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Georgia Tech Part of $5 Million Grant to Develop AI Tech Supporting Individuals With Autism Spectrum Disorder in the Workplace
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The National Science Foundation has awarded a $5 million grant to a multi-university team of researchers that includes Georgia Tech to create novel artificial intelligence technology that trains and supports individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in the workplace.
The investment follows a successful $1 million, nine-month pilot grant to the same team, which also includes Yale University, Cornell University, Vanderbilt University, and the Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Georgia Tech’s portion of the grant is $500,000.
Led by co-principal investigator Professor Jim Rehg of the School of Interactive Computing, Georgia Tech will develop methods for assessing nonverbal communication behaviors during face-to-face social interactions such as job interviews.
“Our innovative approach uses an unobtrusive wearable camera to record social behaviors, which are then analyzed using computer vision and deep learning models,” Rehg said. “Our automated analysis will allow job seekers to get feedback on their communication skills as part of our team’s integrated approach to job interview coaching.”
The project, which is part of the NSF’s Convergence Accelerator program, addresses an underutilized U.S. talent pool that poses a “critical but overlooked public health and economic challenge: how to include individuals with ASD” in the workforce, according to Vanderbilt Professor Nilanjan Sarkar who is leading the project team.
Consider:
- One in 54 people in the United States has ASD;
- Each year 70,000 young adults with ASD leave high school and face grim employment prospects;
- More than 8 in 10 adults with ASD are either unemployed or underemployed, a significantly higher rate than adults with other developmental disabilities;
- The estimated lifetime cost of supporting an individual with ASD and limited employment prospects $3.2 million.
- The total estimated cost of caring for Americans with ASD was $268 billion in 2015 and projected to grow to $461 billion in 2025.
- An estimated $50,000 per person per year could be contributed back into society when individuals with ASD are employed.
- Individualized assessment of unique abilities and appropriate job-matching
- Tailored understanding and ongoing support related to social communication and interaction challenge
- Tools to support job candidates, employees and employers.
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- Workflow Status: Published
- Created By: David Mitchell
- Created: 09/14/2020
- Modified By: David Mitchell
- Modified: 09/14/2020
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