Semcon StoriesDigital Solutions
Right now, I’m working on AI for self-driving cars
It wasn’t obvious from the outset that Annie would become a software developer. But she has always been attracted to technology and problem solving. At an upper secondary school fair, Chalmers University of Technology made a particularly good impression on her, with many technical courses and study programmes to choose from. Annie had her sights set on mechanical engineering, so she chose her upper secondary school specialisation accordingly.
“What was fun was that I got to try out a lot of different things on the course. I’m curious, I like it when I have to think and get the opportunity to develop. I quickly decided that programming was most fun of all.” says Annie Edvardsson, software developer at Semcon.
Data for AI to make decisions
She came across Semcon at a job fair at Chalmers. One thing led to another, and after a summer job, part-time work and finishing her Master’s thesis, she started working at Semcon in 2019.
“I’m currently working with an automatic data annotation system. We receive video sequences from a car’s perspective where elements such as roadway, signs and people have to be identified correctly by algorithms and AI. The data we generate will then be used to train AI to make decisions in self-driving cars.”
Annie wrote her Master’s thesis – Deep Neural Network Fusion for Situational Awareness – on AI.
"AI has enormous potential, and the pace of development is so fast. I hope that AI will soon be able to contribute to technologies that advance society in more ways than self-driving cars. Take healthcare, for example, where you can use AI to detect diseases." says Annie Edvardsson, software developer at Semcon.
Testing projects in AI, IoT and Embedded
At Semcon, Annie has the opportunity to choose which projects to work on. Just as with her education, she has her sights set on testing a wide range of different things in order to find her specialisation.
“I’m very interested in AI, IoT and Embedded, and I’m intrigued by so much else too. Here at Semcon, I can try out different projects and broaden my scope in a way I think will be beneficial in the future. In the longer term, I am curious about working with technology in the MedTech and AgriTech sectors.”
But it’s not all about technology. For Annie, community is key. Not least to enjoy the work, but also to share knowledge and to collaborate to solve problems.
“There’s a lot going on here. Every Friday, someone makes a presentation of a project or gives a talk about one of their interests. Half of the IoT team is building their own Home Assistance system, and a lot of other exciting things are happening in several places. We also have the opportunity to use the lab for our own projects.”
Sustainability in software development
At Semcon, with Community of Practice (CoP), you work in several different subject areas. You choose what you want to get involved in and have time to explore the subject with others who share the same interest.
“Just before this interview, I was at a Sustainability CoP where we discussed electricity consumption in the home, and that led me to start measuring the consumption of my dishwasher and refrigerator. I’m also in a CoP for IoT. There’s just so much to get involved in, and I gain a lot of new knowledge and perspective just by being here.”
Sustainability in software development has a greater impact than might be thought. A lot of it is about coding smart in order to reduce the pressure on the processor, the number of servers, and the type of hardware required.
Better at solving complex problems
“The CoPs have several advantages. Not only do we learn a lot together, but we also get to know each other better, which makes the job more fun. We also get better at working together and solving complex problems. It makes it fun to be in the office, where I usually work two or three days a week. We can decide where to work ourselves, and I appreciate the variety of alternating between home and office.”
Annie is currently organising a trip to Copenhagen for her Software & Emerging Tech department.
“For me, what’s most important are the culture and the people here at Semcon. There’s something happening all the time – from AW, sports activities and knowledge exchange – to travel. It’s important to be able to have fun together and to get to know each other even better.”
