UW–Madison partners with Microsoft and TitletownTech to accelerate AI-driven scientific discovery

The University of Wisconsin-Madison is partnering with Microsoft and TitletownTech on a new collaboration designed to accelerate scientific discovery through artificial intelligence.

Powered by Microsoft's new Discovery platform, the initiative connects UW-Madison's research strengths with industry partners to advance innovation across life sciences, manufacturing, materials science and other high-impact fields.

The Wisconsin collaboration builds on UW-Madison's long-standing leadership in applied research and its commitment to driving progress that benefits Wisconsin communities and businesses. With early access to Microsoft's Discovery platform, UW researchers will gain powerful tools to model complex problems with greater precision, reducing the time from idea to real-world impact.

"By linking UW-Madison's world-class research with Microsoft's Discovery Platform and technology expertise, and TitletownTech's strengths in creating innovation ecosystems, I am confident great things are possible," says Chancellor Jennifer L. Mnookin. "This partnership reflects the incredible potential when academia, industry, and technology come together to build new bridges between discovery and impact, here in Wisconsin and beyond."

UW-Madison's School of Computer, Data & Information Sciences will play a key role in the effort, which is one of only two collaborations nationwide. A parallel initiative is underway with the New Jersey Artificial Intelligence Hub in partnership with Princeton University.

"Partnering with Microsoft through the Discovery Platform opens up exciting new possibilities - not just for computing, but across the full spectrum of scientific inquiry," says Remzi Arpaci-Dusseau, director of CDIS. "UW-Madison has deep expertise in artificial intelligence and data science, and a strong tradition of translational research, which makes us uniquely positioned for this kind of collaboration. Titletown Tech is also an extremely valuable partner in this effort, as they will bring researchers and industry together to accelerate its real-world impact."

Through the collaboration, UW-Madison researchers will work with Microsoft Discovery experts and TitletownTech's network of industry partners to explore applications of advanced AI that can accelerate research and translation. TitletownTech will oversee operations and enterprise engagement from its Madison location.

"This collaboration is about shortening the distance between discovery and impact," says TitletownTech Managing Partner Jill Enos. "Progress in both science and innovation depends on iteration and feedback, and by connecting UW-Madison's research excellence with Microsoft's Discovery platform and our ecosystem of industry partners, we're creating a model where experimentation and market insight continuously inform one another."

"Wisconsin's spirit of collaboration and innovation is at the heart of this partnership with TitletownTech, UW-Madison and Microsoft," says Microsoft Executive Vice President Jason Zander. "By connecting leading industry and academic expertise with Microsoft Discovery, we can accelerate breakthroughs in materials science, manufacturing and life sciences, delivering solutions that matter for the region and beyond."

TitletownTech, a Wisconsin-based venture capital firm and innovation hub formed out of a partnership between the Green Bay Packers and Microsoft, will lead the Wisconsin collaboration, bringing together early partners and innovators working on challenges for some of the state's core industries, including life sciences, biotechnology, healthcare, food and agriculture, and manufacturing.

The partnership extends UW-Madison's tradition of industry collaboration and applied research, advancing work that strengthens Wisconsin's economy and improves lives across the state and beyond. It also reflects the university's investment and leadership in AI research. Through the RISE-AI initiative, UW is uniting researchers across disciplines to pursue responsible and transformative applications of artificial intelligence.