crackmitacsAll disciplines

Computer Science

772 Mitacs Globalink (GRI) research projects for Summer 2027 — page 1 of 4.

1. 3D Computer Graphics for Modeling and Generating 2D/3D Content with Applications in Visual Effects and Video Games

Research in 3D computer graphics, 3D objects acquisition and creation, as well as numerical geometry is ongoing in the Multimedia Lab at ÉTS. The topic of 3D modeling from images remains difficult. The project will investigate the use of generative methods, such as transformer-based diffusion models, to help in modeling 2D and 3D content such as textures and 3D objects. The project might also include the topic of 3D Gaussian splatting together with diffusion models toward modeling from images. The intern is expected to work on state-of-the-art approaches that generate and process 2D and 3D content. The intern will likely read state-of-the-art scientific papers and implement some of the algorithms found in these papers, with the help of the project team members. Equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) are values cherished by the research team. EDI is considered at every stage of the research process, including recruitment, and accommodations can be set in place to improve EDI. The intern will work in the Multimedia Lab of the École de technologie supérieure (ÉTS), Montreal, Canada. The intern could have access to a desk and a workstation with the required software for the internship. ÉTS is located in the heart of Montreal. It is easily accessible by public transportation and is walking distance to downtown Montreal.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Eric Paquette conducts research in Computer Graphics, and on the specific topics of 3D reconstruction from images, 3D Gaussian splatting (3DGS), deep neural networks applied to computer graphics, animation, geometry processing, texture synthesis, and simulation of natural phenomena.

Student roles:
The student will be involved in working together with master’s and PhD students by testing, designing, and/or implementing state-of-the-art Computer Graphics algorithms. The project will likely involve analyzing and improving current computer graphics code bases. Most of the code will be in either C++ or Python. The project might also involve some use of 3D software such as Blender or SideFX Houdini. It is expected that the intern will learn some of these technologies while doing his internship.

Skills required:
The ideal student enjoys mathematics, linear algebra, and programming in either C++ or Python. Knowledge in Computer Graphics and Deep Neural Networks (DNN) are assets. Experience with Blender (or other similar software), with 3D APIs such as OpenGL and Direct3D could be useful, but are not necessary. Knowledge of OpenCV and undergraduate course in image processing, computer vision, and DNN are assets.

While I have project descriptions in both English and French, the knowledge of French is not necessary for the internship.

2. A Comparative Evaluation of Classical and Quantum Approaches for Hyperparameter Optimization

Hyperparameter tuning is a critical step in developing effective machine learning models, but it can be computationally expensive, especially when the search space is large and model training is time-consuming. Traditional approaches such as grid search, random search, Bayesian optimization, and evolutionary algorithms are widely used, but they may require substantial computational resources. This project explores the potential of quantum computing and hybrid quantum-classical optimization techniques for hyperparameter tuning in machine learning. The student will investigate quantum-inspired optimization, quantum annealing concepts, and variational quantum algorithms that may be applied to hyperparameter search problems. The research will compare classical optimization methods with quantum or quantum-inspired approaches using benchmark machine learning datasets and selected predictive modelling tasks. The project will involve formulating hyperparameter tuning as an optimization problem, implementing classical baseline methods, experimenting with quantum-inspired or hybrid optimization algorithms, and evaluating their performance in terms of accuracy, computational cost, convergence behaviour, and scalability. Depending on available tools, the project may use quantum simulators or cloud-accessible quantum computing platforms. Expected outcomes include a comparative evaluation of classical and quantum-based hyperparameter optimization methods, practical insights into when quantum-inspired methods may be beneficial, and recommendations for applying quantum optimization techniques in machine learning workflows. The project is suitable for students interested in artificial intelligence, optimization, and emerging quantum computing applications.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: This research area focuses on the intersection of Quantum Computing, Artificial Intelligence, and Optimization. The project investigates how quantum-inspired and hybrid quantum-classical optimization techniques can support hyperparameter tuning for machine learning models. The broader goal is to explore whether emerging quantum optimization methods can reduce search complexity, improve model performance, and provide efficient alternatives to traditional hyperparameter optimization approaches such as grid search, random search, Bayesian optimization, and evolutionary algorithms.

Student roles:
The student will work as a research intern on a project exploring quantum and hybrid quantum-classical approaches for hyperparameter optimization in machine learning. Their role will include reviewing relevant literature on hyperparameter tuning, classical optimization methods, quantum-inspired optimization, and hybrid quantum-classical algorithms.

The student will help design experimental workflows, prepare benchmark datasets, implement machine learning models, and compare different hyperparameter optimization techniques. They will implement classical baseline methods such as grid search, random search, Bayesian optimization, or evolutionary algorithms, and then explore quantum-inspired or hybrid optimization approaches using available simulation tools or quantum computing frameworks.

The student will run experiments, collect performance results, analyze convergence behaviour, and evaluate trade-offs between predictive accuracy, computational cost, and search efficiency. They will also prepare visualizations, document experimental findings, and contribute to research reports or manuscripts.

The student is expected to participate in regular research meetings, present progress updates, and collaborate with the supervising research team. By the end of the internship, the student will gain practical experience in machine learning, optimization, experimental research design, and emerging applications of quantum computing in artificial intelligence.

Skills required:
Applicants should have a background in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Data Science, Mathematics, Physics, or a related discipline. Strong Python programming skills are required. Familiarity with machine learning concepts, supervised learning models, and hyperparameter tuning is expected. Knowledge of optimization algorithms, linear algebra, probability, or quantum computing fundamentals is an asset but not mandatory. Experience with libraries such as Scikit-learn, NumPy, Pandas, Qiskit, PennyLane, or similar tools would be beneficial.

3. A Knock-off Enhanced KP-GNN Framework for Accurate Material Property Prediction

Materials science plays an important role in developing clean energy technologies such as solar cells and batteries. However, discovering suitable materials is often slow and expensive, as it requires testing many different compositions and structures. Computational approaches, especially deep learning, have helped speed up this process by predicting material properties without relying entirely on physical experiments. Graph neural networks (GNNs) are widely used in this area because they can represent materials as networks of atoms and their interactions. Existing models, such as CGCNN and MEGNet, have shown strong performance in predicting properties like formation energy and band gap. However, most GNNs only use local (1-hop) information, which limits their ability to capture more complex, global structures. Recent methods, such as k-hop GNNs and KP-GNN, try to address this by including information from larger neighborhoods. While this improves performance, it also introduces new challenges, including over-smoothing (where node features become too similar) and the need to manually choose model parameters. This study proposes an improved KP-GNN framework with two key ideas. First, a “knock-off” mechanism is introduced to help the model focus on important structural information while reducing over-smoothing. Second, a genetic algorithm is used to automatically optimize key model parameters, improving stability and performance. The model will be tested on several large public datasets, including Materials Project and QM9, to predict properties such as formation energy and band gap. Overall, this work aims to improve the accuracy and reliability of material property prediction, which can help accelerate the discovery of new materials for clean energy applications such as batteries and catalysis.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My specialized research area lies at the intersection of artificial intelligence, computational modeling, and materials informatics. I focus on developing and applying advanced machine learning algorithms, particularly deep learning and graph neural networks (GNNs), to solve complex problems in materials science and chemistry. My recent work involves the integration of structural, electronic, and graph-based representations of materials to enhance predictive modeling of key properties such as formation energy, band gap, and adsorption behavior. I also prioritize model interpretability and reproducibility, incorporating explainable AI tools to provide scientific insights from black-box models.

Student roles:
The student will play a central role in carrying out this project. They will be responsible for implementing and testing the proposed KP-GNN framework, including the knock-off mechanism and the genetic algorithm for hyperparameter optimization.

Their tasks will include data collection and preprocessing from public materials science datasets, model development using deep learning tools (e.g., PyTorch), and running experiments to evaluate model performance. The student will also analyze results, compare the proposed method with existing models, and help refine the approach based on findings.

In addition, the student will contribute to documenting the work, preparing reports, and potentially assisting with manuscript writing for publication. Regular meetings with the supervisor will support progress, troubleshooting, and skill development.

Through this project, the student will gain hands-on experience in machine learning, graph neural networks, and computational materials science.

Skills required:
The student should have a background in computer science, data science, or a related field, with experience in machine learning and deep learning. Proficiency in Python is required, especially using libraries such as NumPy, pandas, and scikit-learn. Familiarity with frameworks like PyTorch or TensorFlow for building deep learning models is important. Prior exposure to graph neural networks is an asset. Although not mandatory, a basic understanding of materials science concepts such as crystal structures or formation energy would be helpful. The student should also have strong problem-solving skills and an interest in interdisciplinary research involving AI and materials chemistry.

4. A Machine Learning, Virtual Reality, and Augmented Reality-Based Framework for Automated Adaptation of Serious Games

Serious games have emerged as a popular alternative tool for teaching computer programming. Research has shown that such games offer notable benefits, including the development of problem-solving skills and increased learner engagement. However, a key challenge in developing serious games lies in their ability to accommodate students with diverse backgrounds and skill levels. Learners with advanced skills may find the game too easy or boring, while those with lower skills may experience frustration or struggle to progress. One promising solution is automated adaptation, which dynamically modifies game content and adjusts tasks to suit the learner's individual level. The main goal of this project is to evaluate modern techniques that use machine learning to tailor game tasks based on continuous assessment and prediction of learners’ skills. Additionally, the project explores the integration of virtual and augmented reality to adjust the game’s visual and interactive content in response to the learner’s emotional state. This ensures a more engaging and personalized experience, minimizing boredom or frustration

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on topics related to software reuse, recommendation systems, big data mining in software repositories, testing for continuous system integration in cloud environments, cloud- based architecture microservices and mobile computing and IoT systems, as well as the application of artificial intelligence techniques to software engineering.

Student roles:
The intern will collaborate with graduate students on:
The individual analysis of each topic covered, the preparation of subsequent activities, and the exploration of the various related concepts. The main topics include:
• Serious games
• The use of machine learning in serious games
• The use of augmented reality in serious games
Following this exploration, one or more proposals will be presented to describe different possible solutions. These proposals will then be discussed to select one solution, which will be developed and evaluated.

Skills required:
Mastery of basic software engineering concepts, mastery of fundamental concepts of service-oriented architectures, proficiency in at least one programming language (Python, Java, C++, C#, etc.), and basic knowledge of machine learning, virtual reality, and augmented reality concepts.

5. A Self-Architecting Ontological Memorization Paradigm for Persistent LLM Agents

The absence of durable memory in large language model (LLM) agents has immediate social consequences. Users must repeatedly restate preferences, constraints, and prior context, increasing cognitive burden and reducing accessibility, particularly for vulnerable populations who rely on assistive systems. In high-stakes domains such as healthcare and education, inconsistent memory can lead to fragmented guidance, loss of continuity, and erosion of user trust. Emerging evidence from benchmarks such as LongMemEval and MemoryAgentBench further shows that current systems struggle to reliably retain and reuse information across extended interactions. Technically, LLM agents remain constrained by finite context windows, forcing them to reconstruct relevant state through retrieval or compression. Current approaches—most notably Retrieval-Augmented Generation and systems like MemGPT—treat memory as either external retrieval or compressed context. While effective in specific scenarios, these paradigms exhibit structural limitations: retrieval depends heavily on indexing and query quality, while compression introduces irreversible information loss. As a result, neither provides a reliable foundation for maintaining persistent, evolving state over long time horizons. Enabling long-lasting memory is therefore essential to transforming LLM agents from stateless responders into persistent, adaptive systems. Durable memory would allow agents to accumulate knowledge, maintain consistency across sessions, and support meaningful personalization. More importantly, it shifts the paradigm from “memory as lookup” to “memory as a dynamic knowledge system,” where information is continuously organized, refined, and integrated. Advancing this capability will enable more reliable assistants, support lifelong learning without retraining, and establish the foundation for truly persistent intelligent agents.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: The Applied Machine Learning Research Lab (DAMLR) envisions a synergistic collaboration with industrial partners and research institutes to advance the frontiers of theoretical machine learning and AI research. Focused on pivotal areas such as data representation learning, AI safety, generative AI, and explainable AI, the lab aims to foster innovation through a multidisciplinary approach. By uniting the practical insights of industry with the pioneering theories of academia, the lab seeks to develop robust frameworks and methodologies that push the boundaries of what AI can achieve.

Student roles:
The summer intern will contribute to the design and prototyping of a long-term memory system for LLM agents, focusing on bridging the gap between existing retrieval/compression approaches and more persistent, structured memory representations. The student will work at the intersection of LLM systems, data engineering, and applied machine learning.

The role involves implementing core components of an external memory pipeline, including data ingestion, schema design, and storage (e.g., vector databases and/or structured memory graphs). The student will experiment with memory encoding strategies (e.g., embeddings, structured triples, or hybrid representations), and develop retrieval and update mechanisms that support incremental memory growth across multi-session interactions. They will also explore lightweight consolidation or pruning strategies to manage memory quality over time.

On the modeling side, the student will integrate the memory system with an LLM-based agent (e.g., via APIs or frameworks such as LangChain/FastAPI), enabling the agent to read from and write to long-term memory during task execution. The student will design and run experiments to evaluate memory effectiveness using existing benchmarks such as LongMemEval, as well as simplified custom tasks that test persistence, recall accuracy, and consistency across sessions.

The student is expected to have strong programming skills in Python, familiarity with LLM APIs, and basic knowledge of machine learning or information retrieval. Experience with databases, backend systems, or knowledge graphs is a plus but not required. More importantly, the student should be comfortable working in a research-oriented environment, able to iterate quickly on prototypes, and communicate findings clearly through documentation and reports.

By the end of the internship, the student will deliver a working prototype, experimental results, and recommendations for scaling the system toward production or further research.

Skills required:
A strong candidate should demonstrate excellent Python programming skills and be proficient in using AI-assisted development tools such as GitHub Copilot and OpenAI Codex to support implementation.

The candidate should have a solid understanding of how Large Language Models (LLMs) work, including their training processes and underlying objectives.

In addition, prior hands-on experience with agentic systems—such as OpenClaw or similar frameworks—is highly desirable.

6. A Sparse Tensor Algebra Rewrite Library for Compiler Optimizations

Sparse tensor computations are widely used in machine learning, scientific computing, and graph analytics. However, optimizing sparse computations is challenging because the same operation can often be expressed in many mathematically equivalent forms, each exhibiting different performance characteristics on modern hardware. The goal of this project is to develop a rewrite library for sparse tensor algebra that captures common equivalences between sparse tensor operations. Examples include sparse matrix-vector multiplication (SpMV), sparse matrix-matrix multiplication (SpMM), gather/scatter operations, segmented reductions, and block-sparse computations. The student will represent these transformations as rewrite rules and use them within an equality-saturation framework to automatically explore alternative implementations. The project will involve designing a small domain-specific language for sparse tensor computations (or leveraging existing compiler infrastructures), implementing a collection of rewrite rules, and evaluating the resulting system on representative sparse workloads drawn from scientific computing and Large Language Model (LLM) applications. The student will gain hands-on experience in compiler design, program optimization, intermediate representations, and machine learning. The implementation may build upon modern compiler frameworks such as MLIR together with equality-saturation systems such as Egg or Egglog. These tools provide a foundation for representing tensor computations and automatically exploring large spaces of equivalent program transformations. This project contributes toward a long-term vision of automated optimization tools capable of selecting efficient implementations of sparse and compressed tensor computations for modern computing platforms, including CPUs, GPUs, and specialized accelerators.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research group focuses on compiler optimization and automatic hardware generation for machine learning and high-performance computing. We develop techniques that automatically transform programs into efficient implementations for CPUs, GPUs, and specialized accelerators such as FPGAs. Current research topics include sparse and compressed tensor computations, equality-saturation-based optimization, domain-specific languages, and hardware accelerator generation. Our goal is to make advanced computing systems easier to program while improving performance and energy efficiency.

Student roles:
The student will participate in the design and implementation of a sparse tensor algebra rewrite library. Their responsibilities will include studying relevant literature, implementing compiler transformations and rewrite rules, developing software prototypes, and evaluating the resulting system on representative sparse tensor workloads.

The student will work closely with the research team, participate in regular meetings, present progress updates, and contribute to the analysis and interpretation of experimental results. Depending on progress and interests, the student may also contribute to the preparation of technical reports, open-source software artifacts, or research publications.

Throughout the project, the student will gain hands-on experience with modern compiler infrastructures, program optimization techniques, and machine learning while contributing to an active research project.

Skills required:
The ideal candidate will have a background in computer science, computer engineering, or software engineering. Applicants should be comfortable programming in multiple languages, have completed a course in algorithms, possess a solid understanding of data structures, and have a good foundation in linear algebra.

Prior exposure to compilers or program analysis would be an asset. Experience with machine learning systems or high-performance computing is also welcome but not required. Experience with Python, C++, Rust, or similar programming languages is desirable. Familiarity with Linux-based development environments and version control systems (e.g., Git) is required.

7. A Study of Accessible and Inclusive Virtual and Blended Service Provision Models for the Federal Public Service and Federally Regulated Industries in post-COVID-19 Canada

Here are the objectives/tasks of the research project: (1) Undertake an international scan to assess existing service provision accessibility standards, practices (whether formal or informal), and associated accessibility legislation to identify innovation opportunities; (2) Work with constituents (all stakeholders and core partners of the project) to co-design possibilities for what the current tools offer and what future tools should afford; and (3) Develop online reports to describe the recommendations and requirements model for inclusive virtual and blended service provision models that are understandable and useful to technical and non-technical audiences.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Several Canadian provinces and other countries have legislation designed to address discrimination against persons with disabilities in the workplace. The purpose of this project is to develop recommendations on accessible and inclusive virtual and blended service provision models for the Federal Public Service and federally regulated industries in post-COVID-19 Canada. The recommendations will address sensory disabilities that involve changes in sense processing (vision and hearing), inclusive of sight loss, hearing loss, dual sensory loss, brain injury, neurodiversity (autism spectrum), and learning disabilities.

Student roles:
The required role of the student would be tasked with pulling together materials for the literature review on these topics: Accessibility policies and related technical standards.

Skills required:
The students should have a background in Law-Business or Computer Science/Information Technology.

8. A Study of the impact of coding Agent on Software Repository Quality

This project investigates how autonomous or semi-autonomous AI coding agents affect the evolution of real-world software repositories. AI coding agents are large language models that act as independent software developers by proposing changes to source code and collaborating with human developers. While these agents are becoming increasingly popular, their impact on code quality and their interactions with human developers remain poorly understood. This project will explore how different coding agent work and what is impacting their performance. In this project, students will analyse software modification histories, pull requests, and code contributions made by both AI agents and human developers. The goal is to measure their impact on code quality, workload distribution, and long-term software maintainability.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My main research program is on developing new AI tools to support software developers, mostly on repairing and finding bugs. Large Language Models have been widely adopted in the recent years to autonomously generate code, yet there are very few studies on their impact on code quality, security and developer's productivity. It is important to measure and understand the effect of such AI tools on human developers' behavior before continuing proposing new AI solutions.

Student roles:
The intern would help gather data (mining GitHub repositories), write code, and categorise our extracted data.
Then the intern will help analyse and explain the data. Eventually, the goal is to (1) design better prompts or support documents to help AI coding agent perform better and (2) design a tool to help developer better guide and review coding agents' changes. The student will also be encourage to participate to campus activities, including 3 minute thesis presentations and weekly seminar presentations.

The student will be leading his own project, but will be working with 3-4 other undergrad students (both local and internationals) who would have their own related projects. Depending on progress of each student, the student may join another project in a support role.

Skills required:
Required: Python, git, good programming skill and understanding.
Desired: Linux, AI, bash script.

9. A Universal Design Framework of Employment Accessibility Standards for Supporting Visually Impaired Community by Social Robots

The general objective is to develop a robot-aided training system to support VII in their job interview process following the UD framework. The sub-objectives include systematically reviewing related literature on social robots supporting training skills with VII, linking empirical findings from related literature and VII’ employment challenges, designing an evidence-based robot-aided experiential learning system to support this context by following the UD framework and a Human-Centered Design (HCD) perspective, and collecting user feedback on the proof-of-concept training modules with VII and recruitment professionals. Below are the five research stages that will support and achieve the stated activities and themes. Literature background will support developing training modules using a social robot model towards an inclusive job interview process considering the UD requirements to develop robot applications for VII. The training modules will implement interactive dialogues using playful training and narrative resources benefiting from the robot's social presence to support experiential learning approaches. The training modules will target both VII and recruitment professionals, supporting creating a role-play experience to conduct job interviews aware of stakeholders’ needs, including accessibility and employment standards. Results can keep establishing UD guidelines to implement inclusive standards, providing tools to break barriers in the Canadian job recruitment process.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: The proposed research project applies the Universal Design (UD) framework in a social robot-aided training system, supporting Visually Impaired Individuals (VII) in attaining an inclusive job interview process. The UD framework advocates that any given environment is accessible by all people, including persons with disabilities, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or specialized design. A research evidence-based approach will systematically review related literature in empirical research on social robot-aided training with VII and the interview skills training. Also, we will collect feedback from VII with successful and unsuccessful experiences in the job interview process.

Student roles:
The required role of the student would be tasked with pulling together materials for the literature review on this topic and conduct related experiments.

Skills required:
The students should have a background in Business, Social Science or Computer Science/Information Technology.

10. A deep normative model of the human brain from MRI data

The project involves analysis brain MRI data. In neuroimaging is important to understand how brain structures are changing due to normal ageing or disease. The goal of this project is to generate a model of the ageing human brain and relate disease populations to this model. We will work with medical data provided by our collaboration between the Computing Science Department and the Department of Neurology, at University of Alberta. Preliminary work from our group [1,2] has been done to create a shape model of the healthy hippocampus. The model uses a variational graph convolutional autoencoder conditioned by age. The proposed project extends this model to study full brain atrophy and cortical thickness variability. The focus for next summer is to create a normative model of healthy brain surface from a large collection of MRI images (ex UKBiobank). Disease-related abnormalities will be defined as deviations from this model. For the diseased population we will use internal data (ALS patients) and ADNI data (AD patients). The results of this project will be interpreted by our medical collaborators and summarized in a publication. [1] Kiechle J., Miller D., Slessor J., Pietrosanu M., Beaulieu C., Cobzas D. (2023). Explaining anatomical shape variability International Symposium on Biomedical Imaging 2023 [2] Rabbi J., Kiechle J., Beaulieu C., Ray N., Cobzas D. (2024) Disentangling Hippocampal Shape Variations, MELBA journal, November 2024

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research area is medical image analysis, a discipline at the intersection of computer vision, machine learning and mathematics. In particular I specialize in analyzing brain magnetic resonance images (MRI) of the human brain. I look at both image data and geometric data extracted from images (e.g. shapes). We use modern deep learning methods for medical image segmentation and analysis. My current focus is anatomical shape analysis and population studies.

Student roles:
The students will be responsible of
• doing a literature review on related topics: variational deep shape auto encoders, graph convolutional networks, normative models in medical imaging
• understanding our previous work on the hippocampus model - both theory and code
• apply and modify our method for the new brain surface data
• visualize and interpret results together with our medical collaborators
• summarize the method and results in a publication

Skills required:
The ideal candidate has a background and interest in medical image analysis and deep learning. The student should have taken a machine learning course and have some experience with deep learning models. Good mathematical background is also expected.

11. A hybrid metaheuristic algorithm for multilevel thresholding image segmentation

Thresholding is one of the known methods in image segmentation (IS). It has two classes: bi-level thresholding (BT) and multilevel thresholding (MT). The BT divides the image into two categories, whereas MT is utilized to segment complex images and it can generate multiple thresholds, which divide pixels into multiple similar parts based on intensity. BT can generate enough outcomes in the case that the image contains only two principal gray levels, but the foremost restriction is the time-consuming computation which is often high when it is extended to MT. Researchers get the optimal thresholds by maximizing some criteria such as the Otsu criterion and Kapur’s entropy. In the Otsu-based method, the best threshold is the one that maximizes the between-class variance of the regions. Kapur’s entropy measures the homogeneity of the classes by using the maximization of the entropy. Thus, the selection of optimal thresholds in multilevel is an NP-hard problem. When the threshold number is small, classical techniques are appropriate; but if this number grows, the accuracy of segmentation will be influenced. Therefore, to overcome this drawback, many swarm intelligence algorithms (SIAs) have been applied and combined with thresholding algorithms In this project, we develop a new hybrid metaheuristic by combining Otsu’s criterion and Kapur’s entropy (combination of both) to determine MT for IS. We will use our new hybrid algorithm as a preprocessing method prior to the IS. The image is preprocessed to get the optimum pixels and then k-means clustering is applied to the image for segmentation. Also, we compare our proposed approach with other existing approaches in the literature and apply nonparametric statistical tests to show the superiority of our proposed algorithm over other algorithms. We will use various image databases of Berkeley University and other resources.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: I am working on combining swarm intelligent algorithms (SIAs) with image segmentation approaches to deal with various image datasets. Also, I combined SIAs with machine learning approaches to deal with various datasets. I like to work on early diagnosis or detect breast or skin cancer with computer-aided skills

Student roles:
The student is expected to know some skills of programming like Python, or R, or MatLab and swarm
intelligence algorithms (is able to learn it quickly if s/he does not know). The student will write many
computer programs by using Matlab software or python and he or she will apply swarm intelligence algorithms
such as Genetic algorithm, Particle Swarm Optimization Algorithm, differential evolution algorithm,
spider, bat, and other algorithms. Students will compare these algorithms with other algorithms. Also,
students will help in writing a report and graph as research assistants.

Skills required:
Writing extensive computer programs in Python, or R, or Matlab, Knowing swarm intelligence algorithms and optimization will be assets.
Knowing image segmentation, clustering, and swarm intelligent algorithms

12. A machine-learning shock detector for astrophysical smoothed particle hydrodynamics

Smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) is a particle-based method for modelling fluids in astrophysics. The fluid is represented by particles that move with the flow, making SPH well suited to complex geometries, self-gravity and highly compressible gas. However, SPH also requires numerical algorithms that are not direct physical forces, but are necessary to keep the method stable and accurate. One important example is artificial viscosity, which is required to capture shocks where density, pressure, and velocity change abruptly. Without artificial viscosity, shock waves produce unphysical oscillations and incorrect solutions. However, too much artificial viscosity causes unwanted dissipation, artificially heating the gas and damping real fluid motion. Modern SPH codes therefore use switches that try to activate viscosity only where shocks are present. These switches are based on local particle properties, but can be affected by particle disorder, shear flows, smooth compression, and other complex behaviour found in realistic astrophysical simulations. In this project, we will investigate whether machine learning can be used to build a better local shock detector for SPH. The model will use information from each particle and its neighbouring particles to decide whether artificial viscosity should be activated. The machine-learning component will focus on neural-network architectures designed for unordered sets of neighbours, such as Deep Sets or PointNet-like models, rather than only applying standard tabular classifiers. These models process each neighbouring particle with a shared neural network and then combine the neighbour information in a way that does not depend on particle ordering. The training data will be based on three-dimensional particle neighbourhoods sampled from known flow patterns, including shocks, shear, vortices, smooth compression, and disordered particle arrangements. The goal is to determine whether a learned, per-particle shock detector can distinguish true shocks from particle disorder or smooth compression more reliably than existing hand-designed shock indicators.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Astrophysical simulations are essential for understanding phenomena such as star formation, planet formation, accretion discs, and the evolution of gas around stars and black holes. My research focuses on the numerical algorithms used in these simulations, particularly smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH), a particle-based method for solving the equations of fluid dynamics. I develop and test algorithms for fluids, gravity, magnetic fields, and related physics. A major focus is understanding the accuracy, stability, and computational efficiency of these methods, so that simulations can be trusted to produce scientifically meaningful results.

Student roles:
You will develop and test a machine-learning model that identifies whether individual SPH particles are located in shocks. The model will decide this using the properties of a particle and its neighbours, similar to the information available inside an SPH simulation code. This makes the project a local, per-particle classification problem rather than a global analysis of an entire simulation.

The first part of the project will involve creating training data. You will generate three-dimensional particle neighbourhoods with different levels of disorder, including relaxed distributions, randomly perturbed distributions, and anisotropic neighbour arrangements. Known velocity, density, and pressure fields will then be assigned to these particles. These fields will include true shocks, but also non-shock cases such as shear flows, vortices, contact discontinuities, smooth compression, and gravitational-collapse-like flows. This is important because a useful shock detector must not confuse particle disorder or smooth compression with a real shock.

You will then develop machine-learning models that operate on the local neighbourhood of each particle. A central part will be implementing a small neural-network architecture for unordered particle sets, where the same network is applied to each neighbour and the resulting information is combined to classify the central particle. Simpler models, such as decision trees or gradient-boosted trees, may be used as baselines, but the main focus will be learning directly from the local neighbour structure.

The trained models will be compared against existing SPH shock indicators and artificial-viscosity switches. The main goal will be to determine whether machine learning can reduce false shock detections while still correctly identifying true shocks. You will analyse the accuracy, robustness, and interpretability of the learned model, and identify which local particle features are most useful. A successful project will produce a tested shock-classification model and recommendations for incorporation into an astrophysical SPH code such as Phantom.

Skills required:
This project is suited for a student interested in combining astrophysics, numerical methods, and machine learning. Students from physics, astronomy, computer science, mathematics, or data science backgrounds are welcome. Prior programming experience is needed, preferably in Python. Some basic knowledge of machine learning, such as training and validating supervised models, is expected. Experience with neural networks in PyTorch, TensorFlow, or JAX would be an asset. Experience with scientific computing, vector calculus, or fluid dynamics would also be beneficial.

13. A metaheuristic Algorithm for Breast Cancer Classification and Diagnosis

Optimization algorithms such as Genetic Algorithm, Particle Swarm Optimization, Ant Colony Optimization etc. may be used to build classification models. The obtained classification model can be further used for diagnostic purposes. But, none of the available optimization algorithms are precise and leaves us with the scope of improvement in classification sensitivity and specificity. UC Irvine Machine Learning Repository provides open access to 301 datasets. Wisconsin Diagnostic Breast Cancer (WDBC) dataset is chosen for our cancer classification study. The breast Cancer Wisconsin dataset consists of features computed from a digitized image of a Fine Needle Aspirate (FNA) of a breast mass. Fine needle aspiration is a type of biopsy procedure which involves the insertion of a thin needle into an abnormal appearing tissue area or body fluid. In the WDBC dataset, each record represents follow-up data for consecutive patients seen. Each data entry consists of cell nuclei characteristics like radius, texture, perimeter, area, smoothness, compactness, concavity, concave points, symmetry and fractal dimension. Metaheuristic algorithms are popular for solving complex optimization problems. Bio-inspired algorithms are very efficient as it imitates the best features in nature. In this project, we plan to study cancer prediction through the cell nucleus of breast mass and use WDBC dataset, which illustrates the instances of malignant and benign breast cancer and the cell nucleus features associated with it. We would like to propose a metaheuristic algorithm. The algorithm has been modified to be suitable to carry out classification rule mining. Through the proposed algorithm application on WDBC dataset, we will drive classification rule which can be used in decision making process during breast cancer diagnosis. The rule derived emphasizes that the malignant breast cells can be distinguished from benign cells, based on irregularity in shape of the cell nucleus. This can help in early diagnosis and decision-making

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My recent research interests are best described as computational optimization and their applications, modeling and numerical analysis, metaheuristic/ evolutionary computing/artificial intelligence algorithms and their applications in engineering. In particular, I am interested in applying these algorithms to global optimization arising from output feedback controller design (continuous and discrete), mechanical engineering, wireless sensor network, data mining and datasets, and various optimization problems (my recent proposal for discovery NSERC.

Student roles:
The student is expected to know some skills of programming like Python, MatLab or R software and Metaheurtics algorithms (is able to learn it quickly if s/he does not know). The student will write many computer programs by using Matlab or R software or Java and he will apply various Ant Colony Optimization algorithms, Hybrid Genetic Particle Swarm Optimization Algorithm, and Hybrid Simulated Annealing to datasets from UCI. He will compare these algorithms with each other algorithms. Also, students will help in writing a report and graph as research assistants. After I am going to propose a new metaheuristic algorithm and show this proposed algorithm is outperforms other algorithms in the literature. Our target is to get this work published in refereed journals and present it at a conference.

Skills required:
Students know Matlab software and/python/and or R. Knowing metaheuristic algorithms and machine learning will be an asset

14. A mixed reality cognitive orthosis to support the autonomy of people with cognitive deficiencies

As part of a project initiated in 2019, we have designed a mixed reality assistance application for Hololens 2 headsets, enabling people with mild cognitive impairment (e.g. Alzeihmer, head trauma) to be assisted with activities of daily living. As part of this project, trainees will contribute to further developments on this platform, including work on the following aspects: - the integration and improvement of object detection and segmentation models to better understand the mixed reality scene - the use of large language models (LLMs) to analyze these scenes - the use of large language models (LLMs) to generate incremental assistance that complements existing models - Design multimodal interaction techniques (voice, sight, sound) with users to convey assistance, instructions or directions. - Evaluate systems with potential users. Depending on the trainees' interests or abilities, the focus will be on one or more of these aspects. The current system has been developed with Microsoft Hololens 2, but we are working on the integration of other mixed reality headsets such as Apple Vision Pro and Meta headsets (e.g. Meta Quest 3).

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: This research project focuses on the design and evaluation of assistive technology for people with cognitive impairments. The project will focus on the use of artificial intelligence models to provide graduated multimodal assistance on mixed-reality headsets, taking into account the user's context, the task in hand and the user's profile. The project will integrate design activities in artificial intelligence, mixed reality and human- computer interaction.

Student roles:
The intern will join the DOMUS Laboratory team at the Université de Sherbrooke. His role will be to learn about the research project and the systems used, by reading reports, scientific articles and using tutorials. You will then have to develop and evaluate sections of code that you have improved or designed, in collaboration with a team of graduate students and research professionals. You will be required to document your work using the lab's existing tools and systems. He/she may also participate in the writing of scientific articles and communications related to the results of the research project.

Skills required:
Good programming knowledge and experience in languages such as Python, C# or C++.

In-depth knowledge of artificial intelligence, particularly in the use of deep learning models, large language models (LLM) and machine learning.

Experience in Unity development and mixed reality/virtual reality development is an asset.

15. A quantum approximate optimization algorithm (QAOA) for the quadratic knapsack problem

The quadratic knapsack problem (QKP) is an optimization problem which consists of maximizing a quadratic (profit) function with binary variables subject to a single knapsack constraint. This is a well-studied combinatorial optimization problem, with a variety of important applications, for example in the location of satellites, airports, railway stations and freight terminals. This problem is known to be NP-hard in the strong sense. Known exact solution techniques for this problems use the branch-and-cut algorithms and are still very limited with both the size of the problem that can be solve as well as the speed at which they can be solved. This project is aimed at exploring the capabilities of the well known quantum approximate optimization algorithm (QAOA) on various sets of QKP instances and compare the results with classical methods for solving QKP.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Combinatorial optimization is a subfield of mathematical optimization that consists of finding an optimal object from a finite set of objects, where the set of feasible solutions is discrete or can be reduced to a discrete set.

Student roles:
The intern will have to convert the quadratic knapsack model into an equivalent Ising model and set up a QAOA algorithm framework for solving the model.
The intern will then have to conduct some computational experiments in order to explore the quality of the solution given by QAOA as well as its scalabity on quantum computers.

Skills required:
Linear algebra
Computer programming
Quantum computing (a good knowledge is required)

16. AI Agent system for data engineering

Modern data engineering workflows are becoming increasingly complex, requiring the integration of data ingestion, transformation, querying, and analysis across multiple systems. At the same time, large language models (LLMs) have shown strong capabilities in understanding and generating code, querying data, and assisting with analytical tasks. This project explores how to build an AI agent system for data engineering, where multiple agents collaborate to automate and optimize data-related tasks. The project focuses on designing a multi-agent system in which different agents are responsible for tasks such as data retrieval, query generation, pipeline orchestration, and result interpretation. A key component is the use of retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) to enable agents to access and retrieve relevant documents, schemas, or logs, improving the accuracy and context-awareness of LLM outputs. The student will work on building a RAG pipeline, including data indexing, retrieval, and integration with LLMs. The project will also explore fine-tuning or adapting LLMs for data engineering tasks, such as generating SQL queries, debugging pipelines, or summarizing datasets. Implementation will involve developing agent coordination mechanisms, integrating LLMs with external data sources, and evaluating system performance in terms of accuracy, efficiency, and usability. By the end of the project, the student will build a working prototype of an AI-driven data engineering assistant and gain hands-on experience with LLMs, RAG systems, and agent-based architectures.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on advancing the development of high-performance, highly scalable, and highly available distributed systems, which serve as the foundation for modern computing infrastructures. In particular, I study how to design efficient algorithms, protocols, and system architectures that power distributed AI systems and database management systems (DBMS). Our work bridges AI, databases, and cloud systems, addressing challenges in scalability, efficiency, and real-world deployment, with the goal of enabling next-generation intelligent data systems.

Student roles:
The student will contribute to the design, implementation, and evaluation of a multi-agent AI system for data engineering. The role involves building and integrating components such as data retrieval pipelines, RAG-based document access, and LLM-powered agents for tasks like query generation, pipeline automation, and data analysis.

The student will be responsible for coding and system development, including constructing the RAG pipeline (indexing, retrieval, and integration with LLMs) and experimenting with fine-tuning or adapting LLMs for data engineering tasks. They will also design simple coordination mechanisms between agents to enable collaborative workflows.

A key part of the role is experimental evaluation, where the student will measure system performance in terms of accuracy, efficiency, and usability across different tasks and datasets.

The student will work closely with graduate students, participating in regular discussions and receiving mentorship. This role emphasizes hands-on system building, experimentation, and gaining practical experience with LLMs, RAG systems, and agent-based architectures.

Skills required:
Students should have a background in computer science or computer engineering. A solid understanding of data structures and algorithms and basic knowledge of machine learning are required. Programming experience (e.g., Python) is expected. Familiarity with databases (e.g., SQL) and data processing is preferred. Prior exposure to LLMs, RAG, or AI systems is a plus but not required. Interest in building systems and working with modern AI tools is highly beneficial.

17. AI Decision-Support Tool for Safety-Conscious Engineering Design

Engineering students designing capstone and course projects frequently overlook hazard identification and mitigation as a core design activity. This gap between classroom design practice and real-world safety standards has direct implications for graduate readiness and long-term workplace safety culture. This project investigates the design of an AI-powered tool that guides engineering students through structured hazard identification and mitigation thinking during the project design phase. Unlike post-design safety audits, this tool aims to be embedded proactively in the design workflow, prompting students with context-aware hazard considerations and mitigation strategies as they develop their project specifications. The Globalink intern will explore AI architectures suited to this purpose, investigate how established safety frameworks (e.g., HAZOP, bow-tie analysis) can be translated into AI-driven prompts accessible to novice designers, and develop a proof-of-concept prototype. The central research question is: how can AI effectively support proactive safety thinking in engineering design education without overwhelming student designers? Findings will contribute to the emerging field of AI-augmented engineering education.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: This research investigates the integration of artificial intelligence into engineering design education, with a focus on proactive safety thinking. While engineering curricula emphasize functional and economic design criteria, hazard identification and risk mitigation are often underdeveloped skills in student designers. Our lab explores how AI-powered decision-support tools can be embedded into the design process itself, prompting students to systematically consider safety risks before they become real-world consequences.

Student roles:
The intern will investigate and prototype an AI-assisted hazard identification tool for engineering design students. Activities will include: reviewing literature on engineering design education, safety frameworks, and AI decision-support tools; exploring AI and LLM approaches suited to context-aware hazard prompting; designing a system architecture for the tool; developing a proof-of-concept prototype; and conducting informal usability exploration with engineering students if progress allows.
The scope of development will evolve based on research findings and progress; the intern is expected to contribute original thinking to the design problem, not just implement a predetermined solution. The intern will meet weekly with the supervising professor with structured but flexible milestones. This project suits a curious, independent student interested in the intersection of AI, safety, and education.

Skills required:
Applicants should have strong Python skills and experience with LLM APIs or frameworks (e.g., OpenAI, Hugging Face, LangChain, Anthropic Claude API). Familiarity with web or app development is an asset. Background in engineering design, occupational health and safety, or educational technology is a strong plus. Ability to work independently and manage an exploratory research project is essential. The ideal candidate is intellectually curious and motivated by research questions at the intersection of AI, safety, and education.

18. AI Detective: A Mobile Serious Game for AI Literacy and Critical Evaluation of AI-Generated Content

Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly used to generate information, answer questions, and support decision making. While these systems provide many benefits, they can also produce inaccurate, misleading, or fabricated information. As AI-generated content becomes more common in everyday life, there is a growing need to help the public critically evaluate AI outputs and make informed decisions about when such information can be trusted. This project aims to develop and evaluate AI Detective, a mobile serious game designed to improve public AI literacy. The game will place users in the role of investigators tasked with evaluating AI-generated information across realistic scenarios. Through interactive challenges, players will learn how to identify AI-generated misinformation, recognize hallucinations and biases, verify claims using reliable sources, and critically assess the trustworthiness of AI-generated content. Drawing on principles from persuasive technology, educational game design, and human-computer interaction, the game will combine learning with engaging gameplay to encourage active participation and knowledge retention. The project will investigate whether a game-based approach can improve users' understanding of AI capabilities and limitations while strengthening their ability to evaluate AI-generated information. The project will involve the design and development of a mobile game prototype, followed by usability testing and user evaluations. Data collected from participants will be used to assess engagement, learning outcomes, and changes in AI literacy and critical evaluation skills. The expected outcomes include a publicly available mobile game, empirical evidence regarding the effectiveness of serious games for AI literacy, and recommendations for improving public understanding of AI-generated information. Ultimately, the project seeks to support responsible AI use by empowering individuals to engage with AI systems in an informed, critical, and trustworthy manner.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research is in the general area of Human-Computer Interaction. In particular, my research is in the user modelling theme of HCI. My research involves developing applications and games to influence the attitude or behaviour of people for their good and that of society. In addition, my research consists in analysing user-generated data from social media to understand users' behaviour in order to predict future behaviour

Student roles:
The student will contribute to the design, development, and evaluation of the AI Detective mobile game. Responsibilities will include conducting literature reviews on AI literacy, misinformation, and serious games; assisting with game design and implementation; developing educational content and gameplay mechanics; conducting usability testing; and supporting data collection and analysis. The student will also assist in evaluating the game's effectiveness in improving users' ability to critically assess AI-generated information. Through these activities, the student will gain experience in software development, user-centered design, educational technology research, and public-facing AI literacy initiatives.

