Brendan Brown

The Human-Centered Approach to Leveraging AI and Drones for Remediation

Brendan Brown, Environmental Scientist, CDM Smith

AI and drones are the wave of the future but how do we fully leverage these innovative tools while retaining the vital input and decision making of subject matter experts?  To do this we need to understand the AI tools available and when they are appropriate to answer the questions before us.   This talk will define types of AI models as they relate to remediation and draw the distinction between large language models like chatgpt (that weren’t built to solve the challenges facing remediation practitioners) and custom built models. Additionally, environmental sensors pertinent to remediation will be summarized. Updated and new case studies highlighting drone data collection to data analysis to decisions will be presented on excavation and cap monitoring, thermal investigations for evaluating SW/GW interactions, and monitoring of site restoration.  

Mr. Brown is a principal scientist at CDM Smith with over 20 years in the environmental industry. He has over 8 years of experience working with drones and machine learning to evaluate environmental sites. He leds Sky Wave at CDM Smith which combines advanced remote sensing and AI to develop environmental solutions.