Foundation models, defined as deep learning (DL) models trained on extensive collections of unlabeled data and capable of adapting to various tasks with minimal fine-tuning, have emerged as pivotal tools for driving scientific discovery in different research fields (e.g. Molecular chemistry, Bioinformatics). These models address very well the common limitations of experimental scientific data, such as the scarcity of annotated data and the presence of data noise. The importance of Foundation models lies in their ability to process and analyse vast amounts of structured and unstructured data, uncovering hidden patterns that can lead to new scientific hypotheses and discoveries. Moreover, the universal approach of these tools facilitates knowledge transfer across diverse scientific fields.

We are excited to announce the second Advanced School in Applied ML at ICTP, which will be focused on "Foundation Models for Scientific Discovery". The school will take place in Trieste, Italy from July 10 to July 18, 2025. This intensive, interdisciplinary advanced school is designed for early-career researchers and PhD students eager to explore the transformative potential of foundation models in driving scientific discovery. It aims to bridge the gap between theoretical deep learning concepts and the application of foundation models to cutting-edge scientific problems. There will be a special focus on scalability, sustainability, and advanced HPC methods for optimizing deep learning pipelines.

 

Lecturers from top-ranked research centers/universities and big tech companies (e.g. IBM, Nvidia) will cover the following key topics:

 

 

Each topic will be complemented by the necessary tools to create efficient, scalable, and portable ML pipelines that exploit the capabilities of modern HPC infrastructures. 
 

30 participants will be selected with attention to creating a cohort with balanced representation of countries (particularly, least developed countries), gender and under-represented groups. 

 

This school will be the second activity in the field of applied Machine Learning co-organised by the brand-new ICOMP (link: https://www.ictp.it/home/consortium-scientific-computing). This initiative, co-organized by ICTP alongside SISSA/TSDS, IBM and AREA, marks the first training activity co-sponsored under the ICTP-IBM partnership.

Research abstracts: In the application form, all applicants are requested to submit a brief research abstract for a poster presentation. A limited number of abstracts will be selected for the poster session. Please use ICTP templates available for download here and below under 'Material'.

Grants: A limited number of grants are available to support the attendance of selected participants, with priority given to participants from developing countries. There is no registration fee.

 

The ICTP-IBM AI Prize for Young Scientists Ceremony will be held on 10 July 2025.
For more information on the ceremony and winners, please visit: https://www.ictp.it/prize/ictp-ibm-ai-prize-young-scientists

The following activity to be held from 3 to 10 July 2025 may also be of interest for you: 6th Youth in High-Dimensions: Recent Progress in Machine Learning, High-Dimensional Statistics and Inference & How creative is Generative AI? Perspectives from Science and Philosophy