Skills required:
The ideal student would be an undergraduate Computer Science student with a strong background in programming, mobile application development, and human-computer interaction. Through coursework and project experience, the student has developed skills in software development, user-centered design, and data analysis. The student has a strong interest in artificial intelligence, digital literacy, and the societal impacts of emerging technologies. These skills align well with the proposed project, which combines mobile game development, AI literacy, and public education. Participation in the project will further strengthen the student's technical, research, and communication skills while contributing to an important societal challenge.

19. AI Hospital: A Multi-Agent Simulation for Clinical Reasoning, Triage, and Safety

Recent advances in large language models have created new opportunities for simulating clinical reasoning, but most medical AI benchmarks still focus on static question answering or final diagnostic accuracy. Real hospital care is more dynamic: patients describe symptoms over time, nurses collect information and triage, doctors ask follow-up questions, tests are requested, treatment options are considered, prescriptions may be recommended, and uncertain or high-risk cases must be escalated. This project will develop a responsible multi-agent “AI hospital” simulation using open-source medical cases. The project will create synthetic patient agents based on publicly available medical case datasets. Each patient will present to a simulated hospital with symptoms, history, and evolving information derived from an underlying case. The hospital will include role-based agents such as receptionist, triage nurse, physician, lab/imaging assistant, pharmacist, discharge coordinator, and safety reviewer. The nurse and doctor agents will interact with the patient, ask medical questions, identify relevant findings, request tests, propose differential diagnoses, and generate a treatment or prescription recommendation. The safety-review agent will check for unsafe advice, missing information, overconfidence, and cases that should be escalated to a human clinician. The goal is not to build a deployed medical system or provide real medical advice. Instead, the project will create a controlled research environment for studying responsible clinical-agent behaviour. The research questions include: Can agents collect the right information from patients? Do nurse and doctor agents communicate effectively? Are diagnoses and treatment recommendations supported by the case evidence? When do agents miss red flags, make unsafe recommendations, or fail to escalate uncertainty? Expected outcomes include a prototype multi-agent hospital simulation, a small set of open-case-based patient journeys, structured traces of nurse–doctor–patient interactions, and an evaluation framework for clinical reasoning, safety, handoff quality, explainability, and responsible AI.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My specialized research area is Responsible AI for agentic and LLM-augmented systems, with a focus on explainability, reliability, safety, and human-centered evaluation. My work studies how AI systems reason, retrieve information, use tools, interact with users, and collaborate as multi-agent workflows. I am particularly interested in understanding and controlling agent behaviour through trace analysis, evidence grounding, failure detection, and transparent evaluation. In healthcare-oriented simulations, this includes studying how clinical agents collect information, communicate across roles, handle uncertainty, and avoid unsafe or unsupported recommendations. The broader goal is to design trustworthy AI systems that are interpretable, accountable, and safe.

Student roles:
The student will contribute to the project through literature review, system design, prototype implementation, scenario creation, experimentation, and analysis. In the first stage, the student will review recent research on medical LLMs, simulated patients, clinical reasoning benchmarks, multi-agent hospital simulations, and responsible AI in healthcare. The student will also examine suitable open-source medical case datasets and help select a small number of cases that can be safely transformed into synthetic patient journeys.

In the second stage, the student will help design the simulated hospital workflow. This will include defining the roles of the patient, triage nurse, physician, lab or imaging assistant, pharmacist, discharge coordinator, and safety reviewer. The student will specify what each agent can know, what questions it can ask, what actions it can take, and when it must escalate uncertainty or risk. The student will also help convert medical cases into interactive patient profiles, where information is revealed gradually through nurse and doctor questioning.

In the third stage, the student will implement the prototype using Python and available LLM or agentic-AI tools. The system will record structured traces of the patient journey, including symptoms collected, questions asked, triage decisions, handoffs, tests requested, differential diagnoses, treatment or prescription recommendations, safety checks, and final outcomes. The student will run controlled experiments across selected medical cases and compare different workflows, such as doctor-only interaction, nurse–doctor collaboration, and nurse–doctor collaboration with a safety-review agent.

In the final stage, the student will evaluate the system using responsible-AI criteria. The analysis will focus on diagnostic reasoning, information completeness, handoff quality, unsafe or unsupported recommendations, missed red flags, escalation behaviour, and explainability of decisions. The student will prepare documentation, case studies, and a final report. Regular supervision will ensure that the work remains feasible, ethical, and clearly positioned as research simulation rather than clinical deployment.

Skills required:
The ideal student should have strong Python programming skills and basic knowledge of artificial intelligence, machine learning, natural language processing, or software engineering. Experience with large language models, APIs, agent frameworks, simulation, or data analysis would be helpful but is not required. The student should be comfortable reading research papers, implementing prototypes, designing controlled experiments, and analyzing results. Interest in responsible AI, healthcare AI, human-computer interaction, or multi-agent systems is highly desirable. The project does not require medical training, but the student must be careful, ethical, and willing to work only with public or synthetic cases.

20. AI Platform for Translating Safety Procedures to Grade 4 Level

Workplace safety procedures in industrial settings are frequently written at post-secondary reading levels, creating comprehension barriers for frontline workers. Misunderstood safety instructions are a leading contributor to workplace incidents. This project investigates the development of an LLM-powered application that translates company safety procedures into Grade 4 reading level language, making critical information accessible to all workers regardless of literacy level. The applicant will explore LLM frameworks and prompting strategies suited to this domain, prototype a functional application, and investigate how well automated readability metrics reflect actual simplification quality. The central research question is: which LLM architecture and prompting approach best achieves Grade 4 readability while maintaining technical accuracy in occupational safety contexts? The intern will document findings in a technical report, with a working prototype as an expected outcome. Depending on progress, the intern may also explore initial validation with sample safety documents. This work contributes to the emerging field of AI-assisted plain language transformation in high-stakes safety environments.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: This research explores the application of large language models (LLMs) to improve the accessibility and comprehension of workplace safety documentation. A significant challenge in occupational health and safety is that critical procedures are often written at reading levels inaccessible to many workers, particularly those with limited literacy or for whom English is a second language. Our lab investigates AI-driven plain language transformation, automatically simplifying complex safety content while preserving technical accuracy and regulatory compliance.

Student roles:
The intern will investigate and prototype an LLM-based safety procedure simplification tool. Activities will include: reviewing relevant literature on plain language transformation and LLM prompting strategies; exploring and comparing LLM frameworks; designing and developing a proof-of-concept web application that accepts safety procedure text and returns a simplified Grade 4 version; and evaluating output quality using automated readability metrics on a sample set of safety documents.
The depth of implementation and evaluation will be guided by the intern's progress and research findings; meaningful exploration is valued over feature completeness. The intern will meet weekly with the supervising professor and collaborate with graduate students on related NLP projects. This project suits a student who enjoys combining software development with applied research questions.

Skills required:
Applicants should have strong Python programming skills and hands-on experience with at least one LLM framework or API (e.g. OpenAI API, Anthropic Claude API). Basic web development skills (React, Flask, or similar) are required to build the application interface. Familiarity with text processing or NLP concepts is an asset. No prior background in occupational safety is needed; curiosity and willingness to learn the domain is sufficient. The ideal candidate is comfortable working independently on a defined build-and-evaluate project with clear milestones.

21. AI and cybersecurity

The field of cybersecurity is in constant arms-race between attackers and defenders. In this project, we will explore how Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) is contributing to this race. For example, we can explore how GenAI can influence phishing attacks, where attackers can use such tools to craft legitimate-looking phishing emails that avoid the common telltales (e.g., spelling and grammar mistakes). We can also explore whether users will be able to correctly identify such emails as phishing emails, and the strategies they will use to protect themselves against these new more intelligent-phishing approaches. We can also explore how defenders can rely on GenAI to identify cybersecurity issues, be it in the realm of software security (where developers use GenAI to generate, review, or test code), or system administration.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: I am interested in human-centric research, especially relating to privacy and security; including user-centric privacy and cybersecurity, human-centric software security, and privacy and security in emerging technologies.

Student roles:
The student will conduct this research, including, literature reviews, implementation (e.g., crafting phishing emails using generative AI), testing with human participants, and analyzing and interpreting data. The supervisor will work with the student to scope the project, and follow-up on the progress.

Skills required:
Students should have programming skills, familiarity with AI, interest in learning new things, and genuinely motivated to work independently on research projects.

22. AI as a Decision Actor: Authority, Trust, and Accountability in Organizations

This project investigates AI as a decision actor within organizations—moving beyond the idea of AI as a passive tool toward analysis of AI as an active participant in decision systems. As AI generates recommendations, forecasts, and strategic insights, it shapes how decisions are defined, evaluated, and enacted, raising questions about authority, trust, delegation, and accountability. The research examines how decision authority is negotiated between humans and AI: when AI outputs are treated as authoritative despite opacity or probabilistic reasoning; how authority varies across roles and contexts; and how AI may reinforce or disrupt hierarchies by redistributing expertise and influence. Trust is studied as dynamic and constructed through interaction, norms, and interface design—including explanations, confidence scores, and formats that can promote appropriate reliance or over-reliance. Delegation is analyzed as organizations automate parts of decision processes, asking how oversight is maintained and where boundaries between human and machine judgment should lie. Accountability is addressed by examining how responsibility is attributed across individuals, teams, and systems when AI influences outcomes. Drawing on organizational theory and the sociology of technology, the work combines experimental studies of decision behavior under varying transparency and uncertainty, computational analysis of AI use patterns where data permit, and qualitative inquiry into managerial practices. Expected contributions include a framework for AI as a decision actor, empirical evidence on authority and accountability, and practical guidance for organizations integrating AI into decision-making.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: This research examines artificial intelligence as an active participant in organizational decision-making—not only a passive tool. As AI generates recommendations, forecasts, and insights, it shapes how problems are framed, evaluated, and enacted, raising questions about authority, trust, delegation, and accountability. The work studies how humans and AI negotiate decision authority, how trust and reliance form around AI outputs, how responsibilities shift when tasks are automated, and how accountability is attributed across people and systems. It draws on organizational theory and the sociology of technology to treat AI as embedded in social and institutional contexts.

Student roles:
The student will support experimental studies of how individuals respond to AI-generated recommendations under varying transparency and uncertainty, including literature review, materials preparation, and data handling. The student will assist with computational analyses of behavioral or organizational data where applicable, and help organize qualitative materials from interviews or case documents.

Responsibilities include documenting methods, maintaining reproducible workflows, and contributing to drafts of reports and presentations. Regular supervision meetings will guide priorities, ethics, and interpretation. The student will work independently on assigned tasks while collaborating on integrated research outputs.

Skills required:
Students should have training in organizational behavior, management, sociology, psychology, or related fields, with strong interest in technology and organizations. Quantitative skills for experiments and data analysis (e.g., R or Python) and comfort with qualitative and mixed methods are valuable. Familiarity with AI concepts or human–AI interaction is an asset. Strong writing, research ethics awareness, and critical thinking are essential.

23. AI assisted tools for data mining, and decision support systems on Transportation and Municipal Infrastructure Management

This project investigates means to transfer information often available in GIS and CSV silo databases, integrate them into a friendly platform and enable specific data mining techniques to identify deterioration patters, road safety degradation, increase on risk of collapse, also to measure the effectiveness of treatments (maintenance, rehabilitation) and to guide decisions across multiple asset systems, including spatio temporal optimization

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Municipal and Transportation Asset Management deals with the rolling data collection of massive amounts of data combined with environmental data in order to identify deterioration trends on asset conditions, assess risk of collapse and allocate funds by optimizing early enough maintenance and rehabilitation to achieve long term sustainability and deliver cost effective assets that support sustainability of the community.

Student roles:
Code the solution on RStudio (shiny) to undertake the data mining, data integration, and decision making

Skills required:
data mining, statistical analysis, trend analysis, optimization of large scale problems, coding computer software, integrating (consume) online complementary data, specially environmental.

24. AI for Food Safety

How can we identify food safety risks before problems occur? This project tackles that question by using real-world data to better understand patterns in restaurant inspections and violations across multiple regions in Ontario. Public health units collect extensive data on restaurant inspections, but these datasets are complex, messy, and often inconsistent across regions. At the same time, inspections typically happen on fixed schedules, rather than being guided by dynamic risk. This creates an exciting opportunity: by analyzing these data more effectively, we can help design smarter, more proactive inspection strategies. As a Globalink student, you will work directly with real inspection data from multiple public health agencies (including Waterloo, Wellington, Simcoe, and Toronto). Your focus will be on preparing, exploring, and visualizing these datasets to uncover meaningful patterns. You will investigate questions such as: Are there temporal patterns in violations? Do certain types of restaurants show recurring issues? Are there geographic clusters of higher risk? Your work will contribute to a larger research effort that aims to build predictive tools for food safety risk and improve how inspection resources are allocated. Importantly, this is not just an academic exercise—your analyses will help shape models and tools that could be used in real public health decision-making. This project offers a unique opportunity to work on data science with real societal impact, while gaining experience with messy, real-world data that go far beyond textbook examples.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: This project sits at the intersection of data science, applied mathematics, and public health. We study how to extract meaningful insights from complex, real-world data—specifically food safety inspection data collected across multiple cities. The research combines data analysis, visualization, and modern computational tools to better understand patterns of risk and support smarter public health decisions. Students will work with large, real datasets and contribute to developing data-driven approaches that have direct impact on how cities protect public health.

Student roles:
You will play a key role in making real-world data usable, insightful, and impactful.

Your primary focus will be on data cleaning, visualization, and exploratory analysis. You will work with datasets from multiple public health units, each with different formats and conventions. You will help transform these raw datasets into clean, well-structured data that can be used for deeper analysis and modeling. This includes handling missing data, resolving inconsistencies, and organizing information into meaningful formats.
A major part of your role will be to explore and visualize the data. You will create visualizations that reveal patterns over time (e.g., how violations evolve), across locations (e.g., geographic trends), and across different types of establishments. Your work will help answer key questions and guide the direction of the research.

You will be part of an active, collaborative research team. You will work closely with graduate students and postdoctoral researchers, attend group meetings, and present your findings. You will also gain exposure to how data science is applied in real-world public health settings through interactions with partner organizations.

This role is ideal for a student who wants to move beyond textbook datasets and gain hands-on experience with complex, real-world data, while contributing to a project with tangible societal impact. Your work will form a critical foundation for the predictive models and decision-support tools developed in the broader project.

Skills required:
We are looking for students with a background in mathematics, statistics, computer science, or a related field who are excited about working with real-world data. Experience with Python or R is required, particularly for data manipulation and visualization (e.g., pandas, matplotlib, ggplot2). Familiarity with basic statistics and exploratory data analysis is expected. Curiosity, attention to detail, and a willingness to work through messy datasets are essential. Prior experience with data cleaning or visualization is an asset, but not required.

25. AI for Gut and Heart

What if dietary advice could be personalized—not just based on general guidelines, but on your biology, your gut microbiome, and even your food preferences? This project is part of an international research effort to better understand how diet influences cardiovascular health through the gut microbiome. While there is strong evidence linking diet, microbiome, and heart health, these data are complex, fragmented, and difficult to translate into practical recommendations. Gut4Heart Proposal (Part B)_Apr… The project brings together data from multiple large-scale cohorts across Canada and Europe, including dietary records, microbiome profiles, and health indicators. A key challenge—and opportunity—is to explore these rich datasets to uncover meaningful patterns and relationships. As a Globalink student, you will contribute to this effort by working with real, multi-dimensional health and nutrition data. Your focus will be on data cleaning, visualization, and exploratory analysis. You will help organize complex datasets, explore relationships between diet and health variables, and create visualizations that reveal patterns across individuals and populations. You may investigate questions such as: How do dietary patterns vary across populations? Are certain food patterns associated with specific microbiome features? How do these patterns relate to cardiovascular health indicators? Why Waterloo / this lab: You will be part of a highly interdisciplinary research group known for combining mathematical modeling, data science, and physiology to tackle real-world problems. You will gain close mentorship and hands-on experience working with complex datasets that go far beyond typical classroom examples, while contributing to a project with international collaborators and real public health relevance. Your work will support the development of next-generation tools for personalized nutrition and digital health applications. This is a unique opportunity to contribute to cutting-edge research at the intersection of AI, health, and food systems—while gaining skills that are highly sought after in both academia and industry.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: This project is in precision health and data science, focusing on how diet, the gut microbiome, and cardiovascular health are connected. It combines large-scale biological data (microbiome, genetics, health markers) with computational methods and AI to understand how food affects individuals differently. The research aims to translate complex biological and behavioural data into practical, personalized dietary insights. Students will work at the interface of health, data science, and nutrition, contributing to research that has the potential to improve how people eat and manage cardiovascular risk.

Student roles:
You will play a key role in helping transform complex biological and dietary data into meaningful insights.

Your main responsibilities will focus on data cleaning, integration, visualization, and exploratory analysis. You will work with multi-source datasets that may include dietary records, microbiome features, and health indicators. These datasets are rich but often messy—your work will help make them usable for analysis and modeling.

You will develop workflows to clean and organize data, including handling missing values, aligning variables across datasets, and structuring data for analysis. This is a critical step in enabling the advanced modeling work carried out by the research team.

A major part of your role will be exploring and visualizing the data. You will create visualizations to examine patterns across individuals and groups—for example, variation in dietary habits, relationships between food intake and microbiome features, or trends in health indicators. You will also contribute to summarizing findings in clear and compelling ways that can be shared within the research team and with collaborators.

You will work closely with graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and the principal investigator, and will be part of a collaborative, international research environment. You will participate in group meetings, present your work, and receive feedback from researchers with expertise in data science, health, and nutrition.

This role is ideal for a student interested in applying data science to real-world health challenges. You will gain hands-on experience working with complex, interdisciplinary datasets, strengthen your programming and analytical skills, and contribute to research that aims to shape the future of personalized nutrition and digital health.

Skills required:
We are looking for students with a background in mathematics, statistics, computer science, data science, or a related field. Experience with Python or R is required, including data manipulation and visualization (e.g., pandas, matplotlib, ggplot2). Basic knowledge of statistics and data analysis is expected. Interest in health, nutrition, or biological data is an asset but not required. Strong curiosity, attention to detail, and willingness to work with complex, real-world datasets are essential.

26. AI- and Quantum-Enhanced Ensemble Deep Learning and Transformer-Based Peak Load Forecasting for Smart Energy Systems

Accurate peak load forecasting is essential for grid reliability, energy planning, and demand-side management. This project aims to develop hybrid forecasting frameworks that combine deep learning and transformer-based models into intelligent ensembles using real-world energy consumption data from residential, commercial, industrial, and institutional sectors. The student will investigate ensemble learning strategies and quantum-inspired optimization methods for feature selection, hyperparameter tuning, and ensemble weighting. The project will evaluate the potential of hybrid quantum-classical approaches to improve forecasting accuracy, uncertainty estimation, and decision-making in smart energy systems.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on artificial intelligence, machine learning, deep learning, quantum computing, and predictive analytics for energy systems and industrial applications. We develop advanced forecasting methodologies that leverage large-scale time-series data to support energy planning, operational decision-making, and resource optimization. Current research investigates ensemble learning, transformer architectures, explainable AI, and quantum-inspired optimization techniques to improve forecasting accuracy, robustness, and computational efficiency in complex energy systems.

Student roles:
The student will contribute to the development of ensemble forecasting models using deep learning and transformer architectures. Responsibilities include data preprocessing, exploratory analysis, feature engineering, implementation of forecasting models, experimentation with quantum-inspired optimization techniques, uncertainty analysis, and performance evaluation. The student will compare classical and hybrid quantum-enhanced approaches for model tuning and ensemble construction, identify key demand drivers, and contribute to technical reports, presentations, and scientific publications.

Skills required:
Students should have a background in computer science, electrical engineering, data science, applied mathematics, statistics, physics, or related disciplines. Experience with Python programming, machine learning, deep learning, or time-series analysis is desirable. Familiarity with neural networks, transformer architectures, optimization methods, or energy systems is beneficial. Exposure to quantum computing concepts or platforms such as Qiskit is an asset but not required. Students interested in AI, forecasting, and emerging quantum technologies are encouraged to apply.

27. AI-Assisted Extended Reality Typing Training System for Nonspeaking Autistic Individuals

This project aims to develop and evaluate an AI-assisted Extended Reality (XR) system that supports nonspeaking autistic individuals in learning to communicate through typing. Despite their intelligence and insight, many nonspeaking autistic individuals are denied access to meaningful communication due to motor planning challenges, sensory sensitivities, and a lack of accessible training tools. This research addresses these barriers by combining state-of-the-art XR technology with personalized AI-driven scaffolding. The system uses an immersive environment—delivered through devices like the Meta Quest or HoloLens—to present a virtual letterboard and interactive avatar that guides users through progressive spelling exercises. The AI engine dynamically adjusts prompts, spatial cues, and auditory feedback based on real-time user behavior. This ensures that training remains appropriately challenging while supporting emotional regulation and sustained attention. Unlike traditional methods, the system is designed to promote autonomy and reduce reliance on human prompts. Interns will contribute to software development, user interface design, AI model integration, and real-time behavioral tracking algorithms. They will gain experience working on an interdisciplinary team involving engineers, psychologists, therapists, and community partners. The project includes co-design and testing with nonspeaking individuals and their caregivers, ensuring ethical, inclusive development. This initiative builds on prior prototypes from the applicant’s lab, which have been trialed in real-world settings with promising results—enabling some users to independently order coffee for the first time. The ultimate goal is to produce a scalable, evidence-informed tool that democratizes access to communication for a historically underserved population.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Software engineering, assistive technology design, extended reality

Student roles:
The student interns will play an integral role in the design, development, and evaluation of an AI-assisted Extended Reality (XR) typing training system for nonspeaking autistic individuals. They will work as part of a multidisciplinary research team to help build an accessible and personalized XR-based learning environment aimed at improving communication autonomy for a historically underserved population.

Key responsibilities include:

Software Development: Assist in implementing core system components using Unity or Unreal Engine, including the virtual letterboard interface, real-time feedback modules, and XR interaction mechanisms.

AI and Behavior Analysis: Collaborate on the integration of AI models that adaptively guide users based on their behavior. This may involve data preprocessing, fine-tuning machine learning models, and evaluating performance metrics in collaboration with research leads.

Hardware Integration: Support system integration with XR devices (e.g., Meta Quest, HoloLens), including setup, calibration, and testing across various interaction contexts.

Usability Testing and Iteration: Participate in co-design sessions and pilot evaluations with therapists, caregivers, and autistic users. Assist in preparing study materials, capturing observations, and iterating on system design based on feedback.

Documentation and Collaboration: Maintain clear documentation of code, design decisions, and study outcomes. Collaborate regularly with research staff, faculty advisors, and community partners through team meetings and progress reviews.

This role provides a unique opportunity for students to apply their technical skills in a socially impactful research environment. Students will gain hands-on experience in XR development, adaptive AI systems, and accessible interface design while contributing to a project that aims to transform communication access for nonspeaking autistic individuals. A strong interest in inclusive technologies, ethical design, and interdisciplinary teamwork is essential for success in this role.

Skills required:
The ideal student will have a background in Software Engineering, Computer Science, or a related field. Strong programming skills in C#, Python, or JavaScript are required. Experience with Unity or Unreal Engine for XR development is preferred. Familiarity with AI/ML frameworks (e.g., TensorFlow, PyTorch) or computer vision tools (e.g., OpenCV) is an asset. Applicants should be comfortable working with XR hardware and have an interest in assistive technologies or inclusive design. Strong communication skills and the ability to work in an interdisciplinary, user-centered environment are essential. Prior experience with accessibility or neurodiversity-related projects is a plus.

28. AI-Assisted Game Economy Modelling and Validation for Player Experience

This project supports a PhD research framework for AI-assisted evaluation and balancing of virtual game economies from a player-experience-centred perspective. The broader research addresses the challenge that modern game economies are increasingly complex, involving interconnected resources, taps, sinks, converters, inventories, traders, reward schedules, progression systems, scarcity structures, and feedback loops that are difficult to evaluate manually before release. The framework receives structured economy models, including Machinations-style representations, and transforms them into machine-readable features for an AI model that can assess economic balance, identify design risks, and generate recommendations aligned with developer-defined player experience goals. The project focuses specifically on expanding and validating the dataset used by this framework. A diverse set of game economies across genres is needed to make the model more robust and to test whether the framework can generalize beyond a limited number of existing examples. These economies may include casual/mobile progression systems, collection economies, RPG progression systems, crafting and sandbox economies, resource-management games, competitive progression structures, and hybrid live-service economies. Each economy will be examined not only as a technical system of resource flows, but also as an experiential system that shapes motivation, fairness, pacing, reward value, perceived effort, agency, and long-term engagement. The validation component will examine whether the framework’s input representation preserves meaningful economy-design information, whether the dataset is structurally complete and diverse, and whether the AI model can identify meaningful problems such as weak sinks, excessive taps, progression bottlenecks, grind-heavy systems, inflation risks, poor reward pacing, or exploitable conversion loops, all based on the customized player archetypes for the target audiences. The project, therefore, contributes to both AI-supported game design research and practical tools for evaluating internal virtual economies before or during development.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research area is AI-assisted game economy design, player experience evaluation, and game user research. It combines virtual economy modelling, Machinations-based system representation, machine learning, player archetypes, and design-support tools to evaluate how resource flows, rewards, scarcity, progression, sinks, converters, and monetization-related structures affect player motivation, fairness, engagement, and long-term retention across game genres.

Student roles:
The interns will support the project mainly through data gathering, economy modelling, dataset validation, and validation preparation. Their first responsibility will be to research a diverse selection of commercial games across different genres and document how their internal economies work. This will involve reviewing reliable public sources such as official game documentation, patch notes, game wikis, design breakdowns, gameplay videos, walkthroughs, player guides, academic sources, and direct gameplay observation when available. For each selected game, interns will identify the major resources, currencies, progression systems, taps, sinks, converters, inventories, traders, reward structures, costs, cooldowns, unlocks, scarcity mechanisms, and feedback loops.
Interns will then translate these findings into structured economy documentation and, where appropriate, Machinations-style economy models or model-ready templates. They will help ensure that each model is complete, understandable, consistently labelled, and suitable for use as training, validation, or test data. They will also annotate potential player-experience implications, such as whether the economy may create excessive grind, weak motivation, unfair progression, resource hoarding, inflation, bottlenecks, unclear goals, or overpowered strategies.
During the validation phase, interns will assist with checking dataset quality, reviewing whether economic entities and resource flows have been represented correctly, and comparing model outputs against expected design diagnoses. They may help create controlled test scenarios by modifying economy parameters, such as increasing tap output, weakening sinks, raising upgrade costs, reducing reward frequency, limiting inventory capacity, or changing conversion rates. They will also help apply evaluation rubrics, summarize error patterns, prepare tables and reports, organize validation materials for expert review, and document whether the framework’s recommendations are relevant, feasible, clear, and aligned with player-experience goals.

Skills required:
Interns should have a background in computer science, software engineering, game development, HCI, data science, or a related field. Useful skills include analytical reading, game systems thinking, data organization, basic Python or spreadsheet work, familiarity with games across genres, and interest in player experience, economy design, or AI-supported design tools.

29. AI-Assisted Panelization for Architectural Designs Under Manufacturing Constraints

This project will develop an AI-assisted framework for optimizing panelization in architectural designs under manufacturing constraints. Panelization is an important step in off-site and prefabricated construction, where building layouts must be translated into manufacturable wall or structural panel configurations. Existing approaches often rely on fixed rules or manual adjustment, which can become inefficient when designs include complex geometry, openings, or competing manufacturing requirements. The project builds on prior work on the Panelization Algorithm for Architectural Designs (PAAD, Fisher, Andrew, et al. "PAAD: Panelization algorithm for architectural designs." PLoS One 19.6 (2024): e0303646), which formulated panel layout generation as an optimization problem. The intern will extend this direction by developing and evaluating adaptive or AI-guided optimization strategies that improve the quality and efficiency of generated panel layouts. The project will use synthetic architectural design cases to avoid dependence on proprietary industry data while still enabling systematic testing across varied layout types and constraint settings. Expected work includes reviewing relevant optimization methods, implementing or extending a baseline PAAD-style pipeline, developing an AI-assisted extension, and evaluating performance using measures such as material usage, manufacturability, correction requirements, and runtime. The expected outcome is a prototype codebase, synthetic benchmark cases, and a comparative evaluation that can support future research in AI-enabled digital construction workflows.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My specialized research area is applied artificial intelligence for practical decision-support systems. My work focuses on developing lightweight and interpretable AI methods, including machine learning, natural language processing, computer vision, and optimization, for real-world domains such as construction, health communication, and digital workflow automation. I am especially interested in AI systems that can operate under practical constraints, support human decision-making, and translate research methods into usable tools for industry, community, and public-sector applications.

Student roles:
The student will contribute to the design, implementation, and evaluation of an AI-assisted panelization framework for architectural designs. Their role will begin with a focused review of the PAAD framework and related research in evolutionary optimization, constraint satisfaction, and design automation. They will then help set up the software environment, review any existing code or data structures, and define the benchmark cases and evaluation metrics for the project.

The student will implement or extend a baseline PAAD-style optimization pipeline and use synthetic architectural layouts to test panelization under varied geometry and manufacturing constraints. A central part of the role will be to design and evaluate an AI-assisted extension, such as adaptive heuristics, complexity-aware repair strategies, or guided search methods that improve solution quality or runtime efficiency.

The student will conduct experiments, analyze trade-offs among material usage, manufacturability, correction requirements, and runtime, and document the results in a clear technical report. They will also participate in regular supervision meetings, provide progress updates, maintain organized code and experimental records, and prepare final presentation materials. The role is intended to give the student hands-on experience in applied AI research, optimization, prototype development, and experimental evaluation in a practical construction-related setting.

Skills required:
The student should have a background in computer science, engineering, mathematics, or a related field, with strong programming skills, preferably in Python. Prior coursework or experience in artificial intelligence, machine learning, optimization, algorithms, or data structures would be valuable. Familiarity with evolutionary algorithms, constraint satisfaction, synthetic data generation, or design/CAD-related workflows would be helpful but is not required. The student should be comfortable with independent research, experimental evaluation, and developing prototype code, and should have an interest in applied AI for practical engineering or construction-related problems.

30. AI-Assisted Reconstruction of Editable Parametric CAD Models from 3D Meshes for Digital Fabrication

Millions of 3D printable models are available online, but most are distributed as mesh files (e.g., STL), which are difficult to modify without extensive CAD expertise. This project aims to develop AI techniques that automatically convert 3D mesh models into editable parametric CAD programs represented in OpenSCAD. The student will investigate methods that analyze the geometric structure of a mesh, identify meaningful design parameters, and generate a corresponding OpenSCAD program capable of recreating the original model. The generated parametric representation will allow users to adjust dimensions, tolerances, and other design parameters before manufacturing or 3D printing. The project combines machine learning, computer graphics, and geometric reasoning. Research activities may include dataset construction, geometric feature extraction, program synthesis, large language models for code generation, and evaluation of reconstruction accuracy and editability. The student will gain experience working with modern AI models, 3D geometry processing tools, and digital fabrication workflows. Expected outcomes include a prototype mesh-to-OpenSCAD conversion system, evaluation datasets and benchmarks, and a research report summarizing findings and future research directions.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on artificial intelligence, computer graphics, computer vision, and geometric modeling. We develop machine learning methods that enable computers to understand, generate, and manipulate 2D and 3D visual content. Current research topics include generative AI for 3D content creation, geometric deep learning, 3D reconstruction, digital fabrication, and human-AI collaboration for design. Our goal is to make advanced design and modeling technologies more accessible to both experts and non-experts.

Student roles:
The student will participate in all phases of the research project, including literature review, dataset preparation, software development, experimentation, and evaluation. Responsibilities include developing algorithms for 3D geometry analysis and parametric model generation, implementing and testing machine learning models, conducting experimental studies, analyzing results, and documenting findings. The student will work closely with the research team, participate in regular meetings, and contribute to technical reports, software prototypes, and potential research publications. The student will also present project progress and final outcomes to the research group.

Skills required:
Applicants should have a strong background in computer science, computer engineering, mathematics, or a related discipline. Experience with Python programming is required. Familiarity with machine learning, computer graphics, computer vision, CAD systems, or 3D geometry processing is desirable but not mandatory. Experience with deep learning frameworks such as PyTorch, as well as basic knowledge of linear algebra and geometry, will be considered an asset. Previous research experience in parametric-based 3D modeling, CAD model generation, procedural modeling, or geometric modeling will be considered a valuable asset. Strong problem-solving, communication, and teamwork skills are expected.

31. AI-Assisted Software Development

The student working on this project will join the team of graduate and undergraduate students and will help advance one of the following directions: (a) reliable debugging assistant for code, (b) query language formalization and refinement, and (c) scalable and provably-correct code generation.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: This project focuses on developing techniques that combine generative AI capabilities with formal reasoning, programming languages, and program analysis techniques, to improve the quality of AI-assisted software engineering agents.

Student roles:
The tasks will include developing software and experimental infrastructure, running experiments, analyzing and reporting results, and reading and discussing research manuscripts. The student will also analyze existing academic and industrial work, including the ability of LLM to assist with software engineering tasks.

At the end of the project, the student will be familiar with the AI-for-code domain and will be able to analyze and discuss major ML reliability considerations. The student will also be familiar with LLMs and will learn to build high-quality software systems. The student will join weekly project meetings with the group and the PI, will be exposed to ways research groups operate, and will have the chance to collaborate internally and with external partners.

Skills required:
The student is expected to:
- have solid programming experience and good command of Java, C++, C, or a similar language;
- be able to learn new programming languages and frameworks;
- have deep understanding of a variety of machine learning techniques;
- have deep understanding of algorithms and data structures;
- be detail-oriented and thorough.

Additional desirable skills (optional):
- experience with program analysis and mobile analysis frameworks (such as soot or asm).

32. AI-Assisted Vulnerability Analysis for Cyber-Physical Systems CI/CD Pipelines

Modern cyber-physical systems development teams integrate static analysis tools into their continuous integration and continuous deployment pipelines to detect security vulnerabilities automatically. These tools typically rank findings using severity scores such as the Common Vulnerability Scoring System, which assumes a generic computing environment. This creates a significant problem for cyber-physical systems, because the same software defect can be catastrophic on a microcontroller with limited memory and strict timing budgets while being comparatively benign on a more capable platform. Developers consequently spend significant effort reviewing alerts that are not actually exploitable on their target hardware. This project investigates how AI methods, particularly large language models, can be used to incorporate hardware context into automated vulnerability analysis, producing more accurate and actionable results in modern cyber-physical systems development pipelines. The intern will design and implement an AI-assisted framework that combines traditional static analysis with hardware-aware reasoning. Implementation will use Python, established static analyzers such as CodeQL or Semgrep, large language model APIs such as Anthropic or OpenAI, and a retrieval-augmented generation pipeline grounded in chip datasheets and platform reference manuals. The framework will take as input a software repository and a structured hardware profile, and produce as output a re-ranked list of vulnerabilities with explanations linking each ranking decision to specific hardware constraints. The research questions are: (1) which behavioural and structural signals best predict whether a static analysis finding is actually exploitable on a given cyber-physical platform, and (2) how does an AI-assisted hardware-aware analysis framework compare against the standard severity-based ranking on precision, recall, and developer-perceived usefulness. Deliverables include an open-source analysis framework, a curated benchmark across multiple cyber-physical platforms or GitHub projects, and a draft paper for a software engineering or security venue.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on software engineering and security for embedded and cyber-physical systems, with growing interest in AI-assisted methods that support developers in writing, testing, and securing safety-critical software. I have published on functional reuse in embedded software, security analysis of field-programmable gate-array designs, and agile development pipelines for embedded systems. I am increasingly interested in AI-assisted vulnerability analysis for CPS, where hardware constraints fundamentally change whether a software defect is actually exploitable in practice. This direction addresses a known limitation of current vulnerability scoring systems, which assume a generic computing environment and ignore the resource-constrained reality of cyber-physical platforms.

Student roles:
The intern will own the design and implementation of the AI-assisted vulnerability analysis framework from end to end, including the choice of static analyzers, the design of the hardware profile representation, the design of the language model reasoning pipeline, and the selection of evaluation benchmarks. The supervisor will provide research direction, weekly mentorship, and writing guidance throughout the project.

Weeks 1 and 2: Onboarding, literature review on vulnerability scoring, hardware-aware security analysis, large language model applications in software security, and continuous integration tooling. The intern will produce a focused literature synthesis and a refined system architecture.

Weeks 3 and 4: Construct a benchmark corpus of representative open-source cyber-physical firmwares drawn from ecosystems such as Zephyr, FreeRTOS, and Arduino libraries. Define structured hardware profiles for at least five representative platforms, capturing memory size, interrupt budget, scheduler behaviour, and memory protection.

Weeks 5 and 6: Integrate static analysis tools into a reproducible analysis pipeline. Build the retrieval-augmented generation component grounded in chip datasheets and platform reference manuals.

Weeks 7 and 8: Implement the language model reasoning layer. For each combination of vulnerability finding, firmware, and platform profile, the system produces a context-grounded re-ranked severity along with a textual justification.

Weeks 9 and 10: Run the full evaluation across the benchmark corpus and platform profiles. Measure ranking quality against the standard severity-based baseline and against a small set of expert ratings provided by the supervisor and an external collaborator.

Weeks 11 and 12: Conduct statistical analysis. Draft a short paper. Prepare the open-source release including the framework, the benchmark, hardware profiles, prompts, and reproducibility documentation.

Skills required:
Strong Python programming and comfort with reading C or C++ code. Familiarity with at least one large language model API such as Anthropic, OpenAI, or open-source models served through Ollama. Familiarity with retrieval-augmented generation pipelines is important. Coursework or projects in software security, static analysis, or software engineering is strongly preferred. Experience with at least one static analysis tool such as CodeQL, Semgrep, or clang-tidy is an asset but can be learned. Comfort with Git, Linux, and continuous integration tools such as GitHub Actions is required. Interest in empirical software engineering research is strongly valued.

33. AI-Assisted Wireless Link Selection for Reliable IoT and V2X Networks

This project investigates AI-assisted wireless link selection for reliable IoT and vehicle-to-everything (V2X) networks. In many wireless systems, devices must decide which communication link, relay, access point, or neighbouring node should be used to transmit data. Poor link selection may increase packet loss, delay, and information staleness, especially when devices are mobile or when channel conditions change over time. The student will develop a Python-based simulation framework for a simplified IoT or V2X network. Nodes may represent sensors, vehicles, roadside units, or access points. The simulator will model basic wireless link quality using distance, path loss, noise, interference, or random channel variation. The student will implement and compare several link-selection strategies, including shortest-distance selection, strongest-signal selection, random selection, and simple machine-learning-based prediction. The project will evaluate performance using metrics such as packet success rate, delay, link reliability, number of failed transmissions, and possibly Age of Information. The emphasis is on implementation, experimentation, and visualization rather than advanced wireless theory. The expected outcomes include well-documented simulation code, performance plots, and a short technical report explaining which link-selection strategies work best under different network conditions. This project is suitable for students interested in wireless networks, IoT, vehicular communications, machine learning, simulation, and data analysis.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on intelligent wireless communication networks, IoT systems, Age of Information, network science, and machine-learning-assisted resource allocation. I study how connected devices, sensors, vehicles, and edge systems can exchange timely and reliable information under limited bandwidth, energy, and computing resources. My work combines simulation, graph-based modeling, data-driven methods, and optimization-inspired algorithms for applications in IoT, vehicular networks, cyber-physical systems, and next-generation wireless communication systems.

Student roles:
The student will be responsible for implementing and evaluating a Python-based wireless network simulation framework for IoT and V2X link selection. The student will begin by reviewing basic concepts related to wireless links, signal quality, IoT/V2X networks, and simple machine-learning classification or prediction methods.

The student will then build a simplified network model with mobile or static nodes, define basic wireless link-quality measures, and implement several baseline link-selection strategies. These may include random selection, nearest-neighbour selection, strongest-signal selection, and simple AI-assisted selection using machine-learning models such as decision trees, random forests, logistic regression, or other lightweight methods.

The student will run simulation experiments under different conditions, such as node density, mobility level, noise level, and link-failure probability. They will compare the methods using performance metrics such as packet success rate, delay, reliability, failed transmissions, and information freshness where applicable.

The student will also create clear plots, document the code, participate in regular research meetings, and prepare a final report and presentation summarizing the methodology, results, and main observations. The role is implementation-focused; the student is not expected to derive new mathematical models or develop advanced wireless communication theory.

Skills required:
The student should have good programming skills, preferably in Python. Familiarity with NumPy, Pandas, Matplotlib, NetworkX, or scikit-learn would be helpful. Basic knowledge of computer networks, wireless communication, probability, data analysis, or machine learning is an asset. The student is not expected to know advanced wireless-channel modeling, optimization theory, or communication theory. A motivated student with experience in coding, simulation, and visualizing experimental results should be able to complete the project successfully.

