MIT Schwarzman College of Computing

2026-11-02

RESEARCH · 1 SOURCE · MIT News AI

Regina Barzilay and Jim Collins awarded 2026 Pritzker Prize for AI in Science Research Excellence for AI-enabled antibiotic discoveries

The University of Chicago named MIT researchers Regina Barzilay and James Collins as recipients of the 2026 Pritzker Prize for AI in Science Research Excellence for their joint work using deep learning, bioengineering, and experimental validation to discover antibiotics (notably halicin and later abaucin) effective against drug‑resistant bacteria. The prize recognizes work that advances both AI and the natural sciences and highlights AI’s potential to accelerate antibiotic discovery.

7.0

2026-10-28

RESEARCH · 1 SOURCE · MIT News AI

Paris Smaragdis joins MIT to advance machine listening research

Paris Smaragdis, a researcher with a background in computer music and machine learning, joined MIT in 2025 and leads work on machine listening — including sound-source separation, audio-aware devices, and tools for music analysis and synthesis. His group applies machine-learning approaches to enable machines to detect, separate, and interpret sounds in real-world environments.

5.0

2026-10-23

RESEARCH · 1 SOURCE · MIT News AI

MIT historian argues AI hallucinations stem from mid-20th-century randomization in early neural nets

Benjamin Lindquist (MIT) argues in a paper in Past and Present that early AI researchers intentionally injected randomness into algorithms and neural networks to mimic human creativity; he traces today’s generative-AI hallucinations to those mid-20th-century design choices and warns of inherent tradeoffs between creativity and predictability in systems that model human thought. In an interview with MIT News he contrasts early enthusiasm for occasional strangeness with modern efforts (e.g., by OpenAI and Anthropic) to suppress such behavior for safety and commercial reasons.

6.0

2026-09-23

RESEARCH · 1 SOURCE · MIT News AI

MIT names David Siegel as 2026–27 Innovation Fellow to pursue AI for scientific discovery

MIT announced that computer scientist, entrepreneur, and philanthropist David Siegel will serve as its Innovation Fellow for the 2026–27 academic year, working with the MIT Schwarzman College of Computing to explore how artificial intelligence can accelerate scientific discovery. Siegel, co‑founder of Two Sigma and founder of the nonprofit Open Athena (which is developing the public Marin 535‑billion‑parameter model), brings philanthropy and industry AI experience to the role.

6.0

2026-09-09

RESEARCH · 1 SOURCE · MIT News AI

MIT Schwarzman College of Computing launches pilot workshop to help faculty teach AI across disciplines

A weeklong summer pilot workshop at MIT's Schwarzman College of Computing brought higher-education faculty to campus to explore how AI and machine learning materials can be adapted for their classrooms. The program is intended to help educators integrate AI content across disciplines and teaching contexts.

5.0