Cornell University

Cornell AI Initiative

Latest stories, updates, and announcements that highlight the people, research, and progress of AI throughout Cornell.

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AI Headlines from Around the University

Project to rebuild trust in AI era lands Laude’s $10M ‘moonshot’ award

A $10 million “moonshot” grant from Laude Institute will help Cornell researchers realize the potential of artificial intelligence, while giving online communities control over AI’s role.

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New initiative will explore AI’s role in society, humanities

With AI transforming how societies function, a new program in the College of Arts and Sciences aims to meet the urgent need to understand AI’s implications for culture, governance, ethics, communication, creativity, labor and social organization.

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New CoPAIR program connects Cornell researchers with AI tools, training and community

The new Communities of Practice for AI-enabled Research (CoPAIR) program gives researchers access to emerging AI tools, hands-on training and collaborative communities where they can share best practices, develop disciplinary norms for appropriate AI use and non-use, and evaluate new tools for research. 

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‘A seat at the table’: Cornell expands access to multiple AI tools for faculty, staff, students

Most faculty, staff and students will have free access to a range of AI platforms – an effort to level the playing field, spur exploration and reduce the costs and vulnerabilities of individual consumer licenses.

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Cute robots, historical chatbots: AI in the classroom grows more sophisticated

Instructors across Cornell are working to strike a balance in the classroom – using AI as a teaching tool but also making choices to prevent its use and preserve the learning experience.

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Entrepreneurial students win awards for summer work on their startups

May 1, 2026

Thirty student startups received Human Spirit, Beck Fellows and Cane Entrepreneurial Scholars awards this summer from Entrepreneurship at Cornell, funding that will allow students to work on their startups rather than take traditional summer positions.

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Cornell Tech announces the 2026 Startup Awards and the Inaugural Frontiers of AI Summit

May 1, 2026

As the 2025–26 academic year comes to a close, Cornell Tech will host a series of events throughout May showcasing student achievement, entrepreneurship, design, and the future of emerging technologies.

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Humanities scholars tackle research across disciplines

April 29, 2026

The work of the Humanities scholars spans across humanities fields and also highlights intersections with science, technology, business, law and other disciplines. 

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Teaching AI to operate particle accelerators with DOE grant

April 22, 2026

Georg Hoffstaetter de Torquat, professor of physics, is leading a $2.9 million Department of Energy grant project to train AI systems on computer models of two accelerators at Brookhaven National Laboratory.

Hand on laptop with graphics

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Course: Understanding and using the superpowers of AI

April 22, 2026

New Online Course for High School and College Students

Cornell university skyline with blue skies

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AI & Society Seed Grants

April 22, 2026

Internal funding to support social science and humanities research on the societal impacts of AI.
Deadline: August 15, 2026.

Robot arm holding a strawberry

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Handle with care: Soft robot gripper picks ripe fruit without bruising

April 20, 2026

Cornell researchers used stretchable fiber-optic sensors to create a soft robot gripper that can predict the ripeness of strawberries by touch, then pick them without causing any damage.

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AI tools to help vision-impaired are good, but could be better

April 16, 2026

Artificial intelligence is touching nearly every aspect of life, including assistive technology for vision-impaired individuals. And just like in other arenas, the AI used to assist them is good, but far from perfect.

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Making AI safer for victims of intimate partner violence

April 16, 2026

Conversational AI tools denied blunt requests for harmful content by researchers posing as intimate partner abusers, but these guardrails were easily circumvented, a new Cornell Tech study has found.