Artificial intelligence, by the University of Bordeaux – AI by UBx

AI by UBx is a proposal of the University of Bordeaux built conjointly with the center Inria Bordeaux-Aquitaine to accelerate the ongoing development of Bordeaux as an AI reference center thanks to a proactive policy to attract national and international talents in innovative Ph.D tracks. The overall objective of the University of Bordeaux is to double the number of Ph.D graduating in AI by 2025. This relies on a three-fold approach: 1) increasing Ph.D financing opportunities (including public and industrial funding), 2) attracting new profiles by granting them access to a high-end multidisciplinary environment of research, innovation and entrepreneurship, 3) strengthening international partnerships with leading universities sharing the same vision of AI for Good.
Why Bordeaux? Though being relatively discrete, Bordeaux is today a key digital innovation hub in France and in Europe, and home of a vibrant digital ecosystem. Birthplace of a swarm of 29 strong innovative AI start-ups coordinated and propelled by the Smart4D and HealthTIC clusters, Bordeaux hosts a larger community of AI innovators than other 3IA hubs such as Toulouse, Grenoble and Nice, as revealed by a 2019 BPI France cartography of AI start-ups. A strong innovator itself, the University of Bordeaux is producing, together with national research institutions embedded on its campus (namely Inria, CNRS, Inserm, Inra or CEA) and industrial partners, original research underpinning innovation. The University of Bordeaux is ranked 24th in Reuters’ 100 most innovative European universities (2019), thus reaching 5th place among the leading French universities. From the launch of its AI strategy in 2017, 39 key industrial players have joined the dynamics of the University of Bordeaux, covering all the sectors targeted by the French Plan for AI (Plan Villani). This includes Huawei and Betclic, 16 partnerships for health, including Maincare, Roche, Sanofi, Canon, IPSEN, IQVIA, CEVA santé animale; 3 partnerships for transportation, including large manufacturers such as PSA and Michelin; 4 partnerships addressing security and defense needs with Thales, Dassault, Ariane Group and Safran Tech; 5 partnerships addressing environmental issues with mid-size companies and policy-makers such as Bordeaux Metropole. A regional research and innovation network is also currently on build under the Conseil Regional de Nouvelle-Aquitaine impulsion and Inria coordination.
AI by UBx is supported by a group of 40+ local researchers involved in the dynamics and covering a large range of disciplines from computer sciences and mathematics, to physics, medical sciences, epidemiology, neurosciences, economics or political sciences.
This proposal is presented by the University Bordeaux and will be operated by its Graduate Research School (Collège des Écoles Doctorales), that is a component entirely focusing on supervising doctoral studies and graduating an average of 500 Ph.D per year, over 8 specialty doctoral schools.
This proposal is targeting the financing of 15 full Ph.D grants, which corresponds to a quarter of the set objective to increase the volume of Ph.D students in AI for the duration of the program (5 years). The University of Bordeaux is organizing the RoboCup 2020 (the major international competition in robotics) in June in Bordeaux, and will capitalize on its leverage effect to increase the impact of the program and reinforce the attraction of students.