The College of Sciences is pleased to announce the launch of the AI4Science Center. The center will promote research and collaboration focused on using state-of-the-art artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) techniques to address complex scientific challenges.

“AI and ML have the potential to revolutionize scientific discovery, but there is a clear need for foundational research centered on AI/ML methodologies and application to scientific problems,” says Dimitrios Psaltis, professor in the School of Physics.

Psaltis will co-lead the center with Molei Tao, professor in the School of Mathematics, and Audrey Sederberg, assistant professor in the School of Psychology.

The new center will combine expertise and resources from various disciplines to foster the creation of robust, reusable tools and methods that can be used across scientific domains. Specifically, the center will organize seminars and an annual conference in addition to providing seed funding for collaborative projects across units. 

Nearly 40 faculty members from the College’s six schools have already agreed to participate in activities proposed by the center; additional faculty involvement is expected from across the Institute.

The center builds upon initiatives such as Tech AI, the Machine Learning Center, and the Institute for Data Engineering and Science, which seek to boost Georgia Tech’s leadership in cutting-edge, AI/ML-powered interdisciplinary research and education.

The College’s seed grant program will sponsor the center for three years, starting in fiscal year 2026. Created in 2024, this program funds new centers that seek to increase the College’s research impact and advance its strategic goal of excellence in research through a focus on novel interdisciplinary areas or discipline-specific topics of high impact. The AI4Science Center is the third initiative to be seeded by this program, following the funding of the Center for Sustainable and Decarbonized Critical Energy Mineral Solutions and the Center for Research and Education in Navigation in 2024.

“The AI4Science Center was selected for its approach, timeliness, organization, and strong support from all six of the College’s schools,” says Laura Cadonati, associate dean for Research and professor in the School of Physics. “Faculty enthusiasm about this initiative reflects the growing importance of AI/ML tools in research today and the desire for more interdisciplinary collaboration in this space at the College and beyond.”

From grocery bills to gas prices and the cost of new cars, Americans are feeling the ripple effects of an increasingly uncertain global economy. According to Georgia Tech experts, while headlines often focus on trade wars or interest rates, the underlying forces at play — and their long-term consequences — are more complex.

Recession Risks and the Current Economic Climate

Alex Hsu, a finance professor in the Scheller College of Business, suggests we may already be in a mild recession, even if it’s not yet officially declared. 

“Recession declarations are always made after the fact,” he explains. “A real-time clue? Look at crude oil prices — they’re down 15% this year, often signaling slowing economic activity.” That’s similar to the trend seen in the early months of the 2008 recession, when oil prices dropped sharply as demand weakened. Despite this, the labor market remains strong in certain sectors, creating a mixed economic picture that’s tough to navigate. 

“If you’re trying to get a sense of where the economy is going,” Hsu adds, “watch weekly jobless claims and energy prices — those are among the most timely indicators available.”

How Tariffs Are (and Aren’t) Affecting Prices

Tibor Besedeš, a professor in the School of Economics, likens tariffs to sales taxes — costs added at the border that can eventually be passed to consumers. 

“If a $20,000 imported car is hit with a 25% tariff, someone’s paying that $5,000,” he says. Besedeš warns that most tariffs imposed since early 2025 affect nearly all imported goods — cars, electronics, toys, and clothing. He cites past studies showing tariffs on Chinese goods were largely paid by U.S. consumers, and this time may be no different. “China has told its firms not to lower prices. So, we should expect prices here to rise.”

However, the recent agreement that began on May 14 between the U.S. and China on a new trade deal has offered a moment of relief. As part of the agreement, both countries will temporarily ease tariffs announced in April for 90 days, with China suspending its planned 34% tariff on U.S. goods, while maintaining a 10% tariff during the pause. Similarly, the United States will suspend its 34% reciprocal tariff while keeping a 10% tariff in place.

“It’s a welcome sign that hopefully trade tensions are subsiding and that after 90 days there will be a more permanent deal whereby the tariffs at least do not increase from these reduced levels,” Besedeš says. “It’s difficult to say anything more concrete but, overall, I take this as a positive sign that we may be stepping back from the brink of an all-out trade war and empty shelves in stores.”

Yet even with signs of progress, uncertainty lingers. Hsu, while cautiously optimistic, adds that “The 90-day pause only prolongs the trade instability. Although it is a good sign that the administration seems willing to negotiate, businesses are still in a holding pattern until a more definitive resolution is reached.”

The Bigger Picture: Global Alliances and Economic Protectionism

As countries reorient their trade relations in response to shifting U.S. policies, Besedeš warns that the long-term consequences could leave the U.S. isolated on the global stage. 

