Adaption aims big with AutoScientist, an AI tool that helps models train themselves

For years, AI researchers have anticipated the moment when AI systems will be able to improve themselves better than humans. As investors pour money into a new generation of research-driven AI labs, there are more resources than ever available to pursue this goal. Now one of those neolabs has taken a big step toward making it a reality.

On Wednesday, Adaption introduced a new product called Automotive scientist that allows models to quickly learn specific capabilities using an automated approach to conventional refinement. The techniques are applicable to a wide range of fields, but the Adaptation team is particularly focused on the potential to accelerate and simplify the training process and refine a boundary-level AI model.

According to co-founder and CEO Sara Hooker, who previously worked as VP of AI research at Cohere, AutoScientist represents a new way to approach the AI ​​training process. “What’s super exciting about it is that it co-optimizes both the data and the model, and learns the best way to learn basically every possibility,” Hooker told TechCrunch. “It suggests that we can finally enable successful cross-border AI training outside of these labs”

AutoScientist builds on the company’s existing data offering, Adaptive datawhich aims to make it easier to build high-quality data sets over time. AutoScientist, meanwhile, is designed to turn those ever-improving data sets into ever-improving AI models. “Our vision at Adaption is that the entire stack should be completely customizable, and basically optimized on the fly for whatever task you have,” says Hooker.

Of course, that approach will only be as good as the results. In its launch materials, Adaption claims that AutoScientist has more than doubled win rates across models – impressive numbers, but difficult to put into context. Because the system is built to adapt models to specific tasks, conventional benchmarks such as SWE-Bench or ARC-AGI are not applicable.

Still, Adaption is confident that users will see the difference once they try AutoScientist – so confident that the lab is making the tool free to use for the first 30 days after release.

“Just as code generation has opened up a lot of tasks, it will unlock a lot of innovation at the intersection of different fields,” says Hooker.