How a Veteran Gained Invaluable Skills in AI Manufacturing at Georgia Tech

Michael Trigger, an Air Force veteran in his late 50s, found an unexpected opportunity at Georgia Tech. After driving a truck for several years, he was ready to learn some new skills.

Trigger’s interest in artificial intelligence (AI) led him to a manufacturing course at the Veterans Education Career Transition Resource Center in Warner Robins, Georgia. With support from the Georgia Tech-led Georgia Artificial Intelligence in Manufacturing program (Georgia AIM), the center trains veterans in robotics using cutting-edge AI manufacturing technologies.

“To stay competitive, you have to keep learning; if you don’t, you turn into a dinosaur and become extinct,” Trigger said. “That's the advice I give to my kids, to my grandson — and to myself.”

The course included a tour of the Advanced Manufacturing Pilot Facility (AMPF), housed in Georgia Tech's Manufacturing Institute, where Trigger learned about opportunities and internships in AI manufacturing. Through that exposure, he applied and was selected for an internship at AMPF.
 

“One thing the military teaches you is that it’s all about the mission. Whenever I go somewhere, that’s the first thing I try to understand.”

Workforce development for future technologies is one of AMPF’s key missions. That’s why, in addition to serving as a space where researchers and industry experts can test new technologies, it is also a teaching laboratory.

“The internship was a really exciting experience, and working with AMPF staff was one of the best parts,” he said. “They were instrumental in helping me learn advanced manufacturing technologies and software from end to end.” 

Trigger says his internship helped him think about his future and deepened his interest in both machine learning and large language model technologies. 

“When the AMPF staff trained us on manufacturing technologies, they also helped us understand the real-world applications,” he explained. “Once you learn these skills, you can take them back to your community and teach others if you choose to do that. I've learned lifelong skills no one can take away from me.”

Trigger’s experience helped him better understand AI at a time when it is becoming embedded in industries and service sectors across the board.

“For any veteran who gets an opportunity to intern at Georgia Tech, they should absolutely jump on it,” he said. “Veterans aren’t the only ones Georgia Tech is helping with these programs, though. It’s everybody.”