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CMU Research: Work That Matters
Person using eyetracking technology as they look at a screen.

Delivering what’s next.

 

Carnegie Mellon University is where researchers, scholars and artists come together to build new tools and work across disciplines to make sure technology serves society and fuels economic opportunity. From improving health outcomes and enhancing education, to strengthening national security and advancing trustworthy artificial intelligence, our work makes life better for people everywhere. We ask bold questions, solve complex problems and make real change.

Innovation At Work

198

Spin-Offs Created*

$7B+

Investment Raised After Launch

1165

Patents Issued*

*Since 2004

What if all communities were future-ready?

Securing a Healthier, More Resilient World

CMU researchers are working to safeguard lives, secure our future and strengthen national resilience. That means we save lives, help systems adapt in the face of disruption, and engineer life-saving medical breakthroughs. We protect community health, strengthen security and privacy, empower U.S. manufacturing and make streets safer. Whether leveraging energy expertise through AI or preparing for the next global emergency, our work supports a safer, more sustainable future.

CMU students and professor wearing gloves and labcoats in a chemistry lab.

Artificial lung technology could help save lives on the battlefield and beyond

Multiple scans of a brain.

A minimally invasive deep brain stimulation method could offer a safer way to treat depression, PTSD and addiction

Image of a car with a group of people in the background.

Pilot transportation program connects people in rural communities to jobs, healthcare and essential services

A drone flying through a wildfire.

Autonomous aircraft give firefighters better tools to fight wildfires

CMU researchers are uncovering how learning shapes the cerebral cortex. 

These discoveries lay the groundwork for breakthroughs like reversing age-related dementia and reigniting lifelong learning.

What if every worker was trained for an AI world?

Reimagining the Future of Work, Education and Human Potential

Whether it’s immersive workforce training or AI-powered classrooms, CMU is shaping a future where workforce development, learning science, and human-computer interaction elevate human potential. We’re not just improving learning; we’re strengthening the workforce and supporting economic growth.

Worker using an iPad to monitor equipment and machinery.

Energy sector workers need AI skills to meet job demands

Two people in welding suits and masks, welding at a workbench.

New training tools make it faster and easier to build skills

Three people working in a common space on laptops.

Communities can adapt and thrive if they understand how AI is changing jobs

Building blocks on an interactive table in front of a screen with a gorilla.

Kindergarten through fourth graders get individualized feedback on their experiments from intelligent science stations

Medical professionals attending to a person on a stretcher.

What if curiosity powered national progress?

Advancing Discovery, Robotics, AI and Innovation

We expand the frontiers of AI, new materials and the future of robotics, to tackle humanity’s biggest challenges, drive economic opportunity and improve lives.

Person using assistive technology to play cards.

New assistive technologies are helping people with disabilities live more independently

Microphone covered with fuzzy earmuffs.

Smarter privacy protections are protecting audio privacy

Image of soldiers with a digital overlay.

SEI and DOD center to strengthen national security by ensuring trustworthy AI systems

Student in a CMU lecture.

CMU and Google Public Sector partner to accelerate AI research with extensive GPT cloud deployment

Lights projected against the wall of a cave, with the silhouettes of many people.

What if technology was guided by ethics and the human spirit?

Creating Meaning in the Digital Age

CMU leads with both research and creative practice to guide innovation with intention. Our artists, humanists and technologists work together to explore what it means to live in a digital world through ethical inquiry, inclusive design and expressive technologies that improve the human experience.

Scenes from the deepfake personalization screens.

CMU and MIT join forces to combat deepfake threats, protecting accuracy in news, elections and public life

Woman wearing glasses with a digital overlay.

Ethically designed AI systems keep technology centered on human wellbeing

Four people gathered around a display, surrounded by a moonscape.

The Moonshot Museum is launching future leaders into the growing space economy

Two people wearing smart glasses, interacting with a table using controllers.

The interdisciplinary IDeATe program empowers students to blend technology, design and the arts to launch new creative careers

CMU researchers view AI as a powerful tool to improve decision-making, while working to address its risks like bias and lack of transparency.

Their mission is to develop AI responsibly, ensuring it drives fair and equitable outcomes that reach and uplift communities.