34. AI-Based Drone and Robot Collaboration

The digitalization of industrial tasks, such as inventory management, deliveries and precise positioning, increasingly relies on the coordination of drones and robots. For example, precise positioning refers to the ability of robots to accurately determine their location and navigate within complex industrial environments to avoid obstacles. These technologies create adaptive environments that can respond quickly to the demands of modern supply chains. This project aims to design an AI-driven approach that optimizes the collaboration between drones and robots, thereby enhancing their ability to perform complex tasks autonomously. The project begins with a thorough literature review to investigate current advancements in drone and robot collaboration, as well as the application of AI in industry. Following this, an AI-based approach will be proposed to improve the synchronization of drones and robots in industrial tasks. Synthetic and simulated data will be used to test and fine-tune the proposed solution under realistic industrial conditions.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My broad area of interest is Software Engineering, with a growing focus on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and its applications. In particular, I am interested in AI for Software Engineering, the use of AI in Electric Vehicles (EVs), and intelligent systems for Autonomous Vehicle Scheduling. My research interests also include Model-Driven Software Engineering, Software Architecture, and Mining Software Repositories. I am particularly interested in leveraging AI techniques to address complex software engineering challenges and to develop innovative solutions in emerging domains such as autonomous and electric mobility.

Student roles:
The successful candidate will be involved in software development and programming, designing and conducting experiments, analyzing results, and contributing to the preparation of scientific reports, technical documents, and research publications.

Skills required:
Required qualifications include programming skills in at least one programming language, preferably Python. Applicants should have some knowledge of and background in advanced calculus. Prior coursework, experience, or a background in Artificial Intelligence (AI) is preferred.

35. AI-Based Software Development Learning Game

This project explores the development of an interactive game designed to teach modern software engineering and Java-based application development practices through hands-on gameplay. The core concept is to combine game mechanics with real-world development workflows, allowing players to learn how to effectively build software using AI-assisted development tools while working within the Java ecosystem. Players would progress through challenges, quests, and simulated engineering tasks that mirror real software development scenarios. The game would introduce concepts such as clean architecture, object-oriented programming, debugging, testing, API design, version control, CI/CD pipelines, and collaborative development practices. AI would act as both a development assistant and an in-game mechanic, helping players generate code, review implementations, identify bugs, and improve software quality. The experience is intended to teach not only Java programming fundamentals, but also how to responsibly and efficiently work with AI during the software development lifecycle. Players would learn how to prompt AI tools effectively, validate generated code, refactor applications, and apply engineering best practices instead of relying on AI blindly.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: AI, ML, Systems, Programming Languages

Student roles:
Design, development, presentation and reporting

Skills required:
Programming knowledge, AI/ML Knowledge

36. AI-Driven Adaptive User Interface

In this project, we aim to explore artificial intelligence (AI) techniques in human-computer interaction (HCI) systems to enhance user experiences and optimize usability. Specifically, we will leverage advancements in AI to design novel approaches for dynamically adapting interfaces and personalizing interactions with devices. By combining AI algorithms with HCI design principles, we plan to develop intelligent interfaces capable of understanding and responding to user behaviors, preferences, and contextual cues in real-time. Ultimately, the goal is to empower users with intelligent systems that anticipate their needs, adapt to their preferences, and enhance their overall experience with digital technology.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research area is in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), with a focus on developing and studying novel interactions with mobile and wearable devices. More specifically, I am interested in exploring users’ needs and limitations while they are interacting with emerging technologies (e.g., smartphones and smart glasses). I tackle these limitations by designing new interfaces and interaction techniques. My methodology is rooted in HCI techniques, where I adopt quantitative and qualitative evaluations to validate the interaction techniques.

Student roles:
The student will be mainly involved in the design and development cycles. S/he will be a part of running user studies to evaluate the efficiency of the developed solution. Along with the help of undergraduate, and graduate students, and other collaborators, the student will analyze data and write reports to publish the results in prestigious conferences/journals. These applied experiences in design and analysis methods will be extremely beneficial for the student as these will help them in preparing for their future careers as researchers, designers, or software developers for many top Canadian and worldwide academies and industries.

In addition to concrete research experiences, students are expected to attend on-campus seminars and workshops to gain knowledge on contemporary subject matters. The student will be expected to participate in regular lab meetings, where they will have the opportunity to present their ideas, discuss research progress, and receive constructive feedback. Additionally, the intern will be encouraged to build industry and academic connections in Canada. Such a collaborative and supportive environment would help students become successful in their future careers.

Skills required:
Undergraduate students with computer science or engineering backgrounds are welcome to apply. The proposed project requires the student to develop an intelligent interface capable of understanding and responding to user behaviors, preferences, and contextual cues in real time. Thus, prior experience with AI/Deep Learning/Machine learning application development is preferred. The intern should have the skills to solve complex problems and troubleshoot issues for potential solutions. While the intern will be expected to work in a team environment, s/he needs to have strong communication skills, both when speaking to people and in writing.

37. AI-Driven Analysis of Network Plasticity in Cerebral Organoids

This project will develop an AI-driven framework to investigate activity-dependent network plasticity in human iPSC-derived cerebral organoids. Cerebral organoids provide a human-relevant 3D model of early brain development, including neuronal differentiation, synaptogenesis, and spontaneous network activity. However, it remains unclear whether defined stimulation patterns can induce lasting, memory-like changes in organoid network organization and whether these changes can be quantified using interpretable computational biomarkers. The project will test the hypothesis that temporally defined optochemical stimulation can produce motif-specific and retention-dependent reorganization of functional connectivity in cerebral organoids. Students will work on the development of an in silico framework to model and analyze the relationship between optochemical stimulation patterns and neural network plasticity in cerebral organoid-like systems. They will simulate defined optochemical stimulation motifs and evaluate how different temporal input patterns may influence network activity, synchronization, propagation, and connectivity remodeling. Using available experimental datasets and biologically informed computational models, the study will generate predicted relationships between stimulation parameters and plasticity-related network outcomes. AI-assisted segmentation, ΔF/F₀ signal analysis, event detection, graph-based connectivity metrics, and interpretable machine learning will be used to identify activity features that may predict sustained network reorganization. The expected outcome is a reproducible analytical pipeline and predictive model for identifying stimulation patterns most likely to induce durable, biologically meaningful network plasticity. In a later stage, the strongest in silico predictions could be tested experimentally in vitro using human iPSC-derived cerebral organoids, calcium imaging, and optochemical stimulation.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My specialized research area lies at the intersection of human-relevant neural models, medical imaging, and artificial intelligence. I focus on developing quantitative imaging and computational approaches to study dynamic biological systems, with particular interest in functional neural activity, network organization, and disease-relevant circuit remodeling. My current work uses human iPSC-derived cerebral organoids as an in vitro model to investigate activity-dependent network plasticity. This multidisciplinary approach builds on my broader expertise in AI-driven molecular imaging, MRI, and advanced biomedical data processing. With expertise in applied physics, medical imaging, and machine learning, I aim to transform diagnostic and therapeutic strategies.

Student roles:
The student will contribute to the development of a fully computational, in silico framework for analyzing the relationship between optochemical stimulation patterns and neural network plasticity in cerebral organoids. Their primary role will be to work with pre-existing datasets to build a reproducible analysis pipeline for data preprocessing, signal extraction, feature engineering, network modeling, and predictive analysis. They will then implement or adapt computational tools for ΔF/F₀ extraction, event detection, burst analysis, synchrony quantification, and graph-based functional connectivity analysis. Their role will include model training, validation, visualization of results, documentation of code, and preparation of figures or summaries for presentations and future publications. The outcome of the student’s work will be a computational pipeline and set of testable predictions that can later guide in vitro experiments using human iPSC-derived cerebral organoids. Through this project, the student will gain hands-on experience in AI-driven biomedical data analysis, neural activity modeling, calcium imaging data processing, and graph-based analysis of functional connectivity in organoid-like neural systems. The core project will remain fully computational, but if the student is interested, I can provide optional training in relevant wet-lab techniques and include them in in vitro testing in an organoid model.

Skills required:
The student should have a background in biomedical engineering, physics, computer science, or related fields. Programming experience in Python is essential, particularly with libraries such as NumPy, SciPy, PyTorch, or TensorFlow. Familiarity with neural time-series analysis, calcium imaging data, graph/network analysis, or computational modeling would be a strong asset. The student should be comfortable working with pre-existing experimental or publicly available datasets and developing reproducible computational pipelines for data preprocessing, feature extraction, visualization, and model evaluation. No wet-lab experience is required for the core internship. However, training will be provided if requested and will align with students' goals.

38. AI-Driven Event Reconstruction at the Electron-Ion Collider

The Canadian subatomic physics community, through the EIC Canada Collaboration led by UM, holds leadership roles in the EIC program and in the international ePIC collaboration (with 850+ members) which will build the first detector at the EIC: the ePIC detector, budgeted at a total cost of US$300M. In particular, the UM group leads various software and computing efforts in the ePIC collaboration. These includes simulation and reconstruction software, and data production campaign operations. As part of this project, the student will develop machine learning solutions to event reconstruction problems in the ePIC reconstruction software, using **AI code generation assistants** as a first-class coding partner. This will require the student to have a keen understanding of the physics goals, and to be able to assess code correctness, optimization, and maintainability, with a project life cycle that stresses careful advance planning and development of test scenarios. The exact nature of the event reconstruction questions is a matter of rapid evolution, but may include any of the following: - ring detection in Ring-Imaging Cherenkov (RICH) detectors, - pattern recognition in Detection of Internally Reflected Cherenkov (DIRC) detectors, - particle identification based on shower profiles in the Barrel Imaging Calorimeter (BIC) detector, - high-granularity clustering of pixel and strip hits in the Barrel Imaging Calorimeter (BIC) detector, - inclusive kinematics reconstruction from scattered particle features (based on DOI:10.1140/epjc/s10052-022-10964-z).

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: The Electron-Ion Collider is a US$3B new particle collider facility to be built in the current decade at Brookhaven National Lab, Long Island, New York, by the US Department of Energy. At the EIC, for the first time, polarized electrons will collide with polarized protons and light ions, and unpolarized heavy nuclei at intensities a thousand times higher than at previous (unpolarized) colliders. The EIC is at the center of a global 1400+ scientist effort to answer questions about the origin of mass and spin of the proton, and the dynamics of dense gluon systems.

Student roles:
The student will work in a highly dynamic subatomic physics collaboration, with global participants in all major world regions. The student will develop, along with the rest of the reconstruction development team, initial prototypes which will be evaluated. The prototypes will result in implementation of the machine learning algorithms in the continuous integration and production pipelines of the ePIC collaboration, where they are run reproducibly.

Skills required:
- strong understanding of subatomic physics concepts,
- strong collaborative work ethic, supported by portfolio of git activity,
- C++ and/or Python experience,
- PyTorch experience,
- familiarity with ONNX.

39. AI-Driven Joint Optimization of Computation Offloading and Service/Content Caching in Multi-Access Edge Computing (MEC)

Multi-access Edge Computing (MEC) has emerged as a promising paradigm for reducing the computational burden on resource-constrained Internet of Things (IoT) devices by deploying computing and storage resources closer to end users at the network edge. Through computation offloading, IoT devices can delegate resource-intensive tasks to nearby edge servers, thereby improving application performance and reducing device-side energy consumption. However, indiscriminate task offloading may lead to inefficient resource utilization due to the limited computational capacity of MEC servers, network congestion, and the additional latency and energy overhead associated with data transmission. Most existing computation offloading approaches assume that MEC servers are capable of executing all types of applications and services. In practice, however, task execution often depends not only on input data but also on the availability of associated service components, such as application programs, databases, and libraries. Since MEC servers have limited storage capacity, caching all services and content at every edge server is impractical. Consequently, intelligent caching decisions are essential to ensure efficient service delivery, energy consumption, and low-latency task execution. This research aims to develop an AI-driven framework for the joint optimization of computation offloading and service/content caching in MEC-enabled IoT networks. The optimization problem will be modeled as a Markov Decision Process (MDP), where the Edge Orchestrator acts as an intelligent agent that dynamically makes offloading and caching decisions based on network conditions and resource availability. A Deep Reinforcement Learning (DRL)-based approach will be designed to minimize task execution delay and energy consumption while improving resource utilization and Quality of Service (QoS) in MEC systems.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Dr. Faria Khandaker’s research focuses on Next Generation Networks, Resource Optimization in 6G Networks, Semantic Communication, Internet of Things, Edge Computing and Caching, Edge Intelligence, Value-based Caching, and Economic Caching and Pricing Models. One of Dr. Khandaker’s current research projects focuses on the economic analysis of caching in the Internet of Things (IoT). Another research by Dr. Khandaker focuses on the Quality of Service (QoS)-aware Edge-Cloud Management. Dr. Khandaker is involved with other research projects such as Resource Optimization in Semantic Communication in 6G Networks, UAV-Based Emergency Medical Services with AI-Driven Prioritization, and Resource Allocation in RIS-Assisted UAV-MEC Networks.

Student roles:
The required roles of the student are as follows:
Literature Review: The student must conduct a comprehensive review of existing research on Multi-access Edge Computing (MEC), computation offloading, service/content caching, and AI-driven resource optimization techniques in IoT networks.
System Model Design: The student must design the MEC-enabled IoT system model, including IoT devices, edge servers, service/content caching architecture, and computation offloading framework.
Problem Formulation: The student must formulate the joint optimization problem of computation offloading and service/content caching with objectives such as minimizing latency and energy consumption while improving resource utilization and Quality of Service (QoS).
AI-Based Algorithm Development: The student must develop an AI-driven optimization framework using Deep Reinforcement Learning (DRL) to make intelligent and adaptive offloading and caching decisions under dynamic network conditions.
Simulation and Performance Evaluation: The student must build a simulation environment to evaluate the proposed AI-based framework and compare its performance with existing benchmark schemes using metrics such as task execution delay, energy consumption, cache hit ratio, and bandwidth utilization.
Documentation and Reporting: The student must document the literature review, system model, problem formulation, algorithm design, simulation setup, and performance evaluation results, and the regularly report progress to the supervisor. Based on the novelty and research contributions, the outcomes may be published in a peer-reviewed conference or journal.
Through these activities, the student will gain practical research experience in MEC systems, AI-driven optimization, IoT networking, and intelligent resource management while contributing to the development of efficient next-generation edge computing solutions.

Skills required:
The key qualifications a candidate should possess to successfully complete the project include:
1. Strong programming skills, with a focus on Java, Python, and relevant Artificial Intelligence (AI)/Machine Learning (ML) frameworks.
2. Experience working with large datasets and conducting data-driven research.
3. Excellent analytical and problem-solving abilities, with experience in big data technologies and AI-related research.
4. The candidate should be capable of working both independently and collaboratively, demonstrating initiative, creativity, and a proactive approach to research challenges.
Note: Publications in areas relevant to the research project will be considered a strong asset.

40. AI-Driven Mobile Robot Navigation Using LLMs and Vision-Language-Action Models

This project aims to develop an intelligent mobile robot navigation system using Large Language Models (LLMs), Vision-Language Models (VLMs), and Vision-Language-Action (VLA) models. The robot will interpret natural language commands, understand visual scenes, and generate navigation actions in dynamic indoor environments. The project integrates AI-based perception, semantic mapping, SLAM, obstacle avoidance, and high-level task planning to enable robots to move safely and autonomously while interacting with humans.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on robotics, artificial intelligence, and autonomous systems, with expertise in embodied AI, human–robot interaction, and intelligent robotic systems. I develop autonomous robots using machine learning, deep learning, computer vision, and control systems for perception, decision-making, and navigation in complex environments. My research includes Large Language Models (LLMs), Vision-Language Models (VLMs), Vision-Language-Action (VLA) models, SLAM, and reinforcement learning for mobile robots, drones, and humanoids. Applications include precision agriculture, industrial automation, assistive robotics, autonomous vehicles, and smart manufacturing, with the goal of creating adaptive and intelligent systems that improve productivity and quality of life.

Student roles:
The student will develop and test AI-based navigation algorithms, integrate LLM/VLA models with ROS/ROS2, process camera and LiDAR data, conduct robot experiments, and analyze system performance.

Skills required:
The ideal student should have a background in robotics, mechatronics, computer science, electrical engineering, or artificial intelligence. The student should possess programming skills in Python or C++ and have familiarity with ROS/ROS2, Linux, and Git. Knowledge of machine learning, deep learning, computer vision, and autonomous navigation is desirable. Experience with Large Language Models (LLMs), Vision-Language Models (VLMs), or Vision-Language-Action (VLA) models is an asset. Familiarity with mobile robots, LiDAR, cameras, SLAM, and sensor fusion techniques is beneficial. The student should demonstrate strong analytical, problem-solving, communication, and teamwork skills, along with an interest in embodied AI and intelligent robotic systems.

41. AI-Driven Predictive Maintenance: Integrating Failure Prediction with Maintenance Scheduling

Building on the outcomes of the previous research, this internship project advances the application of machine learning and artificial intelligence in condition-based maintenance (CBM) by shifting from foundational model development toward integrated predictive-maintenance and decision-support frameworks. Earlier work established baseline models for failure prediction and remaining useful life (RUL) estimation using historical and sensor data. The upcoming internship will focus on enhancing predictive accuracy and incorporating these predictions into simplified maintenance planning and scheduling strategies. The student will work with time-series sensor data and operational datasets to refine predictive models that estimate equipment degradation and failure likelihood. Emphasis will be placed on improving model robustness under varying operating conditions and exploring lightweight approaches suitable for near real-time applications. In addition to predictive modeling, the project will introduce the student to the integration of AI outputs into maintenance decision-making workflows. This includes developing basic scheduling heuristics that utilize model predictions to prioritize maintenance actions, reduce unplanned downtime, and improve system availability. The student will explore concepts in Predictive Maintenance and Reliability Engineering, connecting data-driven insights with operational decisions.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My specialized research area focuses on the intersection of reliability and maintenance, human activity recognition, planning and scheduling, operations research (both deterministic and stochastic) and machine learning and artificial intelligence. I explore the application of advanced mathematical programming, machine learning techniques and AI algorithms to enhance the reliability and maintenance processes in various industries. This involves developing models and algorithms for human activity recognition to understand patterns and behaviors that impact system reliability. Additionally, I investigate optimization techniques based on deterministic and stochastic operations research to improve planning and scheduling of maintenance activities, maximizing resource utilization, and minimizing downtime.

Student roles:
The student's role in the research project would involve conducting in-depth literature reviews to
gain a comprehensive understanding of the current state-of-the-art in machine learning, artificial
intelligence, and reliability and maintenance research. They would be responsible for collecting and
preprocessing relevant data, applying statistical, machine learning or AI techniques to develop
predictive models for equipment failure and remaining useful life estimation. They would need to
implement and fine-tune algorithms, perform experiments, and analyze the results to evaluate the
effectiveness and efficiency of the proposed approaches. Additionally, the student would contribute
to the dissemination of research findings through writing research papers and presenting at
conferences.

Skills required:
The student should have a strong background in data analysis, programming, and stochastic
process.. Proficiency in programming (especially Python) and experience with machine learning
frameworks are important. They should understand statistical analysis and predictive modeling, as
well as operations research for optimizing maintenance planning. Knowledge of reliability
engineering and good communication skills are also valuable.

42. AI-Driven Rapid Simulation of Urban Wind Flow in Cities Using Graph Neural Networks

Accurate prediction of urban wind flow is essential for many applications, including pedestrian wind comfort and safety, dispersion of pollutants, urban heat mitigation, and the wind-resilient design of buildings and infrastructure. However, high-fidelity computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations of wind flow in complex urban environments are often computationally expensive and may not be practical for rapid analysis, large-scale parametric studies, or real-time decision support. This project aims to develop an artificial intelligence framework for rapid simulation of urban wind flow in cities, with a particular focus on graph neural networks (GNNs) and related geometric deep learning approaches. The idea is to represent urban environments as graphs, where buildings, streets, and other spatial entities are encoded as interconnected nodes and edges, allowing the model to learn how urban morphology influences local wind patterns. By training on simulation or experimental datasets, the proposed AI model will predict key wind-flow quantities, such as local wind speed, flow direction, acceleration zones, or sheltered regions, at a fraction of the cost of conventional numerical simulations. The project will investigate how AI can serve as a fast surrogate model for urban wind analysis while preserving physically meaningful spatial relationships. Potential applications include rapid screening of city districts, sensitivity analyses for urban design, support for climate-adaptive planning, and enhanced assessment of wind-related risks in dense urban areas. The expected outcome is a computational framework that combines accuracy, efficiency, and scalability for next-generation urban wind modeling.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Dr. Reda Snaiki is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Construction Engineering at ÉTS Montréal, Université du Québec. His research interests span wind engineering, structural engineering, coastal engineering, climate change, and artificial intelligence. He aims to develop advanced tools for assessing risks associated with extreme winds, in order to design more resilient infrastructure for future climate events.

Student roles:
The student will contribute to the development of an AI-based framework for rapid urban wind-flow simulation. Their tasks will include reviewing the literature on urban wind modeling, surrogate modeling, and graph neural networks; helping prepare and process datasets from simulations, experiments, or urban morphology sources; assisting in the construction of graph-based representations of urban environments; implementing and testing machine learning models for wind-flow prediction; and evaluating model performance against reference data. The student will also help analyze the influence of urban form on prediction accuracy, prepare visualizations of the results, and contribute to the documentation and dissemination of the research through technical reports and, where appropriate, conference or journal publications.

Skills required:
The ideal student should have a background in one or more of the following areas: civil engineering, mechanical engineering, environmental engineering, computer science, data science, applied mathematics, or a related discipline. The student should have programming experience, preferably in Python, and some familiarity with machine learning. Background knowledge in fluid mechanics, wind engineering, computational modeling, or urban climate would be beneficial. Familiarity with deep learning frameworks such as PyTorch or TensorFlow, and exposure to graph neural networks or geometric deep learning, would be an asset, but not mandatory.

43. AI-Driven Wildfire Risk Assessment, Air Quality Monitoring, and Community Preparedness Platform for BC

Wildfires in British Columbia have become increasingly frequent and severe, with the 2023 season being the largest on record, burning over 2.8 million hectares. The Thompson–Okanagan region, including Kamloops, has experienced repeated large-scale evacuations in recent years, resulting in significant social, economic, and health impacts. Wildfire smoke has been strongly associated with increased respiratory illness, emergency room visits, and disruptions to schools and workplaces, disproportionately affecting vulnerable populations such as children, seniors, and outdoor workers. Despite the availability of extensive public data on wildfire activity, weather conditions, air quality, and climate trends, this information remains fragmented across multiple platforms and is not effectively integrated for public use. Existing tools often focus on a single aspect, such as air quality or fire alerts, without providing a unified, actionable view of risk and preparedness. This project addresses this gap by developing an AI-driven web-based platform for wildfire risk assessment, air quality monitoring, and community preparedness in British Columbia. The system will integrate multiple publicly available datasets to deliver four core functionalities: (1) a spatial map of predicted daily wildfire risk levels across the region, (2) real-time air quality monitoring with 48-hour smoke forecasting, (3) a personalized preparedness guidance tool to help individuals take proactive protective actions, and (4) a long-term trend analysis module examining 30 years of wildfire and climate patterns. All data used is publicly available, and the project does not involve human subject research. The platform will be designed as a publicly accessible decision-support tool to enhance situational awareness, improve preparedness, and support community resilience. Research outputs will be disseminated through a presentation in a conference as well as a presentation at a TRU research or sustainability event. Findings will also be shared with the TRU Sustainability Office to support wildfire resilience initiatives and institutional collaboration.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: I have published over 110 research articles since 2017 and hold 14 US patents in AI, Assistive Technologies, Medical Imaging, Computer Vision, IoT, Robotics, and Deep Learning. I supervised over 30 undergraduate projects, which resulted in 30+ co-authored publications with those students. I received multiple international awards, including a Gold Medal at the 49th Innovation Exhibition in Geneva and first place at the NEOM Oxagon Hackathon in KSA for assistive tech related to the proposed project. I was named among the Top 2% Scientists by Stanford University in 2024, 2025 and also became an IEEE Senior Member in 2025.

Student roles:
Under my supervision, the student will play an active role in the research, design, development, and evaluation of an AI-driven wildfire risk assessment, air quality monitoring, and community preparedness platform for British Columbia, with a particular focus on the Thompson-Okanagan region. The student will assist in collecting, integrating, cleaning, and analyzing publicly available datasets related to wildfire activity, weather conditions, climate trends, air quality measurements, and geographic information systems (GIS).
The student will contribute to the development and evaluation of machine learning and data analytics models that predict wildfire risk levels and forecast air quality and smoke conditions. This includes data preprocessing, feature engineering, model training, validation, and performance assessment. In addition, the student will support the creation of interactive web-based dashboards, mapping tools, and visualization components that communicate complex environmental information in a clear and accessible manner for community members, emergency planners, and decision-makers.
The student will also participate in geospatial analysis, trend analysis of historical wildfire and climate data, and the development of personalized preparedness resources that help residents better understand and respond to wildfire-related risks. Responsibilities may include integrating multiple data sources through APIs, testing platform functionality, validating system outputs, and documenting research findings and technical developments.
This position provides valuable hands-on experience in artificial intelligence, environmental data science, geospatial analytics, web application development, and climate resilience research. Through collaboration and innovation, the student will gain practical research and software development skills while contributing to a project that addresses a significant environmental and public safety challenge facing communities across British Columbia.

Skills required:
I am seeking a motivated intern student with a background in Computer Science, AI, LLMs, Software Engineering, Data Science, Environmental Science, GIS, or related fields. Ideal candidates should have experience in artificial intelligence, machine learning, data analytics, and web development. Proficiency in Python and familiarity with frameworks such as TensorFlow, PyTorch, or Scikit-learn are desirable. Experience with environmental, weather, air quality, geospatial, or remote sensing data is an asset. Strong analytical, problem-solving, communication, and teamwork skills are essential. An interest in climate resilience, sustainability, and disaster management is highly encouraged for this community-focused research project.

44. AI-Enabled Infrastructure Planning for Newcomer Integration and Resilient Community Development in Canada

This project addresses critical gaps in newcomer integration by examining how infrastructure systems — housing, transportation, and essential services — shape settlement outcomes in Canadian communities. Using AI, spatiotemporal data analytics, and complex systems modeling, the project predicts newcomer settlement patterns, identifies infrastructure gaps under climate-related risks, and optimizes intervention strategies to enhance integration and community resilience. The work advances three objectives: designing data-driven models to characterize settlement patterns, developing a socio-informed metric to identify infrastructure gaps, and building an AI-driven optimization platform to evaluate targeted infrastructure interventions.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My work focuses on infrastructure–social–organizational integration to support resilient and equitable infrastructure planning, construction, and recovery. She leverages advanced analytical approaches (artificial intelligence, data analytics, and simulation) to enhance construction productivity, improve infrastructure system performance, and inform climate-resilient mitigation and adaptation strategies for infrastructure investment and policy decisions.

Student roles:
The research assistant will support various aspects of the project, including data collection and processing, literature review, analysis of newcomer settlement patterns and infrastructure systems, and visualization of research findings. The candidate will work closely with the research team to assist in developing AI and spatiotemporal models, contribute to the design of the project platform, and help communicate results through reports, presentations, and visual outputs. The ideal candidate is detail-oriented, self-motivated, and has a general interest in urban planning, data science, or community resilience research.

Skills required:
Skills
-Spatiotemporal data analysis and GIS mapping
-Machine learning and AI modeling
-Data science and statistical analysis
-Urban planning or infrastructure knowledge

Software & Tools
-Python or R for data analysis and modeling
-GIS software (ArcGIS, QGIS)
-Experience building visualization dashboards

45. AI-Enabled Laser Diagnostics for Energy and Propulsion Systems

This project aims to develop and apply artificial intelligence (AI) techniques to enhance laser-based diagnostics for combustion and propulsion systems. In high-temperature reacting flows, Raman spectroscopy often suffers from low signal-to-noise ratio, interference from flame luminosity, and limited measurement precision. These challenges restrict its application in practical combustion environments such as gas turbines and propulsion devices. The student will work on developing data-driven approaches to improve Raman signal quality and extract accurate thermochemical information. The project will focus on applying machine learning methods, such as neural networks and signal processing algorithms, to denoise Raman spectra, reconstruct weak signals, and improve the estimation of temperature and species concentrations. The student will use existing experimental datasets of Raman and Rayleigh measurements obtained from combustion systems. Tasks include preprocessing raw spectral data, training and validating AI models, and comparing AI-enhanced results with conventional analysis methods. The student may also explore the use of synthetic datasets generated from simulations to augment training data. Depending on the student’s background, the project may extend to integrating AI models with chemical kinetics tools (e.g., Cantera) to improve prediction of combustion properties and pollutant formation. This project provides interdisciplinary training at the intersection of combustion, optics, and artificial intelligence. The student will gain experience in scientific machine learning, data analysis, and energy systems, while contributing to the development of next-generation diagnostic tools for clean energy and propulsion technologies.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on AI-enabled laser diagnostics for energy and propulsion systems. In particular, I develop data-driven methods to enhance Raman and laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) measurements in high-temperature reacting flows. By integrating machine learning with optical diagnostics, this work aims to improve signal quality, noise suppression, and quantitative accuracy in harsh combustion environments. Applications include gas turbine combustion, low-carbon fuels (H₂, NH₃, CH₄), and propulsion systems. The goal is to enable more reliable measurements of temperature, species concentrations, and pollutants, supporting the development of efficient, low-emission energy and propulsion technologies.

Student roles:
The student will contribute to the development of artificial intelligence (AI) methods to enhance laser-based diagnostics for combustion and propulsion systems. The primary role will be to support data-driven analysis of Raman and Rayleigh spectroscopy measurements, with a focus on improving signal quality and extracting accurate thermochemical information.

The student will work with existing experimental datasets, including spectral signals affected by noise, background luminosity, and measurement uncertainty. Responsibilities will include preprocessing raw data, implementing signal conditioning techniques, and developing machine learning models (e.g., regression models or neural networks) to denoise spectra and reconstruct weak Raman signals. The student will also evaluate model performance by comparing AI-enhanced results with conventional analysis approaches.

In addition, the student will assist in visualizing and interpreting results, including generating temperature and species profiles and identifying trends across different operating conditions. Depending on the student’s background, the role may also include generating synthetic datasets or using simplified simulations to support model training and validation.

The student will work closely with graduate student mentors and the principal investigator, receiving guidance on both technical tasks and research methodology. They will participate in weekly meetings, present progress updates, and contribute to discussions on data interpretation and model development.

By the end of the project, the student is expected to produce a well-documented analysis workflow, including code, results, and a final presentation summarizing their contributions. This role provides hands-on experience in applying AI techniques to real-world engineering problems, while contributing to the advancement of next-generation diagnostic tools for clean energy and propulsion applications.

Skills required:
We seek a motivated undergraduate student in engineering, physics, or a related field with an interest in data science, combustion, or optical diagnostics. The candidate should have a solid foundation in mathematics and basic programming skills. Experience with Python is highly desirable, particularly for data analysis and machine learning (e.g., NumPy, SciPy, PyTorch, or TensorFlow). Familiarity with signal processing or spectroscopy is an asset but not required. Strong analytical thinking and problem-solving skills are essential. The student should be able to work independently and collaboratively, and have an interest in applying AI methods to real-world engineering problems in energy and

46. AI-Enabled Multimodal Localization Using GNSS, WiFi, and 5G Signals

This undergraduate research project focuses on multimodal localization, aiming to accurately estimate user or device location by jointly leveraging satellite-based positioning (GNSS), WiFi, and 5G cellular signals, along with other complementary sensing sources when available (e.g., inertial sensors or maps). The project will explore how different localization techniques, such as time-based methods (e.g., time-of-arrival and time-difference-of-arrival), signal-strength–based methods (e.g., RSS fingerprinting), and angle-based methods—can be combined to overcome the limitations of individual technologies, especially in indoor, urban, or obstructed environments. A key component of the project is the use of artificial intelligence and machine learning to fuse heterogeneous measurements, learn robust location fingerprints, and adapt to dynamic environments where signal conditions change over time. Through hands-on experimentation and data analysis, students will gain practical experience in wireless signals, positioning techniques, and AI-driven data fusion, while contributing to next-generation localization solutions relevant to smart cities, autonomous systems, and future 5G/6G networks.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Our research group at York works at the intersection of machine learning empowered resource allocation and mobility management solutions for the next generation multi-band wireless communications and sensing networks for applications like environment and climate monitoring, smart agriculture, etc. https://sites.google.com/view/ngwn-research-lab/home

Student roles:
The student will participate in a research project focused on AI-enabled multimodal localization using signals from GNSS, WiFi, and 5G wireless systems. Under the supervision of the research team, the student will contribute to the development, evaluation, and validation of data-driven localization approaches.
Key responsibilities include collecting, organizing, and preprocessing multimodal localization data, such as wireless signal measurements and location labels, and assisting with exploratory data analysis. The student will support the implementation of baseline localization techniques, including signal-strength–based methods (e.g., fingerprinting) and time-based positioning approaches, to understand the strengths and limitations of individual sensing modalities.
The student will assist in designing and training machine learning models for localization and data fusion, using Python-based tools and libraries. This includes experimenting with feature representations, evaluating model performance, and comparing AI-based methods with traditional localization techniques. The student will also help integrate multiple data sources to improve localization accuracy and robustness, particularly in challenging indoor and urban environments
Additional responsibilities include maintaining well-documented and reproducible code, participating in regular research meetings, and summarizing findings through short technical reports or presentations. The student may also contribute to preparing figures, results, or demonstrations for research dissemination.
Throughout the project, the student will develop hands-on skills in wireless systems, localization techniques, and applied machine learning, while gaining experience in research problem-solving, teamwork, and technical communication. The project emphasizes learning and mentorship, and responsibilities will be scaled to the student’s background and experience.

Skills required:
Desired Technical Skills: Basic Python programming and interest in machine learning / data analysis
Curiosity about wireless signals, localization, or multimodal sensing, with willingness to learn new tools

Desired Course(s):
Applicants should be enrolled in an undergraduate degree program in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Software Engineering, Data • • • Science, or a closely related discipline.
• Relevant coursework includes (or will include)
• Machine Learning or Artificial Intelligence
• Introduction to Signal Processing
• Wireless Communications or Digital Communications
• Probability and Statistics
• Linear Algebra
• Data Structures and Algorithms
• Python Programming or Scientific Computing

47. AI-Enhanced Augmented Reality for Co-Located Communication

Augmented reality (AR) is a technology that enables virtual objects and information to be viewed on top of the physical world. AR is already being used in various ways in people’s daily lives, although its full potential for supporting real-time social interactions is still being explored. Recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI) further expand these possibilities by enabling intelligent, context-aware, and personalized assistance during interactions. However, there is limited research investigating how AR and AI can work together to facilitate communication among nearby people. To address this gap, the student will design an AI-powered AR solution that supports face-to-face interaction with nearby individuals. Using head-mounted displays, users will be able to view selectively shared personal and professional information about other co-located users, while AI-driven features can provide context-aware support and interaction assistance. The project aims to explore how designers can create AR applications that responsibly and effectively support in-person communication.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research area is in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), with a focus on developing and studying novel interactions with mobile and wearable devices. More specifically, I am interested in exploring users’ needs and limitations while they are interacting with emerging technologies (e.g., smartphones and smart glasses). I tackle these limitations by designing new interfaces and interaction techniques. My methodology is rooted in HCI techniques, where I adopt quantitative and qualitative evaluations to validate the interaction techniques.

Student roles:
The student will be mainly involved in the design and development cycles. S/he will be a part of running user studies to evaluate the efficiency of the developed solution. Along with the help of undergraduate, graduate students, and other collaborators, the student will analyze data and write reports to publish the results in prestigious conferences/journals. These applied experiences in design and analysis methods will be extremely beneficial for the student as these will help them in preparing for their future careers as researchers, designers, or software developers for many top Canadian and worldwide academy and industry.

In addition to concrete research experiences, the student is expected to attend on-campus seminars and workshops to gain knowledge on contemporary subject matters. The student will be expected to participate in regular lab meetings where the student will be given a chance to present his/her ideas, discuss research progress, and receive constructive feedback. Additionally, the intern will be encouraged to build industry and academy connections in Canada. Such a collaborative and supportive environment would help the student to become successful in their future career.

Skills required:
Undergraduate students with backgrounds in computer science, engineering, or related fields are encouraged to apply. The project involves developing an AI-powered AR solution; therefore, experience with AI and AR application development, Unity, or interactive systems is preferred. The ideal candidate should have strong problem-solving and troubleshooting skills, be able to work effectively in a team environment, and communicate clearly both verbally and in writing.

48. AI-Generated Deepfake Phishing Detection Using NLP and Multilingual Trust Signal Analysis

Artificial intelligence generated phishing and vishing content increasingly reproduces not only message content but the specific linguistic markers upon which human listeners and readers rely to assess trustworthiness, including register, politeness conventions, address forms, and discourse markers signaling authority or familiarity. Generative models are capable of reproducing such markers with considerable fidelity, and preliminary evidence indicates that this reproduction varies across languages and cultural contexts. This raises a question that has received limited scholarly attention: whether trust signaling conventions vary across languages and cultures to a degree sufficient to permit the deliberate calibration of deepfake phishing content to a target population's linguistic trust cues, and whether such cross cultural variation systematically affects the performance of automated detection systems. This project examines the question through a methodology combining computational analysis with discourse analytic technique. The student will develop a taxonomy of linguistic trust signals informed by the sociolinguistics and discourse analysis literature, and will construct a multilingual corpus of deepfake phishing style content designed to embed culturally specific trust signals across a minimum of three languages. The student will determine which trust signals transfer adequately under direct machine translation and which require native sociolinguistic competence for convincing reproduction, and will train and evaluate detection classifiers to assess whether detection performance varies when phishing content is calibrated to non English dominant trust conventions. The project will produce a cross linguistic taxonomy of exploited trust signals, a research corpus available for further academic use, and empirical evidence concerning the robustness of automated detection systems across linguistic variation. It contributes an interdisciplinary perspective to a security problem typically examined through an English centric, exclusively computational approach.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research interests are in the disciplines of software engineering and applied artificial intelligence, with applications in cybersecurity. I investigate AI-driven approaches to detect software vulnerabilities, secure the growing class of systems built on large language models, including code-generating assistants and autonomous AI agents, and identify AI-generated and human-driven social engineering attacks. My work addresses the security of AI systems themselves, including vulnerabilities introduced by LLM code generation and the emerging risks associated with agentic AI, alongside the use of AI to detect and counter malicious content and manipulation online.

Student roles:
1. Develop a taxonomy of linguistic trust signals used in phishing and vishing content.
2. Build a multilingual corpus of AI-generated phishing content embedding these trust signals.
3. Annotate the corpus by trust-signal type and language.
4. Train and evaluate phishing detection classifiers across languages.
5. Identify and document cases where detection performance degrades due to linguistic variation.

Skills required:
Programming Competence – Python and familiarity with foundational NLP tooling
Linguistic Background – Formal training in linguistics, computational linguistics, or socio-linguistics; bilingual or multilingual competence strongly preferred
Analytical Skills – Capacity to integrate qualitative discourse analysis with quantitative model evaluation
Other Relevant Skills – Strong academic writing ability in English; familiarity with corpus construction and annotation methodology

49. AI-Guided Modeling of Alzheimer's Disease in Human-Derived Brain Organoid

This project will develop a computational approach to model early Alzheimer’s disease mechanisms and experimentally validate model-generated hypotheses in human-derived cerebral organoids. Rather than attempting to create a full human brain digital twin, the project will focus on a narrower organoid-calibrated in silico disease model that predicts how genetic risk and pathological stress interact to drive amyloid accumulation, tau phosphorylation, neuroinflammation, synaptic degeneration, and neuronal network dysfunction. The in silico component will be the central part of the project. Students will build a multiscale computational model integrating mechanistic disease pathways with machine-learning approaches. The model will represent key Alzheimer’s disease variables. Publicly available transcriptomic, proteomic, imaging, and organoid datasets will be used to train and constrain the model. The model will then generate specific, testable hypotheses, such as whether APOE4 increases susceptibility to amyloid-induced tau pathology, whether inflammatory activation accelerates synaptic loss, or whether particular molecular signatures predict early network failure.The in vitro component will serve as the biological validation. Human iPSC-derived cerebral organoids will be exposed to Alzheimer’s-relevant perturbations such as Aβ oligomers, tau seeds, inflammatory stimuli, or pathological material. Organoids will be assessed using immunostaining, calcium imaging and potentially multi-electrode array recordings. Experimental results will be compared directly with computational predictions and used to refine the model. Overall, this project will establish a closed in silico/in vitro loop in which computational modeling drives hypothesis generation, while cerebral organoids provide human biological evidence to confirm, reject, or refine those hypotheses. In the team, one intern will focus more on the in silico part and the other on the in vitro validation. However, both students will be involved in all aspects of the projects and training.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My specialized research area lies at the intersection of human-relevant neural models, medical imaging, and artificial intelligence. I focus on developing quantitative imaging and computational approaches to study dynamic biological systems, with particular interest in functional neural activity, network organization, and disease-relevant circuit remodeling. My current work uses human iPSC-derived cerebral organoids as an in vitro model to investigate activity-dependent network plasticity. This multidisciplinary approach builds on my broader expertise in AI-driven molecular imaging, MRI, and advanced biomedical data processing. With expertise in applied physics, medical imaging, and machine learning, I aim to transform diagnostic and therapeutic strategies.

Student roles:
The student’s role will be to support the creation of a computational framework for studying Alzheimer’s disease mechanisms and to connect this framework with experimental observations from human-derived cerebral organoids. A major responsibility will be to build and apply in silico models that capture selected disease-relevant processes, such as amyloid-β imbalance, tau-related changes, inflammatory signaling, synaptic vulnerability, and altered neuronal activity. They will also contribute to the wet-lab component of the project by helping assess whether computational predictions are supported in human iPSC-derived cerebral organoids. This may involve participation in aseptic culture procedures, organoid maintenance, disease-relevant treatments, sample preparation, immunostaining, imaging, molecular assays, calcium activity measurements, or multi-electrode array analyses. The experimental findings will be used to evaluate the accuracy of the computational model and guide subsequent refinements.
Through this role, students will act as a link between quantitative modeling and human experimental neuroscience. They will be expected to maintain well-documented code and experimental records, communicate results clearly, and collaborate with each other and other team members throughout the project. Students will gain practical experience in predictive disease modeling, cerebral organoid-based Alzheimer’s research, biological data analysis, and the integration of computational predictions with experimental testing. Weekly project meetings and mentorship will ensure the student’s progress and the success of the research.

