Research
Within the College of Sciences and across the university, AI research is integrated into nearly all research domains and academic departments.

Faculty at NC State are deeply engaged in AI-related research. The table below shows AI-related research projects led by College of Sciences faculty.
| Project Title | Funding Agency | Department | PI List | Fiscal Year(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AI Institute: Artificial Intelligence for Environmental Sciences (AI2ES) | NSF-University of Oklahoma | MEAS | He, Ruoying (lead); Liu, Paul | 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025, 2026 |
| CCI Phase I: NSF Center for Accelerated Photocatalysis (CAPs) | National Science Foundation (NSF) | Chemistry | Castellano, Felix (lead); Abolhasani, Milad; Pierce, Joshua; Williams Cherry, Tova | 2025 |
| Collaborative Research: CAIG: Multi-Architecture Physics-Informed Deep Leaning for Understanding Coastal Hypoxia Formation Mechanisms | National Science Foundation (NSF) | MEAS | Liu, Paul (lead); He, Ruoying; Xu, Dongkuan | 2027 |
| Hidden Markov Methodology for Machine Learning Applied to Identifying Physiological States Of Shock in the Intensive Care Unit Via Biomedical and Unstructured Text Data | National Institutes of Health (NIH) | Statistics | Williams, Jonathan (lead); Reich, Brian | 2022, 2023 |
| Transforming Clinical Trials for Elderly and Rare Cancers through Intelligent and Robust Information Borrowing | National Institutes of Health (NIH) | Statistics | Yang, Shu (lead) | 2027 |
| CIF: Small: Signal Recovery Beyond Minimization: A Monotone Inclusion Framework | National Science Foundation (NSF) | Mathematics | Combettes, Patrick (lead) | 2022, 2025 |
| A Gut-brain Interaction Controlling Reward Learning | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | Statistics | Sengupta, Srijan (lead) | 2023, 2024, 2025, 2026, 2027 |
| Quantum Utility with Hardware- and Application- Informed Near-Term Algorithms (QUINTA) | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | Research | Kemper, Lex (lead) | 2025, 2026 |
| Atmospheric River Program Phase V | University of California - San Diego | MEAS | Lackmann, Gary (lead); Michaelis, Allison (lead); Lackmann, Gary; Michaelis, Allison | 2025, 2026 |
| DMREF: Collaborative Research: AI-Driven Design of Tough 2D Metal Halide Perovskites for Next-Generation Semiconductor Applications | National Science Foundation (NSF) | Chemistry | Li, Xiaotong (lead) | 2027 |
| A Geometric Framework for Stochastic Algorithms in Feasibility and Inclusion Problems | National Science Foundation (NSF) | Mathematics | Combettes, Patrick (lead) | 2025 |
| EMN-21-F-S-01 Predict Diverse System Solubility | Eastman Chemical Company | Statistics | Hughes-Oliver, Jacqueline (lead); Baynes, Ronald; Santiso, Erik | 2022, 2023 |
| AI Water Guardians: Empowering North Carolina Communities to Monitor and Predict Harmful Algal Blooms in Falls Lake Using Artificial Intelligence | US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) | MEAS | Liu, Paul (lead); Painter, Jason; Shelton, Taryn | 2027 |
| Development of RMG Code Nanoscale Applications | UT-Battelle, LLC dba Oak Ridge National Laboratory | Physics and Astronomy | Bernholc, Jerzy (lead); Briggs, Emil; Lu, Wenchang | 2025, 2026 |
| Multi-task Biologically Informed Neural Networks For Learning Dynamical Systems From Single-cell Protein Expression Data | National Science Foundation (NSF) | Mathematics | Flores, Kevin (lead); Arguello-Miranda, Orlando | 2025, 2026 |
| Effective Computational Methods for Training of Neural Networks via Exploration-Exploitation-Determination Framework | National Science Foundation (NSF) | Mathematics | Shin, Yeonjong (lead) | 2025, 2026 |
| Algorithms, Theory, and Applications for Fiber Coating Systems | National Science Foundation (NSF) | Mathematics | Ji, Hangjie (lead) | 2023, 2026 |
