On Oct. 19, students in the Accelerating Quantum-Enabled Technologies program hosted the first UW Public Lecture in Quantum Science and Engineering, featuring IBM Senior Vice President and Director of Research, Dario Gil. The College of Engineering and the College of Arts & Sciences also sponsored his lecture.
Gil discussed “what’s next in computing,” by highlighting the last 60 years in computing, and how now, with the intersection of information and biology, artificial intelligence advances and permeates through ever more applications affecting business and science. He said that powerful models are now emerging that evolve AI from discrimination to generation, enabling AI to create in new domains. These models are defining an inflection point in AI. The focus of his lecture was on the future of computing, combining physics and information to create quantum computing.
Gil’s entire lecture is available on the QuantumX YouTube channel.
Gil is responsible for IBM Research, one of the world’s largest and most influential corporate research labs. He directs innovation strategies in hybrid cloud, AI, semiconductors, quantum computing, and exploratory science. He also leads the technical community of IBM and is responsible for the company’s intellectual property strategy and business.
An advocate of collaborative research models, Gil co-chairs the MIT-IBM Watson AI Lab, which advances fundamental AI research for the benefit of industry and society. He also co-chairs the Executive Board of the International Science Reserve, a global network of open scientific communities that provides specialized resources to prepare for and help mitigate urgent, complex global challenges.
Gil has served on the U.S. President’s Council of Science and Technology (PCAST) and is a member of the National Science Board (NSB), which oversees the National Science Foundation (NSF). He also serves on the President’s Research Council of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR), MIT School of Engineering Dean’s Advisory Council, and the Aspen Global Cybersecurity Group.
He is on the boards of the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA), the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), New York Academy of Sciences, New York Hall of Science, and Research!America.
Gil received his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from MIT.