The BMO Lab for Creative Research in the Arts, Performance, Emerging Technologies and AI will stage high-profile events, lead a public conversation about the role of cutting-edge technology in society and train a new generation of tech-savvy leaders
With its largest-ever gift to a single Canadian institution, BMO Financial Group is investing $5 million to explore the potential of artificial intelligence and other revolutionary technologies in a novel way. The BMO Lab for Creative Research in the Arts, Performance, Emerging Technologies and AI, an initiative of the University of Toronto's Centre for Drama, Theatre & Performance Studies, will harness the latest technological developments to create new forms of human expression.
Through multidisciplinary work and performances, the BMO Lab will engage the public in critical conversations about the changing role of technology in our lives. Students who participate in the BMO Lab will gain a deep understanding of how to use AI and other emerging technologies to answer challenges facing governments and businesses today.
"AI is rapidly changing how we work, create and live," said U of T President Meric Gertler. "Thanks to this visionary gift from BMO Financial Group, the BMO Lab will bring together researchers and students from across the university to explore the potential for AI and other advanced technologies to enable creativity in human expression. At the same time, it will empower a new generation of leaders to apply this technology in solving problems and addressing new challenges."
Based at the Faculty of Arts & Science, the BMO Lab will build on U of T's strengths in the arts and humanities, and on the university's leading role in the development of artificial intelligence. Through its innovative teaching and unique performances, the BMO Lab will engage with advanced research at the Vector Institute for Artificial Intelligence and complement the Schwartz Reisman Institute for Technology and Society's mission to address the social and ethical implications of AI and other emerging technologies.
