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Artificial Intelligence

Allen School researchers are at the forefront of exciting developments in AI spanning machine learning, computer vision, natural language processing, robotics and more.

We cultivate a deeper understanding of the science and potential impact of rapidly evolving technologies, such as large language models and generative AI, while developing practical tools for their ethical and responsible application in a variety of domains — from biomedical research and disaster response, to autonomous vehicles and urban planning.


Research Groups & Labs

Accessible Accordion

Areas of Expertise

Societal Impact

Results will appear in alphabetical order.

Scatterplot of multi-colored dots, with a large cluster of dots occupying roughly two-thirds of the frame, with smaller clusters aligned by color and scattered individual dots arranged along one side of the main cluster

AIMS Lab

The AI for bioMedical Sciences (AIMS) Lab fundamentally advances the way AI is integrated with biology and clinical medicine by addressing novel scientific questions spanning explainable AI, model auditing, disease drivers, and more.

A person with long blond hair, with only mouth and chin visible, is lying on a blue quilted blanket on short green grass in dappled sunlight. The person is wearing a black sweatshirt and propped up on their elbows, viewing a smartphone held in their well-manicured hands.

Behavioral Data Science Group

The Behavioral Data Science Group leverages large-scale behavioral data to extract actionable insights about our lives, health and happiness by combining techniques from data science, social network analysis, and natural language processing.

Closeup of silicon chip technology

Bespoke Silicon Group

The Bespoke Silicon Group aims to bring hardware design to its highest art and rapidly conceive of, design and implement entirely new kinds of hardware faster than has ever been done before.

Database Group cover image of a mountain

Database Group

The Database Group advances both theoretical and systems work in probabilistic databases, stream processing, sensor-based monitoring, databases and the web, XML, image/video data management, data management for machine learning, data mining and more.

Healthy neuron

Golub Lab

The Golub Lab develops computational models and algorithms for understanding how single-trial neural population activity drives our abilities to generate movements, make decisions, and learn from experience.

People wearing AR-VR headsets pointing into the air

Graphics & Imaging Lab (GRAIL)

The work of the Graphics & Imaging Laboratory spans computer graphics, computer vision, generative AI, computational photography, virtual reality, animation and games.

Closeup of a droplet of water causing ripples

H2 Lab

The H2 Lab addresses foundational problems in Artificial Intelligence and Natural Language Processing to develop general-purpose AI algorithms that represent, comprehend, and reason about diverse forms of data at large scale.

Human-Centered Robotics Lab photo of a robot assisting with picking up a bottle

Human-Centered Robotics Lab

In the Human-Centered Robotics lab we aim to develop robotics that are useful and usable for future users of task-oriented robots.

A hand stacking square blocks in ascending heights like a graph

Interactive Data Lab

The Interactive Data Lab aims to enhance people’s ability to understand and communicate data through the design of new interactive systems for data visualization and analysis.

Street scene overlaid with color-coded object recognition labels for depicted car, bicycle, vegetation, utility pole, and manhole cover

Makeability Lab

The Makeability Lab specializes in Human-Computer Interaction and applied machine learning for high-impact problems in accessibility, computational urban science, and augmented reality.

Closeup of AI-augmented headphone on person's ear

Mobile Intelligence Lab

The interdisciplinary Mobile Intelligence Lab builds intelligent systems and tools for tackling hard technical and societal problems, including battery-free computing, medical diagnostics, augmented human perception and more.

Vials of DNA samples being prepared for genetic sequencing

Mostafavi Lab

The Mostafavi Lab develops machine learning and statistical methods that combine evidence across multiple types of molecular/genomics data and disentangle spurious from meaningful correlations for new insights into mechanisms of health and disease.

Neural Systems Lab featured photo with an activated brain.

Neural Systems Lab

The Neural Systems Lab at the UW focuses on understanding the brain using computational models and simulations, and applying this knowledge to the task of developing human-like artificial intelligence (AI) and brain-computer interfaces (BCIs).

Robotic arm feeding seated person a strawberry on a fork with an inset image of the robot mapping features of their face

Personal Robotics Lab

Our mission is to develop the fundamental building blocks of perception, manipulation, learning, and human-robot interaction to enable robots to perform complex physical manipulation tasks under clutter and uncertainty with and around people.

RAIVN Reserch Lab image featuring a raven wearing dark sunglasses

RAIVN Lab

The Reasoning, AI, and VisioN (RAIVN) Lab directed by Prof. Ali Farhadi and Prof. Ranjay Krishna focuses at the intersection of computer vision, machine learning, natural language processing and robotics and is targeted towards helping computers…

Robot Learning lab cover photo of robotic warthog/all terrain vehicle driving in the snow

Robot Learning Lab

The Robot Learning Lab works on foundational research in machine learning, AI and robotics to develop intelligent robotic systems that can perceive, plan and act in complex environments and improve performance with experience.

Professor Dieter Fox and a student demonstrate a remote operated robotic arm attempting to pick up a block

Robotics and State Estimation Lab

We are interested in the development of computing systems that interact with the physical world in an intelligent way. To investigate such systems, we focus on problems in robotics and activity recognition.

Young man adjusting the position of robotic arm while students watch.

Robotics Group

Doing ground-breaking work in mechanism design, sensors, computer vision, robot learning, Bayesian state estimation, control theory, numerical optimization, biomechanics, neural control of movement, computational neuroscience, brain-machine interfaces, natural language…

Stacked rocks in a beach scene

SAMPL

SAMPL is an interdisciplinary machine learning research group exploring problems across the system stack, including deep learning frameworks, specialized hardware for training and inference, new intermediate representations and more.

A person holds up a miniature sensor

Sensor Systems Laboratory

The Sensor Systems Laboratory invents new sensor systems, devises new ways to power and communicate with them, and develops algorithms for using them, with applications in the domains of bioelectronics, robotics, and ubiquitous computing.

A robot playing table tennis with human partner

Social RL Lab

The Social RL Lab aims to leverage social information in human-AI and multi-agent interactions to enable AI to learn complex behavior, rapidly adapt to new circumstances and cooperate to achieve joint goals—similarly to how humans and animals learn.

A conceptual graphic showing a jumble of letters spread out around a more concentrated ball of letters

Tsvetshop

Tsvetshop researchers aim to develop practical solutions to natural language processing problems that combine sophisticated learning and modeling methods with insights into human languages and the people who speak them.

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UbiComp Lab

The Ubiquitous Computing (UbiComp) Lab develops innovative systems for health sensing, low-power sensing, energy sensing, activity recognition and novel user interface technology for real-world applications.

Sylvan Grove columns surrounded by tree foliage with Allen Center, a six-story building of orange brick with windows shaded by metal ledges, in the background

UW NLP Group

The University of Washington Natural Language Processing Group comprises diverse researchers across campus collaborating in the study of all aspects of NLP from computational, engineering, linguistic, social, statistical, and other perspectives.

A student wearing an Oculus headset motions toward a screen displaying a virtual character

UW Reality Lab

The UW Reality Lab advances the state of the art in virtual and augmented reality by developing new technologies and applications, educating the next generation of researchers and technologists, and supporting robust collaborations with industry.

Dexterous robotic hand reaching to lift rectangular brick

WEIRD Lab

The Washington Embodied Intelligence and Robotics Development lab is interested in robotics problems, and currently we are thinking deeply about reinforcement learning algorithms to enable real-world robotic manipulation tasks in the home.

Highlights