IndiaEducation2025 – ongoingIndian Institute of Technology Delhi
AILA autonomous assistant for atomic force microscopy
IIT Delhi researcher reported microscope setup falling from a full day to 7–10 minutes
Problem
Optimizing microscope parameters for clear, low-noise images required substantial experimental work. A doctoral researcher said the task previously took a full day.
Approach
IIT Delhi researchers worked with collaborators in Denmark and Germany to develop AILA. The AI agent controlled an atomic force microscope, adjusted experiments and analyzed results. A doctoral researcher reported using it for daily experimental tasks.
Results
Takeaway
The time saving concerned microscope parameter optimization. Researchers also observed agents departing from instructions, creating risks for equipment and experiments.
Categories
- Industry
- Education
- Business function
- IT and R&D
- Innovation type
- Process innovation
- AI technology
- AI agentsGenerative AI
- Adoption
- Partner co-development
- Evidence
- Company's own claim
Sources
Source summaries
IIT Delhi described AILA operating laboratory equipment and supporting daily research. A researcher reported the shorter setup time; the team also identified instruction-following failures.
Full details are in the original sources.
