AIQ Institute

Strands / Systems stream

9. Models: tuning, training, serving

Shape the model itself when prompting is not enough.

The ladder, level by level

The modules listed against each level describe what a provider's curriculum is mapped against. The institute assesses and certifies; it does not teach them.

  1. 1Spark₹299

    Capabilities

    • Explains tokens, embeddings and attention intuitively
    • Reads a model card critically

    Modules mapped to this level

    • How LLMs are built: tokens, embeddings, attention, intuitively

    Assessment 25 min adaptive live oral and practical with the AI examinerPass mark 70%Validity 24 months

    Sit level 1 in strand 9
  2. 2Torch₹699

    Capabilities

    • Collects, cleans and labels datasets
    • Generates and audits synthetic data

    Modules mapped to this level

    • Datasets: collecting, cleaning, labelling, synthetic data

    Assessment 45 min practical task in a live sandbox, then a vivaPass mark 70%Validity 24 months

    Sit level 2 in strand 9
  3. 3Beam₹1,499

    Capabilities

    • Fine-tunes with LoRA or fully and shows when it beats prompting and retrieval
    • Serves a tuned model and evaluates it

    Modules mapped to this level

    • Fine-tuning (LoRA, full); when it beats prompting and RAG
    • Evaluation and benchmarks

    Assessment 90 min performance exam in a live sandbox plus portfolio reviewPass mark 75%Validity 18 months, annual currency pulse

    Sit level 3 in strand 9
  4. 4Beacon₹3,999

    Capabilities

    • Distils small models for the edge
    • Optimises inference: quantisation, batching, vLLM
    • Runs benchmarks others trust

    Modules mapped to this level

    • Distillation and small models for edge
    • Serving and inference optimisation: quantisation, batching, vLLM

    Assessment Portfolio, two-hour defended case, peer panel of twoPass mark 75%Validity 18 months, annual currency pulse

    Sit level 4 in strand 9
  5. 5Luminary₹9,999

    Capabilities

    • Trains from scratch within a compute budget and explains scaling laws
    • Examines candidates at levels 1 to 3
    • Licensed independent trainer for this strand

    Modules mapped to this level

    • Training from scratch: small models, scaling laws, compute budgets
    • Examiner practicum

    Assessment Panel of three human examiners, teaching demonstration, contribution recordPass mark Panel decisionValidity Annual contribution record

    Sit level 5 in strand 9
  6. 6NovaBy nomination

    Contribution

    Level 6 is the same in every strand: a documented contribution to the strand that others have adopted (a method, tool, dataset, curriculum, standard or published finding), examined by the standards council on nomination by two Luminaries.

    Assessment Standards council review, by nomination onlyValidity Lifetime, listed in the public register

Currency

This is a fast strand. It changes quickly, so its currency pulses matter most. Levels 3 and 4 need one 20 minute currency pulse a year to stay valid, and subscriptions cover every pulse in every strand.

Currency pulses and subscriptions · Fees and pass marks for every level