Skills required:
The student will contribute to the development of a computationally driven Alzheimer’s disease modeling platform that integrates in silico prediction with experimental validation in human-derived cerebral organoids. The project is best suited for, but not limited to, a student with a background in biomedical engineering, computer science, computational biology, neuroscience, bioinformatics, physics, biology and relevant fields. The student should be comfortable working with pre-existing experimental or publicly available datasets and developing reproducible computational pipelines for data preprocessing, feature extraction, visualization, and model evaluation. No wet-lab experience is required for the core internship. All training will be provided.

50. AI-Powered Autonomous Root Cause Analysis and Self-Healing Video Streaming Systems

Modern video streaming systems are highly complex distributed platforms composed of content delivery networks (CDNs), cloud services, transport protocols, adaptive bitrate algorithms, edge computing resources, and heterogeneous client devices. When Quality of Experience (QoE) degrades, identifying the true root cause is extremely challenging because failures may originate from multiple interacting layers of the system. This project aims to design an intelligent Root Cause Analysis (RCA) and automated remediation framework for end-to-end video streaming systems. The proposed research will investigate how telemetry collected from clients, servers, CDNs, transport protocols (TCP/QUIC), and network infrastructure can be combined to automatically identify the causes of QoE degradation events such as rebuffering, startup delays, bitrate instability, and latency spikes. Students will explore state-of-the-art techniques in distributed tracing, observability, machine learning, causal inference, graph analytics, and large language models (LLMs). The project will leverage real-world streaming datasets and telemetry traces to develop novel AI-driven algorithms capable of detecting anomalies, identifying root causes, and recommending remediation actions. The outcomes of this project may contribute to future autonomous multimedia systems capable of self-diagnosis and self-optimization. Results are expected to be suitable for publication in leading venues in networking and multimedia systems research.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: This project lies at the intersection of multimedia systems, computer networking, distributed systems, artificial intelligence, and observability engineering. The research focuses on understanding, diagnosing, and automatically resolving performance issues in large-scale video streaming platforms. The project investigates how AI-driven analytics, distributed tracing, cross-layer telemetry, and causal inference can be used to improve Quality of Experience (QoE) for users while enabling autonomous and self-healing streaming infrastructures.

Student roles:
The student will participate in all phases of the research project under the supervision of the research team at Concordia University.

Activities may include:

• Conducting literature reviews on multimedia systems, networking, observability, and AI-based root cause analysis.
• Studying state-of-the-art video streaming architectures and Quality of Experience (QoE) metrics.
• Analyzing large-scale telemetry traces and streaming datasets.
• Developing software tools for data collection, monitoring, and visualization.
• Implementing machine learning and graph-based analytics algorithms.
• Designing and evaluating root cause analysis techniques.
• Investigating automated remediation strategies for improving streaming performance.
• Conducting experiments using real-world datasets and network emulation environments.
• Preparing technical reports, presentations, and research publications.

Students will gain hands-on experience in cutting-edge research involving AI, networking, distributed systems, cloud computing, multimedia streaming, and large-scale data analytics.

Skills required:
Strong background in computer science, software engineering, computer engineering, or a related discipline. Knowledge of programming (Python preferred), data analysis, machine learning fundamentals, networking concepts (TCP/IP), and operating systems is desirable. Experience with Linux, distributed systems, cloud computing, multimedia systems, or artificial intelligence is an asset but not mandatory. Students should be motivated to conduct research, read scientific literature, and develop software prototypes.

51. AI-Powered Digital Twin for Sustainable Bioeconomy Pathways

This project aims to develop an LLM-enabled decision intelligence platform for sustainable bioeconomy and industrial systems. The platform will integrate sustainability assessment models, adaptive process and supply-chain models, and heterogeneous knowledge sources into a unified AI environment. Using retrieval-augmented generation, intelligent database routing, and contextual reasoning, the system will generate tailored recommendations regarding technology selection, feedstock strategies, sustainability performance, and operational scenarios. Human-in-the-loop mechanisms will ensure transparency, reliability, and industrial relevance.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on artificial intelligence, large language models (LLMs), knowledge engineering, sustainability analytics, intelligent decision-support systems, and process design and optimization. We develop human-centric AI platforms that combine machine learning, retrieval-augmented generation, sustainability assessment, and predictive analytics to support complex industrial decision-making.

Student roles:
The student will participate in the development of an AI-powered decision-support platform by integrating databases, implementing retrieval and reasoning pipelines, evaluating LLM performance, and testing recommendation capabilities. Activities include prompt engineering, data integration, model evaluation, user testing, and performance benchmarking. The student will collaborate with researchers and domain experts to validate the LLM-enabled decision intelligence platform's operability and ensure its trustworthiness.

Skills required:
Students should have a background in computer science, artificial intelligence, data science, chemical engineering, industrial engineering, or related fields. Experience with Python, machine learning, databases, natural language processing, generative AI, or cloud technologies is desirable. Interest in sustainability and decision-support applications is highly valued.

52. AI-Powered Energy Optimization and Quantum Algorithms for EV Charging Networks

Optimizing energy delivery in EV charging networks requires solving complex, multi-variable problems in near real-time: when to charge, how much power to allocate, how to balance grid load, and how to personalize recommendations for individual users. Classical optimization algorithms struggle with the combinatorial complexity of these problems at scale. This project develops and evaluates both classical ML/AI approaches and quantum computing algorithms for EV charging network optimization and security. In the first phase, the intern will design and train ML models using public EV charging datasets, and will prototype quantum optimization and security algorithms using IBM Qiskit or Google Cirq on simulated quantum hardware. In the second phase, models will be validated on live Secure EV testbed data, with comparative performance analysis between classical and quantum approaches.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Machine learning for energy systems, reinforcement learning for EV charging optimization, demand prediction, personalized charging recommendations, and exploration of quantum computing algorithms for combinatorial optimization in smart grid contexts.

Student roles:
Weeks 1–3: Literature Review & Data Preparation
• Survey ML approaches for EV charging optimization and quantum computing applications in energy systems
• Acquire and preprocess public EV datasets
• Define optimization problem formulations for both classical and quantum approaches
Weeks 4–6: Classical ML Model Development
• Train LSTM/Transformer models for demand forecasting
• Implement reinforcement learning for charging scheduling
• Build collaborative filtering recommendation engine for personalized charging
Weeks 6–8: Quantum Algorithm Prototyping
• Formulate EV charging scheduling as a QUBO (Quadratic Unconstrained Binary Optimization) problem
• Implement QAOA and VQE circuits using Qiskit on simulated quantum hardware
• Evaluate quantum algorithm performance and scalability limits
Weeks 9–11: Live Testbed Validation
• Integrate ML models with live Secure EV testbed data pipeline
• Retrain and fine-tune models on real charging session data
• Conduct comparative analysis: classical ML vs. quantum optimization
Week 12: Dissemination
• Prepare technical report and open-source code release
• Contribute to joint research publication

Skills required:
Academic Background: Computer Science, Data Science, AI/ML, Physics (quantum), or related field. Python, machine learning fundamentals, experience with time-series data, reinforcement learning, quantum computing basics (Qiskit or Cirq), recommendation systems.

53. AI-Powered Personalized Health Coaching Using Mobile and Wearable Data

This project explores how smartphones, wearable devices, personal journaling, and artificial intelligence can be combined to support healthier daily habits. While wearable sensors can capture information such as sleep, physical activity, heart rate, and screen time, they often fail to capture the personal context behind these behaviors. Journaling provides valuable insight into a person's experiences, motivations, stressors, and emotions that cannot be directly measured through sensors alone. The project investigates a human-centered approach built on three complementary components: personal journaling, mobile and wearable sensing, and generative AI. Students will develop methods that combine self-reported reflections with continuously collected sensor data to better understand how daily behaviors influence health and well-being. Using these insights, the project will explore how artificial intelligence can generate personalized, context-aware health nudges that encourage positive behavior change. Potential examples include identifying patterns between late-night phone use and poor sleep, relationships between physical activity and mood, or links between daily routines and perceived stress. Rather than providing generic recommendations, the goal is to develop intelligent systems that learn from individual behavior patterns and deliver timely, personalized nudges. For example, a user who consistently reports poor sleep after extended evening screen time may receive a reminder to disconnect earlier, while a user whose mood improves following physical activity may receive encouragement to take a short walk during periods of inactivity. These nudges will be tailored to each individual's behaviors, preferences, and context, making them more relevant and actionable than one-size-fits-all health advice. A key research challenge is determining which behaviors are most strongly associated with positive or negative outcomes for a particular individual and identifying the right moment to intervene. Students will explore data-driven approaches for uncovering these relationships and designing personalized nudging strategies that encourage healthier decisions while remaining understandable, useful, and minimally intrusive in everyday life.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on digital health, mobile and wearable computing, human-computer interaction, and artificial intelligence. I develop systems that combine smartphone and wearable sensor data with machine learning and large language models to support personalized health monitoring, behavior change, and health decision-making. My work emphasizes user-centered design, explainable AI, and practical health technologies that can be deployed on everyday devices.

Student roles:
Students will work as part of an interdisciplinary research team investigating how artificial intelligence can support personalized health coaching using data from smartphones, wearable devices, and personal journaling. Their responsibilities may include collecting and processing sensor data, analyzing behavioral datasets, developing machine learning models, designing personalized recommendation and nudging strategies, and evaluating system performance.

Depending on their interests and experience, students may also contribute to mobile application development, user interface design, data visualization, literature reviews, and the implementation of generative AI techniques. Students will participate in regular research meetings, present their progress, and collaborate with graduate students and faculty members throughout the internship.

A major focus of the project will be understanding relationships between everyday behaviors and health outcomes. Students may investigate how factors such as sleep, physical activity, screen time, and self-reported mood interact over time, and how these insights can be translated into timely, personalized health nudges. They will gain experience working with real-world mobile and wearable datasets and may help design and evaluate prototype systems that provide personalized feedback to users.

The project emphasizes research, experimentation, and independent problem solving. Students will be encouraged to explore new technologies, learn unfamiliar tools when needed, read relevant research literature, and contribute ideas to the design and evaluation of the system. By the end of the internship, students will have gained hands-on experience conducting research at the intersection of artificial intelligence, mobile computing, digital health, and human-computer interaction, while contributing to technologies that have the potential to improve health and well-being at scale.

Skills required:
Applicants should have a background in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Data Science, Artificial Intelligence, or a related field. Experience with programming in Python is required. Familiarity with machine learning, data analysis, mobile application development, wearable technologies, or data visualization is beneficial but not required.

More importantly, I am looking for students who are adaptable, and comfortable learning independently. Successful applicants should be willing to explore new technologies, read technical documentation and research papers, and quickly acquire skills needed for unfamiliar tools and frameworks. Strong problem-solving abilities and the ability to work independently and as part of a team are valuable.

54. AI-based Digital Avatar for Healthcare Applications (ADiNA)

ADiNA is an LLM-driven graphical and conversational avatar that interacts with older adults through conversation, while reminding them of important routine tasks, and performing long-term psychosocial assessment. The primary objective is to build such AI-based tools to provide assistance to nurses and other care staff, helping address shortages in nursing staff and reduce burnout by serving as a possible initial point of communication with clients, and triaging communications during periods of overload. Through this research, we equally aim to test the feasibility, acceptability, and effectiveness of such a virtual companion on short-term health outcomes of seniors in long-term care facilities, and its impact on their social interaction. The avatars, potentially presenting different on-screen human appearances and voices, as best-suited to the preferences of each client, collect information through natural conversation and video-based interaction. The relevant information, including detected anomalies in psychosocial state, would then be conveyed to care staff in an appropriate format, without necessitating travel to every client for every interaction. Additional functionality being integrated includes affective awareness through analysis of speech content and facial expression of the speaker and extended memory models to track important information over time. The prototype system architecture was pilot-tested with nursing staff and older adults, from which we identified various areas of improvement we now wish to implement, in addition to other pre-existing needs, before carrying out a larger-scale trial deployment. Research tasks include: - integrating low-level voice and video feature analysis on top of the LLM-based transcript analysis to determine user's well-being (psychosocial state) - building long-term analytics on psychosocial state metrics for conveying to clinicians - enhancing the current RAG framework to deal with long-term memories and deliberate gradual forgetting - conversation flow management - integration of image/video input interpretation capabilities for understanding of the user's environment

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Our lab researches high-fidelity distributed interaction, with both real and virtual data, to support the most demanding applications, regardless of sensor and bandwidth limitations. We work with audio, video, and haptic technologies, mixed reality and mobile computing, building systems that leverage their capabilities to facilitate and enrich both human-computer and computer-mediated human-human interaction. Active projects include development of conversational avatars for therapy and engagement with seniors, rendering audio-haptic experiences of graphics contents for users who are blind, multimodal immersive walking experiences, telepresence for music and social interaction, and design of the flight deck of the future.

Student roles:
The student will be involved in one or more of the following activities, based on a combination of identified priorities and skill set:

1. Prompt engineering to direct the large language model in carrying out its intended activity with a maximum level of proficiency to meet user expectations.
2. Integration of the system with databases from which information necessary for responses to user queries can be extracted, and/or to which user input needs to be saved.
3. Engineering the architectural support to modify conversational behaviour so as to take on new conversational tasks as requested by nurses.

Details as to these tasks will be refined according to the present state of system development nearer the time of the internship start date, and the priorities expressed by our partners in the health care sector.

Skills required:
The student should have strong programming skills, calling APIs of third-party software. Experience with generative AI, speech recognition, speech synthesis, computer vision, graphics animation, or prompt engineering would all be considered as beneficial but not imperative background.

55. AI-based cybersecurity for IoT systems

The project aims at designing AI-based algorithms to enhance security and trust in IoT systems. Security and trust will address both data communication and sensing. The student will explore several AI algorithms such as Deep Learning, Reinforcement Learning, etc. Explainable AI techniques will be used to justify and explain the various AI outcomes. Real feasibility tests will be conducted on IoT platforms.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Artificial Intelligence (AI), Cyber-security, Internet of Things (IoT), Wireless communications networks

Student roles:
The student will propose an architecture for the system and undertake the different design and programming tasks for both IoT devices and cyber-security algorithms.

Skills required:
programming skills.
wireless communication networks.
Computer networks
microprocessors
Cyber-security

56. AI-powered 2D to 3D image registration of magnetic resonance images acquired with different pulse sequences

Computer vision is a field of growing significance. For delivering external beam radiotherapy, the displacement of the clinical target needs to be monitored in ‘real-time’. To determine the target displacement from its initial position, 2D ‘real-time’ magnetic resonance (MR) images are acquired. Indeed, these 2D images are useful in capturing the ‘real-time’ motion of targets. The alignment of 2D real-time images provides valuable information about the displacement of the target — that is, how far it has moved. This displacement can be quantified using image registration techniques. However, there is currently no clear consensus on the optimal approach for performing image registration with deep learning methods. The goal of this project is to investigate several promising deep learning–based approaches, identify potential improvements, and fully implement and rigorously test these enhancements.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My long-term research objective focuses on intra-operative target tracking for radiotherapy. In fact, real-time assessment and feedback enable clinicians to make necessary adjustments and improve the outcome of the procedure. I have a decade of experience in biomedical computing and medical devices product research, development and management. Before becoming an assistant professor at Bishop’s University and then at Toronto Metropolitan University, I used to work for a leading company in the radiotherapy industry. My research goals focused on organ tracking using medical images.

Student roles:
Develop and implement methods.
Apply the methods on datasets.
Analyze and document results.
Write conference/ journal paper.

Skills required:
Knowledge of Python.
Strong logic and fundamentals in statistics

57. AIoT-UAV Driven Analytics for Early Crop Stress Detection

This project develops an integrated AIoT and UAV driven analytics system to detect early crop stress across Canadian farms, with a focus on year‑round greenhouse and controlled environment agriculture. Cold regions face unique challenges such as low winter light, fluctuating humidity, and rapid temperature shifts, all of which influence crop health. To address these conditions, the project combines multispectral and RGB UAV imagery, IoT based environmental sensing, and machine‑learning analytics to build a robust, cross‑season stress‑detection framework. The intern will work with UAV‑collected imagery to identify indicators of water stress, pest outbreaks, nutrient deficiencies, and canopy‑level anomalies. They will preprocess drone imagery, perform radiometric corrections, compute vegetation indices (NDVI, GNDVI, SAVI, VARI, and thermal‑based indices where available), and integrate these features with IoT sensor data such as temperature, humidity, CO₂, soil moisture, and light intensity. The combined dataset will support the development of supervised learning models capable of classifying multiple stress types under varying climate conditions. The project will use agricultural datasets, including Roma tomato, leafy greens, cold‑climate cereals, and canola, enabling the intern to build a regionally adapted model suitable for both greenhouse and open‑field environments. The intern will gain hands‑on experience in drone data processing, Python‑based machine learning, remote sensing, data fusion, and precision‑agriculture analytics. They will also learn how to evaluate model performance across seasons, crop types, and environmental conditions. The expected outcome is a prototype decision‑support tool that growers can use to improve yield, reduce input costs, optimize irrigation and nutrient management, and enhance climate resilience. By integrating AIoT sensing with UAV‑based imaging, this project directly supports Canada’s priorities in precision agriculture, food security, and climate‑smart farming, while providing the intern with valuable interdisciplinary research experience.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research develops secure, accessible, and sustainable AIoT and UAV‑based cyber‑physical systems for industrial automation and emergency services. I integrate AIoT sensing, autonomous UAV platforms, computer security, and quantum‑inspired optimization to advance technologies that enhance environmental monitoring, operational safety, and digital accessibility. Current research directions include: -AIoT‑UAV enabled smart farming and emergency response -AIoT and quantum‑inspired human‑technology interaction for accessibility -Preserving privacy from AI assistants -Decentralized Web3 solutions for resilient and transparent networks My work emphasizes practical, real‑world impact while training students in AIoT, UAV systems, cybersecurity, and emerging decentralized technologies.

Student roles:
This project aims to create a IoT-UAV based dataset of crop images from two distinct climate zones to enable comparative environmental analysis. Using this dataset, machine-learning models will be developed to detect early crop stress signs. Both traditional vegetation indices and modern deep-learning methods will be evaluated for effectiveness. The final goal is to build a prototype decision-support dashboard that converts model outputs into actionable insights for farmers.

The process starts with UAV image and sensor data preprocessing, including orthomosaic generation and radiometric correction to ensure consistent image quality. Key features such as NDVI, thermal gradients, and texture indicators will be extracted from these images. Model development will involve training classical algorithms like Random Forests and deep-learning models such as CNNs. Cross-climate validation will assess model robustness across environments. The project will conclude with a prototype dashboard built using Python and Streamlit to visualize predictions and aid decision-making.

The project will deliver a validated machine-learning model for early crop-stress detection, supporting proactive agricultural management. It will also produce a cross-climate UAV imagery dataset valuable for future research. Additionally, a functional prototype dashboard will demonstrate how model outputs integrate into farmer-facing tools. The final deliverable includes a conference-ready research poster summarizing the findings.

The intern will gain hands-on experience in UAV data processing, machine-learning model development, and agricultural analytics. Responsibilities include dataset preparation, feature extraction, model training and tuning, and dashboard development. Weekly supervision meetings will guide technical challenges, research methods, and documentation, ensuring steady progress and skill growth throughout the project.

Skills required:
The intern should have strong Python skills with machine learning, including experience with NumPy, Pandas, and Scikit‑learn, with TensorFlow or PyTorch as a plus. They should be familiar with Arduino and IoT sensors. Experience with drone or remote‑sensing imagery and calculating vegetation indices is helpful. The intern should be comfortable integrating environmental and sensor datasets. Knowledge of crops or precision agriculture is an asset but not required. Strong problem‑solving skills, attention to detail, and the ability to clearly document and communicate results are important for this project.

58. Accelerating Multi-Agent Learning Through Advisor-Guided Value Transfer

In many real-world settings, multiple autonomous agents must learn to make decisions together, whether coordinating firefighters battling a wildfire, managing vehicles in autonomous driving, or running experiments in a chemistry laboratory. Multi-Agent Reinforcement Learning (MARL) provides a principled framework for training such agents, but a critical challenge remains: these algorithms are sample inefficient, meaning they require millions of interactions with the environment before learning useful behaviours. This makes them impractical for real-world deployment where data is scarce and expensive to collect. One promising solution is transfer learning, i.e., reusing knowledge gained from previously solved tasks to accelerate learning on new ones. In many practical domains, sub-optimal but functional decision-making models already exist (e.g., physics-based wildfire spread models, rule-based driving models). These can serve as advisors that guide agents during training. This project investigates how agents can effectively reuse an advisor's pre-trained value function estimates to accelerate their own learning. Specifically, the intern will implement and evaluate a confidence-aware value transfer framework in multi-agent environments. The core idea is that an advisor computes a measure of similarity between the task it was originally trained on and the new task faced by the learning agent. This similarity score serves as a confidence measure, the more similar the tasks, the more the agent should trust and reuse the advisor's value estimates. The intern will design and implement such similarity metrics, integrate them into existing MARL algorithms, and evaluate performance across standard cooperative multi-agent benchmarks. The intern will work with Python-based MARL libraries and open-source simulation environments. Strong programming skills in Python and a background in machine learning or reinforcement learning are assets. This project offers a unique opportunity to contribute to cutting-edge AI research with direct applications in climate, transportation, and scientific discovery.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Dr. Subramanian's research focuses on Multi-Agent Reinforcement Learning (MARL), a subfield of Artificial Intelligence where multiple autonomous agents learn to make decisions by interacting with each other and their environment. Real-world problems like wildfire fighting, autonomous driving, and materials discovery naturally involve many interacting decision-makers, making MARL a critical tool for tackling these challenges. My work addresses two core limitations of existing MARL algorithms: poor sample efficiency (algorithms require too much data to learn) and poor scalability (algorithms become intractable with many agents). I develop principled algorithms that overcome these limitations and deploy them in real-world settings.

Student roles:
The intern will play an active and hands-on role in advancing research on transfer learning in multi-agent reinforcement learning (MARL). Under the close supervision of the principal investigator and in collaboration with graduate students in the lab, the intern will contribute to all stages of the research process, from literature review and algorithm implementation to experimentation and result analysis.

In the first phase of the internship (weeks 1–3), the intern will conduct a focused literature review on transfer learning methods in reinforcement learning, with particular emphasis on value function transfer and advisor-based learning. The intern will also set up the necessary software infrastructure, including installing and configuring relevant MARL libraries and simulation environments, and reproducing results from key baseline algorithms.

In the second phase (weeks 4–8), the intern will implement the confidence-aware value transfer framework. This involves designing and coding similarity metrics between source and target task environments, integrating the advisor's pre-trained value estimates into existing MARL algorithms, and developing the confidence scoring mechanism that determines how much the learning agent should rely on the advisor's knowledge. The intern will run initial experiments to validate the correctness of the implementation.

In the third phase (weeks 9–12), the intern will conduct a systematic empirical evaluation of the proposed framework across multiple cooperative multi-agent benchmark environments. The intern will compare performance against relevant baselines, analyze results, produce clear visualizations, and document findings. The intern is expected to contribute to a written research report summarizing the methodology, experiments, and conclusions, which may form the basis of a future research publication.

Throughout the internship, the intern will participate in weekly lab meetings, present their progress regularly, and collaborate closely with the research team. This experience will provide the intern with valuable exposure to the full research pipeline in a leading AI research lab.

Skills required:
Applicants should have a strong foundation in machine learning and linear algebra, with hands-on programming experience in Python. Familiarity with deep learning frameworks such as PyTorch or TensorFlow is expected. Prior exposure to reinforcement learning concepts (e.g., Q-learning, policy gradients, value functions) through coursework or independent study is highly desirable. Experience with scientific computing libraries such as NumPy and Matplotlib is required. Familiarity with multi-agent systems or transfer learning is an asset but not required. Strong analytical and problem-solving skills are essential, as the project involves both algorithm implementation and empirical evaluation of research ideas.

59. Adaptive AI Model Selection and Multi-Agent Learning for IoT–Edge Systems

Real-time AI applications operating across IoT and edge infrastructures must continuously balance competing objectives such as accuracy, latency, energy consumption, and resource utilization. Different AI models exhibit varying computational requirements and performance characteristics, making dynamic model selection and task placement critical challenges in distributed AI systems. This project focuses on the development of intelligent decision-making mechanisms that enable adaptive AI deployment in IoT–edge environments. The project will investigate how machine learning models with different accuracy–performance trade-offs can be combined with multi-agent reinforcement learning techniques to support autonomous decision-making. The work will include evaluating computer vision and perception models for tasks such as image classification, object detection, and activity recognition. These models will be benchmarked on both embedded and edge-computing platforms to characterize their computational costs and performance profiles. Building on these results, the project will develop multi-agent decision-making strategies capable of dynamically selecting AI models, controlling sensing rates, allocating resources, and determining where AI tasks should be executed. Reinforcement learning agents will learn adaptive policies that respond to changing system conditions, including network quality, resource availability, latency requirements, and workload demands. The resulting framework will provide an intelligent orchestration layer capable of improving system performance while maintaining application-level quality requirements in dynamic IoT–edge environments.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Software Programming, Cloud Computing, Embedded and real-time Systems, Internet of Things, Machine Learning

Student roles:
The student will contribute to developing the intelligent AI and decision-making components of the platform. The work will begin with the evaluation and benchmarking of machine-learning and computer-vision models suitable for deployment on IoT and edge devices.

The student will deploy, test, and compare models with different computational characteristics, measuring accuracy, latency, resource consumption, and scalability. They may investigate optimization techniques such as quantization, pruning, model conversion, or hardware acceleration to improve execution efficiency.

Using these performance measurements, the student will design decision-making frameworks based on reinforcement learning and multi-agent systems. Device-side agents and edge-side agents will be modeled as cooperating entities that observe local system conditions and make decisions regarding model selection, task execution, resource allocation, and workload distribution.

The student will implement and evaluate reinforcement-learning algorithms and compare them against baseline approaches such as static model selection, rule-based strategies, local-only execution, and edge-only execution. Performance metrics may include latency, accuracy, energy consumption, resource utilization, and overall quality of service.

Expected outcomes include model benchmarking tools, optimized AI models, reinforcement-learning environments, training and evaluation pipelines, learned decision policies, comparative performance analyses, and recommendations for integrating intelligent orchestration into the IoT–edge platform.

Skills required:
Strong Python programming
Machine Learning and Deep Learning fundamentals
PyTorch and/or TensorFlow
Computer Vision (OpenCV, object detection, classification)
AI model evaluation and benchmarking
Reinforcement Learning fundamentals
Multi-agent systems concepts
Data analysis and experimentation
Basics of Linux and Git
Scientific reporting and technical documentation

60. Adaptive Clustering and Controller Placement for Resilient Low Earth Orbit Software-Defined Satellite Networks

This research project focuses on developing intelligent clustering techniques to optimize controller placement in Software-Defined Satellite Networks (SDSNs). As satellite communication systems evolve toward large-scale Low Earth Orbit (LEO) constellations, efficient network management becomes increasingly challenging due to satellite mobility, dynamic network topologies, and stringent latency requirements. Although Software-Defined Networking (SDN) enables centralized and programmable network control, determining optimal controller locations across a large satellite network remains a complex and computationally intensive problem. The key idea of this project is to partition the satellite network into smaller, manageable clusters before performing controller placement. By grouping satellites based on factors such as connectivity, propagation delay, geographic proximity, and traffic patterns, the controller placement problem can be solved within each cluster rather than across the entire satellite constellation. This significantly reduces the search space and computational complexity of the optimization process, making controller placement more scalable and practical for large and highly dynamic satellite networks. The project will develop adaptive clustering algorithms and cluster-aware controller placement strategies that respond to changes in satellite positions and network conditions. Optimization and machine learning techniques will be investigated to identify efficient cluster formations and suitable controller locations within each cluster. The proposed framework will be evaluated through simulation using realistic satellite constellation scenarios and assessed using metrics such as control latency, controller workload distribution, network overhead, resilience, and quality of service. The expected outcome is a scalable and efficient controller placement framework that improves network performance while reducing management complexity. The research will contribute to the development of intelligent network management solutions for next-generation satellite communication systems supporting global connectivity, Internet of Things (IoT) applications, and other emerging space-based services.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My specialized research area is computer networks and communications, with a focus on software-defined networking (SDN), satellite communications, network optimization, cybersecurity, and intelligent network management. My research investigates the design of scalable, resilient, and efficient network architectures for next-generation communication systems. A key area of interest is Software-Defined Satellite Networks (SDSNs), where I develop optimization and machine learning techniques to improve network performance, resource utilization, and control-plane efficiency. My work also explores network security, intrusion detection, and emerging technologies that enhance the reliability and adaptability of modern terrestrial and space-based communication infrastructures.

Student roles:
The student will contribute to a 12-week research project focused on developing and evaluating a clustering-based framework for controller placement in Software-Defined Satellite Networks (SDSNs). The work will begin with a targeted literature review on SDN controller placement, satellite network architectures, and clustering-based optimization techniques to understand existing approaches and identify key challenges.

The main technical task for the student is to design and implement a clustering algorithm that partitions a large satellite network into smaller, manageable clusters based on characteristics such as network connectivity, latency, and topology. This clustering step is central to the project, as it reduces the complexity of the controller placement problem by restricting optimization within each cluster rather than across the entire satellite network. After cluster formation, the student will implement controller placement strategies within each cluster to improve scalability, reduce latency, and enhance load balancing.

The student will also develop simulation models using network simulation tools such as OMNeT++ or equivalent platforms. These simulations will be used to evaluate the proposed framework under different network scenarios and conditions. Performance metrics including controller-to-satellite latency, communication overhead, controller workload distribution, scalability, and fault tolerance will be analyzed.

In addition, the student will compare the proposed cluster-based approach with baseline controller placement methods to demonstrate its advantages. The student may also explore basic optimization or machine learning techniques to improve clustering quality and controller selection, depending on progress within the 12-week timeline.

Throughout the project, the student will document all methodologies, simulation setups, and results to ensure reproducibility. The student will prepare a final technical report summarizing the research outcomes and may contribute to a conference or journal paper if results are suitable for publication.

Overall, the student’s role is focused on algorithm development, simulation, performance evaluation, and research documentation, providing practical experience in software-defined satellite networks.

Skills required:
The ideal student should have a strong background in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or a related field. Knowledge of computer networks, communication systems, and network protocols is essential. Familiarity with Software-Defined Networking (SDN), satellite communications, network optimization, or graph theory is desirable. The student should possess programming skills and have experience with simulation and data analysis. Experience with network simulation tools such as OMNeT++, NS-3, OPNET, or similar platforms is highly preferred. Strong analytical, problem-solving, research, and communication skills are required.

61. Adaptive Machine Learning for Concept Drift Detection and Model Retraining in CI/CD Systems

Modern machine learning models deployed in software engineering environments often experience performance degradation due to concept drift, where the statistical properties of incoming data change over time. In Continuous Integration and Continuous Deployment (CI/CD) systems, evolving codebases, changing developer practices, and software architecture modifications can significantly impact prediction accuracy. This project aims to develop an adaptive framework for detecting concept drift and determining optimal model retraining strategies in CI/CD environments. The student will investigate multiple drift detection techniques, including statistical distribution comparison methods, window-based monitoring approaches, and online learning techniques. Using large-scale industrial and open-source CI/CD datasets, the student will analyze how different drift types affect predictive models used for software quality optimization, failure prediction, and test case prioritization. The research will compare fixed retraining schedules against adaptive retraining strategies triggered by detected drift events. Various retraining window sizes and update mechanisms will be evaluated to identify the best trade-off between predictive performance, computational cost, and model stability. Expected outcomes include a systematic evaluation of concept drift detection methods, recommendations for optimal retraining policies, and the development of an automated framework capable of maintaining machine learning model performance in rapidly evolving software systems. The results will contribute to advancing trustworthy and sustainable AI solutions for software engineering and MLOps applications.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: This research lies at the intersection of Machine Learning, Software Engineering, and Artificial Intelligence Operations (AIOps). The project focuses on concept drift detection and adaptive model retraining in large-scale Continuous Integration and Continuous Deployment (CI/CD) environments. The research investigates how machine learning models degrade over time as software systems evolve and explores automated techniques to identify distribution shifts, determine optimal retraining windows, and maintain model effectiveness while minimizing computational costs.

Student roles:
The student will work as a research intern within a collaborative AI and Software Engineering research team. Their primary responsibility will be to investigate concept drift in machine learning models and evaluate adaptive retraining strategies using real-world CI/CD datasets.

The student will conduct literature reviews on concept drift detection, online learning, and MLOps practices. They will assist in preparing datasets, implementing drift detection algorithms, conducting experiments, and analyzing results. The student will compare various approaches for identifying data distribution changes and determine when retraining should occur to maximize model effectiveness.

Additional responsibilities include developing experimental pipelines in Python, performing statistical analyses, creating visualizations, documenting findings, and contributing to research reports and publications. The student will participate in weekly research meetings, present progress updates, and collaborate with faculty members and graduate researchers.

By the end of the internship, the student will gain hands-on experience with machine learning research, large-scale data analysis, software engineering datasets, concept drift detection, and AI model lifecycle management. Strong candidates may have opportunities to contribute to conference or journal publications arising from the project.

Skills required:
Applicants should have completed undergraduate coursework in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Data Science, Artificial Intelligence, or a related discipline. Experience with Python programming and machine learning fundamentals is required. Familiarity with data analysis, statistics, Git, and software development practices is desirable. Knowledge of machine learning libraries such as Scikit-learn, XGBoost, TensorFlow, or PyTorch is considered an asset. Previous exposure to software testing, CI/CD systems, or MLOps concepts is beneficial but not mandatory.

62. Addressing Phylogenetic Tree Integration Challenges in Comparative Biology

Addressing Phylogenetic Tree Integration Challenges in Comparative Biology Combining phylogenetic trees that are defined on different sets of leaves presents a significant challenge in comparative biology. The resulting composite tree, known as a "super-tree," aims to incorporate information from multiple sources. However, determining the level of support or contradiction for a complete bipartition can be elusive. While it is feasible to count occurrences of an incomplete bipartition in the input trees, this statistical measure alone is insufficient for inferring majority complete bipartitions. Therefore, an alternative criterion is needed to define a majority supertree accurately. By addressing these challenges, we can enhance the quality of phylogenetic tree integration in comparative biology research.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Since July 2021, Nadia Tahiri has held the position of Assistant Professor in the Department of Computer Science at the Université de Sherbrooke. Her research program primarily focuses on enhancing our understanding of the mechanisms responsible for biodiversity generation and maintenance. Specifically, she is dedicated to identifying evolutionary processes and developing new criteria for this purpose. Throughout her career, she has undertaken various projects, including the creation of a rapid and reliable method for detecting and confirming horizontal gene transfer events using phylogenetic trees.

Student roles:
As part of this internship, students will have the opportunity to delve into the development of a novel phylogenetic tree metric. Among the potential options, the choice may be made between metrics such as Quartet distance or least-squares distance. The students will undertake the implementation of an efficient data structure, focusing on seamless data insertion, deletion, and search operations. Subsequently, they will collaborate with master's and doctoral students to integrate these metrics into the lab's existing algorithms, namely Tahiri et al. 2018 and Tahiri et al. 2022. As a culminating step, the students will engage in the analysis of real-world data, working closely with the research team to gain valuable insights.

Skills required:
The ideal candidate should possess strong programming skills in languages such as C, C++, Python, as well as proficiency in web languages like CSS and JavaScript. Knowledge of algorithms and graph theory is desirable. Familiarity with bioinformatics would be an added advantage. The student should be highly independent, proactive, and able to work autonomously. Fluency in both written and spoken English or French is required.

63. Addressing Safety and Accessibility of Active Transportation Pathway Infrastructure through Remote-Sensing Data and Modelling

This multi-year project aims to develop AI-enabled methodologies for analyzing transportation infrastructure using LiDAR and other geospatial datasets. A key objective is the creation of high-quality annotated datasets that support semantic segmentation and object detection of transportation assets such as parking infrastructure, road markings, sidewalks, curb ramps, signs, vegetation, and street furniture. The project will investigate machine learning and deep learning models for extracting and classifying transportation features from large-scale point cloud datasets. Building upon these outputs, text-based scene description tools and large language models (LLMs) will be integrated to automatically summarize roadway conditions and generate infrastructure assessment reports. The developed system will support curbside management, parking utilization studies, roadway safety evaluation, accessibility assessment, and transportation asset management.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Our research integrates advanced sensing technologies, LiDAR mapping, computer vision, and machine learning to automate the detection, classification, and analysis of transportation infrastructure. A major focus of our work is the development of annotated geospatial datasets and AI models for semantic segmentation and object detection of road and roadside features. These technologies support infrastructure inventory creation, accessibility assessment, curbside management, digital twin development, and evidence-based transportation planning.

Student roles:
We are seeking a research intern to support the development of AI-enabled transportation infrastructure analysis tools. Responsibilities will include:
1. Assisting with the annotation, quality control, and management of large-scale LiDAR and geospatial datasets used for machine learning applications.
2. Developing, training, and evaluating semantic segmentation and object detection models for identifying transportation assets and roadside features.
3. Supporting the extraction of quantitative roadway and curbside characteristics, including parking infrastructure, accessibility features, roadway geometry, slopes, and surface conditions.
4. Integrating segmentation and object detection outputs into automated transportation analysis and reporting workflows.
5. Supporting the development of LLM-based scene description and automated report-generation tools that translate AI-derived outputs into actionable transportation insights.
6. Preparing technical documentation, visualizations, and reproducible workflows for future deployment and research dissemination.

An average day will involve data annotation, preprocessing point clouds, training AI models, evaluating segmentation outputs, conducting transportation analyses, and participating in weekly meetings with graduate students and project supervisors.

Skills required:
Foundational programming knowledge, preferably in Python, with interest in applying machine learning tools.
Strong written communication skills, particularly in academic or technical contexts.
Introductory exposure to 3D data (point clouds) or a demonstrated interest in working with spatial datasets.

Highly Desirable:
Interest in transportation applications of AI, LiDAR analytics, and geospatial data science.

Considered an Asset:
Any experience with ROS, sensor integration, or SLAM.
Familiarity with GIS platforms and object detection techniques.
Experience with annotation, point cloud labeling, object detection, or semantic segmentation.
Familiarity with machine learning frameworks (PyTorch, TensorFlow, related computer vision libraries).

64. Advanced Reinforcement Learning for Adaptive Metaheuristic Optimization

This project explores how advanced reinforcement learning techniques can be used to create more adaptive and intelligent metaheuristic optimization algorithms. Metaheuristics such as Particle Swarm Optimization, Differential Evolution, and CMA-ES are powerful tools for solving difficult black-box optimization problems, but their performance often depends on manually selected parameters, operators, and restart strategies. Reinforcement learning offers a way to automate these decisions by allowing an agent to learn from the behaviour of the optimization process itself. Building on existing research in RL-assisted metaheuristics, the project will investigate more expressive reinforcement learning approaches, such as recurrent agents, attention mechanisms, hierarchical RL, transfer learning, meta-learning, or offline learning from previous optimization trajectories. The exact focus will be selected according to the student’s background and the state of the ongoing research at the beginning of the internship. Possible applications include adaptive parameter control, operator selection, restart strategies, subpopulation management, and strategy switching. The student will work with existing research code, implement selected extensions, run experiments on standard benchmark optimization problems, and analyze the behaviour of the resulting algorithms. The project aims to contribute to the development of optimization methods that can learn how to adapt their own search process, with potential applications in engineering, machine learning, scheduling, and scientific computing.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My specialized research area is the design and analysis of machine learning-enhanced metaheuristic optimization algorithms, with a particular focus on reinforcement learning for adaptive control of population-based and restart-based search methods. My work explores how optimization algorithms such as Particle Swarm Optimization, Differential Evolution, and CMA-ES can learn to adjust their parameters, operators, restart strategies, and search behaviour in response to the characteristics of the problem being solved. More broadly, my research lies at the intersection of evolutionary computation, swarm intelligence, reinforcement learning, and black-box global optimization.

Student roles:
The student will contribute to the development and evaluation of reinforcement-learning-enhanced metaheuristic optimization algorithms. Their role will include becoming familiar with the existing research codebase, reviewing relevant literature, helping identify a suitable advanced reinforcement learning direction, and implementing selected extensions to the current framework.

The student will run computational experiments on benchmark optimization problems, compare the results against baseline algorithms or simpler reinforcement learning approaches, and help analyze the behaviour of the learned agents. They will also be expected to organize experimental results, prepare figures or summaries, document their code, and contribute to a final report. If the results are promising, the student may also contribute to the preparation of a research paper or conference submission.

Skills required:
The student should have a strong interest in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and optimization. Good programming skills in Python are required, including the ability to understand and modify existing research code. Strong background in machine/deep learning is expected, and familiarity with reinforcement learning, evolutionary computation, or metaheuristic optimization would be an asset. Experience with libraries such as PyTorch, TensorFlow, NumPy, pandas, or similar scientific computing tools would also be useful.

65. Advanced Wireless Channel Modeling for Next-Generation Communication Systems

Wireless communication systems rely heavily on accurate channel models to predict how signals propagate through various environments. Traditional physics-based modeling approaches, such as ray-tracing and electromagnetic simulations, require significant computational resources and domain expertise. This project aims to develop a data-driven, machine learning-based approach to model wireless channels with high fidelity while minimizing computational complexity. By leveraging deep learning techniques, including physics-informed neural networks, the project will integrate domain knowledge into the training process to enhance model accuracy and realism. Students will be involved in collecting and preprocessing real-world channel measurement data, training models, and evaluating performance compared to conventional methods. The goal is to produce a scalable and efficient channel modeling tool that can be used in diverse deployment scenarios, including indoor, urban, and heterogeneous environments.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Interdisciplinary areas of applied electromagnetics and wireless communications, with a particular focus on the development of high-performance computational models/algorithms for emerging wireless technologies in 5G/6G/THz wireless communications, intelligent transportation (air, ground, underground), underwater communications, industrial Internet of Things, as well as biomedical sensing and healthcare applications. Keywords: Applied Electromagnetics, 5G/6G Wireless, Integrated Sensing & Communication, Localization, Antennas & RF/Microwave Design, Machine Learning & Parametric Modeling, Stochastic Uncertainty Quantification, Internet of Things & Intelligent Systems.

