Ken Kennedy Institute AI and Machine Learning Boot Camp
May 7–9, 2025 | BioScience Research Collaborative (BRC) at Rice University
The Ken Kennedy Institute’s AI and Machine Learning Boot Camp is a three-day course that mixes lectures and hands-on sessions to cover the topics at the foundation of today’s rapidly changing AI landscape. The course will begin by laying some introductory groundwork for machine learning, but will quickly dive into more advanced topics closer to the cutting edge of AI. It is intended for data-science practitioners and technical managers from industry with 2–5 years of experience who want an under-the-hood look at and hands-on practice with modern AI methods. Upon completion of this boot camp, you will gain a strong understanding of how the latest forms of GenAI are transforming what is possible and the first-hand experience to leverage these tools to deliver solutions for real-world use.
Registration: rice-ai-ml-bootcamp.eventbrite.com
Note that there is limited seating available for this boot camp; instructors will work directly with participants to build an understanding of AI and machine learning tools and methods.
| Day 1 | May 7 | Basic ML Sessions |
|---|---|
| 8:30–9:00 AM | Check-in + Breakfast |
| 9:00–10:30 AM | Topic: Intro to Machine Learning Instructor: Chris Jermaine |
| 10:30–11:00 AM | Break |
| 11:00 AM–12:30 PM | Topic: Basic Machine Learning Instructor: Santiago Segarra |
| 12:30–1:30 PM | Break |
| 1:30–3:00 PM | Topic: Deep Learning Instructor: Anastasios (Tasos) Kyrillidis |
| 3:00–3:30 PM | Break |
| 3:30–5:00 PM | Topic: Advanced Deep Learning Instructor: Anastasios (Tasos) Kyrillidis |
| Day 2 | May 8 | Advanced AI/ML Sessions |
| 8:30–9:00 AM | Check-in + Breakfast |
| 9:00–10:30 AM | Topic: Graph Machine Learning Instructor: Arlei Silva |
| 10:30–11:00 AM | Break |
| 11:00 AM–12:30 PM | Topic: Decentralized Machine Learning Instructor: César Uribe |
| 12:30–1:30 PM | Break |
| 1:30–3:00 PM | Topic: Natural Language Processing (NLP) Instructor: Hanjie Chen |
| 3:00–3:30 PM | Break |
| 3:30–5:00 PM | Topic: Interpretable Machine Learning Instructor: Xia (Ben) Hu |
| Day 3 | May 9 | Hands-On AI/ML Sessions |
| 8:30–9:00 AM | Check-in + Breakfast |
| 9:00–10:30 AM | Topic: Reinforcement Learning (RL) Instructor: Vaibhav Unhelkar |
| 10:30–11:00 AM | Break |
| 11:00 AM–12:30 PM | Topic: Hands-on RL Instructor: Vaibhav Unhelkar |
| 12:30–1:30 PM | Break |
| 1:30–3:00 PM | Topic: Large Language Models (LLMs) Instructor: Anshumali (Anshu) Shrivastava |
| 3:00–3:30 PM | Break |
| 3:30–5:00 PM | Topic: Hands-on LLMs Instructor: Anshumali (Anshu) Shrivastava |
For questions about the course schedule, contact the Ken Kennedy Institute at kenkennedy@rice.edu.
