AI Tennessee highlights AI research and applications taking shape across Tennessee. This growing ecosystem includes foundational research, science-informed discovery, and real-world innovation across sectors.
Featured Projects
East Tennessee
Pedestrian Safety
A team led by Airton Kohls, a research associate in UT’s Center for Transportation Research, in partnership with the City of Knoxville and local technology company Cubic, will use AI and sensor technologies to improve pedestrian safety at signalized intersections, focusing on streets adjacent to UT’s campus.
Automotive Inspections
Assistant Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Sai Swaminathan, in partnership with Volkswagen Group of America, is leading a team working with VW’s North American manufacturing facility located in Chattanooga to develop AI systems and methodologies for real-time quality inspection on their production lines.
AI for Business
An interdisciplinary team of professors from UT’s Business Analytics and Statistics and Education departments are studying how AI impacts workforce demands and the evolving skill sets required in the modern job market.
Middle Tennessee
Language Preservation
Tennessee Tech computer science professor Jesse Roberts is part of a collaborative effort using artificial intelligence to help preserve the Cherokee language, one of many endangered Indigenous languages in the United States.
Immersive Learning
Imagine learning about ecosystems by “becoming” a bee, connecting with your child more deeply by discussing a good book, or being inspired by a library of brand-new AI creations right at your fingertips. These experiences are all possible thanks to learning tools being developed, researched, nurtured and shared by Vanderbilt’s LIVE Learning Innovation Incubator, an initiative of Vanderbilt Peabody College of Education and Human Development.
High Performance Computing
Tennessee Tech is expanding its role in advanced computing and scientific discovery with the launch of GENESIS, a high-performance computing (HPC) cluster designed to accelerate large-scale research applications, strengthen workforce development and support technology-driven economic growth across Tennessee.
West Tennessee
Decoding Pain Relief
The AudioAnalgesiA Research Network, directed by the University of Memphis’ Dr. Debra Burns, brings together experts in music therapy, neuroscience, data science, and engineering to transform how we understand and apply music-based pain management from an art into a precision, data-driven science.
Supply Chain & Transportation
The University of Memphis-led Center for Freight & Logistics Efficiency with Electrified & Automated Trucking (FLEET) recently brought together industry leaders, researchers, and technology innovators for its Industry Technology Forum and Industry Advisory Board Meeting at Dallara USA headquarters adjacent to the iconic Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Machine Learning
Tennessee State University is collaborating with AWS-Machine Learning University (MLU) Educators Consortium and Transformation Alliance, a nationwide initiative helping college faculty integrate artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) into their curriculum. Faculty from TSU’s Department of Computer Science and the SMART Center are gaining access to training, curated curriculum resources, and ongoing support to prepare students for careers in the rapidly growing field of AI/ML.
OUR RESEARCH
AI Tennessee focuses on interdisciplinary research creating AI-driven solutions to the complex technical, economic, and social challenges facing our communities.
Manufacturing Data Simulation
A team led by Associate Professor of Management Science Bogdan Bichescu and Associate Professor of Business Analytics and Statistics Charles Liu, in partnership with East Tennessee software company ChiAha, will improve the company’s product innovation by using AI for data simulation in manufacturing environments.
AI in Additive Manufacturing
A team led by Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering Subhadeep Chakraborty and Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Bradley Jared, in partnership with the Edison Welding Institute — a nonprofit advancing manufacturing through engineering and innovation — and One-Off Robotics — a Chattanooga-based robotic metal additive and subtractive equipment integrator — will apply AI to modeling, control, optimization, and uncertainty quantification to optimize efficiency of additive manufacturing processes.
Identifying Animal Illness
A team led by Assistant Professor of Biosystems Engineering Hao Gan, in partnership with Enterprise Sensor Systems, will develop technology to rapidly identify cattle with infectious diseases using AI and hyperspectral imaging.
A team led by Professor of Industrial and Systems Engineering Jim Ostrowski, in partnership with defense technology firm Vibrint, will harness AI and quantum computing technologies in geospatial intelligence for defense applications.
Reducing Football Injuries
Researchers and students are working under the direction of Assistant Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Hector Santos-Villalobos, in partnership with UT Athletics and the Joe Gibbs Human Performance Institute — a biomechanical engineering research facility — to develop AI-driven performance analytics for the UT football team to reduce player injuries.
Cybersecurity Solutions
Assistant Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Fnu Suya, will lead a team in partnership with Cisco’s Advanced Security Initiatives Group to develop and explore AI technologies and methodologies to inform the company’s network cybersecurity solutions.
Environmental Mapping
A team led by Dongarra Professor of High-Performance Computing Michela Taufer, in partnership with a global leader in cutting-edge AI and high-performance computing technologies, will accelerate performance of large language models and other AI tools for real-world impact in global irrigation mapping, environmental and earth sciences, and molecular dynamics.