King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) has launched 4 advanced centers of excellence to enhance research and development in critical national and global priorities. In line with the goals of the Kingdom's Vision 2030, and this is an important step within the framework of the “Accelerating Impact” strategy adopted by the University. It enhances its position as a leading university in applied sciences on a global level
Managed by global experts, these specialized centers work to address key challenges in the areas of human health, environmental sustainability, energy and innovation in industry, and future economies. They are also an essential part of KAUST's mission to provide effective solutions that directly contribute to achieving national economic goals.
The Center of Excellence for Generative Artificial Intelligence, headed by Professor Bernard Ghanem and Professor Jürgen Schmidhuber, will work to develop innovative models of artificial intelligence to meet the unique needs in research, development and innovation in the Kingdom and will also enhance its position as a leading reference in generative artificial intelligence research, contributing to advances in a number of fields.
The Center of Excellence for Renewable Energy and Storage Technologies will be led by Professor Hossam El-Sherif, an expert in the field of battery technologies and materials science, in collaboration with Professor Jiping Lai, as the center aims to develop and disseminate the latest technologies in the field of renewable energy and storage. He will play an essential role in supporting the Kingdom's sustainable energy transition by creating prototypes and commercializing innovations that enhance the country's industrial competitiveness.
Professor Mark Tester, an expert in plant science and agriculture in arid environments, will also lead the Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Food Security, which will be co-directed by Professor Brandol Wolf, a leading researcher in crop genetics, and Professor Ping Hong, an expert in environmental microbiology and wastewater treatment.
The centre aims to develop solutions based on agricultural technologies to address the main challenges related to the efficient use of resources, improving crops and enhancing sustainable environmental systems, with the aim of increasing food security in the Kingdom and the world, while reducing the carbon footprint and negative impacts arising from agricultural and environmental operations and projects.
The Center of Excellence for Smart Health is headed by Professor Imad Galluzzi, known for his advanced research in RNA biology and mRNA processing, as well as Professor Chen Gao, an expert in computational biology and artificial intelligence. The center, which focuses on the development and dissemination of digital and artificial intelligence-based technologies, aims to bring radical changes in the delivery of health care through precision medicine and promote innovation, entrepreneurship and education to revolutionize the health care system in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
For his part, KAUST President Professor Edward Byrne explained: The establishment of the new centers of excellence reflects the university's commitment to leadership in science and innovative discoveries. Through its focus on artificial intelligence, renewable energy, sustainable food security and smart health, the university addresses the most serious challenges in the state to strengthen its position as a global leader in these critical areas; He praised the collaboration with the prestigious research teams at KAUST to transform ideas into solutions that enhance the quality of life and contribute to building a sustainable future for the state and the world.
It is noteworthy that these Centers of Excellence; established due to their strong alignment with national priorities, their multi-discipline and potential to achieve concrete economic and social impacts, will play a key role in pioneering research in line with KAUST's “Accelerating Impact” strategy, and will be integrated with the university's National Transformation Institute to enhance excellence in research and innovation; this strategy aims to guide the university's research and initiatives in line with national priorities and support economic diversification in the state through research, development and innovation projects with profound impact.