AI Project: How to Build a Roadmap for One in High School

The first step in starting an AI project is to figure out what you want to do. A.I has limitless possibilities; however you can’t explore all of them at once. It is better to choose one idea and explore it in depth rather than start multiple little projects. You can always come back to your other ideas afterwards. To decide what you want to do, try answering these questions:

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How to brainstorm an AI project

• Do you want to build an A.I for fun or do you want to do something that is applicable to the real-world?

• Will you try to make an A.I that is competitive with those currently in use? If this is your first A.I project, you might want to make a simpler A.I. Think about your experience and knowledge about A.I while making this choice.

• Will you be working alone or in a group?

• If you are working in a group, you can do larger projects than if you are working alone. Make sure that your project is at a scale that you can do.

• What resources do you have?

  Think about your materials, after all, you don’t have a supercomputer, so make sure your project is one that you can do. Being too ambitious can lead to failure. Think also about the time you have. Do you want a quick project to do over the summer, or will you commit to your project for multiple years?

• What is your passion, and can you apply A.I to it?

• Is there an activity that you enjoy doing? Think about how A.I can be used in that activity. If your project is rooted in something you enjoy doing, then you will be more motivated when working on it.

• Do you want to reproduce an existing A.I or do you want to try something new?

  If you’re new to A.I, you might want to recreate an existing A.I. Then you can compare your A.I with the model A.I. Try to improve one aspect of an existing A.I. This will help you gain experience working with A.I. If you are more experienced, you might want to explore a new field of A.I.

Scaling your AI Project

Your answers should help you figure out the scale of your project, and help you gain a general idea of what you want to do. Make a list of project ideas and pick the one that you think is best. Remember that you can always come back to your list and do another project later. Ask your family or friends which project they think is the most interesting or doable. Having a second opinion can help you make a choice.

Planning your AI Project

Once you have your idea, the next step is to plan out your project. You might be tempted to start right away, however doing so will likely make your project harder as you won’t have a clear view of what is necessary, what you need to do, and how everything is connected together.

1. DETERMINING FUNCTIONALITY

To start your plan, take out a blank piece of paper. Write down all the functionality that you want your AI to have:

• Will it take data from sensors or databases?

• What does it do with the data?

If there are too many functions, then you should think about which are necessary and remove those that aren’t really needed. Make sure that the complexity of your project matches your experience. It’s good to challenge yourself but don’t bite off more than you can chew.

2. ACHIEVING FUNCTIONALITY

Next, write down how you will achieve these functions. For example, if I’m making a chatbot A.I then I will need to create a database of key words that the A.I can use to guess the user’s mood based on their writing. I will also need to implement a function so that the A.I can learn what to say depending on the user’s mood, after all you want your A.I to say ‘good for you’ when your user is happy, not sad.

3. BEGINNING TO BUILD

Afterwards, create a mind map so that you know which functions you need to make first. Think about which functions are independent and which are dependent. Organize them so that you can work on the core of your A.I before adding any complex functionality. Remember that a solid foundation is very important. Take your time to do things right the first time so that you don’t need to come back to them later on in the project.

With this, you are ready to finally start your project!

There are plenty of sites and forums that you can visit when you face difficulties with your project. Always refer back to your mind map when building your A.I, and talk to the community if you need help.

Good luck!