FAQ

We're excited to support a great variety of research projects that advance AI. Our research team's expertise lies in multilingual, multimodal, and efficiency, so we will be most equipped to support these initiatives. Further, we strongly welcome the use of Cohere models in your Expedition projects and can supply API credits for these initiatives. Models include: 

• Aya Vision, 

• Aya Expanse (8B or 35B), 

• Aya 101,

• Command R,

• Command R+

Learn more about our models here. 

Check out last year's Expedition projects to get inspiration.

There are many ways to connect with prospective teammates:

Sign-up Sheet - Do you have a project idea? Become a team captain by sharing your ideas in the sign-up sheet and starting a thread on Discord.

Interested in joining a team? Check out the sign-up sheet to see who is still accepting teammates and find the corresponding thread on Discord to be in touch with the captain, and tell them what you can bring to the team.

Discord - Do you have a project idea and want to share it or get some feedback on it? Share more details in #project-idea-sharing. Looking for a team? Introduce yourself in #project-idea-sharing, including what kind of project you may want to work on, and scroll through the intros of others to find collaborators.

Crew Connections meetings - join either of our crew connections meetings. Here we will introduce the Expedition more thoroughly and there will be plenty of time to connect with others who are looking to form a team. Captains will be invited to pitch their ideas to prospective collaborators. Details on the Home page.

We are committed to supporting all participants throughout the expedition. This includes:

• Facilitating connections: We'll help you find potential collaborators to expand your network and expertise to enhance your project.

• Cohere API credits: To support your project development, we are offering API credits. This will provide access to Aya 23 models to take your project to the next level.

• Technical Guidance: Our team will provide the initial technical guidance to help you get started and give timely feedback to help you make progress during the expedition.

• Regular check-ins: We want to ensure your progress and address any concerns, so we'll schedule regular check-ins. This will help keep everyone on track and allow for any necessary adjustments.

• Closing event & prizes: Finally to celebrate your hard work, we will host a closing event with exciting prizes.

We want to ensure that you have the resources and support necessary to make the most of this expeditionary journey.

We aim to provide comprehensive support, but there are a few areas that will not be covered during the competition:

• Compute support for training runs: Participants will need to utilize their own computational resources or cloud services for any machine learning model training and experimentation.

• Code debugging: While we offer technical guidance and tools, we will not be able to provide individual code debugging support. Participants are expected to troubleshoot and resolve coding issues independently or through their collaborators.

• Financial support beyond the stated prizes: Aside from the Cohere API credits and prizes offered, there will be no additional financial support provided for project development or related expenses.

The expedition will run until the closing ceremony on May 14.

The focus of this expedition is on kickstarting innovative research initiatives and fostering collaboration, rather than building finished products. We encourage participants to think big and explore new ideas, even if they may not result in finished deliverables within the 6-week timeframe. 

Our expectations is that teams will work collaboratively to develop unique and impactful research projects focussed on accelerating AI. The specific deliverables will vary depending on the nature of each team's project but could include a technical blog showcasing findings or proof-of-concept demonstrations. Each team will be expected to report on weekly progress and showcase their work as part of our closing ceremony. 

We hope that the connections and collaborations formed during the expedition will extend beyond the 6 weeks and contribute to long-term research partnerships. Following the Expedition, our team will remain present on the Discord server, available to support with use of Cohere models for research and ad-hoc research support. Ongoing programs including API Research Grants and Research Hangouts can be leveraged to support continued exploration of your Expedition Research. 

Anyone is welcome to participate in the expedition. You do not need to have any kind of prior research experience to participate. 

Check out last year's Expedition projects to get inspiration.

Our team is in the process of designing exclusive Expedition Aya swag for participants who complete the expedition and those who produce top projects, evaluated on metrics such as creativity, potential impact, and scientific integrity. Stay tuned for more information!

Cohere For AI is Cohere's non-profit research lab that seeks to solve complex machine learning problems. We support fundamental research that explores the unknown, and are focused on creating more points of entry into machine learning research. Learn more at our website.