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_{Dean Amitabh Varshney of UMCP’s College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences demonstrates the HoloCamera, a VR training project, to state officials, Nvidia representatives, and University of Maryland leaders Provost Jennifer King Rice and President Darryll J. Pines on Tuesday. Photo credit: Mark Sherwood}

Published on UM-IHC website | June 11, 2025

Artificial intelligence (AI), quantum science and emerging technologies developed at the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP) can help solve major societal challenges for the people of the state and the world, according to a range of leaders who gathered for a discussion on UMCP’s College Park campus on June 10, 2025.

Among the guests were Lt. Gov. Aruna Miller, state Secretary of Higher Education Sanjay Rai, Deputy Secretary of Labor Jason Perkins-Cohen and representatives from global tech company Nvidia, a leader in AI-related hardware and software.

“It’s going to take partnership: It’s going to take the federal government, the private sector … and our educational institutions to really elevate the future, not just in Maryland, but globally,” Miller said. 

Speakers included University of Maryland Institute for Health Computing (UM-IHC) Co-Executive Director Adam Porter, a professor of computer science at UMCP. Porter shared UM-IHC’s twin missions of using advanced computing to improve well-being and quality of life, diminish disease, and enhance outcomes for all people across Maryland and beyond; and building and supporting the health, biotech and life sciences innovation ecosystem in Montgomery County. He also shared with the guests ongoing research projects focused on UM-IHC’s six technical competence centers: applied AI, immersive visualization, bioinformatics, population health, real-world evidence and adaptive clinical trials, and therapeutic drug discovery.

In addition to discussing how technology research and development can help solve the world’s most pressing issues and drive economic development for the state, the group toured the HoloCamera studio. One of UM-IHC’s immersive visualization research projects, this advanced camera system enables futuristic teaching and learning methods and has been used by physician assistant students at the University of Maryland, Baltimore. Researchers used the system’s 300 imaging devices to create virtual reality training scenarios depicting treatment that students can “step into” and view the procedure from all angles. The National Science Foundation-funded project is led by Amitabh Varshney, dean of UMCP’s College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences and a professor of computer science.

“The University of Maryland has been a leader in AI for over 50 years,” Varshney said at the event Tuesday. “Current NVIDIA graduate fellows at UMD are working to develop AI systems capable of expert-level audio understanding and reasoning and creating generative models for images and videos to augment human creativity. There is so much innovation going on here in quantum and AI, and we are well-positioned to continue leading in these fields thanks to the intense focus on higher education by Gov. Moore and Lt. Gov. Miller.”

UMCP President Darryll J. Pines told the group that when it comes to AI research and education, “We are ‘all in’ across the entire campus and looking to advance the state’s interests so nobody is left behind.”

UMCP Senior Vice President and Provost Jennifer King Rice’s remarks emphasized the importance of partnerships and shared values between higher education and industry when it comes to emerging technologies, from creating societal impact to developing a strong workforce that knows how to use the technologies effectively, responsibly and ethically.

View more photos from Tuesday’s event here: