Member Spotlight: Kaushik Hatti, Artificial Intelligence Scientist, University of Dundee

This week, we caught up with Kaushik Hatti, Artificial Intelligence Scientist at the University of Dundee. 

Hey Kaushik, thanks for joining us! Firstly, can you tell us a bit about your background?

As a kid, I aspired to be a performing artist. Growing up, I liked everything “alive” and chose to pursue “life sciences”. Though I am passionate about life-sciences, I realised working in the laboratory wasn’t for me. Bioinformatics offered me the opportunity to work with biology data on a computer.

My first job as a Bioinformatician in an industry gave me the greatest exposure. I got to interact with diverse experts and figure out how to get the most value of their data. Working there for a decade honed my technical abilities and improved interpersonal skills. This is where I realised the importance of arts for a scientist. I started using story-telling with data to communicate technical findings to non-experts.

A series of medical challenges in the family made me wonder what I want in my career and life. I decided to pursue a PhD program and pivot my career. I started relearning Maths, which was my greatest mental hurdle since childhood. My first “aa ha” moment came when I understood a 7-year-old challenging data problem and eventually solved it! At Cambridge, I pursued an algorithm developed over a 20-year period. I understood it just enough to identify bias and improved it. It is now used by at least 70,000 scientists world-wide, providing insights to the working of proteins. I continue to work towards hastening the drug discovery process in my current job as an AI scientist.

Having several interests outside of work has helped me get the most fun of my time! I am an avid gardener and met some of the most passionate climate change champions at the allotments. My interest in history and philosophy led me to collaborate with a genealogist. My passion for ethics put me in touch with a German investment bank. Through their entrepreneurship initiatives, I am contributing to bringing socio-economic changes in Africa. None of this would have been possible without the extraordinary mentors, colleagues, friends and family. The journey of learning continues!

You have a keen interest both personally and professionally in HealthTech. How do you see AI and machine learning impacting this sector in the near future?

We are living in the dawn of the AI revolution in the HealthTech industry. The last couple of years has seen some of the historical achievements in the field of AI in healthcare. The year 2021 saw the greatest feat in life sciences - AI algorithms addressed a 50-year-old problem in protein biology. AI already plays an important role in every stage of the drug discovery process. Large pharma companies have started investing in data sciences and AI more than ever before. Over 66 billion USD is invested in healthcare start-ups globally since 2019! Many recent drug candidate molecules have come from companies which are AI-driven. The future of AI in Pharma/HealthTech is both exciting and promising.

You are heavily influenced by Stoicism - can you tell us a little more about how and why this philosophy has helped guide your decision making?

Stoicism enables me to achieve “frugal grandeur”! It's an art of being efficient with time, resources and money. I optimise everything I do - whether making different types of drinks for myself and my family every morning or problem solving at work.

Some of my most successful projects in my career can be traced back to a single moment of me, contemplating a stoic principle! During my PhD, I had pursued one challenging data problem, being well aware that it had remained unsolved for 7 years! By focusing on what I can control, I managed to find a solution in under a month with limited resources. In retrospect, I could have done better than that! Every successful project is an opportunity to introspect on how I can do it better, the next time. And a failed project is a much bigger learning opportunity. Through constant learning, introspection and frugal mindset, I try to get the best of myself, be it in personal life or career.

To what extent do you think that your fellow data & AI professionals are concerned with doing 'good' through their work?

Our world is chaotic and any data we get from the real-world will be messy. The ability to get humbled by the complexities of the data is the first step in the right direction. Being aware of biases while using AI is a prerequisite to do good with data. Through strong work ethics, collaboration and stakeholder engagement, we can translate good intentions into good deeds. I am happy to be part of such peer groups who are already doing good with data!

What is your top tip for aspiring data professionals?

A strong foundation in Maths will help understand key concepts of machine learning. The ability to code will enable us to translate the mathematical ideas into machine readable tasks. Yet, the most underrated skill of a successful AI professional is empathy!

AI is an interdisciplinary and evolving field. We need to learn, unlearn and relearn things every day. Collaboration is at the heart of any successful AI project. Great interpersonal skills, communication skills and ability to receive feedback is the mantra of a successful AI professional.

If you could start your career over, would you do anything differently? 

Probably not! I enjoy my present. I cannot imagine doing the things I am doing now, if I were to have started from some other place and time from my past.

What resources would you recommend to our community?

I have derived inspiration from many books, podcasts and courses. Here are some of my favourites.

Books:

•  Never Split the Difference: Negotiating as If Your Life Depended on It by Chris Voss & Tahl Raz
• Gödel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid by Douglas Hofstadter

Courses:

• Introduction to mathematical thinking by Keith Devlin
• Human computer interaction by Scott Klemmer

Podcasts:

• History of Philosophy by Peter Adamson
• The Tim Ferriss Show by Tim Ferriss
• Stuff you missed in History Class by Holly and Tracy

The Data Lab values are Support, Respect, Innovate & Grow - which one resonates with you most at the moment and why?

“Innovate & Grow” appeals to me the most. But innovation is often the result of respecting time, money and resources. By supporting each other within the data sciences community and beyond, we will get the best value on investments. Be it running a small business or tackling global issues such as climate change. Continuous innovation will inch us towards a sustainable future.

What motivated you to join The Data Lab Community? Have you found it valuable so far?

Community. I moved to Scotland in the middle of the first COVID wave and have been working from home ever since. I was looking for platforms to meet like-minded people. The Data Lab Community provided me such an opportunity to network. I have met some amazing people from this community and have already started exploring possible business opportunities with a couple of them. It has been valuable so far and I am sure it will continue to be so in the future.

How could you help other members of the community?

To start with, by sharing my story! Each one of us is different with different backgrounds, strengths and weaknesses. Diversity and inclusiveness are necessary for AI to be successful. It might be overwhelming for someone to get started in Data sciences or AI. By sharing my story (and videos on AI, some of which I have already shared on the platform), I am trying to demystify AI. Thanks to The Data Lab Community, which is providing me an opportunity to 'pay it forward'.

Is there any way that members of the community could help you?

AI won’t happen in isolation. Through active engagement and collaboration, we can realise the potential of AI. I am continuing to extend my network within the community. Currently, I am applying explainable AI and Knowledge graphs to healthcare and climate change, two of the topics closest to my heart. I am happy to collaborate with anyone who thinks I can add value to their business/project in these areas or beyond.

Thanks for the wonderful chat Kaushik, we're so grateful you took the time, and keep up the great work!

If you'd like to be featured in one of our Member Spotlights just get in touch via [email protected] or drop our community manager Paul a DM.