Tata research centres join hands to develop AI learning hub in Bengaluru

The National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS) and the International Centre for Theoretical Sciences (ICTS), both centres of the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), have signed an agreement to jointly establish the Centre for Artificial Learning and Intelligence for Biological Research and Education (CALIBRE) in Bengaluru.

CALIBRE will be an interdisciplinary centre dedicated to advancing the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) in biological research, education and innovation. AI has transformed science and technology globally and its integration into biology promises to revolutionise fields such as medicine, public health, agriculture, bioengineering, neuroscience and ecology.

While several AI platforms exist internationally, India required its own context-specific AI tools and infrastructure to address challenges unique to Indian biodiversity, climate, health landscape and fundamental research landscape, said an official. CALIBRE will serve as the national hub where biological insight meets AI innovation, the NCBS said.

CALIBRE’s primary objective is to establish state-of-the-art infrastructure to harness the power of AI to transform biology research. Developing advanced AI tools for basic, applied and translational biology research and employing neuromorphic, brain-inspired computing approaches to advance AI technology are the other objectives.

The centre will also provide education and training to young Indian researchers to apply AI tools in biological research.

“As NCBS researchers work across scales of biology from molecules to forest ecosystems, our work will also help test and evaluate the power and limits of various AI tools, the outcome of which goes beyond accelerating our research to integrating AI in providing science-based solutions to health, agriculture and ecology,” said Prof LS Shashidhara, NCBS Director.

Prof Rajesh Gopakumar, Director at ICTS, said that ICTS' deep strengths in the mathematical and theoretical sciences would help in the development of new AI techniques and tools with applications in biology as well as related areas of epidemiology and public health.