Creating a revolutionary tool for scientific research, the 'AI4S Climbers Action Plan' is open for application

The artificial intelligence (AI for Science, hereinafter referred to as AI4S) that drives scientific research is gradually changing the mode of scientific research. However, the "chimney style" development model between disciplines is prone to resource dispersion and repeated investment, and also to some extent restricts the emergence of disruptive achievements. At the same time, due to the characteristics of "extremely macro expansion, extremely micro depth, extreme condition advancement, and extremely comprehensive intersection" of AI4S, significant transformative breakthroughs are difficult to emerge from existing organizational models - such breakthroughs exceed the research capabilities of a single team and require large-scale research, engineering, and system collaboration, while early value is difficult to support by commercial venture capital - the "AI4S Climbers Action Plan" aims to address this challenge.

If you are eager to break through the limitations of the traditional research model of AI4S, please apply to join the "AI4S Climbers Action Plan" and work with us to promote the next generation of technological change.

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Welcome applications from artificial intelligence and scientific research teams and scholars from universities, research institutes, new R&D institutions, and technology enterprises around the world

The Shanghai Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (SAIL) plays the role of a "connector," "amplifier," and "accelerator," and will launch the "AI4S Climbers Action Plan" on January 22, 2025, open to applications from global artificial intelligence and scientific research teams. The action plan focuses on developing the next generation of AI4S technology with the potential for domain change, and will introduce a series of innovative and distinctive organizational methods.

Focus on goal orientation: Establish a clear goal orientation and quantifiable technical milestone system to ensure project focus and execution efficiency;

Open technology research: tackling breakthroughs in open technologies with significant technological impact, accelerating paradigm shifts in key scientific fields;

Organized scientific research: Establish a closely coordinated scientific research organizational mechanism, form a full-time research team with interdisciplinary integration, scientific research engineering, and other complementary roles.

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The Shanghai AI Laboratory has a systematic layout and thinking on AI4S. We believe that scientific research is the sum of the relationship between research objects, research tools, and researchers. Currently, AI4S is still in the early stage of development, mostly limited to improving the understanding of scientific data for specific tasks and the efficiency of scientific computing "tool revolution". The long-term goal of AI4S is to create "revolutionary tools" - to achieve interdisciplinary disruptive innovation emergence, enhance understanding of research objects (AI for Data), improve research tool capabilities (AI for Computation), and enhance researchers' original abilities (AI for Innovator).

The AI4S Climbers Action Plan will provide a systematic and stage adapted innovation support system for the shortlisted teams. In the initial stage, assist the shortlisted researchers in forming a team, receive guidance from experienced technical experts, and develop a project plan that includes detailed technical solutions and operational strategies. At the same time, we are well aware that true innovation should not stop at the laboratory, at the critical stage of the project. Therefore, we will build a value conversion bridge to allow these breakthrough technologies to move from the laboratory to a broader world stage.

support content

Based on the accumulation of AI key core technology research and systematic capacity building in Shanghai AI Laboratory, the "AI4S Climbers Action Plan" has built a multidimensional scientific research and innovation support system for the selected teams.

• Basic support: Leading AI computing power cluster computing resources and deployment, operation and training platforms, advanced pre trained large models in the experimental stage, and research funding support that matches project goals

Data capability: Build key domain data resources and provide full chain capability support from data representation, compression, annotation, cleaning to high-performance storage and processing

Expert support: Equipped with a composite technical team composed of senior engineering experts and AI4S field scientists, providing full process escort from technical verification to engineering implementation

Ecological Network: Build an innovative ecosystem covering academic frontiers, industrial scenarios, and technology transformation channels through a strategic partner network in the laboratory

• Operational support: covering the entire process of team building, including core links such as talent recruitment, office space, project management, intellectual property services, etc

Support direction

The AI4S Climbers Action Plan will support a group of AI4S proposals with transformative potential in the field. We encourage the courage to raise high-value issues that are of great significance but have not yet been fully explored (often overlooked due to insufficient resources or attention), and use a combination of new talents, new perspectives, and new resources to drive change. The first batch of support targets mainly include the following directions:

Innovation breakthroughs in scientific directions: promote mutual understanding and binding between science experts and AI experts, and explore close collaboration to solve key problems in the field of science.

• Common technical problem direction: Accumulate and form common AI tools, systems, and platforms for AI4S, especially next-generation AI for Data, AI for Computation, and AI for Innovator technologies.

Industry benchmark direction: Targeting major application scenarios, based on innovative breakthrough projects, common technologies, and platforms, to achieve high-value application implementation.

Apply for important time nodes

The "AI4S Climbers Action Plan" adopts a rolling mechanism to open applications in batches, and the first batch of key time nodes are as follows:

On January 22nd, applications will be open to artificial intelligence and scientific research teams and scholars from universities, research institutes, new R&D institutions, and technology enterprises worldwide;

February 28th: Deadline for submitting the first batch of application materials;

Mid March: Application feedback notification;

Late March: The first batch of evaluations and proposal demonstrations will be conducted, followed by the announcement of the selected list and the opening of new batches.

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