Associate Professor Roger Grosse (left) and Assistant Professor Florian Shkurti (right) are recipients of AI2050 fellowships from Schmidt Sciences.
University of Toronto computer science professors Roger Grosse and Florian Shkurti have received AI2050 fellowships from Schmidt Sciences to advance research that harnesses AI’s full potential to serve humanity.
The AI2050 program asks researchers to imagine the year 2050, where AI has been hugely beneficial, and to pursue projects that help society realize this. The program funds senior researchers and early career scholars for two years to address a wide range of global challenges in AI.
Grosse, an associate professor in the Department of Computer Science, has been named an AI2050 Senior Fellow. Grosse, a Schwartz Reisman Chair in Technology and Society at U of T, focuses on gaining a better fundamental understanding of machine learning models and using this understanding to improve the safety and robustness of AI models. His AI2050 project will focus on algorithmic techniques that will help make transparent safety cases for next-generation AI assistants. This will include methods for detecting unintended consequences of training data or methodologies, as well as methods for estimating probabilities of rare catastrophic failures such as the AI model carrying out a harmful plan.
Shkurti, an assistant professor in the Department of Computer Science and in the Department of Mathematical & Computational Sciences at the University of Toronto Mississauga, has been named an Early Career Fellow. His AI2050 project aims to revolutionize materials discovery by developing autonomous, “self-driving” labs that integrate advanced AI and robotics. This approach involves creating AI-driven methods for efficiently generating hypotheses about chemical properties, developing machine learning models for predicting the behaviour of challenging lab materials like liquids and powders and equipping robots with the ability to safely manipulate these materials.
Schmidt Sciences is a philanthropic organization that accelerates scientific knowledge and breakthroughs to support a thriving world. Founded in 2024, Schmidt Sciences brings together the science-focused efforts of Eric and Wendy Schmidt. The organization prioritizes research in six focus areas: AI and advanced computing, astrophysics, biosciences, climate, science systems and space.