ELLIS is a pan-European network of excellence dedicated to basic research, technical innovation and the societal impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI). ELLIS Fellows and Scholars are appointed through a highly competitive peer review process in which an international selection committee evaluates candidates on the basis of their scientific excellence. The new ELLIS Scholars are computer science professors Georgia Chalvatzaki, Anna Rohrbach and Justus Thies, as well as Professor Marcus Rohrbach as a new ELLIS Fellow.

In the RAI project, all four new ELLIS network members are researching the development of a new generation of AI systems based on the rational use of resources, data protection and continuous improvement. With four research areas, multidisciplinary teams are working on shaping the future of AI. Over the past decade, deep learning has enabled significant advances in artificial intelligence. Nevertheless, current AI systems have weaknesses, including a lack of logical reasoning, difficulties in dealing with new situations and the need for continuous adaptation. Last but not least, current AI systems require extensive resources. The Cluster of Excellence project therefore aims to develop the next generation of AI, “Reasonable Artificial Intelligence”.

ELLIS Unit at TU Darmstadt

ELLIS Fellows are high-calibre researchers who are advancing the field of learning and intelligent systems, creating a community and giving a voice to machine learning and AI. ELLIS Scholars are outstanding early career researchers, often assistant professors, who have not quite reached the professional seniority of a Fellow, but are well on their way there.

One unit of the ELLIS network is based at TU Darmstadt and is headed by computer science professor and ELLIS Fellow Stefan Roth. In addition, computer science professors Iryna Gurevych, Jan Peters and Kristian Kersting have already been appointed ELLIS Fellows.

ELLIS researchers are closely involved in the RAI research project, which has submitted a full application for the Cluster of Excellence funding line as part of the Excellence Strategy of the German federal and state governments.

TU Darmstadt is represented in the Excellence Strategy competition with a total of three project outlines. In addition to RAI, these are “The Adaptive Mind” (TAM) from the field of cognitive sciences and “CoM2Life” on communicating biomaterials. The applications are currently being assessed. The funding decision on the future Clusters of Excellence will be made in May 2025.

I+I/cst