The NSF AI Institute for Artificial Intelligence and Fundamental Interactions (IAIFI)

Deep Learning (AI) + Deep Thinking (Physics) = Deeper Understanding

The NSF AI Institute for Artificial Intelligence and Fundamental Interactions (IAIFI, pronounced /aɪ-faɪ/) is one of the inaugural NSF AI research institutes. The IAIFI is advancing physics knowledge – from the smallest building blocks of nature to the largest structures in the Universe – and galvanizing AI research innovation. The IAIFI is a collaboration of both physics and AI researchers at MIT, Harvard, Northeastern, and Tufts. Learn more about our research at the Physics/AI intersection and about our IAIFI Fellows program.

IAIFI Jobs

Applications are now closed for the 2024–2027 IAIFI Fellowship search. Visit our Job Board for job opportunities available outside IAIFI.

IAIFI Events

View our full events calendar for all upcoming events.

IAIFI Symposium: The Impact of Generative AI in the Physical Sciences. On March 14–15, 2024, join us for a Symposium on the impact of generative AI in the physical sciences. The event will include talks and discussions from global experts at the intersection of physics and AI and will be held on the 8th floor of MIT’s College of Computing (Building 45).

Our IAIFI Colloquium series will continue on March 22, 2024 with Soledad Villar (Johns Hopkins University). Recordings of our previous hybrid colloquium series are available to view on our YouTube channel.

IAIFI News

For an archive of IAIFI news, see our news page. To receive periodic announcements about IAIFI-related activities, sign up for our mailing list and follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn.

IAIFI Affiliate Dan Roberts writes about about using physics to understand AI risk. Read “Black Holes and the Intelligence Explosion”. December 12, 2023

IAIFI Fellow Siddharth Mishra-Sharma named one of the 2023 Rising Stars in Data Science by the University of Chicago. Read more about Siddharth’s recognition. November 30, 2023

IAIFI Fellow Ge Yang and collaborators receive Best Paper Award at the Conference on Robot Learning (CoRL) 2023. Read “Distilled Feature Fields Enable Few-Shot Manipulation”. November 14, 2023

IAIFI Investigators Max Tegmark and Ziming Liu featured with collaborators in Quanta Magazine. Read about their work on “The Physical Process That Powers a New Type of Generative AI”. November 14, 2023

Carlos Arguelles-Delgado, Harvard Assistant Professor of Physics and IAIFI Senior Investigator, named 2023 Packard Fellow. Read more about Carlos’ research and the award. October 20, 2023

On September 18-19, 2023, Jesse Thaler, Mike Williams, and Marisa LaFleur visited the NSF and Congress, along with other NSF AI Institutes, as part of the NSF AI Hill Day, where Jesse and Mike met congressional staffers to share the work of IAIFI and discuss the importance of AI for Science. October 5, 2023

On July 21, 2023, many IAIFI Senior Investigators, Fellows, postdocs, and students presented at The Impact of ChatGPT and other Large Language Models on Physics Research and Education. Watch Workshop recordings. September 19, 2023

Max Tegmark, MIT Professor of Physics and IAIFI Senior Investigator, featured on the TIME100 Most Influential People in AI. Read Max’s feature. September 7, 2023

Nabil Laoudji writes about his experience at the 2023 IAIFI Summer Worskhop. Read Nabil’s post on LinkedIn, where he shares his experience attending the 2023 IAIFI Summer Workshop. August 29, 2023

Philip Harris, MIT Assistant Professor and IAIFI Senior Investigator, earns MIT Teaching With Digital Technology Award: The student-nominated award recognizes Phil for effectively using digital technology to improve teaching and learning at MIT. Read about the 2023 winners. June 21, 2023

Marisa LaFleur, IAIFI Project Manager, awarded MIT Infinite Mile Award: The award recognizes Marisa’s dedication and contribution to the School of Science and to IAIFI. Read about the 2023 winners. May 15, 2023

Justin Solomon, MIT Associate Professor and IAIFI Affiliate, named Edgerton Award winner: The award recognizes Justin’s exceptional distinction in teaching, research, and service at MIT. Read MIT Newsletter profile on Justin Solomon. April 19, 2023

Brian Nord, MLK Scholar and IAIFI Visitor, featured in MIT News: Read “Understanding our place in the universe”. April, 12, 2023

Pulkit Agrawal featured in MIT News: IAIFI Senior Investigator Pulkit Agrawal, and collaborators Gabriel Margolis and Yandong Ji have developed a legged robotic system that can dribble a soccer ball under the same conditions as humans. “Our goal in developing algorithms for legged robots is to provide autonomy in challenging and complex terrains that are currently beyond the reach of robotic systems.” April 3, 2023

Brian Nord, MLK Scholar, interviewed for MIT’s Institute Community & Equity Office: Watch Brian discuss Artificial Intelligence and social advocacy. February, 8, 2023

Lina Necib recognized as a rising star in astronomy by Astronomy magazine: Read Astronomy magazine’s profile on Lina Necib as part of their rising stars in astronomy issue. January, 3, 2023

IAIFI sponsors the Machine Learning and the Physical Sciences workshop: IAIFI was pleased to sponsor the Machine Learning and the Physical Sciences workshop at NeurIPS 2022 and to see many IAIFI researchers present papers. View papers from IAIFI researchers at the workshop. December 3, 2022

Jesse Thaler provides insight on the potential of AI for physics discovery: Read “Will artificial intelligence ever discover new laws of physics?” November 21, 2022