Robert J. Harrison, the founding director of theInstitute for Advanced Computational Science(IACS) and a professor in the Department of Applied Mathematics and Statistics, has been appointed as the interim executive director of New York State’s Empire AI Consortium. Announced by Gov. Kathy Hochul in early October, this appointment positions Harrison at the forefront of efforts to leverage artificial intelligence (AI) for addressing critical societal challenges, such as climate change, healthcare disparities and sustainable energy.