MIT, IBM set up a joint research lab for Artificial Intelligence

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and IBM on Thursday announced a new joint collaboration for research in the field of Artificial Intelligence (AI). The new MIT-IBM Watson AI Lab will support joint research by IBM and MIT scientists. IBM is planning to spend $240 million over the next decade to create the artificial intelligence research lab at MIT.

Its mission will include advancing the hardware, software and algorithms used for artificial intelligence. It also will tackle some of the economic and ethical implications of intelligent machines and look at its commercial application for industries ranging from health care to cybersecurity.

MIT President L. Rafael Reif says the new AI lab builds on a decade long research relationship between IBM and MIT. It will be based at the university and IBM's nearby research center in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

'The field of artificial intelligence has experienced incredible growth and progress over the past decade. Yet today's AI systems, as remarkable as they are, will require new innovations to tackle increasingly difficult real-world problems to improve our work and lives,' said Dr. John Kelly III, IBM senior vice president, Cognitive Solutions and Research. 'The extremely broad and deep technical capabilities and talent at MIT and IBM are unmatched, and will lead the field of AI for at least the next decade.'

'I am delighted by this new collaboration,' says MIT President L. Rafael Reif. 'True breakthroughs are often the result of fresh thinking inspired by new kinds of research teams. The combined MIT and IBM talent dedicated to this new effort will bring formidable power to a field with staggering potential to advance knowledge and help solve important challenges.'

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