| Preparing the Next Generation of Biostatisticians in the Era of Data and Translational Sciences | National Institutes of Health (NIH) | Statistics | Ghosh, Sujit (lead); McGowan, Herle | 2022, 2023, 2024 |
| Atmospheric River Program Phase V | University of California - San Diego | MEAS | Lackmann, Gary (lead); Michaelis, Allison (lead); Lackmann, Gary; Michaelis, Allison | 2026, 2027 |
| PARTNER: An AI/ML Collaborative for Southeast Florida Coastal Environmental Data and Modeling Center | Florida International University | MEAS | He, Ruoying (lead) | 2024, 2025, 2027 |
| Structure and Statistics of Disordered Systems | National Science Foundation (NSF) | Mathematics | Bates, Erik (lead) | 2024, 2026 |
| Electron-Deficient Conjugated Polymers with Prototypical Bond Topologies | US Dept. of Energy (DOE) | Chemistry | Chiechi, Ryan (lead) | 2026 |
| Increased Deep Learning Computing Capacity for Radar Applications | US Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) | Mathematics | Tsynkov, Semyon (lead) | 2023, 2024 |
| AEROFUSION-MLUQ: Mars Lander Aerodynamic Model Data Fusion using Machine Learning with Embedded Uncertainty Quantification | National Aeronautics & Space Administration (NASA) | Mathematics | Smith, Ralph (lead) | 2022, 2023 |
| Nonlinearity and Information Processing | US Navy - Office Of Naval Research | Physics and Astronomy | Ditto, William (lead) | 2022, 2023, 2024 |
| Causal Inference with Irregularly-spaced Observation Times | National Science Foundation (NSF) | Statistics | Yang, Shu (lead) | 2024, 2026 |
| Collaborative Research: RUI: Density of Modes: A New Way to Forecast Sediment Failure | National Science Foundation (NSF) | Physics and Astronomy | Daniels, Karen (lead) | 2023, 2026 |
| Offline Statistical Reinforcement Learning with Applications in Precision Health | National Science Foundation (NSF) | Statistics | Lu, Wenbin (lead) | 2022, 2023, 2024, 2026 |
| Non-local Variational Problems with Applications to Data Science | National Science Foundation (NSF) | Mathematics | Murray, Ryan (lead) | 2023, 2025, 2026 |
| Data-free Operator Learning for real-time turbulent CFD simulations in Air-Conditioning Applications | LG Electronics | Mathematics | Shin, Yeonjong (lead) | 2026 |
| Collaborative Research: CyberTraining: Pilot: iVirus: Advancing AI-driven Viral Ecology through training in Cyberinfrastructure and High-Performance Computing | National Science Foundation (NSF) | Biological Sciences | Hurwitz, Bonnie (lead) | 2026 |
| Deep Neural Networks for Solving Non-Markov Optimization Problems | National Science Foundation (NSF) | Mathematics | Papanicolaou, Andrew (lead) | 2022, 2023, 2024 |
| NAMs-Decisions Center: New Approach Methods for Decisions on Industrial and Consumer-Use Chemicals | Texas A&M University | Statistics | Wright, Fred (lead) | 2026 |
| STREAMLINE Collaboration: Machine Learning for Nuclear Many-Body Systems | US Dept. of Energy (DOE) | Physics and Astronomy | Koenig, Sebastian (lead) | 2024, 2025, 2026 |
| Data-free Operator Learning via Physics-Informed Deep Operator Networks for Fast CFD Simulations in Home Appliance and Air-conditioning | LG Electronics | Mathematics | Shin, Yeonjong (lead) | 2025 |
| PILOT-Wildfire Pollution Exposure and Human Health: Building a Novel AI-powered Air Quality Forecasting Model for a Growing Public Health Issue | NCSU Center for Human Health and the Environment | Statistics | Sengupta, Srijan (lead); Aneja, Viney | 2022 |
| STREAMLINE 2 Collaboration: Machine Learning for Nuclear Many-Body Systems | Michigan State University | Physics and Astronomy | Koenig, Sebastian (lead) | 2026 |
| Broadening Participation Research Project: Data Science and Machine Learning: An Interdisciplinary STEM Training for the Future Workforce | Benedict College | Mathematics | Medhin, Negash (lead) | 2024, 2026 |