“Countries are starting to look for alternative trading partners," he says. “If the U.S. is not careful, it could lose its influence in global trade, leading to slower economic growth.” He suggests that the growing shift toward regional trade blocs and alternative alliances — such as the EU-China partnership — could erode U.S. competitiveness. 

Hsu concurs, noting that global economic shifts, coupled with increasing tariffs, could exacerbate the risks of a financial crisis. “Pay attention to the credit market,” he advises. “When liquidity dries up, it can cause the financial system to freeze, leading to contagion.” He notes that the Federal Reserve is closely monitoring these risks and still has a range of policy tools at its disposal to help stabilize the system in the event of a crisis.

The Road Ahead

As Americans navigate rising prices and economic uncertainty, these experts suggest focusing on fundamentals — energy prices, jobless claims, and the broader flow of trade and investment. Whether tariffs prove to be a temporary disruption or a lasting shift in global commerce, the trade policies of today are shaping the economic realities of tomorrow. And while the recent U.S.-China agreement marks a hopeful step, the full extent of its impact on consumers, businesses, and global relationships remains to be seen.

Thomasville, Georgia, is a hub of training and talent for local manufacturers. But Mason Miller could tell there was something missing.

“We didn't have any training for advanced manufacturing in our area,” said Miller, vice president of Academic Affairs at Southern Regional Technical College (SRTC), which offers education and training programs in technical and manufacturing fields. “Companies had to go out and recruit people from Michigan to run their machines. That's when we said, ‘We don’t want that to happen — we need to be doing that right here.’”

That’s where the Georgia Tech Manufacturing Institute (GTMI) stepped in. Working with partner program Georgia Artificial Intelligence in Manufacturing (Georgia AIM), GTMI helped connect SRTC with the resources and expertise needed to develop a robust training program tailored to the needs of local manufacturers.

Miller said at first, he was skeptical. “When GTMI said they wanted to be partners, I thought, ‘OK, this is another situation where we're going to talk for a minute, everybody says things and then goes away — and that’s it,’” said Miller. “That's not how it's been at all.”

Rather, it’s been a true partnership driven by SRTC, with curriculum focused on automation and robotics developed by the Technical College System of Georgia and GTMI. The curriculum is also shaped by local industry input to directly address workforce gaps in the region’s manufacturing sector. 

“As a state institution, we're here to serve you,” said Steven Sheffield, senior assistant director of Research Operations at GTMI and a point person of the partnership. “Tell us the problem, and we will work hard to try to solve it with you.”

Filling the Workforce Gap

Miller was committed to giving SRTC students the advanced manufacturing skills needed to stand out in the workforce. Yet the evolving manufacturing landscape and the needs of local manufacturers revealed gaps in SRTC’s curriculum, particularly in AI, automation, and robotics.

With GTMI and Georgia AIM researchers contributing key expertise to the expanded smart manufacturing curriculum, Miller noted the partnership is “opening our eyes to what we can do with AI. We're going to start integrating that into our programs.”

Beyond AI and robotics, SRTC leadership identified a crucial gap in their program: training in precision machining, a skill that local manufacturers like Check-Mate Industries sorely needed. 

“If we want to attract new business and industry to Georgia, we need to be able to show them we can provide a skilled workforce,” said Miller. 

To address this missing piece, GTMI and Georgia AIM helped procure funding to acquire and refurbish precision-machining equipment from longtime partner Makino. Georgia AIM also supported the renovation and outfitting of two SRTC lab spaces with additional updated equipment. 

Last fall, SRTC launched its new Precision Manufacturing & Engineering and Manufacturing Engineering Technology programs, with instructors trained by GTMI faculty in precision manufacturing. The new program at SRTC is one example of the ways GTMI experts are working with communities across the state to expand access to training and new technology.

“Not a lot of technical colleges have this type of machinery,” said Marvin Bannister, SRTC precision machining and manufacturing program chair. Instructors like Bannister received specialized training at GTMI’s Advanced Manufacturing Pilot Facility to ensure they felt confident teaching students how to operate the machinery. “Not only is it something else to add to my skill set, but the most important thing is that I'll be able to train other students who desire to learn on a machine like this.”

Because of SRTC’s expanded offerings, the technical college has strengthened partnerships and developed new internship programs with local manufacturers. “We all want the same thing,” said Miller, “which is to grow industry partnerships and to create a talent pipeline for our state.”

