Schmidt Sciences Awards $1.95M Gift to Mount Sinai's Windreich Department of Artificial Intelligence and Human Health to Establish The Eric and Wendy Schmidt AI in Human Health Fellowship Program
The Windreich Department of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Human Health at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai announced a transformative $1.95 million gift from Schmidt Sciences to create The Eric and Wendy Schmidt AI in Human Health Fellowship Program. The gift will support an inaugural cohort of five fellows over a three-year fellowship.
By leveraging AI and machine learning to tackle the increasing volume of data in health care, The Eric and Wendy Schmidt AI in Human Health Fellows will play a pivotal role in advancing medical research. The program aims to attract exceptional talent in machine learning and applications in health care, fostering interdisciplinary collaborations and providing a platform for groundbreaking research.
"Artificial intelligence has the ability to transform society, and there is no place where it can be better harnessed or more impactful than at Mount Sinai. And I continue to be inspired by the significant contributions that Schmidt Sciences is making to advance the scientific community,” says Thomas J. Fuchs, Dr.sc., Dean for Artificial Intelligence and Human Health at Icahn Mount Sinai. “This gift aligns with our shared goal of attracting and developing the next generation of AI leaders to make a meaningful impact on scientific research and discovery, ultimately benefiting patients everywhere."
The fellows will serve as instructors at Icahn Mount Sinai, focusing on specific projects while collaborating with Mount Sinai's internationally renowned faculty. The fellows will also benefit from the Department's commitment to creating an "intelligent fabric" that integrates machine learning and AI-driven decision-making throughout the Mount Sinai Health System, facilitating breakthroughs in disease prevention, treatment, and quality of life.
The Eric and Wendy Schmidt AI in Human Health Fellowship Program seeks to accelerate AI research at Mount Sinai by cultivating a consistent influx of talented junior and senior faculty. Strengthened by strategic alliances with institutions such as Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Cornell Tech, and other prominent universities, Mount Sinai is poised to enhance its ability to attract top-tier talent.
“AI has tremendous potential to change the process of scientific discovery and revolutionize health care. The Eric and Wendy Schmidt AI in Human Health Fellowship Program aligns with our core mission at Schmidt Sciences to find the ideas, people, and techniques across disciplines of science and technology to catalyze results for society,” says Stu Feldman, Schmidt Sciences President and Chief Scientist. “It is a privilege to work with Mount Sinai on this initiative to enhance the AI knowledge of fresh thinkers and enable them to apply new technical approaches to medical care. I hope this new program can achieve real breakthroughs to benefit patients everywhere.”
About Mount Sinai's Windreich Department of AI and Human Health
Mount Sinai's Windreich Department of AI and Human Health, the first such department in a U.S. medical school, is committed to advancing and optimizing artificial intelligence and human health.
Chaired by Thomas J. Fuchs, Dr.sc., the department is dedicated to harnessing the power of leading-edge tools to revolutionize scientific research and discovery. This commitment is realized through the creation of an "intelligent fabric," seamlessly integrating machine learning and AI-driven decision-making throughout Mount Sinai’s entire health system. It includes the distinguished Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, serving as a central hub for innovative learning. This integration facilitates robust partnerships spanning all research institutes, academic departments, hospitals, and outpatient centers. Through this strategic approach, the Department is accelerating progress in disease prevention, treating severe illnesses, and enhancing overall quality of life for all.
About the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai is internationally renowned for its outstanding research, educational, and clinical care programs. It is the sole academic partner for the eight- member hospitals* of the Mount Sinai Health System, one of the largest academic health systems in the United States, providing care to a large and diverse patient population.
Ranked 13th nationwide in National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding and among the 99th percentile in research dollars per investigator according to the Association of American Medical Colleges, Icahn Mount Sinai has a talented, productive, and successful faculty. More than 3,000 full-time scientists, educators, and clinicians work within and across 44 academic departments and 36 multidisciplinary institutes, a structure that facilitates tremendous collaboration and synergy. Our emphasis on translational research and therapeutics is evident in such diverse areas as genomics/big data, virology, neuroscience, cardiology, geriatrics, as well as gastrointestinal and liver diseases.
Icahn Mount Sinai offers highly competitive MD, PhD, and Master’s degree programs, with current enrollment of approximately 1,300 students. It has the largest graduate medical education program in the country, with more than 2,000 clinical residents and fellows training throughout the Health System. In addition, more than 550 postdoctoral research fellows are in training within the Health System.
A culture of innovation and discovery permeates every Icahn Mount Sinai program. Mount Sinai’s technology transfer office, one of the largest in the country, partners with faculty and trainees to pursue optimal commercialization of intellectual property to ensure that Mount Sinai discoveries and innovations translate into healthcare products and services that benefit the public.
Icahn Mount Sinai’s commitment to breakthrough science and clinical care is enhanced by academic affiliations that supplement and complement the School’s programs.
Through the Mount Sinai Innovation Partners (MSIP), the Health System facilitates the real-world application and commercialization of medical breakthroughs made at Mount Sinai. Additionally, MSIP develops research partnerships with industry leaders such as Merck & Co., AstraZeneca, Novo Nordisk, and others.
The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai is located in New York City on the border between the Upper East Side and East Harlem, and classroom teaching takes place on a campus facing Central Park. Icahn Mount Sinai’s location offers many opportunities to interact with and care for diverse communities. Learning extends well beyond the borders of our physical campus, to the eight hospitals of the Mount Sinai Health System, our academic affiliates, and globally.
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* Mount Sinai Health System member hospitals: The Mount Sinai Hospital; Mount Sinai Beth Israel; Mount Sinai Brooklyn; Mount Sinai Morningside; Mount Sinai Queens; Mount Sinai South Nassau; Mount Sinai West; and New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai.
About the Mount Sinai Health System
Mount Sinai Health System is one of the largest academic medical systems in the New York metro area, with 48,000 employees working across eight hospitals, more than 400 outpatient practices, more than 600 research and clinical labs, a school of nursing, and a leading school of medicine and graduate education. Mount Sinai advances health for all people, everywhere, by taking on the most complex health care challenges of our time—discovering and applying new scientific learning and knowledge; developing safer, more effective treatments; educating the next generation of medical leaders and innovators; and supporting local communities by delivering high-quality care to all who need it.
Through the integration of its hospitals, labs, and schools, Mount Sinai offers comprehensive health care solutions from birth through geriatrics, leveraging innovative approaches such as artificial intelligence and informatics while keeping patients’ medical and emotional needs at the center of all treatment. The Health System includes approximately 9,000 primary and specialty care physicians and 11 free-standing joint-venture centers throughout the five boroughs of New York City, Westchester, Long Island, and Florida. Hospitals within the System are consistently ranked by Newsweek’s® “The World’s Best Smart Hospitals, Best in State Hospitals, World Best Hospitals and Best Specialty Hospitals” and by U.S. News & World Report's® “Best Hospitals” and “Best Children’s Hospitals.” The Mount Sinai Hospital is on the U.S. News & World Report® “Best Hospitals” Honor Roll for 2024-2025.
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