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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Matt Marx named vice provost for entrepreneurship, innovation and external engagement

June 30, 2026

Marx will establish and serve as inaugural director of the Cornell Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, to boost university efforts to commercialize breakthrough scientific discoveries.

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AI is changing expectations for MBA graduates

June 29, 2026

While MBA job prospects are expected to remain stable in the near future, new hires will be held to higher standards inside rapidly evolving workplaces.

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Duffield Engineering SPROUT Awards for emerging research reach new high

June 26, 2026

The 16 grants are the most the SPROUT program has awarded in a single cycle and support a broad range of promising projects in AI, medicine, semiconductors, sustainability and more.

Kavita Bala Smiling at camera

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Provost Bala highlights higher ed’s role in shaping AI for the public good

June 24, 2026

Provost Kavita Bala explains how higher ed’s nonprofit status gives it a unique position in the development of AI.

Cornell University seal

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How Cornell Recovered $100,000 in Unidentified Payments With AI

June 24, 2026

This is the story of how a two-semester collaboration between the Cornell AI Innovation Hub, graduate students, and the Treasury team transformed a time‑consuming, manual investigation process into a tool that helps staff complete the work more efficiently.

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Smart drones, safe skies: Student’s system tests, coordinates drone fleets

June 23, 2026

Doctoral student’s project devises an autonomous airspace coordination system built around a real-time simulation and validation technology.

People listening to a panel in a auditorium

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Cornell summit sets the bar for responsible data science and AI in veterinary medicine

June 22, 2026

Like many other disciplines, AI is moving fast in veterinary medicine and animal health, but the data infrastructure hasn’t kept pace.

Fortunately, Cornell is picking up the slack. The Building Benchmarks for AI-Driven Veterinary Innovation, funded by the Cornell AI Initiative and part of the Thought Summits series, gathered experts across fields to spark solutions in this emerging area.

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Undergrads’ weed-killing robot wins top prize

June 22, 2026

A team of Cornell students bested the competition with their invention: an autonomous robot that kills weeds with electricity.

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ILR School dean to help NYS shape, protect the AI workforce

June 16, 2026

Alexander Colvin, Ph.D. ’99, will serve on a blue-ribbon commission charged with developing recommendations on how New York state can protect workers’ economic security while harnessing the economic benefits of AI.