GTMI and Georgia AIM also support STEM programs with Thomasville area schools and internship programs for K-12 teachers with local manufacturers such as Check-Mate. These efforts deepen the connections between students and manufacturers, opening doors to future careers in the sector.

“We’re here to connect the dots and enable these types of partnerships,” says Steven Ferguson, a principal research scientist with GTMI and co-director of Georgia AIM. “When teams and their networks come together to solve a challenge for just one manufacturer, the impact can reach across an entire region.”

After Jasmine Foriest was robbed at gunpoint in her hometown of Columbus, Ga., she took note of how much information about the crime fell through the cracks of the ensuing police investigation.

She said the police officer who interviewed her was dismissive and neglected to write down details that Foriest found significant. The deficient police report was picked up by local media, which led to news stories that inaccurately described the crime and left out important information.

Foriest said she learned from the incident that incomplete information doesn’t mitigate violence. The perspectives and stories of people who experience violence are essential to reliable data.

The incident guided Foriest as she committed to research that gathers complete and accurate data on multiple types of violence, including violent injury and homicide, intimate partner violence, gender-based violence, and suicide.

Foriest earned a bachelor’s in health science from Columbus State University. She also holds two master’s degrees: one in public health from the University of Southern California, and another in technology leadership and management from Agnes Scott College.

In 2021, Foriest started her Ph.D. in human-centered computing at Georgia Tech to understand how technology influences violence.

“I look at all types of violence as an outcome of how technology affects communication,” she said. 

One thing she discovered was that even though technology can amplify victims’ voices, it is often used to silence them.

“The same social dynamics that keep people from disclosing their violent experiences to formal reporting sources offline also happen online,” she said.

Bringing the Cardiff Model to the U.S.

Before arriving at Tech, Foriest worked for eight years as an injury prevention coordinator at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta. She implemented a trauma recovery center and Atlanta’s first hospital-based violence intervention program.

While in that position, she worked with the Cardiff Model for Violence Prevention, a public health approach to violence prevention developed by researchers at Cardiff University in Wales.

The Cardiff model’s philosophy is that violence prevention is best achieved when the healthcare and law enforcement sectors combine geographical data to determine where violence occurs in a community. 

“The Cardiff model taught Wales there was a lot about violence they didn’t know from police data alone,” Foriest said. 

One example is that researchers learned an alarming number of hospital patients were brought in from local taverns. This finding informed policymakers to implement new regulations, such as changing licensing requirements and serving alcohol in toughened glasses or non-glass vessels so they can’t be used as weapons.

In 2011, the city of Cardiff reported a 42% reduction in hospital admissions for hospital injuries. It wasn’t long before the researchers in the U.S. began importing the Cardiff model. In 2018, it became an official policy of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 

The U.S. Department of Justice found in 2022 that 58% of violent crimes were not reported to law enforcement. Sixteen cities that make up the Cardiff Model for Violence Prevention National Networkare now gathering and mapping patient-reported violent injury data from hospitals to fill that data gap. 

Atlanta is one of the cities in that network, and Foriest has been an on-the-ground researcher collecting that data. Her work with the Cardiff model seamlessly integrated into her Ph.D. research as she sought ways to turn technology into a safe avenue of violence disclosure.

Working with Alex Godwin, a former Ph.D. student at Georgia Tech who is now an assistant professor at American University, she helped develop a user interface and mapping algorithm. The tool allows hospital patients who are violence victims to identify the location of the violent incident they experienced.

Foriest said, “Around the Covid-19 pandemic, we had challenges getting patients screened, and we thought we should explore different options.

“Our interface allows patients to tap down to the degree they’re comfortable on the geographic location where they were injured.

“It improved our ability to map data tremendously and decreased some of the risks patients face when disclosing violence.”

Foriest and Godwin's paper on the development of the interface tool earned an honorable mention for best paper at the 2025 Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI) in Yokohama, Japan.

Foriest also co-authored an award-winning paper at the 2024 Conference on Computer-Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW). That paper examined how social media often silences violence victims.

Foriest is also a fellow for Data Science and Innovation at the CDC, where she continues her work on the Cardiff model. She also examines how news media coverage of suicides can often reinforce stigmas about the causes of suicide in that role.

Thriving at Tech

Foriest is entering her fifth year as a Ph.D. student, but before she came to Tech, she had no computing experience. She applied to numerous Ph.D. programs but was eventually persuaded that technology could complement her public health expertise and her goal of preventing violence.

“Tech was the only place where I could gain a new skill set while doing the things that I wanted to do in research,” she said. 

