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

Cornell leads project putting robots to work in US orchards

A Cornell-led research project is developing robots that can perform labor-intensive orchard operations; it’s supported by a four-year, $7.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Specialty Crop Research Initiative. 

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Cornell expands AI Critical Literacy Program for incoming students

After a successful pilot launch in the spring, Cornell’s AI Critical Literacy Program will be offered in the fall to all incoming students as well as other interested students, faculty members and staff.

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Strike a pose: Creating more realistic multi-person images

A Cornell research group has devised a way to generate an image of multiple people, incorporating the poses of all individuals to inform the image generation and make the scene more believable and accurate.

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Weak AI regulation may backfire, making products less safe

A new modeling study finds no regulation of AI products and services may be safer than weak regulation.

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Inside baseball: AI-enabled enforcement tech takes time, testing

Training artificial intelligence to enforce even seemingly straightforward rules – like balls and strikes in Major League Baseball – is a messy, dynamic process that takes time and careful evaluation of the technology.

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Morgans’ $1.25M gift to support AI fellows program

May 14, 2026

A $1.25 million seed grant from James C. Morgan ’60, MBA ’63, and Rebecca Quinn Morgan ’60 will support the establishment of an AI fellows program focused on operational and administrative transformation.

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Humans are bad at making complex decisions. AI can help

May 14, 2026

A new tool is designed to help users rank a set of choices – such as job applicants, graduate schools, even Oscar candidates.

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New approach designs healthcare robots with, not for, the people who use them

May 14, 2026

A new Cornell Tech-led study invites healthcare workers, long-term care residents, and community members to help design the robots themselves.

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Regular audits would build trust, confidence in AI

May 13, 2026

J. Nathan Matias, assistant professor of communication, is a co-author of “Auditing AI,” which offers AI users from all walks of life an introduction into AI evaluation, which is key for developing trust in the technology.

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What does it mean to train an AI to speak like you?

May 4, 2026

Ultra-personalized AI for assisted communication risks muting aspects of the user’s identity and can breach privacy, according to a study from a Cornell Tech doctoral student who trained the technology on himself.

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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.