Hariri Institute 2025 Focused Research Programs

The Hariri Institute for Computing’s Focused Research Programs (FRPs) support intensive, faculty-driven efforts in large, multi-disciplinary teams. The FRP mission is to evolve and advance Boston University’s research in computing, computational, and data-driven science and engineering around areas of strategic importance and emerging opportunity.

The Institute awarded five 2025 Focused Research Program awards that aim to solve complex problems in healthcare, natural disasters, high performance computing, and autonomous self-driving labs for accelerating scientific discovery.

2025 Focused Research Programs

AI for Understanding Earthquakes
Sponsor: Hariri Institute for Computing

  • Goal: This FRP aims to apply artificial intelligence (AI) to improve our understanding of earthquakes, including exploring optimal deep learning architectures for seismic data; investigating use of video-surveillance infrastructure as an alternative to costly Earthquake Early Warning (EEW) systems; and employing machine learning to advance our understanding of earthquakes.
  • FRP Leader: Brian Kulis, Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering, ENG, and Computer Science, CAS, and CDS

Privacy Preserving Energy Analytics for Data Centers
Co-sponsors: Hariri Institute for Computing and the Center for Reliable Information Systems & Cyber Security (RISCS)

  • Goal: This FRP aims to demonstrate, for the first time, that large-scale computer systems will achieve cost reduction and energy efficiency improvements via a novel privacy-preserving, collaborative, and scalable analytics and optimization framework.
  • FRP Leaders:
    • Ayse Coskun, Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering, Systems Engineering, ENG
    • Adam Smith, Professor, Computer Science, CAS, and Electrical and Computer Engineering, ENG
    • Ajay Joshi, Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering, ENG

From Self-Driving Labs to Community-Driven Labs
Sponsor: Hariri Institute for Computing

  • Goal: This FRP aims to develop the digital infrastructure and basic science to transform Self-Driving Labs (SDLs) into community-driven laboratories.
  • FRP Leader: Keith Brown, Associate Professor, Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science & Engineering, ENG, and Physics, CAS

    Enhancing Models for Breast Cancer Risk Prediction and Bias Mitigation through Clinician AI Collaboration
    Co-sponsors: the Digital Health Initiative at the Hariri Institute for Computing, the School of Public Health Population Health Data Science Program, the Clinical and Translational Science Institute, and the Evans Center for Interdisciplinary Biomedical Research.

    • Goal:  This FRP aims to identify the hidden sources of biological and demographic biases of artificial intelligence (AI) in breast cancer risk prediction based on mammography images.
    • FRP Leaders:

      Multimodal Transformer Architectures for Neuropathology Study of Alzheimer’s Disease
      Co-sponsors: the Digital Health Initiative at the Hariri Institute for Computing, the School of Public Health Population Health Data Science Program, the Clinical and Translational Science Institute, and the Evans Center for Interdisciplinary Biomedical Research.

      • Goal: This FRP aims to improve premortem diagnosis of neuropathologic processes underlying cognitive impairment (mild cognitive impairment and dementia) utilizing a machine learning approach.
      • FRP Leaders: 
        • Xin Zhang, PhD, Distinguished Professor, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical & Computer Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, ENG
        • Chad Farris, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor, Radiology, MED, Section Chief of Neuroradiology

      Hariri Institute FRPs are designed to facilitate research convergence by providing ‘scaffolding’ for groups to coalesce in sustainable ways, with the goal of accelerating research for future funding and broader impact. Learn more about the Institute FRP program here.