“That felt like the best fit for me, where I would get the most out of my training. I was encouraged by faculty and my peers to recognize that my perspective is valuable, and I can speak from that place and bridge my knowledge with HCI concepts.”

In today’s world, the search for viable, climate-friendly energy sources is a major focus of scientific research. Eric Vogel, Hightower Professor in the School of Materials Science and Engineering and executive director of the Institute for Matter and Systems at Georgia Tech, is contributing to this effort through a $107 million project funded by the U.S. Department of Energy. The project, in collaboration with the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL), aims to make fusion energy a commercially viable option.

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Hyunsun Park, assistant professor of Organizational Behavior at the Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business, never expected to attend graduate school. In fact, she was determined to avoid it. Two years into her job as an equity analyst for Bloomberg, her initial plan to get out of school fast and make money grew stale.  

“It felt really hollow,” Park recalled. “All we talked about was how much money we were making or losing. There was no conversation about how people were feeling, how they were working together, or whether they were satisfied.” 

Despite the prestige and pay, she walked away to pursue more meaningful work. She enrolled in a master’s program, fell in love with the field of organizational behavior, and eventually committed to a Ph.D. Today, Park’s research works to understand people and organizations.  

What fascinated Park most wasn’t just the study of organizations; it was the people within them. She became fascinated by a simple question: Why don’t employees speak up when they see something going wrong? Park soon discovered that this deceptively simple question was deeply complex in practice.  

Her research led down a path of discovery that would shape her doctoral research. Park homed in on a concept known as employee voice — the act of speaking up with concerns, suggestions, or warnings. But she wasn’t interested in the obvious cases. She wanted to understand what happens when the threat isn’t clear. What happens when the warning signs are ambiguous, and the danger is uncertain? 

“In American culture, we value speaking up,” she said. “But in the workplace, it’s not that easy. People worry about how their managers will react. Will they look foolish? Will they be punished or even lose their job?” 

Her research, published in the "Journal of Applied Pyschology", revealed a troubling pattern. Employees are least likely to speak up when they face ambiguous threats. Through interviews, field studies, and experiments involving over 1,400 participants, Park found that cognitive overload and a deep-rooted reliance on managerial judgment often silenced employees. “When the signals are unclear, people freeze,” she explained. “They assume someone else — usually a manager — will figure it out.” 

One quote from her interviews stood out: 

“I noticed something was off with the readings, but I wasn’t sure if it was serious. I didn’t want to raise a false alarm, so I stayed quiet.” 

This hesitation, Park argues, can be dangerous. “These are the moments when employees should speak up the most,” Park explained. “They’re on the front lines. They notice things first. But ironically, this is when they’re least likely to say anything.” 

It turns out, managers are often just as confused by ambiguous signals. This creates a dangerous silence — one where early signs of trouble go unaddressed until it’s too late. In industries like chemical engineering or electronics — where she conducted many of her interviews — early warning signs can mean the difference between a minor issue and a major disaster. 

Park’s work doesn’t just diagnose the problem. She offers a path forward. She advocates for organizations to build a culture of “preoccupation with failure.” This is a mindset where employees are trained and encouraged to notice and speak up about potential issues, even when they’re not sure. Companies like Netflix, she noted, are already investing in training programs to help employees analyze early warning signs and feel confident raising concerns. 

Park hopes her research will empower employees to trust their instincts and speak up sooner. “Employees should realize the kind of power that they have, and they should feel free to challenge leadership and management and the decisions that are being made. Their voices are critical when they see signs of a problem.” 

Your voice matters, even when you’re not 100% certain. Park’s research shows that moments of ambiguity are when your voice is needed most.

Read More: Harvard Business Review

A team of researchers from Emory University and Georgia Tech, led by IBB researcher Wilbur Lam, have developed a groundbreaking, non-invasive way to screen and monitor anemia using just a smartphone photo of a fingernail. The AI-powered app analyzes the fingernail’s paleness to detect anemia with high accuracy instead of requiring a conventional blood test. The technology can be personalized for users with chronic anemia by incorporating their clinical hemoglobin levels to enhance precision. This approach makes anemia screening more accessible, particularly for underserved communities, and removes barriers to care. The team’s findings were recently published in PNAS, with Lam as the paper’s senior author.

Read the full press release here. 

Citation: Robert G. Mannino, Julie Sullivan, Jennifer K. Frediani, Wilbur A. Lam. “Real-world Implementation of a Noninvasive, AI-augmented, Anemia-screening Smartphone App and Personalization for Hemoglobin Level Self-monitoring,” PNAS. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2424677122