“Thought Summits” are a Cornell forum aimed at identifying and developing inter- and intra- institutional collaborations in the novel areas of Data Science and Artificial Intelligence.  We envision a Thought Summit as a fully-funded 3-5 day symposium hosted at Cornell’s main campus, where a core of Cornell faculty can interact with about 20 external experts and leaders from academia, government, industry, and/or non-profit organizations.

“Thought Summits” are meant to identify new and exciting areas of research, and they produce a whitepaper that can be viewed as a first step towards multi-institutional, large-scale, external funding opportunities that merge methodological innovations in Data Science and Artificial Intelligence with compelling applications.

Thought Summits on Data Science are funded by the Center for Data Science for Enterprise and Society. Thought Summits on Artificial Intelligence are funded by the Cornell AI Initiative. We expect to fund multiple Thought Summits in the current application cycle.

Who may apply

1. All Cornell University faculty are invited to apply. Ideally, proposals will be from teams of three or more PIs, representing at least three different departments. A faculty member can participate in at most one proposal for this call.
2. Interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary research initiatives are especially encouraged.
3. Proposals are reviewed by both the Center for Data Science for Enterprise and Society and by the Cornell AI Initiative. Funding is allocated based on thematic fit and availability of funds.

Funding and Terms

Proposal Process

Please submit the below materials using the submission form. Unfortunately, we cannot accept incomplete or late submissions. The following materials should be submitted:

1. Contact Information for all PIs and Collaborators
2. Project Proposal (two-page maximum, single spaced, 12 pt. font, Times New Roman).
3. Tentative list of potential external participants (should include peer academic institutions, NGO’s, government organizations, and/or industry)
4. Potential dates for the thought summit (provide 3 options)
5. Budget outline
6. CVs for all PI’s (two-page, NSF biosketch style format) or a link to a personal website

Key Dates

• Submission open: Friday, May 16, 2025
• Submission deadline: Monday, June 16, 2025

Criteria for Thought Summits

Funding determinations will be assessed based on the criteria below. Please consider addressing these questions in your proposal.

1. How does the theme for the summit merge methodological innovations in data science and/or artificial intelligence with compelling applications?
2. How is the project necessarily inter- and/or trans-disciplinary?
3. What is the mechanism you will use to record notes and outcomes from the sessions, and for producing a public whitepaper (potentially allocating some budget to support this)?
4. What is the intended follow-up for this project to obtain future funds, especially plans to submit to large-scale funding opportunities?
5. Describe the project’s potential contributions to Cornell’s ‘any person’ mission.
6. Provide a tentative list of Cornell and external participants.

All projects must be relevant to advancing data science and/or artificial intelligence as a field.

Award Recipients

Planning:

The host/award recipient of the event is responsible for the planning and logistics of the Thought Summits. This includes travel arrangements, hotel reservations, lecture room reservations, receptions and any other event logistics. 20% of the overall budget will go to the unit that provides administrative staff support to cover indirect costs.

The final date of the Thought Summit will be selected from the choices provided by the applicant and in coordination with the award recipients.

The PI will meet regularly (every ~2-3 months) with the relevant awarding unit to review progress and key planning objectives.

The Center for Data Science for Enterprise and Society and the Cornell AI Initiative will help promote the Thought Summit via their websites, e-list, affiliated departments, and social media.

Post Thought Summit:

1. Provide a 2-page written evaluation of the Thought Summit within 2 weeks of the event.
2. Conduct a final meeting with the awarding unit for debrief within 2 weeks of the event.
3. The whitepaper is to be submitted within 2 months of the Thought Summit.

QUESTIONS?

For questions concerning your proposal, please visit the Frequently Asked Questions page.  If you have further questions contact info@thoughtsummits.cornell.edu