Student roles:
(1) Assisting in conducting literature reviews to gather relevant research papers, articles, and other academic resources to support the research project.
(2) Collaborating with the research team to exchange ideas, share knowledge, and contribute to the overall research goals, including methodology & model development, results analysis, etc.
(3) Participating in group meetings, and effectively communicating project progress and results.
(4) Keeping records of research procedures, observations, and findings. Writing reports, summaries, and contributing to scientific papers writing or presentations.

Skills required:
The project suits students with interests and backgrounds in mathematics, electromagnetics, wireless communications, or machine learning and programming.

66. Advanced road optimization

Given an approximate location of a road from a satellite viewpoint provided as a polyline, the goal is compute a simple horizontal alignment that is within a given tolerance of the polyline. A horizontal alignment is defined as a piecewise curve alternating lines and arcs while being C1 continuous. Simple in this context mean an alignment that has minimum number of pieces. The problem can be modeled as an optimization problem, but faster algorithms exist for simplifying a polyline based on geometric property. The objective is to adapt those algorithms and obtain optimization guarantees, ideally a proof that the number of pieces is indeed optimal. Dynamic programming solutions are available, but the impact of the discretization is not fully understood. Neither is the sensitivity of the solution to perturbations on the input polyline. In addition, there exists numerous solutions with a minimumal number of pieces, and it is desirable to further select the most appropriate from a civil engineering viewpoint, i.e., preferring lines instead of arcs. The project aims at further refining existing solutions, studying how they scale, and their sensitivity.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research area is optimization with specific interest in designing least expensive roads that satisfy safety, environmental, and engineering constraints. My collaborators and I have been working for more than 15 years with a company that sells road design software. We have modelled, implemented, and tested a complete set of models that allow to optimize an entire road network with guarantees that no other solution would be less expensive. This multi-year project has been a valuable application of my core knowledge in optimization and convex analysis.

Student roles:
The project will start by understanding the requirements including specific engineering constraints. It will then proceed to identifying promising algorithms, implementing several, and comparing their performance. The goal is to recommend to our industry partner a fast accurate algorithm that is explainable to civil engineers. AI tools may be used to speed up coding, e.g., generating unit tests, or find promising algorithms from the literature. The typical work environment include access to powerful workstations (dual-CPU dual GPU) with more computational power available if required.

Skills required:
The student should have some background in coding and mathematics with an interest in 2D geometry. Specific optimization techniques will be taught when needed. A familiarity with AI to speed up coding would be useful, but is not required. Likewise, knowledge of how to compare algorithm results numerically would be useful, but can be taught as the project unfolds. The student should have acceptable communication skills, and be able to work independently.

67. Advancing Derivative-free Optimization

This project will explore methods to build, analyse, and apply structures used in derivative-free optimization. This may include approximating derivatives, gradient, Hessians, and other variational analysis objects. Further steps will consider methods to apply such structures in algorithm design and solving simulation-based problems from real-world applications.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focus lies in the field of Mathematical Optimization, the study of minimizing or maximizing a function. The focus of this project is derivative-free optimization, or the study of the mathematical study of optimization algorithms that do not use derivatives.

Student roles:
The student will explore Mathematical theory, development novel approximation techniques, and work on Mathematical proofs of convergence.
The student may implement and test ideas in software.

Skills required:
Students should be strong in multivariate calculus and numerical analysis, particularly Taylor's Theorem. Students should be comfortable with software implementation in MATLAB or Python. Recommended reading "Derivative-free and Blackbox Optimization" by Audet and Hare (2017).

68. Advancing Sustainable Agriculture through AI-Driven Inverse Design of Soilless Growing Media

Soilless growing media (SGM) are becoming increasingly important in modern agriculture due to challenges such as land scarcity, urban food demand, climate change, and the need for efficient crop production systems. In greenhouse and controlled environment agriculture, SGM provide water, air, nutrients, and physical support to plant roots without relying on natural soil. These media are commonly prepared using materials such as peat, compost, coir, and perlite, where each material contributes different physical and chemical properties. Designing growing media with the right balance of container capacity, aeration, bulk density, pH, and EC is therefore important for consistent plant growth, with compost playing an important role in circular economy practices by reusing organic resources. This project aims to develop an AI-driven inverse design approach for sustainable SGM. In this approach, users can enter desired target properties, such as total porosity, container capacity, air space, bulk density, pH, and EC, and the system can suggest possible recipe options. This work can help researchers and growers reduce repeated laboratory experiments. Instead of preparing many mixtures in the lab to check which one meets the target properties, the model can provide a smaller set of promising recipes to test first. This can save time, reduce material waste, lower experimental workload, and make growing media formulation more systematic, and data driven. The undergraduate student involved in this project will assist with testing AI-based inverse design approaches for recipe recommendation. Their role will include comparing suggested recipes against target media properties and helping review how these recommendations can be presented clearly in a future web or app interface. This experience will provide valuable exposure to sustainable agriculture, applied machine learning, and practical decision-support tool development.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: This project focuses on using artificial intelligence and machine learning to support the inverse design of sustainable soilless growing media (SGM). The goal is to develop data-driven tools that can suggest suitable media recipes based on desired properties such as total porosity, container capacity, air space, bulk density, pH, and EC. The work will build on existing experimental datasets to move toward recipe recommendation. The project connects sustainable agriculture, compost-based circular economy practices, and AI to reduce trial-and-error in growing media formulation.

Student roles:
The undergraduate student will support the development and testing of an AI-driven inverse design approach for sustainable SGM. This role is suitable for a student interested in applying data science, machine learning, and simple user-focused design ideas to a real agricultural research problem.
The student will assist with testing recipe recommendation approaches where desired target properties, such as total porosity, container capacity, air space, bulk density, pH, and EC, are used to suggest possible SGM recipes. They will help compare recommended recipes against the target properties and summarize whether the suggested formulations are practical and meaningful. This will help evaluate how well the inverse design approach can reduce trial-and-error in growing media formulation.
The student may also support the early planning of a future web or app-based decision-support interface. Their role in this part will be to help review how recommended recipes, predicted properties, and model outputs can be presented clearly and effectively for future users, including researchers, industry professionals, farmers, and growers.
Throughout the project, the student will prepare clear summaries of their work using tables, figures, and short progress updates. They will participate in regular research discussions, receive guidance from the graduate research team, and contribute to improving how AI-based recipe recommendations can be tested and communicated.
This role will provide the undergraduate student with valuable interdisciplinary experience in sustainable agriculture, applied machine learning, inverse design, and practical decision-support tool development.

Skills required:
The ideal candidate will be a motivated and curious student who is interested in applying artificial intelligence and data-driven tools to real-world challenges in sustainable agriculture. A background in computer engineering, computer science, artificial intelligence, data science, environmental engineering, or a related field would be suitable for this project.
Basic Python programming experience will be helpful, especially for data handling, machine learning model testing, and result visualization using tools such as Pandas, NumPy, scikit-learn, Matplotlib, or similar libraries. Familiarity with machine learning concepts.

69. Advancing a computational model of rhythm skill learning

We have developed a recurrent neural network model that develops the ability to synchronize with a metronome through reinforcement learning (preprint: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=5233815). The resulting agent shows exciting similarities to humans, including the ability to continue the beat of the metronome, the tendency to tap just before the beat, and a dependency of lead time on noisiness and duration of metronome training. Now we want to expand this model to learn to synchronize with and/or reproduce complex musical rhythms! We will set up a developmentally plausible reinforcement learning process and introduce neural noise into the circuit to improve the correspondence with human development. We will also conduct a comparison between high-level properties of the neural activity produced by our model and neural activity observed in monkeys trained to do the same task.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: I study the human faculties of beat perception, rhythm production, and sensorimotor synchronization through the lens of computational modelling. I am interested in relationships between beat perception, physical movement, the vestibular system, and speech, particularly during development. I build models that illustrate and explore the roles of specific brain structures, computational principles, or developmental learning processes.

Student roles:
Student will engage in a loop of writing new code for the model, training it, and testing it; they will visualize and quantify results; they will brainstorm approaches to complex rhythm learning; and they will write up a summary of findings.

Skills required:
Proficiency with neural network training, ideally in PyTorch
Interest in neuroscience and music
At least an intermediate level of instrument/voice/dance training

70. Advancing the use of Mixed Reality for Interactive Medical Applications

In this project we will explore the use of extended reality as a refresher for the training of nurses in the extended reality (XR) neonatal resuscitation program (NRP). There are three stages to the project. In the first stage, the project will be expanded to support the analysis of the strength with which the user applies positive pressure ventilation to the infant. This will be done by making use of the computer vision capabilities of the Meta Quest III platform, which is already implemented and available for the student. The Meta Quest III is a Head-mounted Display (HMD) that is used globally in many Virtual Reality (VR) experimental setups. In our lab, we have already developed a mixed-reality neonatal resuscitation program platform (MR-NRP). The second stage of development will focus on implementing a multi-user platform in Unity where 2 to 4 people can take part in and make use of the XR-NRP through networking software SDK's already available for the Meta Quest III. Once the platform supports the muti-user implementation, the third stage will be the execution of a user study. The user study will be designed and executed with the goal of documenting the benefits of the new platform and produce a publication. The student will be in charge of executing user study based on the original MX-NRP platform.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research area is at the intersection of eXtended Reality (XR) and Human-Computer Interaction (HCI). XR includes Virtual, Mixed, and Augmented Reality (VR, MR, and AR, correspondingly). Students in my lab develop novel solutions for XR systems that are applied in areas such as medicine, for instance in the Neonatal Resuscitation Training (NRP). We also explore research in integrating smartphones with Virtual Reality. In particular we have developed methods to authenticate users in VR using smartphones. I also collaborate with researchers in Pscyhology, where we create virtual environments to evaluate psychological theories, such as the effects of weapons on memory.

Student roles:
The student will support the research and development activities of the 3D Telepresence and Telecollaboration Laboratory and join a team of graduate students who are doing a variety of research projects. The student will become familiar with the different software prototypes that are implemented in the lab for our research project. The student will assist in the development of software for XR systems developed in the lab and be responsible for the conceptualization of the solution to the problems presented in the description of the research project. The student will be supported by the graduate students in the lab and will also be helping graduate students to run other user studies. There will be regular meetings with the supervisor, as well as with other members of the lab. Students who participate significantly in the development of work that is published in conference papers or journal articles will also get acknowledged as co-authors in the papers. While the focus will be on the MR-NRP, it will be possible for the student to explore participating in other research projects of the lab, such as the VR Forensic Lab, and the research on the use of smartphones for authentication in VR, as well as the use of smartphones in XR in general.

Skills required:
The interested student should have a general interest in Researching and developing Interactive Graphics Systems, implementing and working with software that enables users to experience Immersive Virtual environments. Good programming skills in C#/C++/Python would be helpful for this project. The student should also have a good grasp and interest to learn what it means to do a user study, where a software prototype that has been developed is evaluated against competing implementations. Ability to use game engines such as Unity, Unreal, and Godot, would be an important asset. Having mathematical, spatial, geometrical and structured thinking skills is an asset too.

71. Affect-Aware Agentic AI for Safe Human-Centred Digital Support

Large language model-based agents are increasingly used in human-facing digital support, but they often lack reliable mechanisms for deciding how to respond in emotionally sensitive situations. A safe AI agent should not always answer directly. Depending on the user’s affective state, uncertainty, risk level, and context, it may be more appropriate to reassure the user, ask a clarifying question, provide a caution, or hand off the situation to a human or qualified professional. This 12-week project will design and evaluate a proof-of-concept affect-aware agentic AI system for safe public-facing digital support. The intern will develop a synthetic benchmark of emotionally sensitive scenarios involving worry, frustration, confusion, uncertainty, over-trust, and low trust in AI-generated advice. The project will define a response-policy taxonomy that specifies when an AI agent should respond, reassure, ask, warn, or hand off. The intern will then implement a small prototype using Python, natural language processing, and LLM-based agent workflows. The prototype will classify affective and contextual cues, select an appropriate response strategy, and generate a brief explanation for its decision. Evaluation will focus on emotional appropriateness, risk sensitivity, consistency, clarity, evidence alignment, and avoidance of overconfident or unsupported advice. The project will use synthetic scenarios only and will not involve real users, clinical decision-making, sensitive personal data, surveillance, or production deployment. Expected outcomes include a scenario benchmark, an agent response taxonomy, a working prototype, an evaluation report, and a final presentation.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on artificial intelligence, large language models, affective computing, human–AI interaction, and trustworthy AI. I study how AI systems interpret, generate, and adapt emotional and social signals in human-facing contexts, particularly in education, health communication, and public digital support. My work combines machine learning, natural language processing, user modeling, evaluation of LLM-generated responses, and human-centred AI design. This project builds on my expertise in emotion-aware AI, responsible LLM use, and the design of safe, explainable, and context-sensitive AI systems.

Student roles:
The intern will contribute to all stages of the 12-week research project under close faculty supervision. In the first stage, the student will review selected literature on LLM agents, affect-aware computing, human–AI interaction, and safe AI response generation. The intern will help define the project scope, identify relevant affective and contextual cues, and develop a synthetic scenario set for evaluation.
In the second stage, the intern will design a response-policy taxonomy for agentic AI. This taxonomy will specify when an AI agent should answer directly, provide reassurance, ask a clarifying question, issue a caution, or recommend hand-off to a human or qualified professional. The student will then implement a proof-of-concept workflow in Python using structured prompts, LLM-based agent components, and simple evaluation scripts.
In the final stage, the intern will test the prototype on synthetic scenarios, analyze successful and failed cases, and document limitations. The student will prepare summary tables, visualizations, and evaluation results, contribute to the final technical report, and present the project outcomes. The intern will not work with real users, sensitive personal data, clinical decision-making, surveillance, or production systems. The project is designed as a focused and feasible undergraduate research internship with clear weekly milestones, regular supervision, and concrete outputs suitable for future academic publication or graduate-level extension.

Skills required:
The ideal intern should have a background in computer science, artificial intelligence, data science, software engineering, or a related field. Required skills include Python programming, basic machine learning or natural language processing, ability to read research papers, and clear written communication. Experience with large language models, prompt engineering, APIs, data annotation, evaluation metrics, or human–computer interaction is an asset but not required. The student should be careful, organized, intellectually curious, and interested in responsible AI, affect-aware computing, and the evaluation of AI systems in human-facing contexts.

72. Agentic AI Interfaces for Smart Environments

This project investigates how agentic AI systems can support human interaction with smart environments. A smart environment may include sensors, connected devices, spatial interfaces, environmental data streams, and computational services. As these systems become more complex, users need new ways to understand environmental states, issue intentions, receive explanations, coordinate tasks, and maintain appropriate oversight. The project will explore lightweight AI agents or assistant-like systems that help users interact with smart-environment data and services. Possible functions include interpreting sensor readings, summarizing environmental conditions, explaining device behaviour, suggesting actions, guiding users through tasks, generating contextual reminders, or coordinating simple workflows across connected systems. The project may use simulated smart-environment data, existing IoT devices, web-based prototypes, local AI tools, or cloud-based AI services depending on student skills and available infrastructure. Interns will investigate current approaches to AI assistants, agentic interfaces, context-aware computing, and human-AI interaction. They will then design and implement a small prototype demonstrating how an AI agent can mediate interaction between a user and a smart environment. Example scenarios include environmental monitoring, smart-room assistance, indoor navigation support, accessibility support, research-lab assistance, or explainable smart-space behaviour. The internship will include background research, prototype design, implementation, documentation, and small-scale evaluation where feasible. Evaluation may focus on usability, user trust, clarity of explanations, perceived usefulness, human control, or the effectiveness of the agentic interaction model. Interns may contribute to demos, posters, technical reports, workshops, or publications where appropriate.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Smart environments increasingly combine sensors, connected devices, data streams, spatial interfaces, and AI systems. As these environments become more complex, people need better ways to understand what is happening, express intentions, receive explanations, and maintain appropriate control. This research area explores agentic AI interfaces for smart environments, focusing on human-AI interaction, context-aware computing, intelligent assistants, Internet-of-Things systems, multimodal interfaces, and responsible human-in-the-loop design. Rather than treating smart environments only as collections of devices, this work investigates AI agents as an interaction layer between people, data, services, and physical spaces.

Student roles:
The student will help design and develop an agentic AI interface for a smart-environment scenario. The student will begin by reviewing relevant literature and tools related to AI assistants, agentic systems, smart environments, context-aware computing, and human-AI interaction. Based on this review, the student will help define a focused prototype scenario suitable for a 12-week research internship.

The student will implement a small prototype showing how an AI agent or assistant can help a user understand or interact with a smart environment. The prototype may involve simulated or real sensor data, connected devices, environmental states, user goals, or contextual information. The interface may be implemented as a web application, conversational assistant, dashboard, spatial interface, or other interactive prototype depending on the project direction and the student’s skills.

The student will investigate how users can express intentions to the system, how the agent should respond, what information should be shown, and how the system can preserve human oversight. Where feasible, the student will conduct a small-scale evaluation such as through informal analytics or user testing, expert walkthroughs, task-based evaluation, or qualitative feedback from lab members. The student will document design decisions, technical implementation details, limitations, and future research directions, and may contribute to demos, posters, workshops, technical reports, or publications.

Skills required:
An optimal skillset includes a background in computer science, human-computer interaction, artificial intelligence, digital media, software engineering, or a related field; programming experience in Python, JavaScript, TypeScript, Java, C#, C/C++, or similar languages; interest in AI assistants, large language models, agentic systems, human-AI interaction, or context-aware computing; familiarity with web development, APIs, dashboards, chat interfaces, or prototype development; and interest in AI interaction, usability evaluation, explainable AI, or human-centered design. Experience with IoT, sensors, Raspberry Pi, Arduino, Unity, or WebXR is valuable.

73. Agentic AI System for Subsurface Energy and Resource Development

This research develops an agentic AI framework for subsurface energy and resource development, designed to transform traditionally fragmented and labor-intensive workflows into an integrated, autonomous, and scalable system. The project builds on the concept of a Geo-Resource Agent, which combines large language model (LLM) reasoning with domain-specific computational tools to enable end-to-end automation of subsurface analysis and decision-making. At the core of the framework is a clear separation between reasoning and computation. An LLM-based agent interprets natural-language queries and translates them into structured workflows, while all data-intensive and numerical tasks are executed by deterministic tools. This architecture ensures that complex A key component of the framework is a schema-aware data and retrieval system, which ensures consistent handling of heterogeneous datasets, including unit normalization, metadata alignment, and query translation. In parallel, an execution and state management layer tracks all actions, intermediate results, and model outputs, enabling full transparency and reproducibility. Overall, this research establishes a new paradigm for subsurface engineering by enabling autonomous, agent-driven workflows that significantly improve efficiency, scalability, and decision quality in energy and resource development.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: “GeoResourceCloud” is a research program (https://www.georesourcecloud.com) that focus on developing a multi-scale, multi-physics and data-driven decision makings platform for carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS), hydrogen storage,enhanced geothermal system and broad Geo-energy and GeoResource industry. As a researcher in this project, you will join a multi-disciplinary and vibrant research group (https://www.georesourcecloud.com/team), collaborate with our industrial and academic partners to achieve a variety of milestones, and cultivate your skillset to prepare yourself for future challenges during energy transition.

Student roles:
The student will contribute to the development and implementation of an agentic AI system for subsurface energy and resource development, with responsibilities aligned to three core components: the Geo (Resource Modeling) Agent, Production Agent, and Economy Agent. The role is designed to be flexible, allowing students to engage in different tasks depending on their background while contributing to an integrated workflow.

For the Geo (Resource Modeling) Agent, the student will focus on subsurface data processing and model construction. This includes handling geological and well log data (e.g., LAS/CSV parsing), performing geostatistical analysis such as interpolation and spatial mapping, and assisting in building reservoir or geomodel representations. The student will also support data quality control, unit consistency, and preparation of inputs for downstream simulation and analysis.

For the Production Agent, the student will work on production data analysis and forecasting. Responsibilities include organizing and querying production datasets, implementing decline curve analysis (DCA), and supporting reservoir simulation or surrogate modeling workflows. The student will help translate engineering questions into automated pipelines, ensuring results are reproducible and aligned with physical and operational constraints.

For the Economy Agent, the student will contribute to techno-economic evaluation and decision support. Tasks include linking production forecasts with economic indicators such as cost, revenue, and net present value, conducting sensitivity and scenario analyses, and assisting with optimization under uncertainty.

Across all components, the student will play a key role in workflow automation and system integration, including developing Python-based tools, interfacing with databases, and supporting agent orchestration. Additional responsibilities include validating outputs, documenting workflows, and generating visualizations. The position provides hands-on experience in integrating AI, numerical modeling, and engineering for scalable subsurface applications.

Skills required:
The project is interdisciplinary and open to students from engineering and science backgrounds, including civil, petroleum, geological, mining, computer engineering, geoscience, physics, and applied mathematics. Applicants should have strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with a willingness to learn coding, data analysis, and computational modeling. Experience in Python is an asset but not required. Exposure to geological modeling, reservoir simulation, geomechanics, or techno-economic analysis is beneficial. Students interested in AI, machine learning, or digital twins can contribute to agent development, while those with traditional engineering backgrounds can focus on physics-based modeling. Adaptability and a proactive learning mindset are essential.

74. Agentic AI and Model Context Protocol (MCP) for Intelligent Software Engineering

Recent advances in large language models have led to the emergence of AI agents capable of performing increasingly sophisticated software engineering tasks. However, the effectiveness of these agents depends largely on their ability to access relevant information and interact with the diverse tools used by software development teams. The Model Context Protocol (MCP) has recently emerged as a promising standard for enabling secure and standardized communication between AI agents and external software engineering resources. This project aims to explore how MCP can be leveraged to build intelligent software engineering agents capable of supporting developers throughout the software lifecycle. The project will investigate how agents can interact with code repositories, issue tracking systems, documentation platforms, CI/CD pipelines, testing frameworks, and other development tools through MCP-based integrations. The student will design, implement, and evaluate AI agents capable of performing tasks such as code analysis, automated code review, bug investigation, test generation, technical debt management, software maintenance, and development workflow automation. The project will also examine how MCP can facilitate collaboration among multiple agents and between human developers and AI agents. Particular attention will be given to challenges related to reliability, security, transparency, trustworthiness, and governance of agent-based software engineering systems. The project aims to contribute new knowledge, tools, and best practices for integrating MCP-enabled AI agents into modern software development environments. The outcomes of this research will help advance the next generation of intelligent development environments where developers and AI agents collaborate effectively to improve software quality and productivity.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: This project focuses on the use of the Model Context Protocol (MCP) to develop intelligent AI agents that can interact seamlessly with software engineering tools and development environments. MCP is emerging as a standardized protocol that enables AI agents to access and interact with repositories, issue trackers, CI/CD pipelines, documentation systems, and other software development resources. The project aims to investigate how MCP-enabled agents can automate and enhance software engineering activities, improve developer productivity, and support decision-making throughout the software development lifecycle.

Student roles:
The student will participate in all stages of the research project, including literature review, system design, implementation, experimentation, and evaluation. They will investigate existing MCP frameworks and identify opportunities to apply MCP-enabled agents to software engineering challenges.

The student will develop prototype AI agents capable of interacting with various software engineering tools through MCP servers. These agents may support activities such as code review, bug triaging, test generation, requirements analysis, documentation management, technical debt identification, and CI/CD monitoring.

The student will design and conduct empirical studies to evaluate the effectiveness, efficiency, and reliability of MCP-based agentic systems in realistic software development environments. They will collect and analyze data, compare different approaches, and identify factors influencing the successful adoption of AI agents in software engineering workflows.

The student will work closely with researchers and graduate students in the Software Engineering Research Laboratory at ÉTS Montréal. Responsibilities will also include analyzing experimental results, preparing technical reports, and contributing to the dissemination of research findings.

Depending on project progress, the student may have opportunities to contribute to open-source tools and co-author research papers submitted to leading software engineering and AI conferences.

Skills required:
Applicants should have a background in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Artificial Intelligence, or a related discipline. Experience with programming languages such as Python, Java, or JavaScript is desirable. Familiarity with software development tools, Git/GitHub, APIs, cloud platforms, or software architecture concepts is beneficial. Knowledge of large language models, AI agents, software engineering practices, or distributed systems is considered an asset. Strong analytical, problem-solving, and communication skills are expected.

75. Agentic AI for Embedded Software Testing and Hardware-in-the-Loop Validation

Embedded software in industrial automation, automotive systems, robotics, and intelligent infrastructure must operate reliably under strict hardware, timing, and resource constraints. Hardware-in-the-loop testing is the standard method for validating such software before deployment, because it exercises the firmware against realistic sensor signals and actuator responses. However, designing hardware-in-the-loop test cases is slow, manual, and requires deep knowledge of both the firmware and the underlying hardware platform. As embedded codebases grow, this manual effort becomes a major bottleneck in modern development pipelines. This project investigates whether an agentic AI system can autonomously generate, execute, and refine hardware-in-the-loop test suites for embedded software, reducing engineering effort while maintaining or improving fault-detection coverage. The intern will design and implement an end-to-end framework that integrates large language models with tool-use capabilities, retrieval-augmented generation grounded in firmware documentation and chip datasheets, and a hardware-in-the-loop test bench based on a Jetson development platform. The agent will read firmware source code, propose structured test scenarios, compile and deploy them to the test bench, capture runtime traces, analyze failures, and generate targeted follow-up tests. Implementation will use Python, large language model APIs such as Anthropic or OpenAI, agentic frameworks such as LangChain or LangGraph, and standard embedded toolchains. The research questions are: (1) what agent architecture and prompting strategy produces the most effective hardware-in-the-loop test suites under embedded constraints, and (2) how does the agent's coverage and fault-detection performance compare against human-authored baselines on representative open-source firmware. Deliverables include an open-source framework, a reproducible benchmark on selected firmware from Zephyr, FreeRTOS, or Arduino ecosystems, and a draft paper for a software engineering or embedded systems venue.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on software engineering for embedded and cyber-physical systems, with emphasis on embedded software testing, hardware-in-the-loop validation, AI-assisted software engineering, edge AI, and distributed computing. I develop methods and experimental platforms to improve the reliability, maintainability, and deployment of embedded systems operating under hardware, timing, and resource constraints. My recent work explores agentic AI and large language models for software analysis, testing, debugging, and system understanding in embedded, IoT, and autonomous system contexts, with applications in industrial automation, automotive systems, and intelligent infrastructure.

Student roles:
The intern will own the design and implementation of the agentic AI testing framework from end to end, with the supervisor providing the hardware-in-the-loop bench, research direction, weekly mentorship, and writing guidance.

Weeks 1 and 2: Onboarding, literature review on agentic AI for software engineering, large language models for code understanding, automated test generation, and hardware-in-the-loop testing. The intern will produce a focused literature synthesis and a refined system architecture.

Weeks 3 and 4: Set up the development environment and the pre-configured hardware-in-the-loop bench. Build the retrieval-augmented generation pipeline grounded in firmware documentation and chip datasheets. Identify and prepare three representative open-source firmware targets from ecosystems such as Zephyr, FreeRTOS, or Arduino.

Weeks 5 and 6: Implement the agent's core tool interface, including code reading, test compilation, test deployment to the bench, and runtime trace capture. Iterate on prompt design and tool descriptions on a single firmware target.

Weeks 7 and 8: Implement the failure analysis and follow-up test generation loop. Tune the agent for coverage progression and fault detection. Build a dashboard that visualizes the agent's reasoning traces and the evolving test suite.

Weeks 9 and 10: Run the full evaluation across all three firmware targets. Compare against a human-authored baseline test suite on coverage, fault detection rate, and wall-clock time. Identify and document failure modes of the agent.

Weeks 11 and 12: Conduct statistical analysis. Draft a short paper. Prepare the open-source release including the framework, the benchmark, prompts, and reproducibility documentation.

The intern will join weekly one-on-one supervision meetings and weekly group meetings, and will present a final talk at the end of the internship.

Skills required:
Strong Python programming and prior experience with at least one large language model API such as Anthropic, OpenAI, or open-source models served through Ollama. Familiarity with retrieval-augmented generation pipelines and agentic frameworks such as LangChain or LangGraph is important. Comfort reading embedded C or C++ code is required, although writing new firmware is not necessary. Comfort with Git, Linux, and basic shell scripting is required. Coursework or projects in software testing, software engineering, or embedded systems is strongly preferred. Interest in AI-assisted software engineering research is strongly valued.

76. Agentic AI for Test Automation in DevOps

Agentic AI for Test Automation in DevOps represents a transformative shift in how testing is approached in modern software delivery pipelines. Unlike traditional automation, which relies on predefined scripts and rigid rules, agentic AI brings intelligent, autonomous agents into the DevOps lifecycle. These agents are capable of perceiving code changes, understanding testing needs, generating or adapting test cases, and even self-healing broken tests—all without human intervention. By continuously learning from past test runs, bug patterns, and deployment outcomes, agentic systems can optimize test coverage, reduce flakiness, and accelerate feedback loops, making the entire CI/CD process more robust and efficient.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: AI, ML, Systems, Programming Languages, Software Testing

Student roles:
Design, development, and reporting

Skills required:
Programming knowledge, AI/ML Knowledge

77. Agentic AI for VR-Based Construction Safety Training and Hazard Response

The construction industry is one of the highest-risk sectors for workplace injury worldwide, and safety training is widely recognized as a key factor in reducing on-site incidents. Traditional construction safety training relies on classroom instruction and static videos, which do not give workers the opportunity to experience and respond to hazards in a realistic environment. Virtual reality training has emerged as a promising alternative, but most existing VR training systems use fixed, scripted scenarios that do not adapt to individual learner performance or to changing hazard conditions. This project investigates how agentic AI can be combined with virtual reality to create adaptive construction safety training scenarios that respond intelligently to learner actions and to simulated or real environmental data. The intern will design and implement a prototype training environment in Unity that represents a construction site with multiple hazard types, including fall risks, struck-by hazards, and electrical hazards. An agentic AI layer, built using a large language model with tool-use capabilities and frameworks such as LangChain or LangGraph, will observe learner behaviour inside the scene, reason about performance, and dynamically select the next training scenario, hazard, or instructional cue. Implementation will use Unity, C# for in-scene logic, and Python for the agent backend. The research questions are: (1) what agent architecture and pedagogical strategy produces the most effective adaptation of VR safety training scenarios, and (2) how does adaptive agent-driven training compare against fixed scripted scenarios in learner engagement and skill retention. Deliverables include an open-source Unity project, a small pilot evaluation with volunteer participants drawn from Algoma students, and a draft paper for a human-computer interaction, virtual reality, or applied AI venue.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on AI-assisted software engineering, agentic AI, and applied immersive technologies, alongside my core work in embedded and cyber-physical systems. I am interested in how large language models, retrieval-augmented generation, and multi-tool AI agents can be combined with virtual reality and sensor data to create adaptive training environments for high-risk industries. Construction is one of the highest-risk sectors for workplace injury, and immersive training that adapts to learner behaviour and real-world hazard data has strong potential to improve safety outcomes. This direction combines my interests in applied AI, real-time systems, and human-centred technology.

Student roles:
The intern will own the design and implementation of the VR training environment and the agentic AI layer from end to end, with the supervisor providing the VR hardware, research direction, weekly mentorship, ethics protocol support for the pilot study, and writing guidance.

Weeks 1 and 2: Onboarding, literature review on VR-based safety training, adaptive learning systems, agentic AI in immersive environments, and human-computer interaction methods. The intern will produce a focused literature synthesis and a refined system architecture.

Weeks 3 and 4: Build the Unity scene representing a construction site with at least three hazard categories such as fall risks, struck-by hazards, and electrical hazards. Implement learner interaction mechanics and instrumentation to capture learner actions in structured form.

Weeks 5 and 6: Implement the communication layer between the Unity scene and the Python-based agent backend. Build the agentic AI layer using the supervisor's preferred large language model API and agentic framework.

Weeks 7 and 8: Design the pedagogical adaptation strategy. Implement tools the agent can invoke to query learner performance, select the next hazard scenario, and inject instructional cues. Tune for responsiveness and pedagogical coherence.

Week 9: Implement and validate the fixed-scenario baseline used for comparison in the pilot evaluation.

Weeks 10 and 11: Run a small pilot evaluation with volunteer participants under an approved protocol. Half of participants experience the adaptive system; half experience the baseline. Collect performance and engagement data.

Week 12: Conduct statistical analysis. Draft a short paper. Prepare the open-source release including the Unity project, the agent backend, and reproducibility documentation.

The intern will join weekly one-on-one supervision meetings and weekly group meetings, and will present a final talk at the end of the internship.

Skills required:
Strong programming skills in C# and Python, with prior experience in Unity development required. Familiarity with at least one large language model API such as Anthropic, OpenAI, or open-source models served through Ollama is important. Comfort with agentic frameworks such as LangChain or LangGraph and with retrieval-augmented generation is preferred but can be learned. Comfort with Git, Linux or Windows development environments, and basic 3D scene design is required. Coursework or projects in computer graphics, human-computer interaction, or game development is strongly preferred. Interest in immersive training and applied AI research is strongly valued.

78. Agentic AI in Edge–Cloud for Resource Management

This proposal presents an Agentic AI-based multi-agent framework for efficient resource management in edge–cloud computing environments. The system is designed to handle dynamic workloads, heterogeneous resources, and latency-sensitive applications through autonomous and collaborative agents. The framework consists of four specialized agents: NLP Interpretation Agent – Converts user or application requests into structured, actionable tasks using natural language processing. Prediction & Forecasting Agent – Predicts workload demand, network conditions, and resource availability to support proactive decision-making. Resource Allocation (Offloading) Agent – Dynamically decides task placement between edge and cloud to optimize latency, energy, and cost. Observation & Orchestration Agent – Continuously monitors system performance and triggers task migration or reallocation when needed. These agents operate in a closed feedback loop, enabling adaptive and real-time resource optimization. The proposed system aims to improve scalability, reduce latency, enhance resource utilization, and support intelligent decision-making in distributed edge–cloud infrastructures. The first two tasks will be assigned to one intern, while the third and fourth tasks will be handled by the second intern. Both sets of tasks can be developed independently and in parallel, and will later be integrated into a unified system.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research interests primarily lie in cloud computing, optimization, mathematical modeling, reliability analysis, reliable resource management, virtual machine (VM) placement and migration, and survivable network design. I employ a range of methodologies including mathematical modeling, optimization techniques, algorithm design, game theory, and machine learning. Currently, my work is expanding into edge computing, a critical paradigm for enabling latency-sensitive and computation-intensive applications by offloading tasks closer to end-user devices. In this project, we aim to develop an Agentic AI in Edge–Cloud for Resource Management tailored for dynamic edge environments characterized by device heterogeneity, intermittent data traffic, and varying network conditions.

Student roles:
Conduct literature reviews on Agentic AI, multi-agent systems, edge–cloud computing, task offloading, and intelligent resource management techniques.
Collect, preprocess, and analyze datasets related to workload demand, network traffic, resource utilization, and edge–cloud system performance.
Assist in developing AI-based models for workload prediction, task scheduling, and dynamic resource allocation in distributed computing environments.
Support the implementation of NLP-based task interpretation mechanisms for converting user or application requests into actionable computational tasks.
Develop and configure simulation environments for evaluating edge–cloud orchestration, task offloading, and resource management strategies.
Conduct simulations and experimental studies to evaluate system performance under varying workload, network, and resource conditions.
Analyze performance metrics such as latency, throughput, energy efficiency, scalability, cost, and quality of service.
Assist in designing and testing automated monitoring, orchestration, and task migration mechanisms for adaptive system optimization.
Contribute to software development, debugging, validation, and prototype implementation using AI, cloud, and edge computing frameworks.
Prepare technical documentation, research reports, presentations, and research publications related to the project outcomes.

Skills required:
The ideal candidate for this MITACS internship will have a solid academic background in Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, or a closely related discipline, preferably at the undergraduate or graduate level.
Key qualifications include:
1. Strong programming skills, with a focus on Python and relevant AI/ML frameworks.
2. Experience working with large datasets and conducting data-driven research.
3. Excellent analytical and problem-solving abilities. Experience with big data technologies, AI-related research, and publications in relevant areas are considered strong assets.
4. The candidate should be capable of working both independently and collaboratively, demonstrating initiative, creativity, and a proactive approach to research challenges.

79. Agentic AI in Network Digital Twins: Autonomous Security Assessment with Large Language Models

Digital twins (DTs) are becoming central to managing the growing complexity of 6G and beyond wireless networks. Yet most DTs today remain passive simulators. They mirror network state but cannot independently perceive change, reason about responses, or act in real time. This project investigates how agentic artificial intelligence, powered by large language models (LLMs), can close that gap by turning digital twins into autonomous, closed-loop systems. The intern will help design and evaluate AI agents that operate inside containerized digital-twin sandboxes to perform automated network security assessment. Within a Docker-based environment, the agents perceive network state, reason over multi-step objectives, invoke external tools such as scanners and analysis utilities, and ground their decisions through retrieval-augmented generation from public knowledge bases. The work spans both single-agent and multi-agent architectures, examining how coordination, autonomy level, and prompt design affect reliability. Another main component of the project is a reproducible benchmark that evaluates frontier LLMs across a range of vulnerability categories and scenarios. The intern will contribute to extending this benchmark, running controlled experiments, and analysing results along three dimensions: task accuracy, reproducibility across repeated runs, and cost-effectiveness. These findings inform practical guidance on when agents can operate autonomously within a digital twin and when human oversight is required. The student will gain hands-on experience with state-of-the-art agentic AI, containerized network environments, and empirical evaluation, while contributing to an active research programme on 6G and AI-native networking. Strong contributions may lead to co-authorship of a peer-reviewed publication and an open-source release. The project suits a motivated computer-science student eager to work at the intersection of machine learning, networking, and cybersecurity.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My specialized research lies in next-generation (5G/6G) wireless communications and the artificial intelligence that will make future networks autonomous. As a Canada Excellence Research Chair and Full Professor at Memorial University, and Fellow of the IEEE, IET, CAE, EIC, and AAIA, I work across quantum machine learning, signal processing, and real-time optimization, applied to digital twin networks, ISAC, integrated satellite–terrestrial networks, semantic communications, physical-layer security, IoT and smart cities. A recipient of the RAEng Research Chair and the UK Newton Prize, and Editor-in-Chief of IEEE Communications Surveys & Tutorials, I have published 400+ journal articles with 27,000+ citations(h-index 87).

Student roles:
The intern will be a hands-on member of the research team, contributing directly to the design, implementation, and evaluation of agentic AI systems for digital-twin-based network security. Working under my supervision alongside graduate students and research associates, the student will take ownership of well-scoped technical tasks while learning the full research workflow.

Concretely, the student will: (1) help build and configure containerized digital-twin sandbox environments using Docker, ensuring reproducible and isolated test conditions; (2) implement and extend agent pipelines that integrate large language models with external tools and retrieval-augmented knowledge sources; (3) prepare benchmark scenarios and run controlled experiments across multiple frontier models; (4) collect, process, and analyse results on accuracy, reproducibility, and cost, producing clear figures and summaries; and (5) document code, methods, and findings to support reproducibility and an open-source release.

Beyond these tasks, the student will participate in weekly group meetings, present progress, read and discuss relevant literature, and refine the research direction collaboratively as results emerge. They will be encouraged to take initiative, proposing improvements to the agent design, experimental setup, or evaluation metrics, and to develop independent problem-solving skills within a supportive environment.

The role is well suited to a motivated undergraduate who is comfortable with programming and the command line, eager to learn, reliable in delivering on tasks, and excited to work at the intersection of machine learning, networking, and cybersecurity.

Skills required:
We seek a motivated undergraduate in computer science or a closely related field with solid programming skills (e.g., Python and/or Java) and a strong interest in artificial intelligence and large language models. Prior hands-on experience applying or evaluating machine learning or natural language processing (NLP) models in a research setting is highly valued, as is familiarity with the Linux/Unix command line and exposure to cloud platforms (e.g., Microsoft Azure), data engineering, or containerization. An interest in computer networking or cybersecurity, strong problem-solving and communication skills, and the ability to work independently and in a team are essential.

80. Agentic AI-Driven Intelligent Cloud Application Orchestration

The rapid adoption of Large Language Models (LLMs), Agentic AI systems, and machine learning (ML) applications has significantly increased the complexity of deploying and managing intelligent services in cloud environments. Modern AI systems involve numerous interconnected components, including data ingestion, model training, fine-tuning, deployment, monitoring, retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) pipelines, and autonomous AI agents that interact with tools and services. Agentic AI introduces a new paradigm in which autonomous agents can reason, plan, collaborate, and execute tasks with limited human intervention. Managing such dynamic and distributed AI ecosystems requires advanced orchestration mechanisms that ensure reliability, scalability, security, and efficient resource utilization. The goal of this project is to investigate modern architectures and orchestration approaches for cloud-native AI applications, with a particular focus on Agentic AI and LLM-based systems. The intern will contribute to the analysis, design, and evaluation of innovative solutions for orchestrating AI agents, ML services, and cloud resources in production environments. The project will begin with a review of the state of the art to identify current practices, technologies, and challenges related to Agentic AI, LLMOps, MLOps, cloud orchestration, and multi-agent systems. Particular attention will be given to cloud-native platforms, workflow orchestration frameworks, and AI agent ecosystems. Next, selected use cases involving LLM applications and autonomous agents will be analyzed to evaluate existing orchestration methods and identify opportunities for improvement. The project may explore topics such as autonomous deployment, adaptive resource allocation, agent coordination, self-healing infrastructures, and AI-driven operational decision-making. Finally, the intern will develop and document a solution or framework that leverages Agentic AI and advanced orchestration techniques to improve the deployment, management, and evolution of intelligent cloud applications. The expected outcome is a more autonomous, resilient, and scalable orchestration approach for next-generation AI systems.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on topics related to software reuse, recommendation systems, big data mining in software repositories, testing for continuous system integration in cloud environments, cloud- based architecture microservices and mobile computing and IoT systems, as well as the application of artificial intelligence techniques to software engineering.

