New pilot AI Discovery & Capacity Building grants support interdisciplinary AI research
The Research & Innovation Office (RIO) is awarding more than $200,000 to support nine projects through its AI Discovery & Capacity Building Grant Program, a pilot initiative designed to accelerate research and strengthen campuswide expertise in the use of artificial intelligence.
The selected projects span multiple colleges and disciplines鈥攆rom computer science, engineering and chemistry to ecology, geography and business鈥攈ighlighting the breadth of AI-enabled research and scholarship underway at 91传媒.
The program supports faculty who are applying AI tools and approaches to advance research, scholarship and creative work, as well as activities that build institutional capacity, such as workshops and interdisciplinary collaborations. 听
"Artificial intelligence is rapidly reshaping research and creative work across disciplines, and 91传媒 is uniquely positioned to explore AI鈥檚 potential responsibly and creatively,鈥 said Massimo Ruzzene, Senior Vice Chancellor for Research & Innovation and Dean of the Institutes. 鈥淭hese projects will help accelerate discovery while strengthening the collaborative AI ecosystem that is emerging across our campus.鈥
The program is designed to help investigators test AI-enabled approaches, generate early results and position teams for future external funding opportunities in a rapidly evolving funding landscape.听
Projects funded through the program are expected to demonstrate meaningful value within a short timeframe and to deliver outcomes such as pilot data, new methods, interdisciplinary collaborations or early-stage prototypes that can be extended through future funding. 听
By supporting both research pilots and capacity-building activities, the initiative reflects 91传媒鈥檚 broader commitment to advancing responsible, interdisciplinary approaches to artificial intelligence and ensuring that faculty across campus can effectively leverage emerging technologies in their work.
Faculty can learn about funding opportunities by visiting the Research & Innovation Office website or through the bi-weekly鈥Research & Innovation Office Bulletin, which鈥痯rovides critical information and updates to maintain and grow 91传媒's research, scholarship and creative activity. 听
听听2026 AI Discovery & Capacity Building Grantees
Eleanor Browne (Chemistry, College of Arts & Sciences; CIRES): Developing New Machine Learning Methods to Predict Air Contaminants of Emerging Concern
Sebastian Casalaina-Martin (Mathematics, College of Arts & Sciences): AI-Assisted Computational Mathematics: Accelerating PDE-Constrained Optimization, Scientific Computing and AI-Integrated Education
Theodora Chaspari (Computer Science, College of Engineering & Applied Science; Institute of Cognitive Science; Research & Innovation Office): Building Responsible Innovation and Developing a Growing Ecosystem for Artificial Intelligence and Mental Health (BRIDGE-AI-MH)
Abram Handler (Leeds School of Business) and Maria Pacheco (Computer Science, College of Engineering & Applied Science): ConfoundSearch: A Principled and AI-Driven Approach to Control Variable Selection With a Human-in-the-Loop
Pieter Johnson (Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, College of Arts & Sciences): Deep Learning at Depth: Leveraging Open-Source AI to Monitor an Emerging Marine Disease
Gowtham Kaki and Danny Dig (both of Computer Science, College of Engineering & Applied Science): Cross-Disciplinary Symposium on Safe and Trustworthy AI for Engineering / Planning Phase Workshop for Center on Trustworthy AI
Katherine Siegel (Geography, College of Arts & Sciences; CIRES; Research & Innovation Office): Accelerating Causal Inference in Environmental Science With Earth Embeddings
Wil Srubar (Civil, Environmental and Architectural Engineering, College of Engineering & Applied Science): AI-Enabled High-Throughput Discovery of Bio-Stabilized Earthen Structural Materials
Tin Tin Su (Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, College of Arts & Sciences): AI-Augmented Analysis Platform: Accelerating the Slowest Step in Biological Research
Using AI in Proposal Development
91传媒鈥檚 Research & Innovation Office offers a practice-oriented series on responsible, effective use of AI in grant development. The program highlights how 91传媒 innovators are already using AI to strengthen proposals and win major awards.
The next virtual workshops will take place starting in August 2026.