IBM Recognizes Lassonde Professor for Project of the Year Achievements

At the IBM TechXchange conference in Las Vegas, Gias Uddin, assistant professor in the Electrical Engineering & Computer Science department at York University’s Lassonde School of Engineering, served as the principal investigator on a project that earned the prestigious IBM Center for Advanced Studies (CAS) Project of the Year 2024. The project, titled Intelligent Issue Analytic Assistant for IBM Runtime Systems, highlights advancements in runtime system analytics.

This innovative project is redefining how IBM manages technical issues. Launched in 2022 with support from IBM, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), Mitacs and his graduate students, Professor Uddin’s team harnessed the power of AI to develop tools that help automate and streamline the process of identifying, triaging and resolving bugs and technical issues.

“The IBM TechXchange conference is an annual gathering, bringing together experts from across the world to discuss the latest advancements at IBM and showcase new products,” explains Professor Uddin. “It was an honour to be recognized for the Project of the Year Award at this conference. This award brings me the most satisfaction among others I have received because this project was the result of teamwork. Leading the project and juggling stakeholders, while balancing research and development and producing high quality work is not an easy thing to do – I’m extremely grateful for my students and IBM collaborators who helped make this possible.”

Professor Gias Uddin (center) receiving his award at the IBM TechXchange conference.

Professor Uddin’s project has produced a trio of powerful AI tools: ExplorerX, CHIME and TriagerX. These intelligent software assistants support the process of issue exploration, triaging and prioritization. ExplorerX helps developers automatically identify and resolve bugs, while CHIME provides reliable, context-aware responses during debugging, reducing common errors found in generative AI models like ChatGPT. Meanwhile, TriagerX helps recommend the best teams and developers for specific issues, ensuring faster resolutions and improving collaboration.

Beyond technological innovation, Professor Uddin’s project demonstrated the importance of collaborating with industry, to transform academic research into practical solutions. The project seamlessly integrated into IBM’s operational workflows, with the deployed tools improving efficiency and cutting down on the manual effort required to manage software issues.

By collaborating closely with IBM’s developers, Uddin’s team ensured that the tools were not only theoretical, but applicable in real-world settings.

“As researchers, it’s easy to lose sight of the need to make industry impact,” he says. “But, when you bring industry into the picture, your work can reach its full potential.”

Key contributors to this success include Lan Xia (Technical Lead), Longyu Zhang, Salma Begum Tamanna, Md Afif Al Mamun, Daryl Maier, Vijay Sundaresan and Tony Renaud (Project Manager).

This industry-driven project has been particularly valuable for Professor Uddin’s graduate students who benefited from professional development and internship opportunities, preparing them for careers in the field.

As Professor Uddin’s project continues to evolve, with more tools and improvements in the pipeline, his vision extends beyond improving software issue management – he aims to make AI tools that enhance productivity, build trust in AI systems and change traditional approaches to software development. His work is a prime example of how academic research, when paired with industry collaboration, can create solutions that make a positive impact.