Rice University has launched a transformational universitywide AI initiative to recruit 75 faculty members working across disciplines, invest in a new, state-of-the-art facility that advances research and industry collaboration, and expand AI-related courses and degrees, accelerating the institution’s emergence as a global leader in advanced computing and responsible AI. Rice has already recruited 35 faculty members in recent years whose work centers on AI across several schools, marking the halfway point in the faculty hiring effort. An additional 40 faculty will bring the total number of AI-focused faculty hired this decade to 75. These new researchers build upon Rice’s historical strengths in AI and computing.