The SkAI Institute Mission
The mission of the NSF-Simons AI Institute for the Sky (SkAI Institute) is to unleash the discovery potential of revolutionary sky surveys and solve fundamental and emerging multiscale problems at the forefront of astrophysics and foundational AI. This mission is being achieved through the following values:
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- Innovation: Leveraging and advancing AI capabilities to harness and advance astronomy data, simulations, and experiments.
- Collaboration: Fostering interdisciplinary teams to support collaboration across the SkAI Network and foster emerging leaders in research, teaching, and art.
- Broadening participation: Broadening participation in various fields represented in the Institute through education and mentoring programs.
- Sustainability: Aims to contribute to the long-term impact on astronomy, AI, and other communities by cultivating open-source community software, datasets, and educational training materials and, ultimately, by fostering emerging talent for the future workforce.
NCSA, CAPS Power Dark Energy Survey’s Most Comprehensive Expansion History Analysis
The Dark Energy Survey (DES) recently published results that combine all six years of data collected from weak lensing and galaxy clustering probes – a first for the international collaboration that is mapping hundreds of millions of galaxies, detecting thousands of supernovae and analyzing patterns of cosmic structure that could reveal what is accelerating the expansion of the universe. Read More
Image credit: Rubin Observatory/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/Hernan Stockebrand
The Need for Cutting-Edge AI Models to Maximize Scientific Return
The NSF-DOE Vera Rubin Observatory and other major surveys will need cutting-edge AI models to maximize scientific return. At SkAI, we are building those models and working with groups like the Dark Energy Science Collaboration to deploy them on Rubin data. Read more about Opportunities in AI/ML for the Rubin LSST Dark Energy Science Collaboration.
News
A Decade of Curiosity: Ten Years of Astronomy on Tap
Note: Charles Gammie is a SkAI Affiliate Member, Joaquin Vieira is Co-Chair of SkAI Pillar 3...
2026 SIAM Prize Awarded to William S. Moses
Note: Billy Moses is a SkAI Senior Personnel Original URL:...
Rubin Alerts & AI Hackathon: April 1–3, 2026
Rubin started streaming alerts on February 24. The firehose is open. Now is the moment to build the tools we need—and we want to do it together.
Join us at the SkAI Institute for a hands-on hackathon developing AI pipelines for the Rubin alert stream while it’s still ramping up. Think of it as a working sprint: real data, real problems, real collaborators in the room.
Mission and Vision
Learn about the SkAI Institute’s mission and its vision regarding the nexus of astronomy and AI.
Upcoming Events
All events take place at the SkAI Hub in the historic John Hancock building (unless otherwise indicated). There are a number of different types of events people may participate in (e.g., weekly seminars, colloquia, and journal club events).
Get Involved
There are a number of ways to get involved at the SkAI Institute. Learn more about how you may get involved.
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Learn More About the National Artificial Intelligence Research Institutes
The NSF AI Institutes Virtual Organization is a nexus for the 29 national AI institutes.
Lead Institutions of the SkAI Institute
SkAI's Funding Partners
Funding Partners
The SkAI Institute is one of the National Artificial Intelligence Research Institutes funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation and Simons Foundation.
SkAI Institute
875 N. Michigan Ave., Suite 3500
Chicago, IL 60611
skai-institute@u.northwestern.edu
(Get to the SkAI Hub via the 172 E. Chestnut St. entrance)
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