From ride-share apps and virtual personal assistants to automated banking and drug discovery, artificial intelligence (AI) is changing our world.
And Memorial University is at the forefront of AI-related research, according to new data released today (Dec 5) by Research Infosource.
Among Canada universities with medical schools, Memorial leads the country as part of a five-year university spotlight of AI publications from 2018-22.
Memorial ranks No. 1 for AI publications as a percentage of its total university publications, with 4.2 per cent.
Research Infosource says its information is based on a retrieval strategy dedicated to AI developed by Quebec-based Observatoire des sciences et des technologies (Clarivate Analytics - Web of Science) that includes a combination of journals and extensive keywords related to AI.
Harnessing the power
"It is rewarding to see Memorial recognized as part of this special spotlight," said Dr. Tana Allen, vice-president (research). "This placement emphasizes our university's keen interest to enhance our reputation as a leader for critical AI-related research across disciplines.
"Working with our many partners, Memorial is helping create new insight, lead discoveries and train future scientists and innovators in this important field," she continued.
National leadership
For the 14th year in a row, Memorial also ranks among Canada's top 20 research universities.
In its latest rankings, Research Infosource says Memorial ranks No. 19 with $142,847,000 in university-sponsored research income reported for fiscal year 2022-23.
It is a decrease of 18.7 per cent from fiscal year 2021-22, when Research Infosource indicated Memorial's sponsored research income was $175,792,000 and Memorial ranked No. 17.
According to Research Infosource, when it comes to corporate research income as a percentage of total research income, Memorial leads all Canadian universities with medical schools with 30.1 per cent in fiscal year 2023.
Corporate research income refers to the funding that Memorial researchers receive from industry and the private sector to support their research programs.
Additionally, Memorial places No. 2 among universities with medical schools for not-for-profit research income growth from fiscal year 2021-22 to fiscal year 2022-23, with an increase of 61.9 per cent.
'Well positioned'
Dr. Allen says Memorial's entire research community shares in this year's accomplishments.
"The ongoing contributions of our talented researchers and administrative staff, combined with many industry collaborators, ensures Memorial is well-positioned to respond to challenges facing our world," she said. "As accentuated in our new Research Strategy, Memorial looks to grow our diverse research activities. I look forward to even more positive rankings in the future."
Ron Freedman, CEO, Research Infosource, praised Memorial for demonstrating high levels of research achievement.
"Memorial is tops in Canada in engaging the private sector in research (corporate research income as a percentage of total research income) and second in the country in growing its support from the non-profit sector (not-for-profit research income growth)," he said. "Notably, Memorial is highly focused first in its tier (medical) on the emerging field of artificial intelligence (artificial intelligence publications as a percentage of total university publications). Altogether, fiscal 2023 was a great year for research at Memorial."
Canada's Top 50 Research Universities is published in conjunction with Canada's Innovation Leaders 2024.
The complete top 50 ranking and analysis, plus additional rankings, editorial content and more, is available online.
With more than 300 program options, Memorial is one of Atlantic Canada's largest universities, offering degree programs at the undergraduate, master's and doctoral levels.
Learn more about research at Memorial and check out Research Strategy 2023-28 to learn how we're moving ideas forward.
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