Alumni Corner

From LTU Student to LTU Professor: Meet Nick Paul

Nick Paul
BSCS '17
MSCS '19

Ever since he was a kid, Nick Paul has been interested in robots.

“As an elementary student at Canton Charter Academy, they hosted a competition called Robofest through LTU. That was my first exposure to the university. Our team got into ‘Worlds' a couple times while I was there. I had the chance to go to campus. My dad’s friend went to Lawrence Tech, so I had some knowledge of the campus, but it was really through Robofest that I came to know LTU and I liked the smaller feel of the school and the chance to get to know your professors on a one-on-one basis,” recalls Nicholas Paul , ’17, ’19, adjunct faculty in the Math and Computer Science Department.  He attended a small private high school, Plymouth Christian Academy.

Paul graduated LTU with a BS in Computer Science with a minor in Math and then, through a research assistantship, “I was able to do an accelerated master’s program," said Paul. “LTU covered the cost of that because I was managing the lab and doing research mainly having to do with the self-driving car project.”

He completed his MS in Computer Science in one rather than two years. 

“I didn’t really have any specific interest through elementary and until senior year in high school, but working in the lab, I realized that my favorite part of robotics was programming the robot, putting the blocks together to make the robot do certain things. Computer science was a new interest for me when I came to LTU.”

Nick Paul presenting his poster at the 2023 DARPA Forward Event in Columbus, OH

Today, Paul works full-time as an artificial intelligence engineer at the Ann Arbor-based technology company SoarTech, teaches one course per semester at LTU, primarily robotics programming, and helps with the self-driving car program. Paul explained that at the time he was working on his MS degree, LTU didn’t have the courses he needed to do the job, so he was self-taught in the tools and systems required to do the work. After graduating, LTU asked him to teach other students what he learned and formalize a course in robotics programming.

Last month, Dr. Eric Martinson joined LTU to also teach robotics. Paul and Martinson worked together at SoarTech a few years ago on several projects, including robotics programming, machine learning, AI, and computer vision problems. They are colleagues once again.

An AI engineer’s role is like that of a software engineer, but the software is used specifically for artificial intelligence. “There’s a lot of research involved in addition to the normal designing and programming. The 'goal' of AI is always to support the goal and direction of the user,” Paul explained. “AI depends on the human for direction and supports the human through decision analysis (making decisions 'on its own') in support of the human's goal. Like a GPS deciding ('on its own') to take a right turn at the next intersection but only because you told it where you wanted to go.

Nick Paul (2nd from right) with the 2023 LTU Self-Driving Vehicle Team

"Human-centered AI is the key to solving real-world problems. The goal of AI is to support humans, not emulate them,” Paul emphasized. “What we try to create is 'trust' in the AI system, assure its integrity. AI has the profound potential to change the way we do things.” Paul continued, “With any change this big, of course, there’s going to be fear. We’re afraid of big change. We need to understand why it makes the decisions it makes and build systems that are understandable by users.

“Very much like a human relationship, the more you get to know and understand someone, you can trust that person. It’s much the same with AI,” he said.

What’s the future hold for Nick Paul? “I would like to be more involved with academia,” he said. “Maybe sometime in the future I would like to become a full-time professor. My long-term goals are teaching more and, along the way, getting my PhD.”

Paul believes that “College is a great opportunity to learn and explore your interests. Be open to new things and ideas. Think about what you want to be in the future and take the time to get to know people around you who reflect that image. Their guidance, advice, and friendship are more important than anything you can learn from a textbook.” 

He invites students considering college to take a look at LTU. “For me, the main thing is the size and the community of the school. You can know your professors as people who really love and are really passionate about their field. You’re able to build a relationship. The big advantage is they get to know you, too, and give you advice. They’re the reason I’m this far in my academic and professional journey.”

by Renée Ahee