New Horizons in Science: The Helmholtz Foundation Model Initiative
The Helmholtz Association has launched the pioneering Helmholtz Foundation Model Initiative (HFMI) with a budget of 23 million euros. This initiative supports four pilot projects that tackle major scientific challenges in the fields of medicine, climate research, and materials science. Twelve Helmholtz Centers are pooling their resources to develop innovative solutions using Artificial Intelligence. Researchers from Helmholtz Information are taking a leading role in two of these key projects.
SOL-AI: Accelerating Photovoltaic Development Through AI
The SOL-AI project, a collaboration between Helmholtz Information and Helmholtz Energy led by Prof. Dr. Stefan Sandfeld from Forschungszentrum Jülich, is designed to demonstrate the potential of interdisciplinary collaboration for photovoltaics. By using advanced AI models that analyze and integrate large data sets, SOL-AI aims to achieve a revolutionary acceleration in the development of more efficient solar cells. These technologies are expected to lead to important discoveries of new materials and enhance production processes, with the goal of reducing costs and increasing both the efficiency and lifespan of solar cells.
Participating Helmholtz Centers: Jülich Research Center (Coordinator), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Helmholtz Center Berlin for Materials and Energy, Helmholtz Center Hereon.
HClimRep: High-Precision Climate Models Through Advanced AI
Coordinated by Prof. Dr. Martin Schultz from Forschungszentrum Jülich, HClimRep aims to enhance the accuracy of climate models through the use of advanced AI technologies. By integrating data from the atmosphere, ocean, and sea ice into sophisticated learning algorithms, the project is designed to enable in-depth forecasts and analyses of climate change. A comprehensive deep-learning model, trained on Europe’s first exascale computer, will perform complex simulations and modeling tasks, offering new insights into climatic processes.
Participating Helmholtz Centers: Jülich Research Center (Coordinator), Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Center for Polar and Marine Research, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Helmholtz Center Hereon.
Future Perspectives and Open-Source Commitment
The Helmholtz Foundation Model Initiative (HFMI) is committed not only to advancing scientific progress through interdisciplinary research but also to revolutionizing access to research results by making them available as open source. This groundbreaking policy of open science promotes global scientific dialogue and accelerates innovation. With the use of advanced AI technologies and through intensive collaboration across research domains, the Helmholtz Centers are breaking down traditional scientific barriers and making significant advances. In doing so, they not only make a crucial contribution to the global scientific community but also redefine the role of Artificial Intelligence in modern research.
The original press release can be found at:
Helmholtz invests 23 million in research on AI foundation models (Helmholtz Association)
New AI Foundation Models for Science (Forschungszentrum Jülich)
Further Information:
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Contact:
Prof. Dr. Stefan Sandfeld
Institute for Advanced Simulation (IAS)
Materials Data Science and Informatics (IAS-9)
Forschungszentrum Jülich
Phone: +49 241/927803-11
E-Mail: s.sandfeld@fz-juelich.de
Prof. Dr. Martin Schultz
Institute for Advanced Simulation (IAS)
Jülich Supercomputing Centre (JSC)
Forschungszentrum Jülich
Phone: +49 2461 61-96870
E-Mail: m.schultz@fz-juelich.de
