About Us
Founded in 1944, the American Committee for the Weizmann Institute of Science develops philanthropic support for the Weizmann Institute in Israel, and advances its mission of science for the future of humanity.
No longer the stuff of science fiction, AI already touches many areas of everyday life – and will become even more integrated into our world. That’s why it must be developed responsibly and used to support humanity. The Artificial Intelligence Enterprise for Scientific Discovery will build upon Weizmann’s preeminence in computer science, activating the power of AI to speed beneficial research in fields as diverse as drug discovery and astrophysics, personalized medicine and environmental research, biomedicine and archaeology. This flagship project will establish the Weizmann Institute as a world leader in AI, help grow the Israeli economy, and lay the foundation for AI’s healthy inclusion in our collective future.
The Weizmann Institute’s distinguished history in the computer sciences makes it the ideal home for the Artificial Intelligence Enterprise for Scientific Discovery. For example, in the 1950s, Weizmann scientists built Israel’s first computer – one of the first in the world. Today, they have already used AI to create a system that measures neurons after brain damage; satellites that analyze clouds and their role in climate change; methods for identifying a person’s likelihood of disease, even when they have no symptoms; advances toward computers that can produce smells; and other breakthroughs. Weizmann is also home to three Turing Award laureates, considered the Nobel Prize of computing.
This flagship project will drive an AI revolution at Weizmann – and in Israel. It will be built around an outstanding team of top scientists, engineers, and experts in machine learning, whose design of the algorithms, methodologies, and interfaces needed to integrate AI into a range of endeavors will establish Weizmann as a hub for forward-looking innovation in the field. The initiative will be forward-looking in its approach, including through global collaborations such as Weizmann’s historic partnership with the Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence in the UAE. Such strategies will not only boost the pace of research, but attract the next generation of talented AI scientists.
The Artificial Intelligence Enterprise for Scientific Discovery will responsibly harness the power of AI, using it for medical advances such as improved treatments, personalized healthcare, and more accurate diagnoses; understanding climate change and protecting the environment; even improving education so that kids learn more creatively and effectively. Weizmann scientists are already using AI for the health of humanity, having developed a method of early diagnosis for acute myeloid leukemia; an algorithm that predicts risk of gestational diabetes; a technique that can accurately read heart EKGs; and an algorithm that diagnoses Covid from lung images. These early advances point toward an exciting new world in which AI will improve life for us all.
©2024 American Committee for the Weizmann Institute of Science
