Participants of the roundtable on the potential of artificial intelligence to accelerate SMRs, organized during the World Governments Summit in collaboration with the OECD NEA. (Photo: OECD NEA)
A panel on the potential of artificial intelligence to accelerate small modular reactors was held at the World Governments Summit (WGS) in February in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The OECD Nuclear Energy Agency cohosted the event, which attracted leaders from developers, IT companies, regulators, and other experts.
During the WGS, NEA director general William D. Magwood announced two new AI-related initiatives at the OECD NEA.
Leading off: The first is the RegLab project, which aims to enable the safe and efficient application of AI to enhance regulatory readiness, thereby facilitating SMR development and deployment.
“The nuclear sector needs to be bold to harness the potential of AI to facilitate the efficient development of safe and sustainable SMR projects,” said Magwood. “There are uncertainties associated with any new technology that must be addressed, and AI is certainly no exception. The RegLab initiative is a multinational effort to reduce some of these uncertainties and help overcome obstacles to safe application of AI in SMR licensing and deployment.”
Next: The second is the AIxpertise project, which allows nuclear scientists and engineers to engage in hands-on activities to enhance their knowledge and assess tools to effectively and safely apply AI in their work.
AIxpertise will focus on three key pillars:
- Data—Acquiring and curating datasets for AI applications.
- Benchmarking—Assessing and training AI algorithms as well as building bridges between nuclear and AI domains.
- Training—Leveraging projects to develop education and training programs for nuclear energy experts and students.
The project, which is open to interested parties, will bring together stakeholders from research and technical support organizations, safety authorities, industry, academia, and technology companies. For more information, email AIXPERTISE@oecd-nea.org.
