Artificial Intelligence and Other Innovative Computer Applications in the Nuclear Industry

This conference brought together experts from 15 countries to discuss application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) techniques to the nuclear industry. It was apparent from the meeting that even those active in the field were surprised at the extent of work and the progress made. There was a strong impression that application of this technology to nuclear power plants is inevitable. The benefits to improved operation, design, and safety are simply too significant to be ignored. This is a much different conclusion than might have been reached a few years ago when the technology was new and people were struggling to understand its significance. We believe that this meeting reflects a major turning point for the technology. It has moved from being a topic understood only by specialists to a situation where users are the most active people in the field. A broad array of innovative work is described from all of the participating countries. The activity in the u.s. is large and diverse. Although there is no nationally focussed policy for AI research in the U.S., many of these activities are reported here. Japan and France have a strong drive to integrate AI technology into their nuclear plants, and this is reflecteq in these proceedings.