The Global Mining Guidelines Group (GMG) has announced that its Artificial Intelligence (AI) Working Group, launched last November, now has two leaders.
Mohammad Babaei (pictured speaking on the left), Digital Mining Innovation Lead in Digital Operations at Teck, has come on board as a co-leader, joining joins Mark O’Brien, Manager, Digital Transformation at CITIC Pacific Mining, who has been leading the group so far.
GMG said: “The AI Working Group has already seen an incredible level of engagement. With this new team, Babaei in Canada and O’Brien in Australia, the group has leadership in both hemispheres.”
Early on, O’Brien said, the group knew it needed good global representation to reflect both how globally relevant AI is and how rapidly the field is changing. “Part of that meant trying to build good coverage with our leadership to make sure we could keep up and share the load,” he said.
Babaei has worked in a variety of contexts including open-pit mines, consultancies and universities. In his current role at Teck, he guides and supports digital innovations that improve safety, sustainability and productivity, according to GMG. “For example, he led projects applying machine learning in mining and maintenance and developing a unique real-time diggability solution.”
Babaei said: “AI can bring revolution in many streams of mining like mineral exploration, haulage, planning and logistics, safety and maintenance.
“I hope we will be able to promote better understanding of AI within the industry and open doors for collaboration between operators, subject matter experts, academia and other innovators.”
O’Brien said this partnership, and the working group’s collaborative approach, reflects the broader importance of collaboration and openness across the industry.
He said: “When you take a close look at the most exciting things happening in the realm of AI over the past few years, one thing that becomes quickly apparent is the most impactful advances are coming out of collaboration.
“Two leaders will, I hope, be far better than one.”
The AI Working Group has recently launched its first project. “This Foundation for AI in Mining project will provide a unified understanding of the basics of AI in mining that cuts through the hype and clarifies what methods are useful, and for what circumstances they can be applied,” GMG said.
