Welcome to the February edition of the APRIL AI Hub newsletter!
In Pillar 1, we are excited to explore how materials science, AI, and electronics intersect. By adapting machine learning techniques from chemical discovery, we have identified promising material compositions for electronic devices, accelerating materials discovery. This interdisciplinary approach bridges materials science and AI, opening up new opportunities to make electronics development more efficient and innovative.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Opportunity Alert: We’re Hiring!
|
|
Are you passionate about AI and Electronics? Check out new opportunities to join our research and operations team below:
Pillar 3
📍 Research Associate in AI for Circuits and Systems Design Automation
Pillar 4
📍 Research Fellow in AI for Electronics Testing & Verification Automation
📍 Research Associate in AI for Electronics Testing & Verification Automation
Operations Team
📍 APRIL AI Hub Administrator
Why join us?
Be part of ground-breaking projects.
Collaborate with leading experts in AI and electronics.
Grow your career while contributing to transformative technologies.
Don’t miss out on these opportunities to make a real impact!
|
|
|
|
|
Materials for AI, AI for Materials Conference
|
|
At the recent Nature Conference on Materials for AI, AI for Materials in Daejeon, Republic of Korea, Dr Ben Rowlinson from Pillar 1, presented his poster Bandgap Prediction of 2D Materials using Gradient-Boosted Feature Selection. Ben represented the APRIL AI Hub by showcasing how cutting-edge Machine Learning (ML) models are pivotal in predicting electronic properties with remarkable efficiency.
|
|
|
 |
Dr Ben Rowlinson and his prize-winning poster
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Here’s what Ben had to say:
‘Having so many presentations from world-leading researchers in academia and industry was illuminating, giving us all a broad range of insights into this vibrant area of research. Topics included neuromorphic and quantum computing for faster and more efficient data processing, AI tools for materials discovery and design, and self-driving experimental laboratories combining AI, material science, and robotics.’
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
A year of the snake-inspired prize
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
‘I was also honoured to be awarded one of the top posters at the event! Thank you to the judges and editors. Our work highlights the importance of feature selection in producing lightweight, chemistry-informed predictive models for 2D material properties.’ Well done, Ben!
|
|
|
|
|
Undergraduate Opportunity: Google DeepMind Research Ready Internships!
|
|
The APRIL AI Hub at the University of Edinburgh is appointing Undergraduate Interns (in their penultimate or final year, or graduated) for 8 weeks starting on the 2nd of June 2025 funded by Google DeepMind Research Ready. This new scheme supports UK universities to deliver research placements that provide undergraduate students from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds and under represented groups within engineering with research experience in artificial intelligence (AI), giving them the tools and opportunities to excel in the field of AI research. Interns will be responsible for working on a project within the APRIL AI Hub with a research focus, assisting with data analysis, process improvement, and report findings. The successful candidates will have a background in Computer Science or Engineering, demonstrate strong analytical and problem-solving skills, and be capable of independent work.
The application deadline is on 25th of February 2025.
|
|
|
|
|
Greener Gatherings Conference
|
|
|
|
The APRIL events team attended the Greener Gatherings Conference to explore strategies for making future APRIL events more sustainable. The programme featured a range of expert speakers, panels on innovative topics, and networking opportunities with event professionals from across the University.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Our key takeaways from the conference were:
-
Focus on progress not perfection; rather than striving for complete sustainability success immediately, let’s encourage and celebrate every small steps.
-
Articulate specific goals and changes we want to achieve rather than using general statements like ‘being more sustainable’. For example, at our next event, let’s commit to reducing single-use plastics.
-
Every event is a powerful opportunity to shape and inspire a sustainable future.
|
|
|
|
|
Digital Research Conference
|
|
 |
Dr Santhosh Sivasubramani
|
|
|
This inaugural event brought together researchers and professional staff engaged in digital, data-intensive, and computational research across various disciplines. The conference aimed to promote best practices, inspire collaboration, and stimulate discussions on emerging trends and innovative methodologies in digital research. The insights gained are not only relevant but also essential for the advancement of our projects at the APRIL AI Hub. I am confident that the implementation of the proposed initiatives will lead to significant improvements in our modelling capabilities and help accelerate the maturation of new semiconductor technologies.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The APRIL team attended a data management workshop delivered by Dr. Simon Smith, Research Data Support Officer at the University of Edinburgh. The workshop covered essential principles of managing research data effectively, such as data organisation, secure storage, or data sharing. These insights will help our team improve the way we handle data, enhance collaboration and ensure compliance with research data standards.
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
Before joining APRIL, Joydeep worked as a VLSI design verification engineer at Micron technology India. Before that he worked as a researcher at national university of Singapore, and IIT Bombay India. Joydeep obtained his PhD degree from technical university of Vienna Austria. His work focuses on electronic transport simulations, CMOS device and circuit simulations, HEMT device simulations, and investigating different applications of ML in electronics. He holds a postgraduate degree from technical university of Chemnitz Germany, and an undergraduate degree in Electrical Engineering from Jadavpur university India. Joydeep has also worked as a software developer at IBM India. In his free time, he enjoys playing musical instruments, hiking in the Highlands.
|
|
 |
|
|
A strong advocate that the hole is as important as the doughnut around it, Alexandros enjoys exploring the interplay of structure and function by employing topology, geometry, and machine learning methods to discover novel materials, understand complex dynamical systems, and efficiently produce accurate physical models and simulations. Prior to joining the APRIL AI Hub, he has been a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the University of Edinburgh's RAD group, mapping and navigating the configuration space of colloidal nanoparticles. Alexandros has also applied topological methods to spatial transcriptomics as a Visiting Researcher at University of Fribourg's AIDOs Lab (ex-Helmholtz Munich), and has developed efficient geometry-driven SDF visualization methods during his internship at Adobe Research Paris. He received his Ph.D. and M.Sc. in Computer Science & Informatics from the University of Edinburgh, where he developed geometry and topology-informed approximation methods for learning, coarsening, and sampling. He obtained his undergraduate degree in Electronic & Computer Engineering from the Polytechnic University of Crete. Outside of research, Alex enjoys playing and obsessively consuming music, building effect pedals, and getting tapped at BJJ.
|
|
|
|
|
Join our Lunch and Learns!
|
|
|
|
Join us online every fortnight for our Friday afternoon Lunch and Learn sessions. Each 45-minute session is hosted by a different guest speaker who will share insights into exciting and emerging areas of research in Electronics and Artificial Intelligence.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Discover new topics and engage in lively discussions with experts from diverse fields.
Sign up on Eventbrite today! Or to be invited to all future sessions, fill in this form.
|
|
|
|
|
Guess the Caption Competition…
|
|
When the APRIL team aren’t hard at work, we are finding new ways to express our creativity! We shared this magnificent photo from our Summit and invited everyone to come up with the perfect caption. Dr Vihar Georgiev, our Pillar 5 Lead, has kindly selected his top picks, and we’re sharing them below in order of his preference — big thanks to Vihar, Santhosh and Chandrabhan, and the rest of the team for playing along!
|
|
|
|
|
|