Student roles:
The intern will work alongside graduate students to:
Individually analyze each topic, prepare subsequent activities, and explore the various underlying concepts. The main topics include:
• Intelligent application systems
• Orchestration and operation of intelligent applications (MLOps)
• Limitations and constraints of standard practices
• Use cases and areas for improvement
Following this exploration, one or more proposals will be presented to describe potential solutions. These proposals will then be discussed in order to select one solution, which will subsequently be developed and evaluated

Skills required:
• Proficiency in basic software engineering concepts
• Proficiency in basic cloud computing concepts
• Proficiency in basic service-oriented architecture (SOA) concepts
• Proficiency in at least one programming language (Python, Java, C++, C#, etc.)
• Basic knowledge of machine learning concepts (Neural Networks, Clustering, Supervised Learning, etc.)

81. Agentic AI-Driven Optimization of Continuous Integration Pipelines

Continuous Integration (CI) is a cornerstone of modern software engineering, enabling developers to frequently integrate code changes and automatically execute builds and tests to detect defects early. This practice improves software quality, and facilitates collaboration among team members. However, as software systems grow in size and complexity, CI pipelines become increasingly resource-intensive. Large projects may execute thousands of builds and tests daily, resulting in significant computational costs, longer feedback times, and increased energy consumption. This project aims to explore how Agentic AI, Large Language Models (LLMs), and machine learning can be combined to create intelligent CI systems capable of autonomously optimizing software development workflows. Agentic AI systems can analyze source code modifications, interpret commit messages, assess the potential impact of changes, reason about historical build information, and coordinate decisions regarding build execution. Rather than simply predicting whether a build will fail, AI agents can dynamically determine the most appropriate action, such as executing a full build, running a subset of tests, postponing non-critical validations, or safely skipping redundant builds. The project will begin with a comprehensive review of the literature on CI optimization, AI-assisted software engineering, LLM-based code analysis, and autonomous software agents. The intern will then investigate real-world CI datasets and evaluate factors influencing build failures and execution costs. Finally, the intern will design and prototype an Agentic AI-driven framework that combines predictive analytics, LLM-powered reasoning, and autonomous decision-making to improve CI efficiency. The expected outcome is a more adaptive, scalable, and cost-effective CI process that preserves rapid fault detection while reducing unnecessary computational effort.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on topics related to software reuse, recommendation systems, big data mining in software repositories, testing for continuous system integration in cloud environments, cloud- based architecture microservices and mobile computing and IoT systems, as well as the application of artificial intelligence techniques to software engineering.

Student roles:
-Conduct a literature review on Continuous Integration (CI) optimization, Agentic AI, Large Language Models (LLMs), and machine learning techniques for build prediction.
-Collect, preprocess, and analyze data from software repositories and CI pipelines to support model development and evaluation.
-Develop and evaluate machine learning, LLM-based, and Agentic AI approaches for predicting build outcomes and reducing unnecessary CI executions.
-Design and implement prototypes that integrate AI-driven decision-making into CI workflows.
-Create benchmarks and perform experiments to compare the proposed solutions against state-of-the-art approaches using relevant performance and cost-reduction metrics.
-Collaborate with the research team, document findings, and regularly present progress, results, and recommendations.

Skills required:
• Proficiency in at least one programming language (Python, Java, C++, C#, etc.).
• Basic knowledge of Machine Learning concepts (Neural Networks, Clustering, supervised learning, etc.).
• Skills in mathematics and statistics.

82. Agentic AI-Driven Unified Analysis Framework for Monolith-to-Microservices Decomposition

Modern software systems are increasingly adopting microservice architectures to improve scalability, maintainability, and deployment flexibility. However, decomposing a large monolithic application into microservices remains a challenging and time-consuming task that requires a deep understanding of the application's structure, behavior, dependencies, and data flows. Making incorrect decomposition decisions can lead to excessive coupling, performance issues, and increased maintenance costs. This project aims to develop a unified analysis framework that leverages Agentic AI, Large Language Models (LLMs), static analysis, dynamic analysis, and data flow analysis to support monolith-to-microservices decomposition. The framework will be designed to analyze applications developed in multiple programming languages and automatically integrate information from various sources to construct a comprehensive representation of the system. Agentic AI agents will be responsible for autonomously collecting, correlating, and reasoning about architectural information obtained from source code, execution traces, system logs, and data dependencies. By leveraging LLMs and AI-driven reasoning, the framework will be able to identify candidate service boundaries, detect architectural smells, explain decomposition recommendations, and evaluate alternative migration strategies. The project will investigate how autonomous AI agents can collaborate to perform architectural discovery, dependency analysis, and decision support for software modernization. The expected outcome is an intelligent and scalable framework that provides software engineers with actionable insights, improves decomposition accuracy, reduces migration effort, and facilitates the transition from monolithic applications to well-structured microservice architectures.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on topics related to software reuse, recommendation systems, big data mining in software repositories, testing for continuous system integration in cloud environments, cloud-based architecture microservices and mobile computing and IoT systems, as well as the application of artificial intelligence techniques to software engineering.

Student roles:
* Conduct a literature review on software decomposition, static and dynamic analysis, data flow analysis, Agentic AI, and LLM-based software engineering techniques.

* Design and develop methods that combine static, dynamic, and data flow analyses with AI-driven reasoning to support monolith-to-microservices decomposition.

* Investigate the use of Agentic AI and LLMs for architectural discovery, dependency analysis, and microservice boundary identification.

* Implement and extend a prototype framework capable of analyzing real-world monolithic applications developed in multiple programming languages.

* Evaluate the proposed framework on diverse software systems and compare its effectiveness against existing decomposition approaches using appropriate benchmarks and metrics.

* Collaborate with researchers and students, document findings, and regularly present progress, experimental results, and recommendations.

Skills required:
- Strong understanding of software engineering principles, particularly monolithic and microservices architectures.
- Proficiency in multiple programming languages (e.g., Java, Python, C#, JavaScript).
- Proficiency with Graph theory and Compiler design.
- Familiarity with microservices communication protocols (REST, gRPC)
- Basic understanding of microservices deployment tools (docker, Kubernetes, etc)

83. Agentic Federated Learning for Adaptive IoT Intrusion Detection

Agentic Federated Learning for Adaptive IoT Intrusion Detection proposes an intelligent and privacy-preserving cybersecurity framework for detecting malicious activities in heterogeneous Internet of Things (IoT) environments. The project integrates Federated Learning (FL) with autonomous AI agents to enable adaptive, scalable, and communication-efficient intrusion detection across distributed IoT devices without requiring the sharing of raw data. Inspired by recent advances in Agentic Federated Learning, the framework leverages specialized collaborative agents to automate the design, optimization, and deployment of FL-based intrusion detection strategies. Traditional FL-based intrusion detection systems often rely on static configurations and predefined aggregation mechanisms, making them vulnerable to evolving cyberattacks, device heterogeneity, non-IID traffic distributions, and communication constraints commonly observed in IoT ecosystems. To address these limitations, the proposed framework introduces multiple intelligent agents responsible for planning, optimization, threat analysis, communication management, and adaptive response generation. These agents continuously monitor network conditions and dynamically adjust federated training strategies, client participation, and defense mechanisms to improve detection performance and system robustness. The proposed architecture follows a multi-stage workflow consisting of planning, programming, optimization, and deployment phases, similar to the human software engineering lifecycle. A planning agent identifies suitable FL configurations and security requirements, while coding and optimization agents iteratively refine intrusion detection models using simulated IoT attack scenarios. Deployment agents further adapt the optimized framework for practical FL platforms such as Flower or FedML. The research aims to develop an adaptive and autonomous intrusion detection framework capable of mitigating sophisticated cyber threats such as distributed denial-of-service (DDoS), botnet attacks, and poisoning attacks in decentralized IoT networks. The proposed system is expected to improve detection accuracy, communication efficiency, privacy preservation, and resilience against adversarial behaviors in real-world IoT deployments.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on developing secure and privacy-preserving AI systems with applications in cybersecurity, healthcare, smart and connected environments, and trustworthy intelligent systems. I have worked on behavioral biometric authentication, federated learning frameworks, adversarial attack and defense mechanisms, and the secure deployment of LLMs and Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) systems. I have published in journals such as IEEE Access and MDPI, and in conferences including FPS, IFIP SEC, SECRYPT, IEEE BigData, and IEEE COMPSAC. I also have experience supervising students under the Mitacs GRI program, supporting their research training and project development.

Student roles:
The student will play a critical role in supporting the objectives of this research project on Agentic Federated Learning for Adaptive IoT Intrusion Detection. Their work will begin with an in-depth literature review on federated learning (FL), intrusion detection systems (IDS), IoT cybersecurity, adversarial machine learning, and agentic AI systems, particularly focusing on privacy-preserving and adaptive security mechanisms for distributed IoT environments. The student will assist in designing and implementing experiments to evaluate how federated and agent-based AI systems detect malicious activities across heterogeneous IoT devices without sharing raw data.

A key responsibility will involve developing scripts, simulation environments, and data processing pipelines for distributed intrusion detection tasks using benchmark cybersecurity datasets. The student will contribute to building autonomous agents responsible for tasks such as client selection, threat analysis, communication optimization, adaptive aggregation, anomaly detection, and defense against adversarial or poisoning attacks. They will also evaluate system performance using metrics such as detection accuracy, precision, recall, F1-score, communication efficiency, convergence stability, robustness, and privacy preservation.

The student will conduct comparative studies to assess how different federated learning strategies, agent collaboration mechanisms, and IoT network conditions affect intrusion detection performance and system scalability. Where appropriate, the student may explore lightweight defense mechanisms, communication-efficient aggregation methods, and adaptive response strategies for mitigating evolving cyber threats such as DDoS attacks, botnets, spoofing, and malicious client behaviors.

Additional duties will include maintaining organized and reproducible codebases, preparing visualizations and summaries of experimental findings, and assisting in drafting research reports and manuscripts for publication. The student will participate in regular team meetings to discuss progress, experimental results, and future research directions. This role provides hands-on experience in federated learning, IoT cybersecurity, agentic AI systems, and trustworthy distributed AI, contributing toward the development of adaptive and privacy-preserving intrusion detection frameworks for real-world IoT deployments.

Skills required:
The student should have strong Python programming skills and knowledge of large language models (LLMs), agentic AI systems, federated learning, and machine learning. Experience with PyTorch or TensorFlow, federated learning frameworks, and LLMs such as GPT, BERT, or LLaMA is required. Familiarity with agentic programming, autonomous AI agents, prompt engineering, and multi-agent systems is highly desirable. Knowledge of IoT-based intrusion detection, network security, and traffic analysis will be considered an asset. A strong mathematical background, particularly in linear algebra, probability, and statistics, is also required to support research in adaptive and privacy-preserving AI-driven cybersecurity systems.

84. Agentic Multimodal Fake News Detection

Agentic Multimodal Fake News Detection proposes an intelligent framework for identifying and mitigating misinformation by integrating multimodal learning with autonomous AI agents. The project aims to detect fake news by jointly analyzing multiple information sources, including textual content, images, audio, video, social context, and metadata, while enabling adaptive reasoning and evidence verification through collaborative agent-based decision-making. Traditional fake news detection systems primarily rely on static classification models that process textual or visual information independently. However, modern misinformation campaigns frequently combine manipulated images, misleading captions, synthetic audio, AI-generated videos, fabricated social interactions, and coordinated dissemination strategies, making single-modal and fixed detection approaches insufficient. Furthermore, existing systems often lack reasoning capability, explainability, and the ability to dynamically verify information using external knowledge sources. Inspired by recent advances in agentic AI systems and multi-agent collaboration, the proposed framework introduces specialized autonomous agents responsible for different analytical tasks. A text analysis agent examines linguistic patterns, semantic inconsistencies, and misleading narratives, while visual analysis agents identify manipulated or out-of-context images and videos. Additional agents analyze synthetic or manipulated audio, social propagation behavior, user interaction patterns, and metadata anomalies to assess the credibility and origin of content. Evidence retrieval and fact-verification agents further leverage Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG), large language models (LLMs), and multimodal transformers to validate claims using trusted external knowledge sources. These agents collaboratively interact through an adaptive workflow that continuously refines detection decisions based on contextual and multimodal evidence, improving explainability, robustness, and adaptability against emerging misinformation strategies, including AI-generated fake media and coordinated disinformation campaigns. This research contributes toward the development of trustworthy and intelligent misinformation detection systems capable of supporting digital media platforms, public information services, and online social networks in combating the rapid spread of fake news.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on developing secure and privacy-preserving AI systems with applications in cybersecurity, healthcare, smart and connected environments, and trustworthy intelligent systems. I have worked on behavioral biometric authentication, federated learning frameworks, adversarial attack and defense mechanisms, and the secure deployment of LLMs and Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) systems. I have published in journals such as IEEE Access and MDPI, and in conferences including FPS, IFIP SEC, SECRYPT, IEEE BigData, and IEEE COMPSAC. I also have experience supervising students under the Mitacs GRI program, supporting their research training and project development.

Student roles:
The student will play a central role in advancing the research on Agentic Multimodal Fake News Detection. The work will begin with a comprehensive literature review covering fake news detection, multimodal learning, large language models (LLMs), retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), and agentic AI systems, with particular emphasis on misinformation in textual, visual, audio, video, and social media contexts.

The student will assist in designing and implementing experimental pipelines to evaluate how multimodal AI systems detect manipulated, misleading, or AI-generated content. This includes developing data preprocessing workflows and integrating multimodal architectures that combine LLMs, vision-language models, and autonomous agent frameworks.

A major responsibility will be building and coordinating specialized AI agents for tasks such as text analysis, image and video verification, audio authenticity assessment, metadata inspection, social context modeling, and evidence retrieval using external knowledge sources. The student will also contribute to fact-checking and reasoning modules enabled by LLMs and RAG-based systems.

The student will conduct systematic experiments to compare different multimodal fusion strategies, prompting techniques, and multi-agent collaboration mechanisms. Performance evaluation will include metrics such as accuracy, precision, recall, F1-score, robustness, and explainability, particularly across benchmark misinformation datasets.

In addition, the student will explore adversarial misinformation scenarios and lightweight verification strategies, including source credibility analysis and external evidence grounding. They will maintain clean, reproducible codebases, generate visualizations of results, and contribute to research papers and technical reports.

The role also involves active participation in regular research meetings, presenting progress updates, and contributing to future research directions. This position provides hands-on experience in multimodal AI, agentic systems, and trustworthy AI for combating modern misinformation challenges.

Skills required:
The student should have strong Python programming skills and a solid foundation in deep learning, large language models (LLMs), and multimodal machine learning. Experience with PyTorch or TensorFlow and foundation LLM models is required. Familiarity with agentic AI systems, multi-agent collaboration, retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), and prompt engineering is highly desirable. The candidate should be comfortable working with multimodal data including text, images, audio, video, social context, and metadata. Prior knowledge of NLP, computer vision, social media analysis, and misinformation detection is an asset. A strong background in linear algebra, probability, and statistics is also required for modeling and multimodal reasoning.

85. Agentic Security Analysis for Detecting and Mitigating Fraudulent Cross-Chain Messaging

Cross-chain messaging is a core component of blockchain bridges and interoperability protocols, enabling assets and data to move across heterogeneous networks. However, it introduces significant security risks, including forged messages, replay attacks, inconsistent state claims, and manipulated payloads. As cross-chain communication becomes increasingly central to decentralized ecosystems, ensuring the integrity and authenticity of cross-chain messages is a critical and open research challenge. This project aims to design and evaluate a multi-agent security analysis framework for detecting and mitigating fraudulent cross-chain messages. Rather than relying on a single detection model, the proposed system decomposes the analysis into a pipeline of specialized agents, each responsible for a distinct security task, such as message structure validation, protocol-level consistency checking, behavioral anomaly reasoning, and mitigation recommendation. This modular design aims to improve both the accuracy and interpretability of security decisions, while allowing individual components to be extended or replaced as protocols evolve. The work will be carried out by two interns with complementary responsibilities: one focusing on the design and simulation of the cross-chain environment and attack scenarios, and the other on the architecture and implementation of the multi-agent analysis pipeline. Both interns will collaborate on the integration and evaluation of the full system, assessing its effectiveness across a range of attack scenarios reflecting realistic threat models. Evaluation parameters include detection accuracy, false positive rate, response quality, and computational overhead.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research lies at the intersection of distributed systems and cybersecurity, with a focus on advancing security and trust in decentralized environments. I study how decentralized paradigms enable secure, reliable, and scalable coordination in multi-party systems — particularly for collaborative and decentralized machine learning (e.g., federated and split learning) — addressing challenges such as robustness, privacy, and verifiability. I also explore the use of agentic AI systems and protocols such as MCP for automated vulnerability detection and threat analysis. In parallel, I investigate blockchain infrastructures, including Layer 2 solutions, cross-chain interoperability, and decentralized identity, as foundational building blocks for secure,

Student roles:
Intern 1 — Blockchain Environment & Attack Simulation:
Develop a simulated cross-chain messaging environment capturing key elements of bridge systems
Implement a set of representative attack scenarios (e.g., replay attacks, forged messages, simple inconsistency cases)
Generate and document a structured dataset of normal and malicious messages for evaluation
Collaborate with Intern 2 on integration and testing

Intern 2 — Multi-Agent Security Framework:
Design and implement a simplified multi-agent analysis pipeline with a limited number of agents (e.g., validation, consistency check, anomaly detection)
Integrate LLM-based or rule-assisted components where appropriate
Define and implement a basic evaluation framework, including metrics such as detection accuracy, false positives, and runtime overhead
Collaborate with Intern 1 on integration and testing

Skills required:
Candidates should have a strong foundation in computer science, particularly in distributed systems, computer networks, and cybersecurity, along with a working understanding of blockchain fundamentals, cross-chain protocols, and common security vulnerabilities. Proficiency in one or more programming languages such as Python, Rust, Go, or Solidity is expected. Exposure to AI concepts, especially agentic systems or LLM-based tools, and familiarity with blockchain development or security analysis tools are considered assets. Candidates should also be comfortable working in a research-oriented environment, with the ability to design experiments and analyze results.

86. Agentic artificial intelligence for desaster scene analysis

This project aims to develop an agentic artificial intelligence framework capable of autonomously analyzing complex disaster scenes using aerial imagery, videos, sensor data, and external knowledge sources. Unlike traditional AI systems that perform a single task, agentic AI systems consist of multiple specialized agents that can perceive, reason, plan, and collaborate to solve complex problems. The proposed framework will investigate how multiple AI agents can work together to identify damaged infrastructure, flooded areas, blocked roads, stranded individuals, and other critical elements in disaster environments. Individual agents may specialize in visual scene understanding, object detection, semantic segmentation, information retrieval, geospatial reasoning, and natural language question answering. A coordinating agent will integrate information from these specialized agents to generate comprehensive situational awareness and support emergency response decision-making. The project will explore recent advances in large language models, vision-language models, multimodal learning, and multi-agent collaboration to enable more intelligent and adaptive disaster assessment systems. Potential applications include post-disaster damage assessment, search-and-rescue support, resource allocation, and emergency planning. The innovation of the project lies in combining autonomous reasoning and multi-agent collaboration with advanced visual understanding, enabling AI systems to move beyond simple detection tasks toward higher-level interpretation and decision support in dynamic and uncertain disaster scenarios.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My specialized research area is artificial intelligence, machine learning, and computer vision, with a particular focus on developing robust and interpretable methods for image and video understanding. My research investigates deep learning, graph neural networks, vision-language models, and multimodal learning for applications including semantic segmentation, anomaly detection, activity recognition, multimedia forensics and medical image analysis. A central theme of my work is the design of learning algorithms capable of operating under limited supervision, domain shifts, and uncertain real-world conditions.

Student roles:
The student will actively participate in all stages of the research project, including literature review, development of agentic AI systems, experimental evaluation, and dissemination of research outcomes. The primary responsibilities will involve implementing and testing large language models, vision-language models, and computer vision algorithms for disaster scene analysis, as well as preparing multimodal datasets composed of images, videos, geospatial information, and textual reports. The student will contribute to the design and evaluation of collaborative AI agents capable of performing tasks such as damage assessment, object detection, semantic segmentation, information retrieval, situational reasoning, and question answering in disaster environments. He/she will conduct experiments, analyze results, compare different agent architectures and reasoning strategies, and document findings through technical reports, presentations, and scientific publications. The student will work closely with the research supervisor and other team members, participate in regular research meetings, and contribute to the development of innovative AI solutions that support emergency response and disaster management decision-making.

Skills required:
The ideal student should have a strong background in computer science, artificial intelligence, or a related discipline. Prior knowledge of machine learning is highly desirable, particularly convolutional neural networks, transformers, and representation learning. Experience with Python and deep learning frameworks such as PyTorch is recommended. Familiarity with computer vision, image processing, or video analysis techniques would be an asset. The student should possess good analytical and problem-solving skills, an interest in research and experimentation, and the ability to read and understand scientific literature.

87. AgroLLM-Sec: Testing the Safety of AI Assistants for Smart Agriculture

Large language models are increasingly being used as assistants for decision support, technical guidance, and automation across many sectors. In smart agriculture, such assistants could help farmers, agronomists, food producers, and agri-food organizations interpret data, troubleshoot equipment, summarize regulations, or make operational recommendations. However, these systems may also introduce new cybersecurity and safety risks if they provide unreliable advice, leak sensitive information, follow malicious instructions, or misuse connected tools and APIs. This project will investigate the safety and security of LLM-based assistants for smart agriculture. The intern will develop realistic agriculture-focused use cases, such as irrigation advice, greenhouse monitoring, livestock support, food traceability, and farm cybersecurity guidance. The intern will then design and test prompts that evaluate whether an AI assistant can be manipulated through prompt injection, misleading context, unsafe requests, or conflicting instructions. The project will also examine how these failures may affect agricultural productivity, data privacy, operational reliability, and stakeholder trust. The expected outcome is a small benchmark of smart-agriculture AI safety test cases, an analysis of common failure patterns, and a set of practical recommendations for safer AI assistant design in AgFoodTech. Depending on the student’s skills, the project may also include a lightweight prototype or dashboard for running and reporting LLM safety tests.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: This project is in AI security, cybersecurity, and smart agriculture. The research focuses on how large language model-based assistants may be used in digital agriculture, including farmer advisory systems, agri-food decision support, and AI-enabled farm operations. The project examines safety risks such as prompt injection, misleading agricultural advice, data leakage, insecure tool use, and unreliable AI-generated recommendations. The work contributes to cybersecure and reliable AgFoodTech by developing evaluation methods and safeguards for responsible AI deployment in agriculture.

Student roles:
The intern will work under supervision to design, implement, and evaluate a research study on the security and safety of LLM-based assistants for smart agriculture. The student’s first task will be to review selected literature on LLM safety, prompt injection, AI security, and digital agriculture. Based on this review, the intern will help define realistic AgFoodTech use cases where AI assistants may be deployed.

The intern will then create a set of test scenarios and prompts that simulate both normal and adversarial interactions with an agricultural AI assistant. These scenarios may include misleading user instructions, unsafe farm-operation advice, confidential data requests, manipulation of retrieved information, or attempts to override system rules. The student will run experiments using selected LLM tools or APIs, record the model responses, and analyze failure patterns.

The intern will contribute to coding scripts for prompt testing, organizing experimental results, generating tables or visual summaries, and preparing a final research report. Depending on progress, the intern may also help design a simple prototype interface or dashboard for demonstrating the testing workflow. The student will meet regularly with the supervisor and research team, present weekly progress, and contribute to a final presentation suitable for the SECURE-AGRO research training environment.

Skills required:
The ideal student will have a background in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Computer Engineering, AI/ML, or Cybersecurity. Basic programming experience in Python is expected. Familiarity with large language models, APIs, prompt engineering, machine learning, data analysis, or security testing would be an asset but is not mandatory. The student should be comfortable reading research papers, designing experiments, documenting results, and working independently on a structured research problem. Interest in agriculture, food systems, or responsible AI is highly desirable.

88. Algorithmic Benchmarking and Engineering of Decentralized Federated Learning Frameworks

The exponential growth of data collection across distributed edge infrastructures—such as smartphones, IoT networks, and environmental sensors—presents groundbreaking opportunities alongside severe computational and regulatory challenges. Traditional centralized machine learning architectures are increasingly bottlenecked by stringent data privacy mandates, high-bandwidth communication overheads, and critical security vulnerabilities. To mitigate these limitations, Federated Learning (FL) has emerged as a disruptive paradigm, enabling decentralized, collaborative model training without migrating raw data from its localized source. This framework inherently preserves data privacy while significantly scaling system robustness against severe data heterogeneity across edge devices. At the AMI-Lab (www.ami-lab.ca), we are actively developing an R&D software platform to advance service delivery within interconnected ecosystems. We are currently expanding this infrastructure by integrating native Federated Learning orchestration layers. This research project focuses directly on the systematic implementation, optimization, and empirical evaluation of state-of-the-art FL aggregation strategies and optimization methods proposed in recent top-tier academic literature. The ultimate goal is to architect a highly structured, scalable, and extensible benchmarking suite embedded within the AMI-Lab framework, establishing a standardized baseline to evaluate decentralized learning paradigms under real-world conditions.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Dr. Abdulrazak research interests include Ambient-Intelligence (AmI), IoT, Smart-Homes, Smart-Cities and Digital health. He works on various R&D projects at the AMI laboratory. The projects range from Assistive Home Environment for the aging people, Electronic Organizer, Pervasive Reminder System, Mobility Assistance, Smart cities for active aging, etc. These technologies aim at being used either inside or outside (city, home, retirement communities, community clinics, on the street, etc.)

Student roles:
The selected intern will operate as a research engineer, bridging the gap between theoretical optimization math and production-grade decentralized software architecture. The core mandate centers on translating sophisticated FL formulations into modular, benchmarking-compliant code components.
Key responsibilities and expected deliverables include:
• Algorithmic Analysis: Conducting a deep theoretical analysis of selected Federated Learning optimization methods to deconstruct their convergence patterns and communication requirements.
• Modular Codebase Implementation: Engineering a clean, highly modular, and production-ready software implementation of the evaluated FL strategies, fully integrated into the AMI-Lab 's existing framework patterns.
• Empirical Benchmarking & Quality-of-Service (QoS): Executing exhaustive experimental evaluations using standard reference datasets under highly variable data partitioning conditions (e.g., Non-IID data setups) to rigorously assess system QoS, communication efficiency, and predictive accuracy.
• Scientific Reporting: Documenting architectural trade-offs, experimental baselines, and data analytics outcomes in a structured, paper-style technical overview.
Through this internship, the student will gain highly marketable expertise in distributed systems engineering, edge AI optimization, and rigorous scientific benchmarking workflows. These competencies are exceptionally sought after in premier graduate research programs and cutting-edge industrial AI laboratories, providing a direct pathway to impactful, publishable contributions.

Skills required:
Core Qualifications:
• Research Motivation: Superior self-motivation to navigate rigorous algorithmic design and experimental R&D challenges.
• Core Development: High proficiency in modern programming methodologies, clean code practices, and software architecture.
Technical Competencies & Assets:
• Machine Learning: Strong foundational knowledge of core machine learning concepts, optimization techniques, or deep learning frameworks.
• Systems & Networking: Recommended familiarity operating within Linux environments and developing Web Services (APIs, distributed messaging).
• Hardware Context: Basic curiosity or background in embedded systems topologies or decentralized architecture constraints.

89. Amélioration d'une installation industrielle avec robots collaboratifs/Improvment of Industrial plant using collaborative robot (cobot)

The LAR.i laboratory works on the automated dismantling of end-of-life products in order to recycle them at the end of their life, reuse them or repair them for uses in a second life. In this sense, since the robot has specific skills, some tasks of which are impossible to date, a human operator works as a team in the same workspace. The LAR.i explores disassembly on a variety of products that requires understanding and implementing the disassembly and reassembly steps for repair.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: The laboratory area of expertise covers design and evaluation of interactive and intelligent assistive systems using multi-modality including haptic as communication channel and artificial intelligence. These systems are usually portable, but also concern design of semi-autonomous robotic mechanisms such as cable driven parallel robots. The main objective is to design, implement and evaluate technologies for people with disability or in loss of autonomy.

Student roles:
The candidate must develop in the RoboDK commercial software the disassembly steps which include:
1- definition of the steps in an AND/OR, BT or HNN graph for a particular product
2- optimization of the sharing of tasks between the human and the robot
3- guidance of the robot by numeric vision

Skills required:
The student must master techniques in industrial automation. Preferably, the ideal candidate has knowledge of rotation matrices, computer vision on OpenCV, robotic control and optimisation technics, VLM and LLM. Finally, knowledge of robotics, in particular serial manipulators is desirable. An additional asset would be to have knowledge of RoboDK and/or Gazebo, NVIDIA Isaac Lab.

90. An AI-based Simulation Tool for Humanoid Robots

Near the end of last year, almost all the major international news outlets reported that humanoid robots were going to enter our life sooner than we expected. Around the world, Boston Dynamics Atlas, Tesla Optimus (Tesla Bot), BMW AEON and Unitree G1 all emerged to demonstrate what humanoid robots were capable of doing including walking, running, jumping, kicking, grasping, even flipping. In Canada, it was reported by the Canadian major news outlets last month that Toyota were going to deploy two humanoid robots in the Woodstock plant for trial tests on the production lines. The key to control these humanoid robots is through motion/task training. The objective of this project is to develop an AI simulation tool for a humanoid robot in my laboratory that was acquired also through the support of the Ontario Large Infrastructure Fund. As is, this robot is controlled using a control pendant without programing capability. Currently, my team is building an AI programming platform using an open-source AI code editor called VS (Visual Studio) through a cloud-based code sharing platform called Github to develop the program of controlling twenty-nice actuators of this humanoid robot including 12 actuators for 2 legs (3 for each spherical hip joint, 2 for each revolute knee joint, 2 for each universal ankle point), 14 actuators for 2 arms (3 for each spherical shoulder joint, 1 for each revolute elbow joint, 3 for each spherical wrist joint), plus 3 for a single spherical waist joint. The scope of this project is to take the said actuator control program into an open-source simulation platform called Isaac SIM to simulate and training the robot based on an open-source motion training dataset as well as through an in-house motion capture system.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research is focused on robotics and artificial intelligence for engineering applications. In the past few years, through the support of the NSERC Industrial Research Chair (IRC) program, my team developed several human motion capture/training tools. For example, a camera-based system for tracking human head motions was developed using an AI tool, called Conventional Neural Network (CNN), that took the features of human images, such as nose, two eyes and two month corners, to compute the head motions while its turning sideways or up/down based on the changes in these feature positions, see https://youtu.be/Iw4okcAkVgA.

Student roles:
1. Platform preparation
The research assistant (RA) will learn how to program in the selected simulation platform Issac SIM, followed by converting the Visual Studio code of controlling a total of twenty-nice actuators of the robot into a code for Issac SIM and reprogram it to create a basic simulation platform for the robot joint motion control simulation. The RA will be tasked to identify the robot motion limits and payload capability based on the joint motion limits in order to establish safety guidelines for operation and implementation.
2. AI control simulation
In the second task, the research assistant (RA) will build an AI-based motion control simulation. The conventional robot control is based on inverse kinematics, i.e. a task is defined by a path in the global coordinate frame, and then the joint angles and speeds for the actuators to be controlled are solved numerically. For humanoid robots, due to the motion complexity and a high number of actuators (29 vs conventional 6), the common practice is to capture human motions in terms of human joint angles and input them into a humanoid robot controller to replicate the human motion.
3. Control testing
At the end, the research assistant (RA) will work my team to validate the simulation results by implementing the simulated robot motions on the actual humanoid robot in the laboratory. The validation will start with a simple task, for example, controlling the robot walking to a workstation and then grasping an object using one hand. Our humanoid robot is equipped with a three-figurer gripper for each of two hands. The second test will be using two hands to lift an object. The combined motion can be applied to an industrial production line for assembly or inspection.

Skills required:
Students in computer engineering or mechatronics engineering with the following skills/knowledge
- Basic knowledge about robots, better knowing humanoid robots
- Basic knowledge about actuator control, better knowing robot joint control
- Basic knowledge about AI simulation, database Github
- Fluent programming skill of Python
- Technical writing and presentation skill

91. An Inverse Design Platform for Autonomous Quantum Technologies

Quantum technologies are advancing rapidly and have the potential to transform computing, communications, sensing, and optimization. However, the design and deployment of quantum systems remain highly complex, requiring expertise across multiple disciplines, including quantum physics, computer science, hardware engineering, and control systems. Current development workflows rely heavily on manual design, simulation, experimentation, and optimization, resulting in lengthy development cycles and limited scalability. The proposed project, “An Inverse Design Platform for Autonomous Quantum Technologies,” seeks to address these challenges by developing an intelligent software platform that automates the design and optimization of quantum systems. The project is based on the principle of inverse design, where users specify desired performance objectives rather than manually defining system configurations. These objectives may include maximizing computational accuracy, minimizing error rates, improving communication fidelity, reducing energy consumption, or optimizing hardware utilization. The platform will employ artificial intelligence, machine learning, quantum simulation, and optimization techniques to automatically generate candidate designs, evaluate their performance, and identify optimal solutions. A key innovation of the proposed research is the integration of digital twin technology, which will create virtual representations of quantum hardware and software environments. These digital twins will enable rapid exploration of design alternatives before deployment on physical systems. The platform will further incorporate closed-loop learning capabilities that continuously analyze experimental outcomes, update predictive models, and refine future design decisions. This autonomous workflow will significantly reduce the need for manual intervention while accelerating the discovery of high-performance quantum solutions. The project will investigate applications across quantum computing, quantum communications, and quantum sensing. Expected outcomes include new algorithms for inverse design, autonomous optimization frameworks, digital twin methodologies, and software tools that support next-generation quantum technologies. By lowering technical barriers and increasing development efficiency, the proposed platform will help accelerate the adoption of quantum technologies in both academic and industrial settings.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: An Inverse Design Platform for Autonomous Quantum Technologies is an emerging interdisciplinary research area that combines quantum computing, artificial intelligence, optimization, and automated experimentation to accelerate the development of next-generation quantum systems. Instead of relying on manual trial-and-error design, inverse design begins with desired performance objectives and automatically discovers optimal quantum hardware, software, control protocols, and system configurations. By integrating machine learning, digital twins, quantum simulation, and closed-loop experimentation, autonomous quantum platforms can continuously generate designs, execute experiments, analyze results, and refine solutions with minimal human intervention. This approach aims to significantly reduce development time of advanced quantum technologies.

Student roles:
The student will play an active role in the research and development of the Inverse Design Platform for Autonomous Quantum Technologies. Working closely with the principal investigator and research team, the student will contribute to the design, implementation, testing, and evaluation of software tools that enable automated optimization and autonomous operation of quantum systems.
The student’s primary responsibility will be to assist in the development of computational frameworks that combine artificial intelligence, machine learning, optimization algorithms, and quantum simulation techniques. This includes implementing software modules for data collection, model training, performance analysis, and design-space exploration. The student will also contribute to the development of digital twin models that represent quantum hardware and software environments, allowing candidate designs to be evaluated in simulation before deployment.
As part of the research process, the student will conduct literature reviews to identify state-of-the-art methods in inverse design, quantum computing, autonomous systems, and machine learning. The student will analyze existing tools and frameworks, compare alternative approaches, and help define technical requirements for the platform. Experimental tasks may include generating datasets, executing simulation campaigns, evaluating optimization strategies, and analyzing the performance of proposed solutions using quantitative metrics.

The student will participate in regular research meetings, present progress updates, document research findings, and contribute to technical reports, publications, and project deliverables. They will gain experience working in an interdisciplinary environment that integrates computer science, artificial intelligence, quantum technologies, and advanced software engineering.
Throughout the project, the student will receive training in quantum computing fundamentals, machine learning techniques, scientific software development, and research methodologies. They will develop practical skills in programming, data analytics, simulation, algorithm design, and technical communication. By participating in all phases of the project, the student will gain valuable hands-on experience in one of the fastest-growing areas of advanced computing and quantum technology research.

Skills required:
The student should have a strong background in computer science, software engineering, electrical engineering, physics, or a related field, with knowledge of programming and algorithm development. Experience with Python, machine learning frameworks, data analysis, and scientific computing is highly desirable. Familiarity with quantum computing concepts, optimization methods, simulation tools, or artificial intelligence techniques would be beneficial but is not required. The student should possess strong analytical and problem-solving skills, an interest in emerging quantum technologies, and the ability to work independently as well as collaboratively within a multidisciplinary research team. Strong written and verbal communication skills are also essential.

92. An LLM-Based Emotion-Adaptive Companion for Mental Health Support Among New Immigrants

The project aims at designing, implementing, and deploying a socially responsible LLM-based prototype that combines multimodal data from smartphones, wearable devices, and user interactions to identify emotional distress and deliver personalized, context-aware mental health support. The technology integrates physiological, behavioral, voice, facial-expression, and self-reported data using machine learning models to generate adaptive responses tailored to individual needs. Unlike existing solutions, this prototype will emphasize continuous emotional monitoring, personalization, accessibility, and culturally responsive support for new immigrants.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Generative AI, mental health

Student roles:
1) Analyze the literature relevant to the proposed project
2) Help design the LLM-based prototype
3) Help implement and deploy the LLM-based prototype
4) Help carry out experiments on the LLM-based prototype to assess its performance
5) Write a research paper to report the outcomes of the project.

Skills required:
1) Be fluent in English
2) Have excellent writing and oral skills
3) Have a basic knowledge of Generative AI technologies (e.g., Gemini, Llama, GPT)
4) Be very creative
5) Be team-oriented
6) Have excellent analytical skills
7) Master the Python programming language
8) Be enrolled in a computer science program.

93. An open-source system for measuring chamber pressure in shooting sports

When developing a new recipe, the pressure created inside the firearm barrel must be tested to ensure it is safe. This test can be performed by a ballistics lab using expensive, laboratory-grade equipment, but the cost makes this impractical for most participants. One alternative is to measure pressure using a strain gauge attached to the barrel of the participant’s own firearm. Some commercial strain-gauge-based measurement devices have existed on the market, but their costs too are quite high. This project will develop a low-cost strain gauge pressure measurement system. Both the hardware (being developed separately) and software will be open-source. The software will allow users to record and analyze pressure curves during firearm discharge - providing crucial information for the development of new reloading recipes.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Shooting sports are very popular in Canada, and represent a multi-billion dollar Canadian industry. Many participants choose to create (“load”) their own ammunition, following published “recipes” which prescribe particular components and amounts, and report the barrel pressure and projectile velocity produced. However,Covid’s supply chain disruptions and other global events have altered the selection of components available, and recipes that accommodate the currently-available components do not always exist. This research program creates open-source machine-learning, hardware, and software tools to make reloading more practical, affordable, and reliable.

Student roles:
A team of local electrical engineering students will design the hardware device from September 2026 to April 2027. You will create the software to complete the system. This will be a full-stack development project including databasing, signal processing, data visualization, and user interface design. There is potential to have beta testers providing actual user feedback throughout the process. You will be a named contributor to the open-source project.

Skills required:
Software development
Software development life cycle
Technical documentation
Database design
User interface design, user experience
Version control

94. Analysis of Digital Documents

Many approaches in the questioned document discipline of forensic science focus on the use of physical characteristics of physical documents (e.g., paper type, ink colour) to determine the authenticity of questioned documents. However, similar approaches cannot be applied to questioned digital documents. Some existing works have explored how to determine the age of a document, determine the file type, and determine the creator tool type. However, none of the existing work has explored the use of the underlying internal structure to answer questions about the authenticity of digital documents, particularly in PDF document analysis. The goal of this work is to explore the internal representation of PDF documents which can be expressed as a tree structure. Specifically, this project will explore the identification of tampered documents through the tree structure to develop a difference algorithm and simple tool to determine tampered documents. This work will involve the development of an algorithm for analyzing tree structures in PDF and an exploration of the impact of common changes on the tree structure. We will also examine the identification of digital signatures and explore ways to represent changes based on the internal tree structure.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Digital forensics focuses on the process of identifying, preserving, analyzing, documenting, and presenting evidence from digital sources. One of such digital sources includes digital documents which are often used for many business and personal communications. Our work in the area of questioned digital document examination focuses mainly on many of the most commonly used document types, including Portable Document Formats (PDF) and MS Office documents with the aim of providing techniques and tools to support the identification of document tampering, document origin, document age etc., particularly when such documents are questioned during forensic investigations.

Student roles:
The student will be required to do background research to understand the field of digital forensics, computer security, and have experience in data structures and algorithms and their application in computing. The student may be required to implement certain algorithms in an applicable programming language (e.g., Java, Python, C, or C++). The student may be required to learn to use some open-source digital forensics tools and apply them in the analysis of digital evidence sample data. The student will be involved in writing up results and preparing them for publication. The student should be able to work well with others and be comfortable with working in a research area where the existing literature may be limited.

