Artificial Intelligence (AI) enables people with different abilities to step into a world where their difficulties are understood and taken into account.
What if people with disabilities are capable of building their own AI/ML solutions! All they need is the right training and social support to start building solutions 🙂
Here is Khaldoun’s story an inspiration to every learner.
About Khaldoun
Khaldoun Senjab is no stranger to challenges, both personally and professionally. In 1994, he had an accident that caused a break in his neck and a loss of movement and sensation in his legs and arms. He got married in Syria then moved with his family to the UAE, when he was sponsored by the country’s government to go under surgery to better his speaking, and finally got a scholarship from the University of Sharjah.
Khaldoun proudly tells us that he graduated from the University of Sharjah in 2021 with 1st degree of honor and a GPA of 3.92. He states that he’s currently pursuing a master’s degree in Computer Science and is working as a freelancer on cloud services especially Azure and as a developer of some applications.
How do you use technology to keep on learning?
I use a mouse/touchpad in front of my mouth, and to type, I use my eyes on the screen keyboard. I recently started to use my voice more clearly and strongly. I spend most of my time in front of the computer screen and learn a lot by myself.
Why did you decide to take Zaka’s Artificial Intelligence Bootcamp?
I’m very interested in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning. I think that it is the future, and I’d like to get stronger in it. That’s why I decided to take Zaka’s AI Bootcamp which was very useful to enhance my skills.
What can you tell us about your experience in the bootcamp?
Every week, I learned a lot of things, it was a fast journey with speed knowledge acquired. It was the best fit for me because I don’t have a lot of time. It was very organized and the project was very useful for my academic study. It is different from other online courses because of the direct help a person can get while learning. I would describe it as an amazing, enjoyable and useful Journey.
Can you tell us about your capstone project?
I used Sentiment Analysis of Tweets to see if they are positive, negative or neutral. I tested several models like Bidirectional LSTM and 1D convolution. I learned a lot from it and as I said it helped me with my master’s degree too.
Who do you recommend the bootcamp for?
Everyone who’s interested in entering the field. It is a great start and a fast way to learn the basics of AI. It is also for people who are prepared to study by themselves and in their own way and time since it is self-paced. Sometimes, I would be busy and this type of study is perfect for a busy person.
In general, everyone who wants to learn AI in a short period of time, whether for career advancement or for an academic purpose.
How does Machine Learning, in your opinion, improve accessibility for people with difficulties?
ML has many benefits for people like me. For example, with the smart autocomplete of words system that I use, it is much faster and easier for me to type sentences. This is just an example and there are many other applications of ML that can help people with special needs.
What are your future goals?
I would like to become a Machine Learning Engineer since I am very passionate about the field and it is a perfect career for me. That’s why I am planning on joining the advanced Machine Learning Certification program too, to further advance my skills in this area. I am excited for this because of my experience in the bootcamp. I know that the team is knowledgeable and helpful and that the material is well organized and structured.
Khaldoun sets an example of how AI can offer solutions to people with different abilities and allow them to have better experiences.
