News

Kick off the new school year with VALIANT Attempt and get hands-on with NFC technology! Join us on Wednesday, September 16 at 11:30 a.m. in the FGH Study Lounge, located across from the auditorium, for a DIY NFC Tag Workshop. During this interactive workshop, participants will learn how… Read More

  August 2026 Friends, 1,930 snacks, 1,015 cans of soda, 2,800 cups of coffee, and—with the heat dome—a record 768 bottles of water: those were the final totals for this year’s AI Summer School. Our 35 distinguished lecturers and 20 AI coaches and assistant coaches… Read More

July 2026 Friends, One of my favorite parts of directing VALIANT is the conversations. Over the past year, I’ve spoken with faculty, students, clinicians, entrepreneurs, and industry partners from across Vanderbilt and beyond. No matter the discipline, many of those conversations eventually arrive at the same question:… Read More

AISS26 is back with its signature mix of keynote presentations, expert lectures, lightning talks, and hands-on workshops. New this year, the program will also feature a THRIVE-TN workshop on NAIRR resources and research infrastructure. Join us for a dynamic week of learning, collaboration, and professional development for participants across a… Read More

June 2026 Friends, Summer brings a different rhythm to campus. While many of our colleagues are traveling, presenting new work, or taking a well-earned break, it also offers a welcome opportunity to lean into our passions, explore new ideas, and invest in projects that are difficult to… Read More

May 2026 Friends, Happy second birthday, VALIANT! This month, we celebrate two years of shared discovery. From AI Summer School to Discover AI, and through the more than three-score seminars, workshops, BrainHacks, student gatherings, and celebrations in between, VALIANT has grown into a vibrant community of people who are… Read More

April 2026 Friends, Last Friday, we had the opportunity to #DiscoverAItogether with the VALIANT community including curious minds from six universities and 43 companies. Our centerpoint VALIANT PITCH session at Discover AI 2026 delivered exactly what we hoped for and more: a fast-moving, high-energy showcase of ideas… Read More

VALIANT Deeper Dive Seminar We invite you to join us for an engaging seminar with Mingxing (Ethan) Rao, a Ph.D. student in Computer Science at Vanderbilt University, whose research explores generative models, AI security, and data privacy. In this talk, Targeting Model Inversion from Generative Models, Ethan will examine how sensitive… Read More

We invite Vanderbilt faculty and graduate students to join us on Monday, April 27th from 1:30–2:30 PM (CST) in Featheringill Hall, Room 129 for an engaging seminar featuring Dr. Irvin Teh (University of Leeds). In his talk, “Diffusion MRI in the Heart – Challenges and Opportunities,” Dr. Teh will highlight recent advances in… Read More

March 2026 Friends, First… a breaking March Madness update from the VALIANT Attempt: VALIANT and VISE faced off in a kickball game organized by VALIANT Attempt and Women of VISE. Fourth year PhD student Michael “The Barefoot Bandit” Kim kicked a home run in the 5 inning leading… Read More