MIT to create new college with courses that will combine AI, machine learning, science of data and other academic disciplines. With $1 billion in funding, it will be the largest financial investment in AI by any US academic institution.
The new college will have 50 new teacher positions and many scholarships for postgraduate students. The college will open in September of 2019, initially starting in other buildings until 2022, where its new buildings will be ready.
Rafael Reif, president of MIT, said that a new approach to student education was necessary because of the way computers and Artificial Intelligence "reshape the world." With the new data already causing major changes in policy opinions and machine learning beginning to affect everything from recruitment to criminal conviction, the new college will encourage students and researchers to think about the potential impact of IT and of artificial intelligence in the world.
Reif told The New York Times that the new college's goal was to "educate the bilinguals of the future." Designates as bilingual scientists in fields such as biology, chemistry and political science, who will also specialize in modern computing techniques applied to these courses.
Two-thirds of the college line has already been covered. For example, from the required amount of 1 billion dollars 350 million dollars come from Stephen A. Schwarzman, managing director and co-founder of Blackstone, a private equity firm.
MIT has made several major AI commitments in recent years. This year, the university announced one program called Quest for Intelligence is an initiative that aims to make breakthroughs in AI by bringing together neuroscience, cognitive science and computer researchers.
