Avnet and EDGE AI FOUNDATION announce partnership to accelerate Edge AI education and real-world deployment

PHOENIX - Avnet has entered into a strategic partnership with the EDGE AI FOUNDATION, a global nonprofit community dedicated to innovation, collaboration, advocacy and education for efficient, affordable and scalable edge AI technologies. Together, the organizations will develop educational programs aimed at accelerating edge AI skills and workforce development worldwide.

Through participation in the EDGE AI FOUNDATION, Avnet gains access to the Foundation's resources, collaborative forums and industry initiatives. Leveraging the company's unique perspective at the center of the technology supply chain, Avnet will be able to deliver expert insights and thought leadership to influence standards, guide governance and help customers accelerate Edge AI innovation.

The organizations will kick off their partnership by supporting two upcoming events. Avnet will showcase its industry expertise through live demonstrations and hands-on workshops at the EDGE AI San Diego in San Diego, Calif., on March 25-26. In turn, attendees of Avnet's TechXperience event in Irvine, Calif., on Mar. 24 will receive complimentary enrollment in the EDGE AI FOUNDATION'S edge AI certification program, along with discounted registration for its conference following Avnet's event.

"Edge AI is moving rapidly from experimentation to real-world impact, and collaboration across the ecosystem is critical to closing that gap," said Alex Iuorio, Senior Vice President, Global Supplier Development, Avnet. "By partnering with the EDGE AI FOUNDATION, we're helping developers and organizations overcome real deployment challenges with education, trusted solutions and access to scalable technologies that accelerate innovation at the edge."

Recent survey findings from Hackster.io, an Avnet Community, and the EDGE AI FOUNDATION highlight a fast-growing global edge AI community eager to move from experimentation to real-world deployment. Respondents from more than 60 countries reported strong momentum in edge-based computer vision, industrial monitoring, healthcare devices and smart infrastructure. The survey found that the biggest barriers to adoption are execution-related, including access to high-quality datasets, hardware complexity and cost, deployment security and demonstrating clear business return on investment.

"As edge AI adoption accelerates, there is a growing need for collaborations that foster discussion, highlight strategic work across industries, and brings positive outcomes to the forefront," said Pete Bernard, CEO of the EDGE AI FOUNDATION. "This relationship with Avnet perfectly demonstrates how we are working with the major organizations innovating in edge AI to solve global challenge and democratize AI technologies."

Avnet's partnership with the EDGE AI FOUNDATION directly addresses these challenges by:

• Providing expert consultations with our experienced engineering team
• Working through design decisions by leveraging our supplier partnerships across our robust line card
• Delivering unmatched supply chain services and visibility throughout the entire product lifecycle.

If you are interested in attending the upcoming events, refer to the details and links below:

• EDGE AI San Diego, San Diego, California, Mar. 24 - 26
• Avnet TechXperience, Irvine, California Mar. 24

About Avnet

As a leading global technology distributor and solutions provider, Avnet has served customers' evolving needs for more than a century. Through regional and specialized businesses around the world, we support customers and suppliers at every stage of the product lifecycle. We help companies adapt to change and accelerate the design and supply stages of product development. With a unique viewpoint from the center of the technology supply chain, Avnet is a trusted partner that solves complex design and supply chain issues so customers can realize revenue faster. Learn more about Avnet at https://www.avnet.com.

About the EDGE AI FOUNDATION

The EDGE AI FOUNDATION (formerly tinyML Foundation) is a global non-profit community of innovation, collaboration, advocacy, and education for efficient, affordable, and scalable edge AI technologies. With over 100 Fortune 500 technology companies, over 500,000 YouTube views, LinkedIn followers and Discord users, and over 100,000 individuals taking tinyML classes worldwide, EDGE AI FOUNDATION unites diverse industry leaders, researchers, and practitioners to drive collective progress and achieve breakthroughs that are solving the world's biggest challenges. For more information, visit https://www.edgeaifoundation.org.