RISE AI Collaboration HQ to build connections and advance research, teaching and engagement

This fall, the University of Wisconsin-Madison Data Science Institute (DSI) is assuming responsibility for a new, campus-wide effort called the RISE-AI Collaboration HQ. As the RISE Initiative moves from initial hiring to implementing its vision for research, education and engagement, the RISE-AI Collaboration HQ will connect new RISE faculty with existing campus networks advancing scholarship in the field of artificial intelligence.

This effort includes managing a portfolio of events, positioning research teams to pursue extramural research funding and supporting investments in research computing infrastructure available to all of campus.

"As AI is rapidly transforming scientific process - from how we discover, access and engage with scientific knowledge, to accelerating research progress across disciplines - DSI, as an interdisciplinary research center, is well-positioned to host the RISE-AI Collaboration HQ," says Dorota Brzezinska, vice chancellor for research.

DSI Director Kyle Cranmer will lead the RISE-AI collaboration HQ. The RISE-AI Thought Leaders, who supported the launch and early work of the initiative, will transition into a new group to guide and support the activities of the RISE-AI Collaboration HQ.

Under Cranmer's leadership, the group will catalyze research communities centered on innovative focus areas and build connections among UW-Madison's AI community, which includes the more than 35 new RISE-AI hires and current faculty, staff and students. DSI will integrate new research partnerships with existing efforts on campus by leveraging its extensive network of affiliates. The effort will also foster collaborations intended to extend beyond research to include teaching and engagement.

"The emerging capabilities of AI are sparking tons of ideas that organically lead to new interdisciplinary conversations," says Cranmer. "We aim to focus this energy and foster new research communities with the HQ."

This fall, the RISE-AI Collaboration HQ plans to develop and launch a process for UW-Madison faculty and staff to propose campus events, such as seminars and symposia, that will spark the creation of these communities and help incubate promising AI-related research ideas from across campus.

The RISE-AI Collaboration HQ will also organize teams that are well-positioned to apply for research funding and identify potential opportunities for support, including partnerships with industry and philanthropic foundations.

"I'm looking forward to working with campus to incubate and support communities around promising AI research topics that tap into our strengths as a university," adds Cranmer. "We will be well-positioned to pursue new funding opportunities from industry and philanthropic foundations, in addition to federal funding."

DSI leads UW-Madison's data science research partnership with American Family Insurance, and this relationship will provide a strong foundation for expanding industry collaborations. Internal research funding competitions offered through the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research are one source of seed funding for emerging collaborative research.

"DSI has a strong track record of fostering collaborations, both on campus and with community and industry partners," says John Zumbrunnen, interim provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs. "Under DSI's leadership, the RISE-AI Collaboration HQ will galvanize both foundational and applied AI work in fields ranging from computer sciences and statistics to the physical and life sciences, agriculture, health, education, arts and humanities."

With Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation support, UW-Madison recently invested in research computing infrastructure at DSI, the Center for High Throughput Computing, DoIT Research Cyberinfrastructure, the School of Medicine and Public Health and the Data Science Hub. The RISE-AI Collaboration HQ will connect both new and established campus researchers to this increased capacity for processing and data storage.

The RISE-AI Collaboration HQ will serve as a pilot before the model is applied to RISE-EARTH and RISE-THRIVE. AI was the first area of focus for RISE, and the RISE-AI Collaboration HQ will catalyze campus, industry and community engagement addressing both the promise and risks of artificial intelligence.

"My field of study - AI for biomolecules - can feel like it moves incredibly fast, in part because many of the innovations are in industry, where there might be large teams working on a project," says Hannah Wayment-Steele, assistant professor of biochemistry and a new RISE-AI faculty member. "For academia to do groundbreaking work, we are required to be collaborative. All sorts of efforts to collaborate, including the RISE-AI Collaboration HQ, will be really helpful."

Brzezinska adds, "It's an exciting time on campus as together we explore the opportunities that the investment in RISE-AI provides, not just in optimizing existing research workflows, but also in opening doors to new research funding opportunities, translating AI-powered research to our classrooms, preparing our students for a careers in a competitive and quickly evolving job market, and enabling entirely new forms of inquiry."