The University of Louisiana at Lafayette (UL Lafayette) offered the nation’s first master’s degree in computer science in 1959. Between 2012 and 2023, UL Lafayette led the Center for Visual and Decision Informatics (CVDI), the first National Science Foundation (NSF) Center in Louisiana’s history and NSF’s first industry-university center in data science. The university has focused on leveraging these assets and expertise for the past two years to develop the Center for Applied AI (CAAI) as the nation’s next center of excellence.

The Center for Applied AI (CAAI) is dedicated to pursuing use-driven AI research, training an AI-ready workforce, and creating a platform to accelerate innovation to support the local economy. The center serves as a hub where AI researchers, domain experts from diverse disciplines, industry specialists, and community stakeholders come together to address real-world challenges.

Center Initiatives

• Learn more about the AI4HealthOutcomes Initiative.

• Learn more about the Accessible Healthcare through AI-Augmented Decisions (AHeAD) Center - A Proposed National Science Foundation Industry-University Cooperative Research Center.