From Logic to Vision-Language: Building Reliable AI for Document Understanding

Speaker:
Qiming (Bill) Bao
https://www.linkedin.com/in/qiming-bill-bao-773757166/

Qiming (Bill) Bao holds a PhD in Computer Science from the University of Auckland’s Strong AI Lab. He is currently an AI Researcher and Engineer at Xtracta in Auckland, New Zealand, where he focuses on advancing large language models (LLMs) and vision-language models (VLMs) for intelligent document understanding. His work emphasizes making these models more efficient, scalable to long contexts, and robust for real-world deployment.
During his PhD, Qiming specialized in logical reasoning over natural language, developing new methods and datasets to evaluate deductive and abductive reasoning, and investigating how LLMs generalize to out-of-distribution tasks. His research bridges symbolic logic with modern neural approaches to improve interpretability and reliability in AI systems.

Summary:
In this talk, Qiming will share how to bring together two powerful directions in AI research:
Logical reasoning – using methods that strengthen LLMs’ ability to reason, generalize, and explain decisions.
Vision-language modeling – enabling AI systems to process and understand complex, structured documents that mix text and visual layouts.
He will highlight strategies to extend context length, integrate adapters and optimization techniques, and ensure robustness when moving from research benchmarks to production.
Attendees will gain practical insights into how logical reasoning can improve reliability, and how vision-language modeling can expand AI’s reach in real-world document automation.

🗓 Date: Wednesday, 8th October, 2025
⏰ Time: 17:30 – 20:30 NZST
📍 Location: AUT WG Building 801
https://maps.app.goo.gl/PMCmfBFhqNbV5rYw7?g_st=ipc

Agenda:
17:30 – 18:00 | Arrival & Networking (Light refreshments provided) 🍕
18:00 – 19:00 | Presentation Session and Q&A
19:00 – 20:00 | Networking

This meetup will be delivered in English.

Admission Fee:
Free for CITA members
$5 donation for non-members
Bank account number: 06-0513-0847960-00
Bank account name: CHINESE IT ASSOCIATION NZ

How to Join CITA:
Visit www.cita.org.nz
Step1: Register an account and log in
Step2: Click Membership
Step3: Apply student discount if you are a student
Step4: Pay your membership fee
Step5: Follow the instructions sent to you via email to join CITA WeChat Group