About

Mission & Vision

The mission of the Data, AI, and Computing Initiative is to advance purposeful data, AI, and computing by strengthening foundational research and accelerating interdisciplinary collaboration with real-world impact – grounded in Notre Dame's mission and ambition to be a force for good.

The DAC Initiative integrates three existing foundational units at Notre Dame: the Lucy Family Institute for Data & Society, which leads translational R.I.S.E. (Responsible, Inclusive, Safe, Empowering) AI; the Scientific AI Initiative, which pioneers AI applications in scientific discovery and engineering; and the Deployment, Operations, Modeling, and Engineering (DOME) team of research software engineers and computational scientists, which provides the computational infrastructure and research engineering that make ambitious projects possible.

The DAC Focus Areas:

The DAC pillars represent nearly every college and school across the University of Notre Dame:

• Responsible, Inclusive, Safe, and Empowering (RISE) AI
• Foundational AI and Next-Generation Computing
• AI-Enabled Science and Engineering
• Data-Driven Computational Social Sciences and Digital Humanities
• Health Data & AI

Our Work

The University of Notre Dame Data, AI, and Computing Initiative directs its work toward three areas:

Research

Anchored by multiple academic units spanning data and society, scientific AI, and computational sciences, the Initiative connects faculty across campus to build interdisciplinary teams and pursue an ambitious research agenda that balances foundational discovery and high-impact applications. Faculty-led teams drive collaboration across priority research areas, in partnership with labs and institutes across campus as well as federally funded centers.

Education

The DAC Initiative helps prepare students and scholars who are technically excellent, holistically formed, and ready to lead in a world shaped by data, AI, and computing. The Initiative strengthens pathways across disciplines, partnering with colleges and schools on curricular and experiential opportunities that provide students with technical training and mentorship, encourage responsible discernment, foster interdisciplinary teamwork, and enhance professional development.

Impact

The Initiative cultivates relationships with industry partners, civic organizations, and nonprofits, creating opportunities for faculty and students on campus to translate their discoveries, advances, and insights into broad societal impact. This ranges from directly helping partners solve problems and improve their effectiveness to working with high-level decision makers to inform policies that advance the common good.

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