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With a focus on advancing state-of-the-art artificial intelligence tools and methods while emphasizing AI responsible development, the University of Toronto and LG Electronics have renewed their multimillion-dollar collaborative research agreement for five more years. 

Under the renewed agreement, U of T and the global maker of TVs, home appliances, and beyond will build on their existing work in fundamental AI training methods, autonomous driving, health care, materials discovery and robotics. 

The new research will also delve into questions such as how to embed trustworthiness and ethics into AI frameworks and how to engineer responsible systems. 

“We are proud of the transformative impact of our partnership and we are excited to celebrate its renewal for the next five years,” said U of T President Meric Gertler at a recent event in Seoul, noting that South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol visited U of T last year to learn more about AI research from luminaries such as Emeritus Geoffrey Hinton.

President Gertler added that the partnership “has proved to be an amazing sandbox for innovation, collaboration and experimentation.” 

U of T and LG first began working together in 2018, expanding their partnership the following year. The collaboration has fostered a mutually beneficial environment for innovation that so far involves 31 projects, 16 U of T professors and two of the university’s three campuses.

“With the strong partnership we have with the University of Toronto, we are one step closer to bringing changes to our customers’ lives with AI technologies,” said Kim Byoung-hoon, chief technology officer and executive vice-president of LG Electronics. “LG will continue to collaborate with research institutes and industry innovators to solidify its leadership in AI to develop more efficient, safe and reliable solutions for our customers. 

“Our continued partnership with the University of Toronto is a testament to the power of collaborative intelligence in shaping a better future for all.”

President Gertler said LG “reaches people around the globe” from its headquarters in Seoul. “So, for our scientists and engineers, collaborating with LG means making a difference in the daily lives of billions of people.” 

LG opened its Toronto AI Lab the same year it began working with the university. Supported by investment attraction agencies Invest Ontario and Toronto Global, the lab has served as a local window into LG’s global research and development priorities – including those involving U of T researchers.

For LG, the partnership with U of T gives its researchers opportunities to collaborate with world-class experts across a range of fields and to receive mentorship via an AI Specialist Program – a sort of “inverted” internship.

“In supporting our LG partnership over the last several years, I’ve been continually impressed at the open-minded way in which LG has embraced the true spirit of collaboration,” said Alex Mihailidis, U of T’s associate vice-president of international partnerships. 

“The projects have leveraged both technical know-how and deep subject matter expertise to truly take research beyond just the research lab.”