The Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR) is a Canadian-based global research organization founded in 1982. It supports collaborative research across disciplines, connecting over 400 researchers from more than 140 institutions in 21 countries. CIFAR is known for its role in advancing Artificial intelligence research, particularly through its Learning in Machines & Brains program, and for administering Canada's Pan-Canadian Artificial Intelligence Strategy.
History
CIFAR was founded in 1982 following the vision of John Leyerle, a professor of English at the University of Toronto, who began advocating for an advanced studies institute in 1978. Fraser Mustard, a physician and researcher in early childhood development, became the founding president in January 1982. The institute's early work included influential research on population health; a 1994 publication argued that socio-economic status was the most influential determinant of health, leading to the adoption of the term "population health" by Canadian government agencies.
In 2004, Geoffrey Hinton began leading CIFAR's Neural Computation & Adaptive Perception program, which included researchers such as Yoshua Bengio and Yann LeCun. This program was instrumental in validating the power of Neural networks and contributed to the foundations of modern Deep learning. In 2019, the Association for Computing Machinery awarded Hinton, Bengio, and LeCun the 2018 ACM A.M. Turing Award for their breakthroughs in deep neural networks.
Operations
CIFAR is governed by a Board of Directors, with the President and CEO reporting directly to the Chair. As of November 2022, Stephen Toope serves as President and CEO, with Irfhan Rawji as Chair and Jacqueline Koerner and Anne McLellan as co-vice chairs. The organization receives funding from governments, partnerships, private sector contributions, and investment income. Its annual budget in 2018 was approximately $30 million. In 2017, the Government of Canada tasked CIFAR with developing and leading the Pan-Canadian Artificial Intelligence Strategy, which received $125 million in initial funding. In 2022, a second phase was announced with up to $208 million in federal support over ten years.
Research Programs
As of 2023, CIFAR supports 15 major multidisciplinary research programs, including Bio-inspired Solar Energy (established 2014), Brain, Mind & Consciousness (2014), Child & Brain Development (2003), Earth 4D: Subsurface Science & Exploration (2019), Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities (2019), Future Flourishing (2023), Gravity & the Extreme Universe (1986), Humanity's Urban Future (2023), Humans & the Microbiome (2014), Innovation, Equity & the Future of Prosperity (2019), Learning in Machines & Brains (2004), The Multiscale Human (2023), Quantum Information Science (2002), and Quantum Materials (1987).
Past programs include Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (1983-1995), Population Health (1983-2003), Evolutionary Biology (1986-2007), Economic Growth and Policy (1991-2002), and several others that have closed over the decades.
Impact and Notable People
CIFAR has been led by several notable presidents: Fraser Mustard (1982-1996), J. Stefan Dupré (1996-2000), Chaviva Hošek (2001-2012), Alan Bernstein (2012-2022), and Stephen Toope (2022-present). Since its inception, 23 Nobel laureates have been associated with CIFAR, including Geoffrey Hinton, Daniel Kahneman, and Art McDonald. The organization's research has influenced fields from health policy to Machine learning, and its AI programs have helped shape Canada's position in the global Artificial intelligence landscape.
See Also
- Canadian government scientific research organizations
- Canadian university scientific research organizations
- Canadian industrial research and development organizations