Google.org, the tech giant’s philanthropic arm, has announced a landmark $20 million funding initiative to support researchers and scientists using artificial intelligence (AI) to drive transformative scientific breakthroughs. The initiative, unveiled by Google DeepMind co-founder and CEO Demis Hassabis at the AI for Science Forum in London, aims to catalyze collaborative efforts between the private and public sectors to accelerate scientific progress.
The funding, which also includes $2 million in cloud credits, will be directed towards academic and non-profit institutions worldwide that are leveraging AI to tackle complex, interdisciplinary challenges. Fields such as rare disease research, experimental biology, materials science, and sustainability are among the areas of focus, as researchers seek to harness the power of AI to uncover new insights and solutions.
I believe artificial intelligence will help scientists and researchers achieve some of the greatest breakthroughs of our time,” said Hassabis. “We hope the launch of our $20 million fund will help encourage further collaboration between the private and public sectors, kick-start renewed excitement for the power of AI and science, and inspire others to join us in funding this important work.”
The initiative comes amid a broader push by tech giants to forge closer ties with innovative startups and academic institutions, often through funding, partnerships, and talent acquisition. However, this latest move by Google.org stands out as a non-equity-based approach, signaling the company’s commitment to empowering the scientific community without the strings typically attached to corporate investment.
Maggie Johnson, Google VP and global head of Google.org, emphasized the organization’s focus on enabling researchers to tackle “increasingly complex problems at the intersections of different disciplines of science.” The selected projects are expected to receive substantial funding, with plans to support no more than 15 organizations by 2026.
This announcement builds on Google’s recent AI-related milestones, including DeepMind co-founder Hassabis being awarded a knighthood for his contributions to the field, and the company’s AlphaFold project sharing the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for its groundbreaking work in protein structure prediction.
By investing in the next generation of AI-driven scientific breakthroughs, Google.org aims to position itself as a driving force behind the convergence of cutting-edge technology and transformative discoveries that will shape the future of scientific research.
