMPLOYEE?
Immediate family members and household members of Sponsor employees, directors, partners and contractors are not eligible to participate.
APPLICATION PROCESS
HOW DO I APPLY, WHAT DO I NEED TO SEND TO THE ORGANIZERS?
To begin the application process you need proof of your university enrollment and the courses you have taken: For all details, take a look at the registration page to see the information that is requested - https://www.loopqprize.ai/registration
IS THERE AN APPLICATION FEE?
No, The Loop Q PRIZE is free to enter and participate in, there are no fees.
HOW WILL APPLICANTS BE SELECTED TO PARTICIPATE?
The Judging Panel members will review all applications. Participants in the Challenge will be selected based on the eligibility criteria that you can find in these FAQs in the part "ELIGIBILITY". Please be sure to provide all the required information in your application.
All accepted applicants participating to the competition will receive a Competitor Agreement to sign before the contest begins.
PRIZES
WHAT ARE THE PRIZES FOR WINNING THE COMPETITION?
The Grand Prize Euro 5.000 (five thousand) will be awarded to the Participant that scores the highest number of votes by the Judging Panel. All eligible Participants will receive a Certificate of Participation in The Loop Q PRIZE.
