Westborough, MA, Feb. 13, 2025: The Massachusetts Know-how Collaborative’s (MassTech) Innovation Institute introduced the launch of the Massachusetts (MA) AI Fashions Innovation Problem, a flagship initiative underneath the newly established Massachusetts AI (Synthetic Intelligence) Hub. The MA AI Fashions Innovation Problem will present as much as $2 million in funding for awards to help groundbreaking AI mannequin improvement tasks targeted on domain-specific fashions that deal with societal and {industry} challenges in essential sectors of the Massachusetts innovation economic system, together with superior manufacturing, climatetech, schooling, monetary companies, well being care, life sciences, and robotics.
For extra info on the right way to apply, together with the complete Discover of Funding Alternative (NOFO), go to the Innovation Institute’s web site.
Launched by Governor Maura Healey in December 2024, the Massachusetts AI Hub is designed to place Massachusetts as a worldwide chief in utilized AI innovation. The AI Hub and the MA AI Fashions Innovation Problem are key suggestions from the Governor’s Strategic AI Job Power.
“Massachusetts is dedicated to main the cost in accountable AI innovation,” mentioned Governor Healey. “By launching this Problem, we’re investing in the way forward for AI, one which prioritizes real-world influence and the ability of focused AI options to handle complicated challenges.”
“Our state has a singular alternative to spearhead the AI revolution,” mentioned Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll. “This Problem is supporting sensible, moral AI to assist develop companies and appeal to new expertise to Massachusetts on this rising sector.”
“Massachusetts has lengthy been a pioneer in technological innovation, and this Problem represents a strategic funding within the improvement of AI fashions that don’t simply reply questions, they clear up real-world issues and unlock worth in vital sectors,” mentioned Massachusetts Secretary of Financial Growth Yvonne Hao. “The Problem represents a chance for researchers and innovators to construct options that instantly profit industries of significance to Massachusetts.”
A central aim of the MA AI Fashions Innovation Problem is to speed up the event of smaller fashions which are sooner, extra energy-efficient, and higher suited to focused purposes particularly industries than massive, generalized fashions. By funding tasks that develop or fine-tune fashions tailor-made to particular industries, Massachusetts seeks to unlock transformative breakthroughs whereas addressing points reminiscent of computational effectivity and sustainability.
“We see the MA AI Fashions Innovation Problem as greater than a funding alternative, it’s a distinctive funding in R&D, the broader AI ecosystem, and within the Commonwealth’s future as a frontrunner in moral and high-impact AI,” mentioned MassTech CEO Carolyn Kirk. “This Problem will catalyze new collaborations and end in fashions that may drive each scientific discovery and business purposes.”
The MA AI Fashions Innovation Problem focuses on supporting tasks in any respect levels of AI mannequin improvement, from information acquisition to deployment. Key actions embrace high-quality information assortment and preparation, coaching and fine-tuning of fashions, and real-world testing. This lifecycle strategy goals to beat some of the important obstacles in AI improvement in the present day: securing high-quality datasets which are each related and dependable.
“Progress in industry-specific AI has been held again by a vital hole, entry to high-quality, usable information,” mentioned Head of AI Innovation at Constancy Investments and co-Captain of the AI Job Power’s Fashions and Information Technique Working Group Vipin Mayar. “This Problem is about bridging that hole by enabling collaboration between {industry} and AI researchers to create fashions which are powered by domain-specific information and ship exact, related outcomes with broad influence on the Commonwealth and its industries.”
The MA AI Fashions Innovation Problem invitations proposals from tutorial and non-profit establishments based mostly in Massachusetts. Business partnerships are required to boost the relevance and applicability of proposed fashions. The applying interval opened on January 13, 2025, and proposals should be submitted by Friday, February 28, 2025, by 5:00 p.m. EST.
The Massachusetts Know-how Collaborative (MassTech) is a quasi-public financial improvement company that strengthens the competitiveness of the tech and innovation economic system by driving strategic investments, partnerships, and insights that harness the expertise of Massachusetts.
The Innovation Institute is the division of MassTech created in 2003 that advances innovation and cluster progress throughout the state in 4 methods:
- Conducts analysis and evaluation that improves the state’s understandings of unmet wants and alternatives within the innovation economic system
- Serves as convener and key strategic dealer inside varied sectors
- Manages high-value tasks on behalf of the state
- Makes strategic investments in help of innovation-based financial improvement