| A Novel Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning Approach for High-efficiency, High-fidelity Marine Wave Energy Characterization and Assessment for Powering the Blue Economy | Fathom Science | MEAS | He, Ruoying (lead) | 2024 |
| A Predictive Engine for Protein-Nucleic Acid Interactions in Therapeutic Aptamer Design | UNC/NC State Translational Research Grant (NC TraCS) | Physics and Astronomy | Lin, Xingcheng (lead); GRA TBA,; Weninger, Keith; Xiao, Yi | 2027 |
| Forecasting Anomalous Atlantic Hurricane Seasons Using Explainable AI, CARTA Core Project | Center for Accelerated Real Time Analytics (CARTA) - NCSU Research Site | MEAS | Xie, Lian (lead); Shen, Xipeng | 2023, 2024 |
| Predicting Air Pollution in Disadvantaged Communities in the United States with Deep Learning | NC State Data Science Academy | MEAS | Qu, Zhen (lead); Boone, Kofi; Liu, Xiaorui | 2023 |
| Collaborations in Applied Analysis | Simons Foundation | Mathematics | Murray, Ryan (lead) | 2024 |
| PDE-Principled Data-Driven Learning Framework for Droplet Dynamics | Simons Foundation | Mathematics | Ji, Hangjie (lead) | 2024 |
| Geometric Methods in Partial Differential Equations and Computer Vision | Simons Foundation | Mathematics | Kogan, Irina (lead) | 2022, 2023, 2025 |
| Building LLM Agents for Large Environmental Dataset Analysis | NC State Data Science Academy | MEAS | Liu, Paul (lead); Cheng, Alice; Xu, Dongkuan | 2025 |
| Visiting Joint Postdoctoral Associate Appointment of Dr. Andrey Tarasov | State University of New York at Stony Brook (SUNY) | Physics and Astronomy | Skokov, Vladimir (lead); Tarasov, Andrey | 2025 |
| High Efficiency Gyrotron Technology | Calabazas Creek Research, Inc. | Mathematics | Tran, Hien (lead) | 2024 |
| Unveiling the Connection Between Gas Flows Around Galaxies and the Cosmic Web Using Qso Spectra | Space Telescope Science Institute | Physics and Astronomy | Bordoloi, Rongmon (lead) | 2024 |
| Aligning Student and Instructor Expectations with Large Language Models in Chemical Education | DELTA (Distance Education & Learning Technologies Applications, NCSU) | Chemistry | Chiechi, Ryan (lead); Feducia, Jeremiah | 2026 |
| The new interviewer: Leveraging AI-driven data collection to identify instructor knowledge for teaching research | SimBio Foundation | Biological Sciences | Cooper, Lexie (lead); Undergraduate, Ugrad | 2027 |
| Statistical Foundations for Uncertainty Quantification of Machine Intelligence Assembled from Generalized Fiducial Inference | NCSU Faculty Research & Professional Development Fund | Statistics | Williams, Jonathan (lead) | 2025 |
| Data-driven Discovery of Multi-domain Models for Droplet Dynamics | NCSU Faculty Research & Professional Development Fund | Mathematics | Ji, Hangjie (lead) | 2023 |
| Data Analysis, Non-smooth Optimization and Applications | NCSU Faculty Research & Professional Development Fund | Mathematics | Ito, Kazufumi (lead) | 2023 |
| A Demonstration Of Real-time Analytics In Seasonal Hurricane Prediction, CARTA Core Project | Center for Accelerated Real Time Analytics (CARTA) - NCSU Research Site | MEAS | Xie, Lian (lead) | 2022, 2023 |
| CAREER: Semiparametric and Machine Learning Approaches to Big Data Challenges in Precision Medicine | National Science Foundation (NSF) | Statistics | Song, Rui (lead) | 2022 |
| Data-Driven Approaches to Identify Biomarkers for Guiding Coronary Artery Bifurcation Lesion Interventions from Patient-Specific Hemodynamic Models | Duke University | Statistics | Chi, Eric (lead) | 2023 |
Video: Our AI Research
Learn more about some of our research in artificial intelligence through short videos produced by our faculty.
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