With the quickly growing A.I. industry at its heels, Binghamton University is establishing an Institute for AI and Society with funding from New York state. Gov. Kathy Hochul on April 4 announced $5 million for eight SUNY campuses, including BU, to “prepare students for the future and advance the use of AI for the public good,” according to a press release from the governor’s office.

“I’m proud to see New York leveraging the power of Binghamton University’s expert faculty in striving to make the state a leader in artificial intelligence,” University President Harvey Stenger told BingUNews. “The University’s researchers are already doing tremendous work in AI. By sharing resources across the state, we’re going to solve real-world problems and create new opportunities in economic development and in academic research.”

Researchers at BU are looking into large-language models and antisemitism on social media platforms to detect hateful content. They are also working on a different project “on 3D foundation models for high-throughput characterization of metal-organic frameworks for climate change applications,” the press release added.

“The progression of AI research in New York State is going to inspire other states to follow our path,” Hochul said. “Investing in AI within the SUNY system is an investment in our students to expand their knowledge about what the future will bring. We are not just preparing students for AI — we’re shaping how AI serves society, ensuring it strengthens communities and our economy.”

The Empire AI Consortium is a partnership between public and private universities: Columbia, Cornell, New York University, the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, SUNY, CUNY and the Flatiron Institute of the Simons Foundation.

Jeremy Blackburn, an associate professor in the School of Computing, will be the institute’s director. He said the increased computing speed will allow him to more effectively and quickly complete his research on online antisemitism, compared to the 20 years it would have previously taken to perform these experiments.

“Empire AI will also open unique doors for collaboration between disciplines,” Blackburn told BingUNews. “Scientists and faculty in the humanities and the arts will have expanded access to computing power that was previously unavailable to public research institutions. This coalition will open doors to scholars, especially to those in public universities dedicated to establishing New York state as a leader in AI.”

Established at the University at Buffalo, several projects are underway in the first “alpha” phase of the Empire AI computing center. Other research projects at BU aim to protect power systems from cyberattacks and develop a robotic seeing-eye dog for the visually impaired.

Some developments at other SUNY institutions created by the funding include the new Department of Technology and AI and Society at Stony Brook University and an AI & Society College & Research Center at the University at Albany.

Bloomberg L.P. cofounder Tom Secunda ‘76, MA ‘79 announced last year [HYPERLINK: https://www.bupipedream.com/news/campus-news/university-anticipates-5-million-grant-for-ai-research/151166/] a $5 million donation to BU, contingent upon Empire AI’s passage in the 2025 state budget. As these institutions will be supported by public and private investment, Secunda was named as a private investor since Hochul first announced the project in January of last year.

“Thanks to Governor Hochul’s leadership, SUNY researchers, faculty, and students are leading the way in using AI to advance the public good,” said SUNY Chancellor John King. “SUNY’s commitment to academic excellence includes making it possible for students from a wide range of disciplines to come together, explore new ideas, and develop the skills that will lead to lifelong success.”