Google launched a $20 million fund for AI science. What's next?

Google.org announced a $20 million fund at the inaugural AI for Science Forum to support academic and nonprofit organizations that use AI for scientific breakthroughs across disciplines.

The charitable arm of the Mountain View tech giant said in a recent announcement that it will collaborate with internal AI teams and external experts to select beneficiaries and provide $2 million in Google Cloud Credits and technical expertise.

This initiative is built on the success of projects like AlphaFold, which advanced protein structure prediction and medical research. “Fields such as rare and neglected disease research, experimental biology, materials science and sustainability all show promise,” the company says.

Google has been heavily involved in how AI drives scientific breakthroughs across disciplines. The company is listed beside Microsoft among companies that have spent the most electricity energy to power their data center for AI training and cloud, consuming 24 TWh in electricity throughout the entire 2023.

At the inaugural AI for Science Forum, senior VP James Manyika also mentioned other achievements, like AlphaMissense categorizing DNA variants, contributions to the human pangenome project, and advanced brain mapping.

“The excitement around AI and science is not because of a belief that AI is a replacement for scientists, but because many confounding problems in science benefit from the use of computational techniques — thus making AI a powerful tool to assist scientists,” he says.

He also pointed out advancements in climate modeling with NeuralGCM and GraphCast, along with progress in quantum computing and climate adaptation efforts.