# Qualcomm Academy launches AI edge certification with Arduino UNO Q

> **Key takeaway:** Qualcomm Academy's new paid certification program teaches end-to-end ML deployment on the Arduino UNO Q through three hands-on edge AI projects.

**Published:** 2026-10-21T16:15:10+00:00 
**Source:** Arduino Official Blog 
**Category:** open-hardware 
**Canonical URL:** https://fosswire.org/news/qualcomm-academy-launches-ai-edge-certification-with-arduino.html 

## Summary
Qualcomm Academy has introduced the AI Associate Certification: Model to App, a self-paced online program built around the Arduino UNO Q board. The approximately five-to-six-hour course covers the full machine learning workflow through three projects: wake word detection, person recognition, and gesture recognition. Participants work with model quantization, FastRPC communication, and on-device inference. The program targets developers with basic Python and PyTorch knowledge and requires purchase through Qualcomm Academy.

## What the certification covers
- Three project-based modules: voice (wake word detection), vision (person recognition), and sensor (gesture recognition via IMU)
- Covers full ML lifecycle: data preparation, model creation, training, validation, quantization, deployment, and application integration
- Uses Arduino UNO Q as the target hardware for on-device inference
- Includes optimization tradeoff analysis between accuracy, latency, and power consumption
- Introduces FastRPC communication for AI workloads and AI development toolchains
- Prerequisites: basic Python, IDE familiarity, introductory PyTorch and ML concepts, or equivalent foundational certification