The future of data-driven science took center stage at the New York Scientific Data Summit (NYSDS) 2025, held September 11-12 at the SUNY Global Center in New York City. Co-hosted by Brookhaven National Laboratory and the Institute for Advanced Computational Science (IACS) at Stony Brook University, the annual summit brought together leading researchers from academia, national labs, and industry to explore how artificial intelligence, machine learning, and robotics are reshaping discovery.

With four thematic tracks - Generative and Agentic AI, Robotics and Embodied Intelligence, AI Applications, and AI Hardware and Infrastructure - the two-day event featured keynotes, technical talks, posters, and panel discussions highlighting cutting-edge advances as well as the challenges of building reliable, explainable, and trustworthy AI for science.

Robert Harrison, director of IACS and interim executive director of the New York State Empire AI Initiative, said, "This year's conference was very exciting. It highlighted the crucial roles of advanced computing technologies such as AI and HPC at the frontiers of scientific discovery. It is wonderful to see how NYSDS has grown since I established it over 10 years ago and its success in its core mission of accelerating data-driven discovery and innovation by bringing together a diverse community of stakeholders." He delivered a keynote address on Empire AI, outlining the state's vision for advancing AI research capacity and collaboration.

Lav Varshney, Della Pietra Infinity Professor and director of the AI Innovation Institute at Stony Brook, convened the opening Generative and Agentic AI session and later gave a keynote on "Information Lattices and the Future of AI for Creativity and Discovery," linking his pioneering work in information theory with new opportunities for discovery at the intersection of human and machine creativity.

Read the full story by Ankita Nagpal on the AI Innovation Institute website.