Introduction to Generative AI: Concepts and Techniques
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Introduction to Generative AI: Concepts and Techniques
This course is part of Generative AI Fundamentals Specialization
Instructors: Amreen Anbar
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There are 4 modules in this course
This four-module course gives you a clear, practical foundation in Generative AI from what it is and where it’s used, to how modern models work and how to apply them responsibly. You’ll start with the big picture: GenAI capabilities across text, image, audio, and video, plus real-world industry applications. Then you’ll dive into the science behind today’s Large Language Models: text representation (tokenization, embeddings), and the Transformer architecture (positional encoding, self-attention, encoder/decoder flow).
Next, you’ll get hands-on with LLMs and workflows: crafting effective prompts, calling models via web/UI and APIs, running models locally (e.g., via Ollama), and extending capabilities with Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) and fine-tuning. Finally, you’ll examine challenges and responsible practice, including copyright, privacy and security, explainability, and questions of ownership in the GenAI era. Designed for learners with basic Machine Learning and Python familiarity, the course blends short lessons with labs, quizzes, and exercises. By the end, you’ll understand the core concepts and architectures behind GenAI with a strong sense in ethical and responsible use and GenAI limitations. By the end of this course, learners will be able to: Explain how generative AI spans text, image, audio, and video and assess real industry workflows where it creates value. Trace the evolution of language modeling from probabilistic/NLP approaches to Transformers, and justify why attention overcomes prior limitations. Understand tokenization and word embeddings, and reason about how these representations affect model behavior. Decompose a Transformer block and follow tensors, through self-attention, MLPs, and normalization to explain how representations are formed and refined. Operate LLMs via web UIs, APIs, and locally with Ollama to write minimal inference code and improve outputs using prompt patterns and get familiar with concepts of RAG and Fine-Tuning as possible next steps. Identify, analyze, and explain LLMs shortcomings such as bias, hallucination, ownership, and prompt injection by formulating user-level guidelines, organizational processes, and governance policies.
In the first week of the course, we begin with the most fundamental question: What is Generative AI? From there, we explore the scope of Gen-AI projects and examine the most popular applications for various tasks. Learners will discover how Gen-AI is transforming industries and driving change in sectors such as healthcare, business, and finance. We then provide a high-level overview of the science behind these technologies, preparing participants for more technical concepts.
What's included
20 videos4 assignments
20 videos•Total 119 minutes
- Course Introduction•5 minutes
- Meet your instructor: Soroush Razavi•1 minute
- Meet your instructor: Amreen Anbar•2 minutes
- What is Generative AI?•5 minutes
- Applications of Chatbots•8 minutes
- Applications of Image Models•6 minutes
- Applications of Audio Models•7 minutes
- Applications of Video Models•6 minutes
- GenAI in Healthcare•6 minutes
- GenAI in Education and Training•8 minutes
- GenAI in Creative Industries•7 minutes
- GenAI in Media and Entertainment•4 minutes
- How Does Generative AI Work?•8 minutes
- Multimodal Generative AI•8 minutes
- Generative AI vs Discriminative AI•8 minutes
- Generative AI Model: GANs•8 minutes
- Generative AI Model: Transformer-Based Models•6 minutes
- Generative AI Model: Diffusion Models•8 minutes
- Generative AI Model: VAEs•7 minutes
- Module 1 Recap•2 minutes
4 assignments•Total 160 minutes
- Module 1 Quiz•70 minutes
- Lesson 1 Quiz•30 minutes
- Lesson 2 Quiz•30 minutes
- Lesson 3 Quiz•30 minutes
This module grounds learners in Natural Language Processing from its roots to the present. You’ll examine how language is represented and why these steps matter. Building on that foundation, the module demystifies the Transformer, covering positional encoding, self-attention, and multi-head attention. By the end, you’ll understand the end-to-end mechanics that power today’s chatbots.
