Testing AI, AI Driven Systems, and Machine Learning Pipelines | Webinar | Curiosity Software



AI Summary

Overview of Testing AI-Driven Systems

  1. Introduction
    • Speaker: Ben Johnson Ward, BB Solutions Engineering.
    • Focus on testing AI-driven systems including machine learning (ML) pipelines.
  2. Purpose of Discussion
    • Overview of challenges in testing AI applications.
    • Need for quality assurance as AI adoption grows (35% of businesses utilize AI).
  3. New Challenges
    • AI systems are increasingly complex; traditional testing methods may not suffice.
    • Shift in testing focus required due to:
      • Non-deterministic outputs.
      • Massive input spaces.
      • Unique failure modes.
  4. Key Concepts
    • Different types of AI-Driven Applications:
      • Standard AI applications.
      • Learning pipelines (continuous learning and model updates).
      • Testing actual AI models (less frequent).
  5. Testing AI-Driven Applications
    • Scope must include service interfaces and how they handle AI outputs.
    • Importance of mocking to test service functionality without the AI component.
    • Testing inputs: managing context within input limits and ensuring data validity.
    • Testing outputs: ensuring the service handles responses correctly and gracefully.
  6. Challenges in Learning Pipelines
    • Quality assurance must include data cleaning and pipeline testing.
    • Use synthetic, fictitious data for effective testing of training processes.
  7. Direct AI Testing
    • Rare to test AI models directly; focus is more on integration validation.
    • Functional testing can include:
      • Property-based testing (checking for known output characteristics).
      • Adversarial testing to expose vulnerabilities.
  8. Conclusion
    • Essential to adapt testing strategies to match evolving AI technologies.
    • Emphasize monitoring the effectiveness and accuracy of AI applications over time.