Frontiers of Computing
In 2022 USC launched the Frontiers of Computing initiative, a $1 billion-plus investment to consolidate USC’s leadership role in advanced research in artificial intelligence, machine learning and data science with ethics at its core.
The initiative includes a new School of Advanced Computing within the Viterbi School of Engineering that will spur research and innovation in artificial intelligence and machine learning, data science, quantum information, and other advanced technologies. The initiative also includes expanding USC’s footprint in Silicon Beach, part of L.A. County’s growing tech corridor, and enhancing educational opportunities in ethical computing for students across the university.
AI Research
USC is third in the nation in total federal funding for computing and information sciences according to the last Higher Education Research and Development survey of the National Science Foundation.
USC has been a leader in AI research for decades, spanning basic research to technology transition and commercialization. In the Computer Science Department, AI researchers led the way in AI ethics by publishing the first book on this topic (“Robot Ethics” in 2011), social robotics for vulnerable populations, and pushing the envelope on fairness and bias of AI algorithms and models. Two major institutes are well-renowned for their AI research, with combined research expenditures of over $100M. USC’s Information Sciences Institute is well known for its pioneering contributions to natural language, computational social science, and knowledge graphs, with successful spinoff companies including machine translation (sold for $42M) and sports analytics (sold for $200M). USC’s Institute for Creative Technologies has led the way in virtual agents, emotion architectures, and conversational AI.
AI and Industry
USC has had numerous technology spinoffs in AI and related areas, including multi-million dollar companies in natural language, robotics, and data science. USC also collaborates closely with industry in AI initiatives including the USC + Amazon Center on Secure and Trusted Machine Learning, the USC + Meta Center for Research and Education in AI and Learning, and the USC Center for Autonomy and AI with Toyota and Siemens. USC leads the $15M NSF Innovation-CORPS Hub for the West Region (one of five hubs in the US), and two NSF-funded Industry-University Cooperative Research Centers.
AI and Society
“Artificial Intelligence (AI) at USC has transcended its long-standing home in computer science and engineering, and has spread across USC’s 22 schools spanning the sciences, arts, media, health, education, and business. Noteworthy cross-disciplinary activities in AI at USC include the Center for AI in Society (joint between the engineering and the social work schools); the new Center for Generative AI and Society (joint between engineering, cinematic arts, communication and journalism, and education), and the Neely Center for Ethical Leadership and Decision Making (joint between the engineering, business, and public policy schools).
Workforce and AI Education
USC awards the most computer science degrees in the US, with 1,386 degrees conferred in 2021, with programs that cover various aspects of AI in the curriculum. The engineering curriculum has been overhauled to become the first to incorporate data science and machine learning for all undergraduate and graduate students since 2022. USC’s #1 ranked Distance Education Network (DEN) offers the #1 ranked Online Graduate Computer Information Technology Programs (computer science), and is preferred by half of the underrepresented minority students in many engineering degrees.
In addition, USC is pioneering multidisciplinary AI education. In 2023, USC launched the first undergraduate degree in Artificial Intelligence and Business. Over 800 undergraduates take a second major or a minor in Data Science, in Applied Analytics, and in AI Applications. Interdisciplinary data science programs joint across schools were the first in their field, including Spatial Data Science (2015), Communication Data Science (2016), Healthcare Data Science (2017), Public Policy Data Science (2018), Environmental Data Science (2019), and soon Economics Data Science (2024) and Applied Sports and Data Science (2024).
USC runs numerous outreach programs for students from community colleges and minority-serving institutions, and awards $315M annually in need-based fellowships. USC brings in over 1,300 transfer students per year, 47% from community colleges, the largest among private universities surpassing most by two orders of magnitude.