Global minds, AI tools, real‑world impact: Imperial’s new Global Faculty Fellows

Eight scientists from around the world have arrived at Imperial to explore how AI can accelerate solutions to global challenges.

The Global Faculty Fellowship is founded on a simple idea: that artificial intelligence can accelerate discovery when it is placed in the hands of exceptional scientists working on practical problems. Professor Nick Jones Director of the Global Faculty Fellowship and the I‑X Centre for AI in Science

Their research expertise spans from tiger conservation in India to flash-flood prediction models for Malaysia and from improving pharmaceutical formulations in Ghana to controlling infectious diseases in Brazil. The Global Faculty Fellows, based at Imperial’s I-X Centre for AI in Science, will use Artificial Intelligence (AI) to develop their impactful research.

The Eric and Wendy Schmidt AI in Science Global Faculty Fellowship, supported by Schmidt Sciences, aims to strengthen collaboration between Imperial and its partner institutes to solve complex international challenges through advancement in science and technology research.

The fellows will engage in an intensive programme at the interdisciplinary I-X Centre located at our White City Campus, designed to equip them with advanced knowledge and practical skills for applying AI to their research.

Professor Nick Jones, Director of the Global Faculty Fellowship and the I‑X Centre for AI in Science, said: “The Global Faculty Fellowship is founded on a simple idea: that artificial intelligence can accelerate discovery when it is placed in the hands of exceptional scientists working on practical problems. By bringing outstanding scientists from partner institutions to Imperial, we’re creating a collaborative environment where AI skills, domain expertise and new ideas can cross‑pollinate. Just as importantly, when fellows return home, they take with them the capability to build lasting AI‑enabled research communities, ensuring the impact of this programme extends far beyond Imperial and far into the future.”

Meet the I-X Global Faculty Fellows

Anubhab Khan

Hailing from the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru, Anubhab studies genetic variation in wildlife populations to inform best conservation practices for endangered species in the Indian subcontinent. During his fellowship, he aims to combine the analytical power of machine learning with genomic studies to find links between physical features, genetic diversity and fitness of wild tiger populations. The new insights from his study aim to offer a cost-effective monitoring tool for Tiger Conservation.

Anjana Badrinarayanan

With nearly a decade of experience at the National Centre for Biological Studies (NCBS) in Bengaluru, India, Anjana has built a career as an expert in cellular DNA damage and repair mechanisms. During this fellowship, she is interested in exploring how these DNA-modifying processes have evolved in viruses and bacteria by utilising AI-based modelling and genomic data analysis. Her research has the potential to lead to innovative therapies for infections and advancements in genome engineering.

Daniela Damasceno

As a technology professor at the Polytechnic School, University of São Paulo, Brazil, Daniela is an expert in nanomaterials and nanostructures. As a fellow, she will be leveraging advances in physics-informed machine learning to refine AI-driven simulation workflows for designing high-efficiency fuel cells. Her research not only aims to transform fuel cell technology but also promises significant advancements in materials science, nanotechnology and energy systems.

Lucas Medeiros

With a research career spanning studying the physics of X-ray spectroscopy and chemistry of molecular behaviours for applications in pharmaceuticals, Lucas’s work at Instituto de Física da USP, Brazil, touches multiple areas of science and technology. Adding AI to his skills through this fellowship, Lucas aims to develop robust Machine Learning systems to predict specific properties of molecules based on X-ray spectroscopy data. With improved computational models, his research has the potential to reduce reliance on expensive and time-consuming experiments in the field.

Mariana Severo Ramundo

As a faculty member at the University of São Paulo, Mariana’s expertise lies at the intersection of fundamental molecular biology and clinical studies of viral diseases. She aims to harness AI to combine and analyse clinical and molecular biology data for Arbovirus‑related illnesses such as Chikungunya and Dengue during her tenure as a fellow. By utilising  AI’s ability to process large and complex data, Mariana seeks to uncover patterns that deepen our understanding of disease progression and ultimately improve the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of these debilitating infections.

Ofosua-Adi Dako

With 17 years of research expertise in the design and development of pharmaceutical drugs, Ofosua is a senior lecturer at the University of Ghana. As a Global Faculty Fellow, she will apply advanced AI and machine‑learning techniques to predict the stability and solubility of drug molecules, helping to optimise their formulations. The outcomes of her research are expected to support the pharmaceutical sector in developing more efficient, cost‑effective therapies, providing an important contribution toward achieving global sustainable development goals.

Rodrigo Malavazi Corder

An expert in developing mathematical models for controlling infectious diseases, Rodrigo is an assistant professor at the University of São Paulo’s Department of Parasitology. Rodrigo’s research aims to reduce the spread of malaria by analysing genomic sequences of malarial parasites using generative AI and neural networks. Insights from this research could support the development of more effective vaccines and inform strategies involving genetically-modified mosquitoes designed to resist malarial infection.

Uswah Binti Khairuddin

As the Head of the Mechanical Precision Engineering Department at the University Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), Uswah brings extensive expertise in developing AI models across sectors ranging from agriculture to advanced object detection. During her fellowship at Imperial, she is focusing on developing AI-driven flash flood prediction models to address the growing challenge posed by extreme climate events in Malaysia. By integrating meteorological, geographical, and historical data, her work aims to enable real-time flood risk assessment and support more accurate, timely weather forecasting. 

The Global Faculty Fellowship

The Global Faculty Fellows are based at Imperial for the first year of their fellowship. Here, in addition to comprehensive AI training and career development support, they will gain peer-to-peer learning through in-house courses, workshops, technical talks and tutorials designed to foster skill development and the sharing of best practices.

In the second year of their fellowship, the fellows will return to their home institutes and continue their focused research, free from teaching responsibilities made possible through the generous grant support. The knowledge and experience gained during their first year at Imperial will support fellows to establish a robust foundation to lead capacity-building for AI in Science in their home institutes.

This fellowship aims not only to advance the individual careers of scientists but also to establish a robust network for knowledge exchange that promotes scientific and technological research worldwide, with a specific emphasis on the select global partner institutions working with I-X and the Global Development Lab.

Find out more about the Global Faculty fellows and their journeys by following I-X on LinkedIn and Imperial Global on LinkedIn: Imperial Global Ghana, Imperial Global India, Imperial Global Singapore and Imperial Global USA.