Skills required:
We seek students with prior knowledge of computer security and privacy and an interest in digital forensics. The student must have some mathematics background, demonstrate excellence in courses such as Computer security, Data structures and algorithms, Operating systems, Computer architecture, and system software, and be capable of working with or learning to use the Linux operating system as necessary. Prior knowledge of tree data structure will be particularly useful. The student must be able to work with minimal direct supervision and be willing to ask questions as necessary. Strong communication skills (written and oral) and some experience working on technical

95. Analysis of Whole Slide Imaging Data for Breast Cancer Using Conventional Deep Learning and Foundation Models

This project aims to develop advanced artificial intelligence methods for the analysis of whole slide imaging (WSI) data in breast cancer, integrating both conventional deep learning approaches and emerging foundation models. Whole slide images contain rich, high-resolution information about tumor morphology, tissue architecture, and the tumor microenvironment, but their large size and complexity pose significant computational challenges for analysis. The project will explore two complementary computational strategies. First, conventional deep learning methods, such as convolutional neural networks (CNNs), will be implemented using patch-based approaches to extract discriminative features from WSI data. These models will be applied to clinically relevant tasks, like subtype prediction. Emphasis will be placed on careful preprocessing, patch selection, and model optimization to ensure robust performance. Second, the project will leverage foundation models for computational pathology, such as pre-trained vision transformers and large-scale histopathology models. These models can learn generalizable image representations from large datasets and can be fine-tuned for specific breast cancer tasks, potentially improving performance in scenarios with limited labeled data. A systematic comparison between conventional and foundation model approaches will be conducted, focusing on predictive accuracy, generalizability, and interpretability. Additionally, the project will investigate the identification of image-based biomarkers associated with disease characteristics and outcomes. Overall, this work aims to advance computational pathology and precision oncology, providing improved tools for breast cancer analysis and supporting more accurate, data-driven clinical decision-making.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on translational bioinformatics and artificial intelligence for precision oncology, with an emphasis on developing data-driven biomarkers to predict cancer outcomes and treatment response. Trained in applied mathematics and computational biology, I specialize in analyzing high-dimensional, multi-modal biomedical data, including clinical, imaging (radiomics and pathomics), and molecular datasets. I develop and apply machine learning and explainable AI methods to uncover the molecular and phenotypic mechanisms underlying cancer progression and variability in treatment response. My work integrates heterogeneous data sources to identify clinically actionable biomarkers and build predictive models that support personalized treatment strategies.

Student roles:
The student will contribute to all stages of the project, from data preparation to model development and evaluation. The primary responsibility will be to acquire and preprocess whole slide imaging (WSI) datasets, including tasks such as tissue region selection, patch extraction, normalization, and data organization. The student will design and implement deep learning models using PyTorch, including conventional architectures (e.g., CNNs) and foundation models (e.g., vision transformers). This includes training, fine-tuning, and optimizing models for tasks such as tumor classification, grading, or subtype prediction. The student will also perform model evaluation and comparison, analyzing performance, robustness, and generalizability across approaches. Additionally, they will contribute to the interpretation of results, including identifying meaningful image-based features or potential biomarkers. Finally, the student will be expected to document the methodology, summarize findings, and present results to the research team.

Skills required:
The student should have strong programming skills in Python, with experience using deep learning frameworks such as PyTorch. A solid understanding of machine learning and deep learning concepts, including model training, validation, and evaluation, is required. The candidate should have prior exposure to medical image analysis. Familiarity with convolutional neural networks (CNNs) and/or vision transformers is beneficial.

96. Analysis of systematic drug screening and alternative splicing in AML

This project will develop an interactive, web-based platform to analyze and visualize large-scale datasets from acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients. The platform will integrate gene expression, alternative splicing, and mutation data from over 2,500 samples with high-throughput drug screening results spanning thousands of compounds. The intern will contribute to building secure data pipelines, scalable databases, and intuitive visualization tools to enable exploration and sharing of results with collaborators across Canada. Emphasis will be placed on handling complex, high-dimensional data and implementing responsive interfaces that support hypothesis generation, comparative analyses, and translational insights into patient-specific drug responses.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Our lab is interested in the biology and treatment of acute myeloid leukemia in children and we use a range of high-throughput genomics approaches to better understand the therapeutic vulnerabilities. This involves large-scale drug screening, genome-wide CRISPR screens, as well as other genomics approaches. We also collaborate with a wide range of labs across the country, and develop web-based tools to allow other researchers to explore the data interactively.

Student roles:
The specific role for the Globalink student for this project will be focused primarily on devising and implementing algorithms for visualizing large sets of biological data. Students will also be encouraged to research new computational methods representing sequence data and allowing end users to interact with their data. The student would also be responsible for documenting computational tools and responding to feedback from members of the research team.

The student would have the opportunity to work within a supportive team composed of biologists, computer scientists and bioinformaticians. Within the global research project the student would also have the opportunity to choose specific research aspects to pursue which suit their interests and, under supervision, to develop novel and attainable research goals.

Skills required:
The ideal student will be in computer science, bioinformatics, software engineering, or a related field, with experience in Python and/or JavaScript. Familiarity with data analysis libraries (e.g., pandas, NumPy) and basic statistical concepts is expected. Exposure to web-based development frameworks (such as React, D3.js, or similar) and database systems (SQL or NoSQL) is highly desirable. The student should be comfortable working with large, complex datasets and have an interest in biomedical data, particularly cancer genomics. Strong problem-solving skills, attention to detail, and the ability to collaborate in an interdisciplinary research environment are essential.

97. Analyzing Programming Language Bias in Large Language Models for Software Engineering Tasks

Large Language Models (LLMs), such as ChatGPT, are increasingly used to support software development activities including code generation, debugging, refactoring, documentation, and testing. However, emerging evidence suggests that LLM performance may vary significantly across programming languages, potentially favoring widely represented languages such as Python over languages such as C++, Java, or Rust. These inconsistencies may affect software quality, developer productivity, and fairness in AI-assisted development environments. This project aims to investigate and quantify programming language bias in LLMs by evaluating how consistently models perform equivalent software engineering tasks across multiple programming languages. The study will design a benchmark dataset containing semantically equivalent prompts for tasks such as algorithm implementation, bug fixing, code explanation, refactoring, unit test generation, and API usage. Each task will be represented in several programming languages including Python, Java, C++, JavaScript, and C#. The project will develop an automated evaluation framework to assess generated code using metrics such as functional correctness, compilation success, runtime performance, code readability, maintainability, security vulnerabilities, and explanation quality. Statistical and comparative analyses will then be performed to identify systematic disparities between programming languages. The expected outcomes of this research include: • A reusable multilingual programming benchmark for LLM evaluation • Quantitative evidence of programming language bias in LLM-generated code • Insights into how training data representation impacts software engineering assistance • Recommendations for developing more equitable and reliable AI-assisted programming tools This research contributes to the intersection of software engineering, AI ethics, and model evaluation by providing a structured framework for understanding fairness and reliability in AI-based coding assistants.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on advancing the reliability, quality, and trustworthiness of software-intensive systems through the application of artificial intelligence and data-driven techniques. I am particularly interested in software engineering, machine learning for software systems, distributed systems reliability, requirements engineering, and trustworthy AI. My work investigates how machine learning and large language models can be leveraged to improve software development processes, including early detection of requirements defects, software quality assurance, anomaly detection, and automated verification. I am also interested in understanding and mitigating biases in AI systems, developing explainable and reliable AI-assisted software engineering tools.

Student roles:
The student will participate in the following activities:

* Developing software algorithms that identify programming language bias in LLM.

* Document, analyze, discuss, and represent the obtained results and the developed systems.

* Perform weekly meetings with the supervisor.

* Build systems (e.g., machine learning models) that analyze the source code and recommend the suitable implementation to the requested features.

* Write a final report that summarizes the background, approach, the obtained results, and the future directions.

* Make presentations, attend a conference.

Skills required:
Basic knowledge in machine learning skills
Strong programming skills (preferred python and R)
Background in Computer Science
Familiarity with LLMs
Strong communication skill (English)

98. Analyzing the Trajectories and Failure Patterns of Software Engineering Agents.

Software engineering agents powered by large language models (LLMs) have recently demonstrated strong capabilities in automatic GitHub issue resolution through iterative reasoning, tool use, and interaction with software repositories. Despite this progress, these agents still frequently fail on complex software engineering tasks that require long-horizon planning, accurate code understanding, and multi-step decision making. Existing techniques primarily focus on predicting the failed step(s) without interpreting or identifying the underlying rationale behind the failure. This project aims to analyze the trajectories of software engineering agents (e.g., SWE-agent) to identify common failure patterns and better understand the root causes behind unsuccessful issue resolution attempts.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research interest focuses on Software Engineering (SE) support for complex AI-based software systems (quality assurance for AI). My most recent works cover software testing, analysis, and improving for AI models and systems. Additionally, I am broadly interested in the intersection of Software Engineering, AI, and Human-Computer Interaction (HCI). I design and develop interactive interfaces to help developers interpret and debug AI-based software.

Student roles:
The student will participate in research activities under the supervision and guidance of the faculty member. Responsibilities include conducting literature reviews, implementing and evaluating research prototypes, analyzing experimental results, and assisting with the preparation of research papers. The student is also expected to actively communicate progress, collaborate with other team members, and contribute to regular meetings and discussions.

Skills required:
1. Strong programming skills and solid foundations in computer science and/or software engineering.
2. Willingness and ability to learn new cutting-edge knowledge.
3. Good communication and collaboration skills.
4. Good English proficiency, particularly in reading technical papers.
5. Previous experience with software engineering agents (e.g., SWE-Agent) is preferred.

99. Anomaly detection in financial transactions using machine learning | Détection des anomalies dans les transactions financières par l’appentissage automatique

The VMware Industrial Chair in Edge-AI at ÉTS Montréal aims to develop a next-generation of intelligent technologies to improve the quality of life and security of Canadians, in which financial services are a key element. The financial sector is one of the most vulnerable sectors to fraudulent activities. Anomaly detection in financial transactions is a crucial task that aims to identify abnormal transactions, such as fraudulent transactions that may result in loss of revenue for financial institutions. Recently, machine learning (ML) has emerged as a promising solution for detecting fraudulent transactions in financial transactions, which allows processing large datasets to determine the likelihood of fraudulent transactions or actions. The main objective of this project, in collaboration with a financial institution, is to implement an efficient solution for the detection of anomalies in financial transactions. The specific objectives of the project are as follows: - Identify fraudulent transactions in financial transactions. - Improve the risk management capabilities of online payment platforms. - Avoid transaction losses. A team of students and researchers from ÉTS Montréal has developed basic methods for such a detection system. The intern will improve the prototype by adding new ML, data processing, and fusion methods, as well as applications in new real financial datasets. Interns working on this project will receive documentation, materials, training, and real-world data to learn and apply multiple ML methods and analysis of large volumes of real-world financial transactions. A team of students and researchers who have been working on this project for two years will be available to help the new interns.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Machine Learning Cloud computing Big data Artificial Intelligence Computer networks Smart technologies

Student roles:
Reading literature review
Setting up the environment and practicing examples
Designing the system
Implementing the system
Carrying out experiments and collecting data
Preparing technical reports and packaging the code
Attending weekly meetings with supervisors and the team

Skills required:
Programming capability
Knowledge of database and data processing
Knowledge of machine learning

100. Aorta Flow Reconstruction using ML-based models

This research project builds on various internal flow studies, tools developments and flow analysis completed within our group within the past 8 years. The flow inside the aorta acts similar to the flow in a pipe with some added complexities due to strong Fluid-Structure-Interactions and pulsation effects. We have already developed a robust ML-based Probe-Conditioned model for 3D pipe flow reconstruction in the presence of different disturbances. Here, we aim to expand this model to reconstruct blood flow in 4D within (1) a simple regular artery, (2) a healthy idealized aorta geometry, and (3) an unhealthy aorta geometry with anomalies. This project involves extensive CFD / FSI simulations, coding and ML code developments based on PINN concept.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research area and expertise focuses on unsteady turbulent flow dynamics and modeling. This includes external and internal flows with applications in energy harvesting, energy storage, energy transportation, low emissions aerial, ground and underwater vehicles. Particularly, my team has developed a global reputation for research in the areas of unsteady turbulent wake dynamics and turbulent pipeflow dynamics. Moreover, our efforts have led to and continue to result in the development of new technologies and products that are revolutionary in design to lower GHG emissions and enhance our technological capabilities.

Student roles:
The student will complete pre- and post-processing of pipeflow-like simulations related to the blood flow inside the aorta, and modify existing ML-based code to account for the strong FSI effects and pulsation in biomedical applications. They will work closely with another PhD and MSc student that are already working on the project and provide them support and new insights.

Skills required:
The student needs to have a good understanding of fluid mechanics, structural mechanics and fluid-structure-interactions with familiarity in SolidWorks, python and OpenFOAM/ANSYS. The right candidate will need to complete literature review, post-process results and complete simulations on pipeflow-like geometries. Knowledge and familiarity with OpenFOAM and Tecplot are considered a plus.

101. App Development for Real-Time Wild Blueberry Cropping System Analysis on Mobile Devices Using Machine Learning

This project focuses on the development of a mobile-based application for real-time analysis of wild blueberry cropping systems using embedded machine learning models. The objective is to bridge field-level data acquisition and actionable decision support by deploying trained models directly onto mobile devices for on-site inference. The application will support multiple detection and prediction tasks, including crop state classification, disease identification, and harvest and input-related assessments, using imagery captured in real time. In addition to detection, the system will integrate agronomic calculations such as time-to-harvest estimation based on ripeness classification and growing degree day (GDD) modeling for crop development tracking with bud stage inputs. A key component of the application is the linkage between model outputs and structured agronomic knowledge, where each detected instance or computed metric is associated with a corresponding fact sheet. These fact sheets will provide context-specific information, including crop management recommendations, growth stage interpretation, and relevant agronomic guidelines. The project emphasizes efficient model deployment, low-latency inference, and user-centric design, ensuring that machine learning outputs are both interpretable and actionable in field conditions.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Dr. Travis Esau specializes in precision and digital agriculture, focusing on the design and development of mechanized and autonomous systems to enhance farm productivity, sustainability, and profitability. His research integrates machine vision, artificial intelligence, and geospatial technologies to enable data-driven decision-making in crop production systems such as wild blueberry and potato. He advances innovations in automated harvesting, precision spraying, and field monitoring, while also addressing farm traceability and cost-of-production analysis. Through applied, field-validated research, his work supports the transition toward Agriculture 4.0, improving efficiency, reducing environmental impact, and strengthening the resilience and competitiveness of modern agricultural systems.

Student roles:
The project will produce a functional mobile application capable of real-time agricultural analysis using embedded machine learning models. Deliverables will include integrated and optimized models for detection and prediction tasks, a structured system for linking outputs to agronomic fact sheets, and a complete application pipeline supporting real-time inference. Additional outputs will include documented codebases for both model deployment and application logic, performance evaluations assessing inference speed and accuracy on mobile hardware, and curated datasets or model configurations used within the application. Prototype demonstrations of the application in field conditions will be developed, along with internal technical documentation describing system architecture, implementation details, and performance characteristics. Contributions to research outputs or technical presentations may also be produced where applicable.

Skills required:
The student should have a strong background in machine learning, mobile application development, and software integration. Experience deploying and optimizing models for mobile environments (e.g., quantization, model conversion) is essential. The student should be comfortable integrating multiple models into real-time inference pipelines and working with image-based data. Familiarity with backend development, data flow management, and user interface design is important. Knowledge of predictive modeling (e.g., time-to-harvest, growing degree days) is an asset. The student should be capable of testing and validating applications under field conditions, with strong problem-solving, organizational, and communication skills, and the ability to collaborate and provide regular

102. App Trackers and Privacy Violations: Analysis and Mitigation Strategies

Mobile and web applications increasingly rely on third‑party app trackers to support analytics, advertising, and personalization. These trackers often collect detailed information about user behavior, device characteristics, and usage patterns, frequently transmitting data to external entities beyond the original application. While such practices are widespread, they raise serious concerns regarding data privacy, user consent, and transparency, particularly when data collection occurs without meaningful user awareness or control. This research project aims to systematically analyze the presence and behavior of app trackers and assess how they contribute to privacy violations in modern application ecosystems. The project will examine common tracking mechanisms, data flows, and information‑sharing practices employed by mobile and desktop applications. A key focus will be identifying mismatches between stated privacy policies, user expectations, and actual data collection and transmission behaviors. Beyond analysis, the project emphasizes the development of mitigation strategies that balance privacy protection with application functionality. Drawing on principles of usable privacy, the research will explore approaches that enable users to understand, manage, and limit tracking activities without requiring advanced technical expertise. This includes investigating privacy‑aware design practices, permission models, and transparency mechanisms that empower users to make informed privacy decisions. The project will also explore technical countermeasures, such as selective data access controls and privacy‑preserving data handling techniques, that can reduce unnecessary data exposure while maintaining core application services. Where appropriate, insights from secure data processing and search encryption methodologies will be applied to limit data leakage and third‑party access. Overall, this research seeks to contribute actionable insights and practical tools for mitigating app‑based privacy risks. The outcomes will support the development of respectful, privacy‑by‑design application ecosystems that better align technological innovation with user trust and regulatory expectations.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My specialized research area focuses on data privacy and security, with an emphasis on digital privacy, usable privacy, and searchable encryption methodologies. I study how user behavioral data, such as interaction patterns and system usage traces, can unintentionally lead to privacy violations. My research aims to advance usable privacy by designing privacy‑preserving systems that are understandable, practical, and minimally disruptive to users, ensuring that strong privacy protections can be effectively adopted in real‑world computing environments without sacrificing usability or functionality.

Student roles:
The undergraduate student will support the research project by actively contributing to both analytical and implementation tasks under close supervision. The student will assist with conducting a literature review on app tracking technologies, privacy violations, and existing mitigation approaches, helping to summarize and organize relevant research. The student will help with conducting the research, including examining how applications integrate trackers, analyzing data collection and sharing behaviors, and identifying potential privacy risks. In addition, the student will contribute to the design of a research framework for evaluating app trackers from a privacy and usability perspective. The student will also assist with the implementation of a prototype aimed at improving transparency or mitigating tracker‑related privacy violations, as well as testing and documenting the results.

Skills required:
Ability to assist with literature review and academic research
Interest in data privacy, security, and digital privacy issues
Familiarity with programming languages (familiarity with mobile programming)
Basic understanding of mobile or web application development concepts (preferred but not required)
Analytical thinking and willingness to learn privacy analysis methodologies
Motivation to engage in interdisciplinary research combining technology, privacy, and usability

103. Application of Image processing and Machine Learning for Materials Research Testing and Damage Detection

The research project intends to develop an affordable but yet accurate surrogate for Digital Image Correlation (DIC) technology to monitor the mechanical testing of civil engineering materials in the laboratory and field settings. The goal is to implement the research results and develop a user-interface for general engineering users in a user-friendly manner. The amount of data generated will be large so efficiency of the algorithms and processing methods will be key to developing a practical solution. As a side project, the candidate's programming skills can be leveraged to analyze sensor raw data from a fully instrumented smart pavement section.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Centre for Pavement and Transportation Technology (CPATT) at the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Waterloo covers a broad range of research projects spanning from developing innovative and sustainable materials from nano-scale to micro, macro and full scale pilots as well as application of technology to transportation infrastructure. Application of AI and Machine Learning as well as image processing techniques has become the core of many research projects that we currently have at the CPATT.

Student roles:
Conduct a scoping literature review in a timely manner.
Design and assist with conducting experiments and collecting images and videos to be processed either realtime or asynchronously later.
Develop scripts to process the image frames
Develop a user interface for performing the DIC analysis
Attend weekly and monthly group meetings and helping with taking the minutes and organizing activities

Skills required:
The candidate should have a strong programming skill and be proficient in Python and Matlab at least.
Conducting a review of the literature and summarizing the state of the art and practice in the relevant area of the proposed research. Working efficiently is a key. Good time management and technical writing skills are must for a successful candidate.
Experience with Image Processing will be an asset.
The candidate will be working in a big multidisciplinary group and interpersonal skills and team work capabilities are necessary.

104. Applications of Artificial Intelligence and Reinforcement Learning in Assessment of Thyroid Nodule Using Ultrasound

This research project applies artificial intelligence, particularly deep learning and reinforcement learning, to the analysis of thyroid nodules using ultrasound imaging. The study will compare the performance of AI-based approaches with conventional reporting techniques such as TI-RADS. Reinforcement learning will be used to analyze ultrasound video data of the thyroid acquired from low-cost point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) devices. The overall goal is to improve diagnostic accuracy, enhance risk stratification, and support clinical decision-making in a cost-effective and accessible manner.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: This research focuses on the application of artificial intelligence, particularly deep learning and reinforcement learning, for medical image analysis. Specifically, we are interested in the ultrasound-based assessment of thyroid nodules, with the goal of improving diagnostic accuracy and supporting clinical decision-making.

Student roles:
The student will contribute to the development and evaluation of artificial intelligence methods for thyroid nodule assessment using ultrasound imaging. Their role will include implementing and training deep learning models, exploring reinforcement learning approaches for analyzing ultrasound video data from low-cost point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) devices, and comparing AI-based results with conventional clinical reporting systems such as TI-RADS. The student will also assist in data preprocessing, model evaluation, and result interpretation.

Skills required:
The ideal student should have a background in computer science, biomedical engineering, electrical engineering, or a related field.
Experience with machine learning, particularly deep learning, is highly desirable
Familiarity with Python programming and common ML frameworks such as PyTorch or TensorFlow is important
Knowledge of medical image analysis, especially ultrasound imaging
Strong analytical skills and the ability to work independently and collaboratively in a research environment

105. Applying AI to Understand Migrants’ Experiences in Language Learning and Cultural Adaptation

Advancements in AI and mobile app technology present a promising opportunity to support students by enhancing their coping strategies and language skills. However, can we effectively facilitate the transfer of these skills from digital platforms to real-life interactions? This study aims to evaluate the whether AI and related app have impact on migrant students' social, emotional, and academic outcomes. Secondly, this research aims to to further explore what type of AI-assisted intervention and AI-specific affordances of the context can help afford/ maximixe the positive impact.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research interests are at the intersection of social/personality psychology, educational psychology, and applied linguistics, especially where they converge on motivation, identity, intercultural communications, and intergroup relations. One line of my research focuses on beliefs and motivation that influence language development and intergroup/interpersonal processes. Current projects include examining social factors that shape mindsets and goal pursuits related to the success of language learning and interpersonal/intergroup communication. Another line of my research focuses on acculturation and socio-cultural adaptation, particularly their relations with discrimination, identity, and language development.

Student roles:
The intern's research project is part the bigger project (title "Applying AI to Understand Migrants’ Experiences in Language Learning and Cultural Adaptation"), which involves research and development of an educational app that aims to inform migrants' socio-cultural and linguistic adaptation, especially in relation to mental health. The student's overall objective is to investigate the effectiveness of the program by assisting with data collection and qualitative data analysis for both academic research and product development contexts. Therefore, students participating in this project should have experience in research design, data collection (e.g., interview), and quantitative data analysis. The students may participate in a couple of the following tasks:
1. Assist in collecting data from a project about an online mental health program, such as conducting interviews
2. Conduct qualitative and quantitative analyses.
3. Contribute to knowledge dissemination efforts, including but not limited to manuscript development and conference submissions.
4. Translate the research materials and report (e.g., white paper) for different audience.

Skills required:
Students participating in this project should have an interest in educational design, knowledge in AI research, and a strong statistical/analytic skills in psychology research. Experience in data collection, such as conducting interviews, is required. Additionally, proficiency in both qualitative and quantitative research methods is necessary.

106. Apprentissage profond pour améliorer les prévisions de débit des rivières dans un contexte de changements climatiques

Les débits des rivières dépendent d’interactions complexes entre les précipitations, la température, la neige, les sols et les caractéristiques des bassins versants. Comme ces interactions évoluent dans le temps, les modèles modernes d’apprentissage profond peuvent être utiles pour apprendre les motifs présents dans les séries temporelles hydrologiques. Toutefois, le choix de l’architecture de modèle demeure un défi important. Ce projet vise à étudier comment les modèles d’apprentissage profond peuvent améliorer les prévisions de débit des rivières à partir de données hydrologiques réelles. L’étudiant ou l’étudiante testera des modèles conçus pour les données séquentielles, comme les réseaux Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) ou les Gated Recurrent Units (GRU). Ces modèles sont largement utilisés pour apprendre les dépendances temporelles et pourraient être mieux adaptés que des réseaux neuronaux plus simples pour les prévisions hydrologiques. L’étudiant ou l’étudiante travaillera avec des bases de données en accès libre contenant des observations météorologiques et hydrologiques provenant de plusieurs bassins versants. Le projet comprendra la préparation des données, la mise en oeuvre de modèles d'IA, leur entraînement, leur validation et la comparaison des résultats. Une extension possible du projet consistera à explorer l’apprentissage par transfert, où les connaissances apprises sur plusieurs bassins versants sont réutilisées pour améliorer les prédictions sur un ensemble plus restreint de bassins ciblés. Ce stage offrira une expérience pratique de recherche en intelligence artificielle hydrologique. L’étudiant ou l’étudiante développera des compétences en Python, en apprentissage profond, en modélisation de séries temporelles et en traitement de données hydrologiques réelles.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Mes recherches portent sur le développement d'une nouvelle génération de modèles d'intelligence artificielle visant à mieux représenter les systèmes hydrologiques et à faciliter la gestion des ressources en eau. Plus précisément, je développe des modèles hybrides qui combine les connaissances physiques des systèmes hydrologiques avec des méthodes d'apprentissage automatique.

Student roles:
L'étudiant participera à l'élaboration et à la comparaison de modèles d'apprentissage profond destinés à la prévision des débits fluviaux. Au cours de la première partie du stage, il se familiarisera avec l'ensemble de données hydrologiques, l'objet de la recherche et les concepts fondamentaux de la modélisation des bassins versants et de la prévision des séries chronologiques.

Il préparera ensuite les données d'entrée pour les modèles d'apprentissage automatique, notamment les séries chronologiques relatives aux précipitations, à la température, à la neige et aux débits fluviaux. La principale tâche de recherche consistera à mettre en œuvre et à tester des modèles d'apprentissage profond tels que les réseaux LSTM et GRU. Ces modèles seront entraînés pour apprendre comment les conditions météorologiques influencent le débit des cours d'eau au fil du temps.

L'étudiant comparera les modèles à l'aide d'indicateurs de performance standard et produira des graphiques illustrant les débits observés et simulés. Si le temps le permet, l'étudiant pourra également explorer l'apprentissage par transfert en entraînant un modèle sur plusieurs bassins versants et en vérifiant si cela améliore les simulations pour certains bassins versants cibles.

L'étudiant rencontrera régulièrement son directeur de recherche pour discuter de l'avancement des travaux, résoudre les problèmes techniques et interpréter les résultats. Les livrables finaux comprendront du code Python documenté, des graphiques, un bref rapport technique et un résumé des principales conclusions. Les résultats pourraient servir de base à une future publication scientifique ou à un projet de recherche plus vaste sur l'IA appliquée à la gestion des ressources en eau.

Skills required:
L’étudiant ou l’étudiante devrait posséder des bases en programmation Python et démontrer un intérêt pour l’apprentissage automatique, la science des données ou la modélisation hydrologique. Une expérience avec des bibliothèques comme NumPy, pandas, scikit-learn, PyTorch ou TensorFlow constitue un atout, sans être obligatoire. La personne devra être à l’aise avec les données numériques et intéressée à apprendre les concepts de base en hydrologie. La curiosité, l’autonomie et les habiletés de communication sont importantes. Une expérience en analyse de séries temporelles ou en réseaux neuronaux serait un avantage.

107. Art-images authentication and verification using deep learning and blockchain

This research project aims to develop a secure and scalable framework for the authentication and verification of physical art-images using deep learning and blockchain technology. The forgery and unauthorized replication of art-images remains a serious global issue, with traditional authentication methods often relying on expert opinion, which can be subjective, time-consuming, and expensive. The proposed system will use deep convolutional neural networks (CNNs) to analyze high-resolution photographs of physical artworks, capturing subtle texture, brushstroke, pigment, and material patterns that are difficult to replicate. These unique features will serve as a digital fingerprint for each physical artwork. The extracted features along with the secure cryptographic hashes will be store on a blockchain-based ledger to ensure immutability, traceability, and provenance. When a user submits an image of a physical artwork for verification, the system will extract its features, compare them to those stored on the blockchain, and determine the likelihood of authenticity based on image similarity and hash matching. This ensures that the physical art can be validated without invasive techniques or third-party appraisals. The project will involve collecting a dataset of verified physical artworks, training deep learning models for feature extraction and classification, and building a secure blockchain interface for storing and verifying artwork metadata. It aims to support art collectors, galleries, museums, and law enforcement agencies in combating art forgery and ensuring trustworthy transactions. By integrating AI and blockchain, this project will contribute a novel technological approach to preserving the integrity and value of physical artworks, enhancing both security and confidence in the art verification process.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: I hold a Ph.D. in Computer Science and Engineering. My research focuses on AI, machine learning, and cybersecurity. During my Ph.D., I specialized in developing smart systems using big data analytics and AI. Over the past six years, my work has focused on designing novel information security and privacy protocols for surveillance systems. I have employed deep learning and AI techniques in combination with homomorphic encryption to establish privacy-preserving surveillance through video, audio, and speech. In these areas, I have published over 70 peer-reviewed articles in journals and conferences, along with 4 book chapters, with more than 5,000 citations.

Student roles:
The student will play a role in the design, implementation, and evaluation of a deep learning-based framework for physical art image authentication and verification. This includes:
• Conducting a thorough literature review of existing methods utilizing deep learning models for image authentication and forgery detection.
• Assisting in preprocessing a dataset of high-resolution physical art images, including both original and similar samples.
• Using tools such as TensorFlow or PyTorch, implementing and training deep neural networks (e.g., CNNs, Siamese networks, or transformer-based architectures) to identify fine-grained visual signature patterns for authenticity. The student will explore model architectures and tuning strategies to optimize accuracy and robustness against adversarial inputs.
• Integrating blockchain components, such as hashing verified image features and securely storing them on a distributed ledger for immutable verification. Basic knowledge of smart contracts or platforms like Ethereum or Hyperledger may be leveraged.
• Evaluating system performance based on metrics such as accuracy, precision, recall, and computational cost. The project may include building a lightweight proof-of-concept interface to demonstrate the solution.
• Preparing documentation and contributing to writing a report or publication summarizing the findings and potential real-world applications in galleries, museums, or online art markets.

Skills required:
• The student should be enrolled in a full-time undergraduate or combined undergraduate/master’s program in Computer Science or a related field.
• They must have completed courses in machine learning, computer vision, and programming (e.g., Python, C++, or Java) with strong academic performance.
• Familiarity with deep learning frameworks such as PyTorch or TensorFlow is essential.
• Experience with blockchain technologies or cryptographic principles is highly desirable.
• The student should possess good problem-solving abilities, strong communication skills, and academic writing proficiency.
• Knowledge of image processing techniques and an interest in art or digital forensics.

108. Artificial Intelligence (AI)-driven Personalized Digital Health App

The goal of this research project is to design, develop, and evaluate an AI-driven personalized and mobile health (mHealth) app that leverages artificial intelligence (AI) to tailor healthcare experiences and interventions to individual users. The app will integrate AI techniques, such as machine learning and natural language processing (NLP), to analyze or process contextual and physiological data (e.g., activity levels, heart rate variability, blood oxygen level, breathing or respiratory rate, skin temperature, sleep patterns, dietary logs, etc.) - continuously collected using sensors (such as wearable and smartphone sensors) and directly from users - to detect patterns and predict an individual's health risks or status. Based on the predicted outcomes, the app will deliver evidence-based, adaptive, relevant, and timely healthcare interventions to mitigate identified risks or improve the user's health status. Also, the app will implement persuasive features, such as gamification, smart reminders, goal setting, progress tracking, and social support, to motivate users to engage with or adopt the interventions. This research project is important for several reasons. First, it addresses the growing need for preventive healthcare. The proposed AI-driven mHealth app will continuously monitor individual users’ behaviours and physiological signals to identify early warning signs and assess the risks of a specific health condition - such as hypertension, diabetes, chronic stress, or mental health disorder (e.g., depression or anxiety disorder) - and then provide immediate interventions. Second, this research project will make healthcare accessible to more people (since many people own smartphones and wearables e.g., smartwatches), including those in areas where medical infrastructure is limited. Third, the proposed app will provide personalized, evidence-based, and timely support; triage users to professional care when necessary (e.g., alerting a clinician or caregiver if health risk is high); and facilitate remote health monitoring, thereby empowering users to take control of their health and well-being.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research intersects Human-Computer Interaction, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and Persuasive Computing to design, develop, and evaluate AI-driven, user-adaptive, and highly personalized technologies for public and social good across diverse domains including health and wellness, education, security, and sustainable environment. These technologies deliver evidence-based, personalized, and adaptive interventions in real-time while operationalizing appropriate persuasive strategies to motivate and promote desirable behaviours in individuals and groups.

Student roles:
The student will work under supervision to develop and evaluate an AI-driven personalized digital health app. First, they will survey recent AI apps in digital health, focusing on a specific domain (e.g., mental health promotion or diabetes prevention), to identify relevant physiological and contextual data, data sources (wearable sensors and smartphone), and evidence-based intervention strategies. Collaborating with the supervisor, they will finalize the feature sets, evaluation metrics, and a data-collection protocol that ensures user privacy and compliance with best practices. Next, the student will implement data pipelines to collect raw sensor streams and user-entered logs. They will clean and normalize multivariate time-series data by handling missing values, synchronizing timestamps, and engineering initial feature sets. Throughout this phase, detailed documentation of data schemas, preprocessing steps, and user privacy measures is expected. Next, the student will experiment with several popular supervised and unsupervised machine learning (ML) algorithms, starting with a baseline model and iterating toward more sophisticated architectures. They will evaluate model performance and report metrics (e.g. accuracy, F1-score, etc.) and also choose the overall best performing ML model. Next, the student will design and develop a cross-platform mobile app that collects sensor data and user-entered logs, runs the selected ML model for inference (via a lightweight backend or API endpoint), and provide personalized interventions based on predicted outcomes. They will implement persuasive features - such as gamification (e.g., rewards in form of points, badges, streaks, etc.), reminders, goal setting, progress tracking, and social support - to keep users motivated and engaged. Finally, the student will conduct small-scale usability study (5-10 participants), gather quantitative and qualitative feedback, and refine the app based on the feedback.

Throughout the project, the student must maintain code repositories with proper version control and inline documentation, submit a concise weekly progress report, and produce a final report.

Skills required:
The student should have some experience in software development and machine learning (ML). Proficiency in programming languages such as Python is essential, since developing ML models, preprocessing sensor data, and integrating diverse data sources often rely on Python libraries like scikit-learn, TensorFlow, or PyTorch. Also, the student should be proficient in cross-platform mobile app development (using frameworks like Flutter), prototyping user interfaces (using tools like Figma), database design, and development of REST APIs. Given the sensitive nature of user data, the student should be comfortable working with privacy-preserving techniques such as data anonymization and encryption. Communication in English is required.

109. Artificial Intelligence Based Mirror Mode Rehabilitation System for Older Adults

This pilot project aims to co-develop and evaluate the usability of an AI-powered mirror-mode rehabilitation system for older adults residing in long-term care (LTC) facilities and community. Leveraging MoveNet pose estimation and a standard webcam or tablet camera, the system will provide real-time feedback on posture, range of motion, compensatory movements, and exercise repetitions. The intervention will feature twelve structured rehabilitation exercises—targeting upper and lower limbs, as well as seated and standing balance augmented with cognitive-motor prompts (e.g., backward counting, verbal fluency tasks). The project will assess system usability, acceptability, and preliminary functional outcomes through a four-month phased implementation. Co-design and usability testing will be conducted with LTC residents (n = 8–12), supporting future development of an avatar-based, scalable version for digitally inclusive geriatric rehabilitation.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on digital health, rehabilitation science, and artificial intelligence (AI), aiming to develop equitable, inclusive, and technology-enabled solutions for aging populations. I design and evaluate AI-driven interventions using wearable sensors and data platforms to enhance mobility, autonomy, and quality of life in older adults and individuals with disabilities. The work supports precision rehabilitation, telemonitoring, and self-management, especially in rural and underserved communities. Grounded in health equity and ethical AI, my research addresses the digital empowerment divide and contributes to evidence-based clinical innovation, policy development, and the advancement of patient-centered digital rehabilitation systems.

Student roles:
The student will play a central role in the technical development and refinement of an AI-powered mirror-mode rehabilitation system designed for older adults in long-term care (LTC) and community. Working closely with the research team, the student will be responsible for implementing and testing core system functionalities using real-time pose estimation (MoveNet), webcam-based video input, and visual feedback mechanisms.

Key Responsibilities:

System Development and Integration
• Implement real-time pose estimation using MoveNet or equivalent models
• Integrate movement classification, range of motion tracking, and repetition counting modules
• Develop mirror-mode visual feedback and compensatory movement alerts
• Ensure smooth system performance using standard webcams or tablet cameras

Interface and Usability Support
• Design and implement a user-friendly interface suitable for older adults
• Incorporate visual cues and cognitive prompts into selected exercises
• Collaborate with the team to adapt the interface based on feedback from LTC participants

Testing and Iteration
• Conduct initial system testing with volunteers
• Support usability testing in LTC settings by preparing the system, assisting during sessions, and troubleshooting as needed
• Refine system features based on participant and stakeholder feedback

Documentation and Collaboration
• Document code, system workflows, and updates clearly
• Participate in regular project meetings and contribute to interdisciplinary discussions
• Assist with the preparation of technical summaries or visuals for reports and presentations

Skills required:
The ideal student will be enrolled in a program in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Electrical or Biomedical Engineering, or a related technical field. This position is best suited for a student interested in applied AI and digital health technologies. The following skills and qualifications are required or strongly recommended:
Technical and Programming Skills
• Proficiency in Python
• Experience with machine learning libraries (e.g., TensorFlow, PyTorch, etc.)
• Familiarity with real-time video processing, pose estimation models (e.g., MoveNet, BlazePose), or media pipelines

System Integration and UI/UX
• Ability to integrate front-end and back-end components for a user-facing application

110. Artificial Intelligence and Entrepreneurial Innovation: Exploring the Future of SMEs in the Digital Economy

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is transforming how entrepreneurs and small businesses identify opportunities, develop products, make decisions, and compete in increasingly dynamic markets. While large organizations have invested heavily in AI technologies, many small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) continue to face challenges related to adoption, implementation, skills development, and strategic integration. This project explores how entrepreneurs and SMEs are using AI technologies to support innovation, improve business performance, and create competitive advantage. The research will investigate opportunities and challenges associated with AI adoption, including its impact on entrepreneurial decision-making, innovation processes, customer engagement, operational efficiency, and business growth. The project will combine literature reviews, secondary data analysis, case studies, and exploratory research with SMEs operating across different industries. Particular attention will be given to understanding how entrepreneurs develop AI capabilities, what factors influence adoption decisions, and how AI may shape the future of entrepreneurship and innovation. The findings will contribute to ongoing discussions regarding digital transformation, entrepreneurial innovation, and workforce development. The project may also explore how educational institutions can better prepare future entrepreneurs to leverage AI technologies effectively. Expected outputs include research reports, conference presentations, practitioner-oriented recommendations, case studies, and academic publications. The project will provide valuable insights for entrepreneurs, SMEs, educators, policymakers, and innovation support organizations seeking to navigate the rapidly evolving digital economy.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on entrepreneurship, innovation, entrepreneurial ecosystems, and the strategic adoption of emerging technologies. I examine how entrepreneurs and SMEs leverage new technologies, including artificial intelligence, to enhance innovation, competitiveness, and business growth. My work explores the interaction between technological change, entrepreneurial decision-making, and organizational performance across different institutional and economic contexts. Through interdisciplinary research, I seek to understand how innovation capabilities are developed and how emerging technologies can support sustainable entrepreneurship and regional economic development.

Student roles:
The student will work closely with the faculty supervisor on a research project examining the role of artificial intelligence in entrepreneurship, innovation, and SME development. The position is designed to provide students with an opportunity to apply their technical or analytical expertise while gaining exposure to entrepreneurship and innovation research.

The student will contribute to literature reviews, environmental scanning, and the identification of emerging trends related to AI and entrepreneurial innovation. Depending on their background and interests, they may assist with collecting and organizing data, conducting case studies, reviewing AI applications used by SMEs, analyzing publicly available datasets, and supporting the development of research reports and presentations.

Students with technical expertise may contribute to data analytics, text analysis, dashboard development, or exploratory applications of AI tools. Students from business or interdisciplinary backgrounds may assist with case development, interviews, industry scanning, and analysis of entrepreneurial practices related to AI adoption.

A key expectation is that students will bring their disciplinary expertise to the project while remaining open to learning from complementary fields, particularly entrepreneurship, innovation, and technology management. Strong communication and writing skills are important, as students will contribute to research summaries, reports, presentations, and other knowledge mobilization activities.

Throughout the project, students will gain exposure to interdisciplinary research, digital innovation, entrepreneurship scholarship, and emerging technology trends. They will participate in research meetings and may have opportunities to contribute to conference presentations, case studies, and academic publications. The project is particularly well suited for students interested in future graduate studies in entrepreneurship, innovation, technology management, artificial intelligence, or related disciplines.

Skills required:
Applicants should have a strong academic background in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Data Science, Information Systems, Business Analytics, Management Information Systems, Entrepreneurship, or related disciplines. We welcome students who have demonstrated academic excellence in their field and are interested in exploring entrepreneurship, innovation, and emerging technologies. Familiarity with AI tools, data analysis, programming, or digital technologies is beneficial but not required. Strong communication, analytical thinking, and writing skills are essential. Curiosity, initiative, and an interest in interdisciplinary research are highly valued.

111. Artificial Intelligence for Smart Grid and Energy Applications

This 12-week internship project explores the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning for smart grid and energy applications. The project will focus on applying data-driven methods to problems such as load forecasting, renewable energy prediction, system monitoring, fault detection, or energy management, depending on the student’s background and the final project scope. The student will work with prepared datasets to perform data preprocessing, feature selection, model development, training, testing, and performance evaluation. The project will also emphasize clear result visualization, reproducible workflow development, and practical interpretation of findings for modern energy systems. The expected outcome is a documented AI-based analysis framework, comparative results, and a concise technical report.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My specialized research area is in smart grids, smart energy systems, and AI-enabled power and energy applications. My work focuses on applying artificial intelligence, machine learning, and data-driven methods to problems such as load forecasting, renewable energy forecasting, intelligent monitoring, fault diagnosis, and energy management in modern power systems. I also work on the modeling, control, and optimization of power electronic converters, battery energy storage systems, renewable energy interfaces, and microgrids. Overall, my research aims to develop reliable, efficient, and intelligent solutions for the operation and modernization of future energy systems.

