Abdul-Rashid | Revolutionizing Safety

On this episode of The Silicon Dreams, host Charlene sits down with Abdul-Rashid “Zack” Zakaria, a PhD researcher at the University of Mississippi, whose work merges AI, computer vision, and remote sensing to tackle railway ground hazard mitigation. Zack shares his journey from geology engineering in Ghana to computational science in the U.S., and how his fascination with LiDAR sparked a passion for building AI-driven decision support systems. He explains how deep learning, computer vision, and satellite data can detect hazards, prevent disasters, and reshape infrastructure monitoring. Beyond railways, Zack highlights broader applications of AI in agriculture, climate change, robotics, and automation—and why open knowledge-sharing is key to innovation. Packed with insights for researchers, technologists, and anyone curious about real-world AI applications, this episode shines a light on using tech for safer, smarter, and more sustainable futures.