What's included
18 videos4 assignments
18 videos•Total 125 minutes
- Module 2 Introduction•2 minutes
- What is NLP?•7 minutes
- Evolution of NLP (Part 1)•9 minutes
- Evolution of NLP (Part 2)•6 minutes
- Probabilistic Models in NLP•10 minutes
- Transition From RNNs to Transformers•8 minutes
- Text PreProcessing and Tokenization•7 minutes
- Why Do We Need Text Representation?•9 minutes
- One-Hot Encoding & Bag of Words•5 minutes
- Word2Vec to Contextual Embedding•7 minutes
- Origins of Transformers•8 minutes
- How Transformers Work? •9 minutes
- Positional Encoding•9 minutes
- Self-Attention•6 minutes
- Multi-Head and Masked Multi-Head Attention•8 minutes
- Encoder and Decoder •6 minutes
- Different Types of Transformers•7 minutes
- Module 2 Recap•2 minutes
4 assignments•Total 150 minutes
- Module 2 Quiz•80 minutes
- Lesson 1 Quiz•30 minutes
- Lesson 2 Quiz•10 minutes
- Lesson 3 Quiz•30 minutes
This module explores how you can turn your ideas into GenAI applications and explores the open-source vs. proprietary model ecosystem. You will get hands-on experience by making API calls to cloud models and running open-source models locally with Ollama. Finally, you will master the complete reliability toolkit, moving from advanced prompt engineering to Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) and fine-tuning.
What's included
14 videos2 readings4 assignments1 discussion prompt
14 videos•Total 73 minutes
- Module 3 Introduction•1 minute
- Transformer or LLM?•4 minutes
- Gen-AI Can Solve Your Daily Challenges•5 minutes
- Turning Ideas into Apps: The GenAI Builder’s Path•9 minutes
- What are Different Generative Models?•5 minutes
- Proprietary Models Tour: ChatGPT Features•5 minutes
- API Call to OpenAI•5 minutes
- Accessing Llama Through Ollama•4 minutes
- Towards More Reliable LLMs: A Guide to Enhanced Outputs•5 minutes
- Prompt Engineering: The Fundamentals•7 minutes
- Prompt Engineering: Techniques and Applications•6 minutes
- Beyond Prompt Engineering: RAG•6 minutes
- Beyond Prompt Engineering: Fine Tuning•7 minutes
- Module 3 Recap•2 minutes
2 readings•Total 20 minutes
- How to Get Private Key•10 minutes
- How to Choose LLM?•10 minutes
4 assignments•Total 100 minutes
- Module 3 Quiz•60 minutes
- Lesson 1 Quiz•10 minutes
- Lesson 2 Quiz•10 minutes
- Lesson 3 Quiz•20 minutes
1 discussion prompt•Total 10 minutes
- Think about how you can use GenAI to make your daily challenges easier•10 minutes
Module 4 directly addresses the growing concerns around using Gen AI by focusing on Generative AI's challenges and the principles of Responsible AI. We will investigate critical limitations like bias and hallucinations and explore their mitigations. This module also covers complex issues surrounding intellectual property, data privacy, and ownership, as well as the role of Explainable AI (XAI) in building secure and trustworthy systems.
What's included
17 videos4 assignments
17 videos•Total 109 minutes
- Module 4 Introduction•2 minutes
- Limitations of LLMs: Bias•8 minutes
- Limitations of LLMs: Hallucination•4 minutes
- Ownership in Generative AI•6 minutes
- Toward Responsible AI and Explainability•7 minutes
- Algorithmic Bias and Fairness: Analysis and Examples•8 minutes
- Algorithmic Bias and Fairness: Methodologies for Mitigation •5 minutes
- AI Hallucinations: Documented Occurrences and Statistical Perspectives •8 minutes
- AI Hallucinations: Remediation•7 minutes
- Prompt Hacking: Exploiting AI Behavior•9 minutes
- Prompt Hacking: Mitigation •8 minutes
- Imitating Artistic Style: In There a Difference?•6 minutes
- Intellectual Property and Generative AI: Strategic Approaches•6 minutes
- Technical and Theoretical Solutions to Copyright Infringement•7 minutes
- Privacy Preservation in AI Systems: Advanced Techniques for Data Protection•6 minutes
- Ethical AI Frameworks •9 minutes
- Course Wrap up•3 minutes
4 assignments•Total 160 minutes
- Module 4 Quiz•80 minutes
- Lesson 1 Quiz•20 minutes
- Lesson 2 Quiz•30 minutes
- Lesson 3 Quiz•30 minutes
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