Student roles:
The student will assist with data preparation, model development, training, testing, and performance evaluation for AI-based smart grid and energy applications. Responsibilities will include organizing datasets, performing preprocessing and feature analysis, implementing machine learning models, comparing results using appropriate metrics, preparing plots and tables, and documenting findings in short technical summaries, a final report, and a presentation.

Skills required:
The student should be an upper-year undergraduate in electrical engineering, computer engineering, software engineering, data science, or a related field, with basic knowledge of programming, data analysis, and machine learning. Familiarity with Python, MATLAB, or common AI/ML tools would be beneficial. An interest in smart grids, energy systems, forecasting, monitoring, or data-driven analysis is desirable, along with good analytical, problem-solving, and technical communication skills.

112. Artificial Intelligence for Sustainable Environment: Towards More Resilient Urban Forests

The proposed internship is part of a large multidisciplinary project that brings together researchers in computer science and biological sciences. The objective of the project is contributing to a recommendation and decision support system to immunize the (urban) forest against global changes by maximizing the resilience and environmental services of trees (sylvcit.ca). The trainee will have the opportunity to put into practice the techniques of indexing, data analysis and to contribute to the creation of learning algorithms (deep, reinforcement, etc.) dedicated to the project as well as the visualization of results and recommendations. The main languages ​​used in the works are R, Java and Python and the team favors the use of open source frameworks and the publication of open access research. The project will also enable the trainee to discover computer science research in a multidisciplinary context.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: artificial intelligence, machine/deep learning, data science, natural language processing

Student roles:
- contribution to research projects
- contribution to development of open-source prototypes, and to the evaluation of implemented systems
- discovering state-of-the-art literature for the research domains
- sharing ideas and acquired knowledge with team members
- contribution to the writing of scientific papers could be discussed

Skills required:
- good programming skills
- Linux OS
- autonomous
- able to work in a team
- interest for multidisciplinarity

113. Artificial intelligence and data-driven modeling in process and materials innovation

This project offers summer students the opportunity to explore artificial intelligence (AI) applications in chemical, process, and materials engineering. Students will work with techniques such as machine learning, data-driven and hybrid modeling, and large language models. A key focus is developing data-efficient methods that minimize data requirements while maintaining accuracy, including integrating physics-based and first-principles knowledge into hybrid models. The project also examines how large language models can support automated research workflows. Applications span several areas of interest to the group, including polymer materials, digital manufacturing, rheology, fluid mechanics, and turbulence. We welcome students from diverse academic backgrounds with a strong interest in AI technologies and data-driven modeling, and a curiosity for tackling interdisciplinary research challenges.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Soft matter and complex fluids, polymer materials, non-Newtonian fluids, rheology, turbulence, computational fluid dynamics, molecular modeling, multiscale simulations, data-driven modeling, machine learning, artificial intelligence

Student roles:
The student will work with the supervisor and his research team and develop novel techniques in the application of machine learning, data-driven modeling, and artificial intelligence in various application areas within chemical, process, and/or materials engineering. We are interested in the application of these techniques in a broad range of areas, including polymers, rheology, fluid mechanics, and process engineering. As such, we are able to tailor the project to the specific background and interest of the student. The student will report to the supervisor on a weekly basis and will be asked to make at least one group meeting presentation and submit a written report by the end of the internship.

Skills required:
The candidate must have a background in engineering or science, and have completed college-level mathematics courses including calculus and linear algebra. The candidate is also expected to have learnt at least one programming language. Background and experience in at least one of the following fields are also desired: numerical/computational methods, machine learning, artificial intelligence, process modeling, optimization, materials modeling, and fluid mechanics. Command of the English language is required.

114. Artificial intelligence for resilient industrial control and automation systems

The project requires the development of computational algorithms based on artificial intelligence/machine learning that integrate with industrial control and automation systems, as follows: - The algorithms would take as input operational data collected from programmable logic controllers (PLCs); - The algorithms then perform computations (e.g., based on clustering, classification, sequence alignment, etc.), to extract knowledge/insights for more effective process operation; and - The algorithms would then provide as output to human operators the extracted knowledge/insights for more effective decision support, e.g., by displaying information on human-machine interface (HMI) screens. In particular, the project will investigate process operation during abnormal conditions, to enable resilient industrial control and automation systems, e.g., in the context of cybersecurity, fault diagnosis, and/or alarm management.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Industrial control and industrial automation (HMI/SCADA and PLC), artificial intelligence, machine learning, control theory, process monitoring, cybersecurity, fault diagnosis, alarm management

Student roles:
The student is expected to achieve the following:

- Operate industrial control and automation systems available on campus, including, industry-grade PLC and HMI, for data collection;
- Collect and pre-process operational data;
- Learn and modify PLC code and configuration, for experiment design;
- Learn and modify HMI screens, code, and configuration, for experiment design;
- Learn, develop, and test computational algorithms;
- Review and understand articles published in journals and conferences;
- Work with other group members as needed.

Skills required:
The student is required to have a strong background in the following:

- Mathematics (e.g., algebra, statistics, artificial intelligence, natural language processing, etc.);
- Logic and reasoning;
- Programming (Python or MATLAB);
- Written and oral communication; and
- Industrial control and automation (PLC and HMI programming and integration - preferred).

The student is required to also have a strong attitude toward:

- Independent learning and thinking;
- Innovation;
- Creativity; and
- Self-motivation.

115. Artificial intelligence in smart transportation and urban sensing technologies

Transportation systems play a vital role in modern society by rapidly and safely transporting amounts of cargo, goods and passengers. This project will build an intelligent transportation infrastructure monitoring platform, and develop multi-sensor data and artificial intelligent algorithms (e.g., LiDar, GPR, temperature, cameras) for different modes of transportation facilities and systems (e.g., railway, road, public transit). The platform will provide micrometer-level measurement accuracy, offer predictive maintenance, improve transportation network safety and security, and promote a resilient infrastructure from smart transportation and smart city development.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Traffic and Transportation Engineering, Analysis, modeling and optimization of the transportation system (Mobility-As-A-Service, public transport, ride-sharing, and emerging transportation technologies), travel behavior and transport economics, data mining and decision analytics (statistical model, machine learning/deep learning), mechanism design and game theory.

Student roles:
Students will participate in the following research activities:

- Literature review in transportation infrastructure monitoring and defect detection research, technologies and applications (e.g., railway, road).
- Case study research for smart transportation infrastructure, services and facilities in Canada including data analysis, technical program and summaries
- Technical report and manuscript editing and formatting, assistant in conference papers and technical reports
- Support research group for machine learning algorithm validations and data labeling.
- Big data processing and correlation analyses

Skills required:
- Strong interests in traffic and transportation engineering, transportation facilities, machine learning algorithms and spatial-temporal data analyses.
- Relevant background in transportation engineering, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, data science or computer science.
- Experience in data analysis and processing.
- Skilled in python.

116. Assessing Security Risks of Third-Party Libraries in AI-Generated Code

This project investigates the security threats introduced by AI coding agents such as GitHub Copilot, OpenAI Codex, and Claude in modern software development. These technologies are becoming increasingly popular for generating code and suggesting Third-Party Libraries (TPLs) from package repositories such as Maven, PyPI, and Cargo. Although TPLs increase development capability and speed, software supply chain attacks frequently target them. Users and downstream programs may be seriously threatened by malicious or vulnerable TPLs. This study aims to evaluate potential supply chain security issues associated with the use of AI coding agents. The project will examine the types of libraries that coding agents suggest or add, and assess the vulnerabilities associated with them. An archival study will be conducted by mining software repositories to collect pull requests authored by coding agents that include or modify TPL dependencies. Next, the extracted libraries will undergo a vulnerability assessment to identify known security flaws and assess their severity and potential consequences. In addition to characterizing dependency usage trends across open-source ecosystems, the study will generate a dataset of AI-generated pull requests that include modifications to TPLs (e.g., changes to manifest files). The findings will help shed light on the role of coding agents in software supply chain security and the security threats associated with AI-assisted software development. Keywords: Artificial Intelligence (AI), AI Coding Agents, Agentic Software, Software Supply Chain Security, Third-Party Libraries (TPLs), Mining Software Repositories, Dependency Vulnerabilities, Open-Source Software Ecosystems, Software Security, AI-Assisted Software Development, Software Engineering.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on improving software quality by managing Technical Debt (TD) in both traditional and scientific software. I conduct empirical studies with practitioners to understand real-world TD practices and leverage Artificial Intelligence and Empirical Software Engineering to automate TD management. Recent work includes using TD as a lens to identify security vulnerabilities, analyzing how developers induce and address TD through refactoring, and mining repositories to uncover TD patterns. I also study developer challenges on crowdsourcing platforms, aiming to inform intelligent, practical tools and solutions for sustainable software development.

Student roles:
-Week 1: Get set up and become familiar with the lab environment and the project; become familiar with the relevant libraries, tools, technologies, and core concepts; review relevant literature.
-Week 2-3: Define the data collection strategy and criteria for identifying coding-agent-authored pull requests involving TPLs based on related work.
-Week 4-5: Implement and test the repository mining pipeline; build an initial dataset.
-Week 6: Extract, clean, and validate the TPL data from the collected pull requests.
-Week 7: Perform vulnerability assessment of the extracted TPLs and analyze the results.
-Week 8-9: Refine the analysis by comparing vulnerability patterns across ecosystems and coding agents.
-Weeks 10–11: Write the project report.
-Week 12: Wrap up, including preparing and delivering the final presentation.

You will be required to write short daily and weekly reports on your progress, including the steps performed during the experiment. Your main responsibility is to follow the predefined steps and not to do research. You will be provided with the required techniques and will need to become familiar with the relevant libraries. Your input regarding the libraries and frameworks that you are familiar with will be considered. However, based on the results of earlier phases, we might need to tweak later phases of the project. You will integrate into a diverse and inclusive research group. You will be required to be punctual daily, work independently, and maintain a positive attitude. We will have weekly progress meetings, but will interact almost daily. You may get the opportunity to interact with our international collaborators and be a co-author of any publication resulting from this study.

Skills required:
The preferred background is in computer science, software engineering, or a closely related field. The student should be comfortable with software development (programming). The specific required skills are:

-Proficient in either Python or R and related environments such as Jupyter Notebooks, Quarto
-Familiar with coding agents and harnesses (OpenAI Codex, Claude Code, OpenCode, PI, etc)
-Familiar with core computer science and software engineering concepts
-Familiar with text mining and natural language processing
-Fluent in reading/writing/speaking English

117. Assistive Rehabilitation System for Elderly Adults Using Virtual Reality

This research program examines the design and development of an innovative, functional virtual mirror therapy (VMT) system to enhance treatment for upper-limb partial paralysis in patients with Acquired Brain Injury (ABI). The proposed VMT system utilizes an immersive virtual rehabilitation environment to induce neuroplasticity, offering a safe, acceptable, and effective approach to mirror therapy for the upper extremities. The research aims to deliver training that mitigates the effects of upper limb partial paralysis in patients with ABI and enhances their functional abilities. The selected student will join a team dedicated to developing an integrated development environment (IDE) that provides comprehensive control and integrates all hardware and software modules of the VMT system using the Unity Real-Time Development Platform Engine. Responsibilities will also include maintaining an active database for storing and retrieving user training activity data.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Abdullah's research focuses on the development of robotic systems, with a particular emphasis on three core areas: therapeutic robots for the rehabilitation of individuals with impaired upper limbs, assistive robotic devices designed to enhance daily living, and exoskeleton robotic systems aimed at augmenting human mobility and strength. In addition to these focal areas, he has made significant contributions to the advancement of mechatronic system design. His expertise and leadership have been instrumental in securing and managing numerous research projects supported by both industry and funding organizations. His work has resulted in over 90 publications in international journals and conferences.

Student roles:
• Requirement Analysis: Determine user requirements, therapeutic objectives, and essential system functionalities for upper limb rehabilitation.
• System Design and Architecture: Develop the software structure, Unity workflow, and database schema to facilitate efficient system development.
• 3D Environment and User Interface Development: Collaborate with research team members to develop a virtual therapy environment, incorporating visual components and user interface elements within Unity.
• Motion Tracking Integration: Collaborate with research team members to connect and configure motion tracking devices for capturing and mirroring upper limb movements.
• Database Integration: Establish and connect a database to store user profiles, session data, and performance metrics.
• Evaluation and Iteration: Gather feedback from users or therapists and refine the system to enhance overall performance.
• Documentation and Deployment: Prepare comprehensive system documentation and ready the application for installation, demonstration, or clinical evaluation.

Skills required:
We are seeking a senior undergraduate or master's engineering student specializing in computer, systems, or computer science. The ideal candidate should have experience with the Unity Real-Time Development Platform, database design and administration, and working with relational databases such as MySQL or SQLite. Proficiency in writing efficient queries, ensuring data integrity, and integrating databases or APIs with Unity applications is essential for seamless data management.
Additionally, knowledge of cybersecurity best practices, data privacy, debugging techniques, and version control systems such as Git is highly advantageous for secure and collaborative development.

118. Auditory Vection and Discomfort in Virtual Reality: Translating Visual Motion into Sound Cues

This project aims to investigate how auditory cues can create an illusory sensation of self-motion, known as vection, in virtual reality. While cybersickness is usually studied through visual–vestibular conflicts, this project explores a less investigated question: to what extent can sound induce, amplify, or modulate perceived motion and the associated discomfort? The goal is to design immersive auditory scenes in which key properties of visual motion — such as direction, speed, acceleration, rotation, depth, and trajectory, are translated into sound parameters, including spatialization, intensity, binaural displacement, frequency, rhythm, and dynamic changes in the soundscape. The project will examine whether these auditory transformations can generate sensations of movement, instability, disorientation, or discomfort, and how they interact with visual virtual environments. The study may combine subjective measures of cybersickness, presence, and vection with behavioral or physiological measures, depending on the available resources. The expected contribution is to better understand the role of sound in sensory conflict within XR environments and to provide design recommendations for more comfortable immersive experiences.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Prof. Pascal E. Fortin has been affiliated with the Computer Science and Mathematics Department of Université du Québec à Chicoutimi since 2022. He holds a PhD from McGill University. His main research expertise lies in human-computer interactions, with a specific focus on multisensory and physiological interaction techniques. Prof. Fortin’s current projects tackle the mechanisms of cybersickness in extended reality (XR) environments to design more comfortable, immersive systems. His work not only pushes the boundaries of interactive technology but also fosters interdisciplinary collaboration through strategic partnerships with local industries and governmental entities, driving innovation and producing tangible benefits.

Student roles:
The intern will contribute to the literature review on auditory vection, cybersickness, and multisensory perception. They will help design audio-visual stimuli, develop a VR prototype, prepare the experimental protocol, conduct pilot data collection, analyze the results, and contribute to the writing of a scientific report or short research paper.

Skills required:
Background in virtual reality, human-computer interaction, multisensory perception, experimental psychology, or a related field. Skills in Unity, C#, audio processing, spatial audio, or data analysis would be valuable. The candidate should be able to build experimental prototypes, analyze quantitative data, and work rigorously in a research environment.

119. Augmenting interior design and pre-construction tasks with multimodal knowledge graphs to enhance human-AI collaboration

Artificial intelligent (AI) technology plays essential roles in interior design and pre-construction in various perspectives. On the other hand, interior design is highly subjective, mixing with human’s esthetic conception, "feeling," and spatial understanding, which are still challenge for AI to deal with. Pre-construction involves complex, multi-stakeholder, and data-intensive workflows (schedules, costs, materials), yet lacks integrated or complete data and sharable knowledge between the stakeholders in the early stages of the re-construction, such as bidding contracts, etc. The project aims at leveraging multimodal knowledge graphs (KGs) to enhance interior design and pre-construction, in which KGs helps to facilitate a structured, context-aware, and visually grounded language between humans and AI. This approach improves human-AI collaboration through the interior design process where the human focuses on creativity, and the AI helps the constraint-grounded and efficient execution towards engineering-focused computation and decision making.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Recent research and teaching areas primarily focus on the system analysis and dynamic modelling in heterogeneous cyber-physical-social interaction, agentic AI and semantics enhanced cognitive computing and data analytics in decentralized real-time control and monitoring applications for environmental and engineering computing systems, and smart eLearning systems.

Student roles:
Students are required to conduct the following task analysis, functions and structure design, and implementation as an active and reflective learner.

• abstract and represent the interior design knowledge with multimodal knowledge graphs
• use Neo4j or alternative to build knowledge graphs to engage with human’s creative interior design and pre-construction tasks and decision making.
• use knowledge graphs to engage with agentic AI for constraint-grounded and efficient execution towards engineering-focused computation.
• analyze an application case to augment the created KGs over the interior design scenario
• analyze how the KGs-based approach impacts on the performance of human-AI collaboration for the interior design and pre-construction tasks

Skills required:
A student taking on this project requires an interdisciplinary background combining Artificial Intelligence (AI), computer programming, design/architecture, and a specific blend of technical and domain skills

120. Automated Data Engineering & Intelligent Fault-Tolerance for Smart City IoT Systems

Smart Cities represent augmented environments that utilize the Internet of Things (IoT) and ubiquitous computational intelligence to provide citizens with context-aware, proactive, and personalized services. These environments deliver pervasive information and services designed to promote human well-being and optimize urban resource management. At the AMI-Lab (www.ami-lab.ca), we are developing an R&D framework to advance service delivery within Smart Cities. A primary objective of our research is leveraging ambient assistive technologies to support aging populations in maintaining independent, purposeful lives. The platform incorporates software components that integrate heterogeneous data streams from indoor and outdoor IoT devices (e.g., Bluetooth Low Energy, Beacons) alongside modern cloud computing infrastructures. This contextual data is pre-processed and aggregated within a highly scalable NoSQL and Big Data knowledge base distributed across the smart environment. To validate our research, our team has deployed a diverse array of physical IoT sensors and actuators across the city of Sherbrooke. We are currently scaling our platform to integrate a large number of outdoor smart nodes via public kiosks and smartphones. Managing a distributed infrastructure of this magnitude requires robust automated systems. Consequently, this research project focuses on applying recent advances in machine learning (ML) and data engineering to automatically process collected data, evaluate infrastructure health, and derive actionable operational insights from real-world IoT environments.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Dr. Abdulrazak research interests include Ambient-Intelligence (AmI), IoT, Smart-Homes, Smart-Cities and Digital health. He works on various R&D projects at the AMI laboratory. The projects range from Assistive Home Environment for the aging people, Electronic Organizer, Pervasive Reminder System, Mobility Assistance, Smart cities for active aging, etc. These technologies aim at being used either inside or outside (city, home, retirement communities, community clinics, on the street, etc.)

Student roles:
The selected intern will play a critical role in enhancing the reliability and scalability of our urban IoT infrastructure. The student will primarily focus on designing and implementing an automated, intelligent fault-tolerance and system analysis solution.
Key responsibilities and expected deliverables include:
• Architecture & Prototype Design: Designing a system health monitoring architecture tailored for vast, heterogeneous Smart City deployments.
• Prototype Implementation: Developing a functional software prototype capable of real-time tracking, diagnostics, and management of the remote physical IoT devices deployed throughout Sherbrooke.
• Data & Log Analysis: Utilizing data processing and machine learning techniques to detect anomalies, predict device failures, and automate fault-recovery protocols.
• Containerized Deployment: Leveraging Docker and Linux environments to package and integrate the analysis tool into the AMI-Lab's existing Big Data architecture.
Through this internship, the student will transition from theoretical concepts to practical, large-scale systems engineering. They will gain highly sought-after expertise in Big Data workflows, containerized architectures, and real-world IoT monitoring—skills that carry immense value in both industrial R&D and advanced graduate studies—while contributing directly to impactful, publishable smart city research.

Skills required:
Core Qualifications:
• Research Drive: Strong motivation to engage with complex, hands-on R&D challenges within real-world smart environment infrastructures.
• Programming Foundations: High proficiency in core programming methodologies and clean code practices.
Recommended Technical Assets:
• Foundational experience operating within Linux environments.
• Practical understanding of Web Services and API communication paradigms.
• Familiarity with containerization technologies, specifically Docker, for application deployment.
• Basic curiosity or background in Machine Learning, Big Data pipelines, or NoSQL databases.

121. Automated Retrieval and Classification of Climate Data Using Python for Climate Adaptation Strategies

As global climate change accelerates, access to organized, historical, and predictive climate data is critical for developing effective adaptation strategies. However, vital climate data is often scattered across diverse web archives, government portals, and research databases in varying formats. This project addresses this bottleneck by developing automated Python-based data pipelines. The intern will design and implement web scraping scripts and API integrations using Python libraries (such as BeautifulSoup, Scrapy, and Requests) to systematically retrieve climate data from targeted web archives. Once retrieved, the data will be compiled into a centralized database. The second phase of the project involves classifying and structuring this data—such as temperature anomalies, precipitation patterns, and extreme weather events—into standardized formats using Pandas and NumPy. The final deliverable will be a structured, queryable dataset and a documented codebase that researchers can use to model climate impacts and inform adaptation policies. This project bridges software engineering and environmental science, providing critical infrastructure for climate resilience research.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research intersects environmental data science and climate informatics. We focus on developing computational tools to harvest, process, and analyze large-scale environmental datasets. By leveraging programming and machine learning, we aim to translate raw, fragmented climate data into actionable insights, ultimately supporting urban planners, policymakers, and researchers in developing robust climate adaptation and resilience strategies.

Student roles:
The student will lead the software development and data engineering aspects of this project. During the first few weeks, they will conduct a technical review to identify key climate web archives and determine the most efficient extraction methods (APIs vs. web scraping). Their primary role will be to write, test, and debug Python scripts to automate the data retrieval process. Following data collection, the student will write data-cleaning pipelines to handle missing values, standardize units, and classify the information into specific climate adaptation categories (e.g., flood risk, heatwaves). The student will be expected to maintain clean, well-documented code via a version control system like Git. Throughout the internship, they will meet weekly with the supervisory team to discuss technical roadblocks, present data visualizations of their progress, and refine their extraction algorithms. By the end of the project, the student will deliver a fully functional codebase, a structured climate dataset, and a final technical report detailing their methodology.

Skills required:
The ideal candidate should be pursuing a degree in Computer Science, Data Science, Civil Engineering, Environmental Engineering, Geography or Environmental Science with a strong quantitative focus. Proficiency in Python programming is required, particularly experience with data manipulation libraries (Pandas, NumPy). Familiarity with web scraping tools (BeautifulSoup, APIs, Requests) and basic database management is highly desirable. A baseline understanding of climate science or environmental datasets is considered a strong asset, along with excellent problem-solving skills and the ability to work independently on coding tasks.

122. Automated Software Engineering with AI Agents

We aim to automate software engineering workflows (such as code quality checks, testing, and vulnerability analysis) using AI agents. We will develop agents that will not only detect issues in source code and other artifacts but also attempts to fix the issues automatically.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Software Engineering Applied Machine Learning for Software Engineering

Student roles:
The student will lead the project with the help of the supervisor. The student will conceptualize the architecture of the proposed agent and implement and test the software components of the agent. The supervisor will meet the student regularly and provide necessary guidance and feedback.

Skills required:
- Machine learning concepts, skills to develop and train a model
- Proficiency in Python
- Software engineering concepts and hands-on experimence

123. Automated Software Modernization

This research project focuses on developing automated approaches to modernizing legacy software systems using advanced software engineering and artificial intelligence techniques. Many existing systems rely on outdated architectures that limit scalability, security, and maintainability. The project aims to analyze legacy codebases, identify opportunities for refactoring, and transform monolithic applications into modular, cloud-native architectures. By leveraging tools for code analysis and machine learning-based pattern detection, the research will explore methods to reduce the complexity, cost, and risk associated with software modernization. The effectiveness of the proposed approaches will be evaluated using metrics such as performance, code quality, and system maintainability. The outcomes of this project are expected to contribute to more efficient and reliable modernization practices in both academic and industrial settings.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research interests include software testing, automated bug fixing, ethically sourced code generation, and software ethics.

Student roles:
The student will perform literature review to study existing modernization techniques (refactoring, re-platforming), dataset selection, build or use AI-based tools for:
code analysis, dependency mapping, refactoring suggestions, implementation, and apply modernization strategies.

Skills required:
The student should have a solid foundation in computer science or software engineering, including proficiency in programming languages such as Java, Python, or C++. A good understanding of software engineering principles—particularly object-oriented design, data structures, and algorithms—is essential.

Experience with version control systems (e.g., Git), testing frameworks will be beneficial. Exposure to static code analysis tools, refactoring techniques, or software maintenance practices is an asset. Additionally, some background in machine learning or data analysis would be advantageous for exploring automated modernization approaches.

124. Automated software refactoring using LLMs

We aim to develop a GitHub App that uses LLMs to analyze each new commit, figure out the need for a refactoring, and perform refactoring using LLMs. Responses from LLMs are not always reliable. This project will implement necessary checks to ensure that the new refactored code reflects the intended change. After this quality assurance check, the application will raise a PR so that developers can check the refactored code before accepting the changes.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Software Engineering Applied Machine Learning for Software Engineering

Student roles:
The student will lead the project with the help of the supervisor. The student will conceptualize the architecture of the proposed agent and implement and test the software components of the agent. The supervisor will meet the student regularly and provide necessary guidance and feedback.

Skills required:
- Machine learning concepts, skills to develop and train a model
- Proficiency in Python
- Software engineering concepts and hands-on experimence

125. Automatic Extraction of Functional and Non-functional Requirements from User Stories in Agile Development

Agile software development relies on user stories to elicit requirements from end-users. Thus, in agile software development methods, eliciting and understanding correct requirements from the user requirements is critical for developers. This project will develop a method that will take input from the requirements of users in terms of user stories and then, using various language processing algorithms, extract functional and non-functional requirements along with their probable inputs and expected outputs. The method will be evaluated using the publicly available TAWOS Dataset (V.1.1) with a set of open-source agile projects.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My specialized research interests lie in Software Engineering and Software Quality. Through my research, I aim to facilitate software development, maintenance, and evolution using machine learning and develop new methods and techniques. More specifically, I focus on analyzing software artifacts (e.g., design, source code, documentation, requirements, etc.) using machine learning and natural language processing techniques, assessing the quality of software design and implementation, analyzing and prioritizing software requirements, and managing technical debts or issues.

Student roles:
- Write an NLP parser to parse natural language (Python)
- Extract critical information from the user stories
- Derive functional and non-functional requirements
- Validate the findings using the developers survey
- Write a final report with research questions answered

Skills required:
- Strong programming skills in Python
- Natural language parsing and processing
- At least NLP library in Python (NLTK, CoreNLP, or scikit-learn)
- Basic knowledge of SQL databases and queries

126. Automating SME Healthcare Workflows through Generative and Agentic AI Systems

This project will automate various time-consuming processes in SME healthcare facilities by implementing Generative AI (GenAI) solutions based on data from a 50-bed hospital in India. The first subproject will streamline sonography reporting by capturing machine screenshots and radiologist voice annotations to automatically generate medical reports, replacing the current manual dictation and typing workflow carried out by medical assistants. To ensure accuracy, the team will collect manually generated reports to create training and test datasets, allowing for the experimentation and selection of the best-performing LLMs. The second subproject will deploy Agentic AI to act as an autonomous reasoning layer for complex clinical tasks, such as determining drug dosages by proactively pulling real-time EHR data—including age, weight, and renal function—and browsing national health databases like the FDA’s Orange Book. This agentic system will further serve as a "process guardian" for surgical procedures, autonomously auditing patient records to verify that anticoagulation therapy was paused at correct intervals and that pre-operative hemoglobin or potassium levels fall within safe ranges. During the administrative phase of surgery, the AI will synchronize multidimensional timelines by tracking resource usage via real-time data entry to ensure clinical and legal records are updated instantly. Throughout both initiatives, the development team will conduct business analyses, record physician web-browsing patterns for data point collection, and design specialized UI/UX interfaces in close consultation with medical personnel. Ultimately, these AI-driven systems will reduce cognitive load and minimize the risk of human error by flagging discrepancies and suggesting personalized regimens for final physician approval.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Dr. Pawan Lingras’ research spans artificial intelligence, machine learning, and data mining, with a focus on soft computing techniques such as rough sets, fuzzy sets, and neural networks. His work emphasizes clustering, classification, and prediction, applied across diverse domains including healthcare, finance, retail, and engineering. He is particularly interested in MLOps, explainable AI, and adaptive learning systems. With over 250 publications and extensive industry collaboration, his research bridges theoretical innovation and real-world impact. Dr. Lingras also explores the integration of AI in digital health platforms, smart infrastructure, and educational analytics, fostering interdisciplinary and applied research excellence.

Student roles:
The student will be responsible for the end-to-end development of GenAI and Agentic AI solutions to automate SME healthcare processes. This role involves conducting business analyses of time-consuming tasks, such as drug dosage calculations and surgical readiness audits, to identify automation opportunities. The student will identify, test, and implement the most effective LLMs to generate medical reports from sonography screenshots and voice recordings. Additionally, they will develop an autonomous reasoning layer to "pull" real-time lab results and "browse" national health databases. Finally, the student will collaborate with medical staff to design and test UI/UX interfaces that reduce cognitive load.

Skills required:
The student must possess a strong background in Natural Language Processing and Machine Learning to identify and test the best LLMs for medical report generation. Proficiency in Python is essential to develop Agentic AI capable of autonomously pulling EHR data and browsing national health databases. The role requires data engineering skills to curate training datasets from sonography screenshots and voice annotations. Additionally, the student needs business analysis and UI/UX design skills to audit manual workflows and create intuitive interfaces in consultation with healthcare personnel.

127. Automation of digital twins for 6G

6G is the latest telecommunication standard that has captured the community’s attention. Digital twins for 6G are one of many use cases that the community aims to incorporate into future-generation networks. A digital twin is a model that represents a specific view of a running system. Such a model is used to support essential activities, such as predictive maintenance and the evaluation of what-if scenarios, without requiring them to be performed on the real system, thus avoiding disturbances to the system’s usage. The size and complexity of telecommunication networks complicate the task of designing a digital twin for the whole network. However, the similarities between the components of such networks can leverage the reuse of digital twins and expand their use beyond their initial expected goal. The objective of this work is to develop a framework for automating the design of digital twins for 6G telecommunication networks. It involves using simulation and virtualization tools, such as OpenAIR Interface and Qemu, to automate the creation of digital twins that can be used for predictive maintenance and evaluation of what-if scenarios for 6G networks. The what-if scenarios targeted in the scope of this project include component failures, upgrade failures, and maintenance-induced disturbances and outages.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: 6G, the latest telecommunication standard, aims to integrate digital twins into future networks for applications like predictive maintenance and "what-if" scenario evaluation. A digital twin is a virtual model of a system used to simulate conditions without affecting the real system. However, the complexity of 6G networks makes creating a comprehensive digital twin challenging. This project aims to automate the design of digital twins for 6G networks using tools like OpenAIR Interface and Qemu, targeting scenarios such as component failures, upgrade issues, and maintenance-related disruptions.

Student roles:
1) Review the state of the art on digital twins for 6G
2) Identify the tools that can potentially be used to achieve the project's objective
3) Development and integration efforts to achieve the objective of the project

Skills required:
1) Background on telecommunication networks
2) Background on automation tools
3) Familiarity with openAIR Interface and Qemu

128. Autonomous AI Agents for Cybersecurity Threat Detection and Incident Response

Modern organizations face increasingly sophisticated cyber threats that challenge traditional security monitoring approaches. Recent advances in artificial intelligence and large language models have created opportunities to automate threat detection and incident response processes. This project investigates autonomous AI agents for cybersecurity applications. The student will explore how machine learning models, large language models, and multi-agent systems can support cyber threat analysis, threat hunting, and security decision-making. The project will utilize publicly available cybersecurity datasets and simulation environments to evaluate intelligent detection and response capabilities. The student will gain practical experience in cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and autonomous systems while contributing to research addressing real-world cyber defense challenges. The project offers opportunities to work on cutting-edge topics at the intersection of AI and cybersecurity.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on artificial intelligence for cybersecurity, autonomous cyber defense, large language models, multi-agent systems, and intelligent threat detection. I develop AI-driven approaches that automate threat hunting, attack detection, incident analysis, and response activities. The research combines machine learning, knowledge graphs, cybersecurity analytics, and autonomous decision-making to improve cyber resilience and support security operations in complex digital environments.

Student roles:
The student will conduct literature reviews, develop AI-based cybersecurity models, analyze cybersecurity datasets, and evaluate system performance. Responsibilities include implementing machine learning algorithms, testing autonomous agent frameworks, generating visualizations, and documenting experimental results.

The student will participate in regular research meetings and collaborate with graduate students and researchers. They will contribute to technical reports, presentations, and potentially academic publications. The internship provides practical exposure to AI-driven cybersecurity research and advanced threat detection methodologies.

Skills required:
Students should have a background in Computer Science, Cybersecurity, Artificial Intelligence, Software Engineering, or Information Technology. Experience with Python programming is required. Basic knowledge of machine learning, networking, or cybersecurity concepts is desirable. Familiarity with data analysis and programming tools is beneficial but not mandatory.

129. Autonomous Drone Navigation in GPS-Denied Environments Using Multi-Sensor Fusion and AI-Based Localization

This research project aims to develop autonomous robotic systems capable of operating in complex and GPS-denied environments using advanced AI and multi-sensor fusion. The project integrates robotics, computer vision, SLAM, and machine learning techniques, including Large Language Models (LLMs), Vision-Language Models (VLMs), and Vision-Language-Action (VLA) models, to enable perception, decision-making, and navigation in dynamic environments. Applications include drone inspection, industrial automation, precision agriculture, and assistive robotics. The project seeks to advance embodied AI by developing intelligent systems that can interact safely and effectively with humans and their surroundings.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on robotics, artificial intelligence, and autonomous systems, with expertise in embodied AI, human–robot interaction, and intelligent robotic systems. I develop autonomous robots using machine learning, deep learning, computer vision, and control systems for perception, decision-making, and navigation in complex environments. My research includes Large Language Models (LLMs), Vision-Language Models (VLMs), Vision-Language-Action (VLA) models, SLAM, and reinforcement learning for mobile robots, drones, and humanoids. Applications include precision agriculture, industrial automation, assistive robotics, autonomous vehicles, and smart manufacturing, with the goal of creating adaptive and intelligent systems that improve productivity and quality of life.

Student roles:
The student will contribute to the design, implementation, and testing of autonomous robotic systems for navigation in GPS-denied environments. Responsibilities include developing software for perception, localization, mapping, and path planning using ROS/ROS2 and AI techniques. The student will integrate and calibrate sensors such as LiDAR, cameras, and IMUs, conduct experiments on drone or robotic platforms, analyze experimental data, and document research findings. The student is also expected to participate in team meetings, collaborate with researchers, and contribute to publications and technical reports related to autonomous systems and embodied AI.

Skills required:
The ideal student should have a background in robotics, mechatronics, computer science, electrical engineering, or a related field. The student should possess knowledge of programming languages such as Python, C++, or MATLAB, and have familiarity with ROS/ROS2, Linux, and embedded systems. Experience with machine learning, computer vision, SLAM, sensor fusion, and autonomous systems is highly desirable. Hands-on experience with robotic platforms, drones, LiDAR, cameras, and IMU sensors is an asset. The student should demonstrate strong analytical, problem-solving, and teamwork skills, along with an interest in artificial intelligence, autonomous navigation, and embodied robotic systems.

130. Autonomous Reinforcement Learning Agents for Playtesting Video Games

Modern video games are complex software systems where rigorous gameplay quality assurance is essential, yet most testing remains manual and ill-suited to games with randomness or procedural content. About 80% of Steam titles require critical post-release updates, and high-budget failures such as Cyberpunk 2077 and No Man's Sky show the cost of inadequate QA. Reinforcement learning agents offer a promising path to automate playtesting, but current approaches face high training cost, limited generalizability across genres, and a lack of clear testing objectives aligned with developer needs. This project will develop and evaluate autonomous DRL agents for playtesting open-source and commercial-grade video games. The intern will work with a modular playtesting architecture that decouples game logic from testing logic using engine-side adapters for game engines, frameworks, and libraries (Godot, Bevy, Raylib, Pygame), exposing standardized APIs for actions, observations, and replay logging. Within this framework, the intern will train persona-driven agents — speedrunner, explorer, completionist, and glitch-hunter — each formalized as a parameterized reward objective. Training will combine imitation learning on human traces with DRL fine-tuning (PPO, SAC) and event-based rewards exposed by the engine. The intern will design experiments to measure agent transferability across games and procedurally generated levels, comparing playtraces to detect softlocks, difficulty spikes, and progression bottlenecks. Outputs include reproducible benchmarks, agent checkpoints, and an empirical comparison of personas across at least three test games. Results will inform the broader research program toward an open-source QA copilot that turns telemetry into actionable diagnostics for developers. Deliverables: an experimental dataset of agent playtraces, a technical report on persona transferability, contributions to the open-source playtesting framework released under a permissive licence, and co-authorship on a paper targeting IEEE CoG, FDG, or AIIDE.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on empirical software engineering for video games, with emphasis on automating gameplay quality assurance (QA). I integrate deep reinforcement learning (DRL), large language models (LLMs), and software testing to build open-source tools that produce reliable, interpretable evidence of game defects, imbalance, and pacing issues. My work targets resource-constrained studios that make up roughly 99% of releases on Steam. Research outcomes include modular playtesting architectures for Unity and Godot, persona-driven testing agents, and reusable metric abstractions for fairness, pacing, and engagement. The broader goal is to scale automated QA across game genres while remaining accessible to small studios.

Student roles:
The intern will join an active research program on automated game QA and take ownership of a defined experimental track within the larger initiative. Their work will progress through four phases over the 12-week internship.

In weeks 1–2, the intern will onboard with the team and set up the development environment. They will familiarize themselves with the modular playtesting architecture and the existing codebase, then select two to three target games from the project's curated open-source benchmark suite.

In weeks 3–6, the intern will implement and train persona-driven agents, starting with a speedrunner persona as the baseline. They will instrument the games via the engine adapters, design reward signals for each persona, run training experiments using DRL algorithms, tune hyperparameters, monitor convergence, and log playtraces in the project's standardized JSON/CSV formats.

In weeks 7–10, the intern will evaluate agent transferability across procedurally generated levels, performing comparative experiments and statistical analysis of metrics including coverage, time-to-completion, and detected anomalies (softlocks, glitches, balance issues). They will produce visualizations and contribute analysis modules to the team's dashboard.

In weeks 11–12, the intern will finalize the experimental report, contribute documented code to the open-source repository, and assist in drafting a research paper. They will present results to the lab.

The intern will meet weekly with the supervisor, attend lab meetings, and collaborate with PhD and MSc students working on adjacent tasks. They will have access to local GPU resources and Compute Canada.

Skills required:
The student should have a strong computer science background with completed coursework in machine learning, particularly reinforcement learning (PPO or actor-critic methods). Proficient programming in Python is required, including familiarity with PyTorch or TensorFlow and RL libraries like Stable-Baselines3. Experience with game engines (Godot, Bevy, Raylib, Pygame) is a plus. The student should be comfortable with version control, software engineering practices, and reading academic literature. Prior exposure to video games as software systems, gameplay analytics, or playtesting research is a plus but not required.

131. Autonomous aquatic robot docking

In-water navigation of uncrewed aquatic vehicles (robot boats) is simplified by good GPS and shore-based features to aid in position estimation. Small errors in pose estimation (5m or less) are typically not an issue. However, as these devices approach shore -- say to dock -- such errors are unacceptable. This project uses shore-based pre-positioned visual landmarks to aid in vehicle state estimation and a vehicle dynamics model to safely dock and cast off from a fixed docking platform. Work will begin in software and then quickly move to operation on existing autonomous vehicles. The intern will develop software to run on the robot to capture state estimation information from landmark targets and then develop a controller to navigate the robot to a safe docking. If time permits, the infrastructure will be used to develop appropriate autonomous cast-off procedures.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: I work in intelligent autonomous systems, with particular emphasis on systems that must operate in challenging environments, such as underwater or on the water's surface. I have over 30 years experience working in this space and have helped to develop a number of robot of autonomous and supervised systems for environments from nuclear power plants, contaminated crime scenes, to shallow (30m depth) aquatic environments.

Student roles:
Software development. First in terms of system simulation and then state estimation from visual targets. As the term progresses work will move to robots operating in the water on campus.

Skills required:
Interest in autonomous systems. Interest in computer vision

132. Autonomous vehicles (UAV, UGV) navigation using vision and deep learning

This project aims to develop a high-level vision-based navigation algorithm for UAVs and autonomous vehicles. The objective is to develop deep learning algorithms to allow the robot to automatically learn to navigate in a given environment. Other scenarios include the navigation of several autonomous vehicles to perform the same task, to follow each other in training, etc. The learning will be done in simulation and with real autonomous vehicles in a controlled environment.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My areas of research are computer vision and machine learning for processing complex and unstructured data. In particular, the use of new approaches such as Deep Learning and multimodal imaging in the fields of security and biometrics, UAVs, medical imaging and intelligent robotics.

Student roles:
Reading of some documents related to the subject.
Developing vision and machine learning algorithms using existing libraries.
Writing documentation/report on the work done.

Skills required:
Programming (Python, Matlab, etc.)
Machine leaning or image processing are considered a plus

133. Avionics Cybesecurity

This internship is focused on developing cybersecurity modules focused on avionics platforms, respecting different standards (ARINC 653, ARINC 429, AFDX, etc). The intern will have hands-on experience with avionic applications and work in collaboration with PhD students on the field.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: The project is under the scope of cybersecurity initiatives to improve the cyber resilience of avionic architectures, involving different scopes: IDSs, operating systems modules, hardware monitors, dynamic behaviours.

Student roles:
work with doctoral students supporting them in the creation of new modules, validation of existing modules, results collection and results analysis.

Skills required:
Embedded systems, understanding of operating systems and low level programming (C, assembly).

134. Ballistic and Snake Photon Imaging

This project involves developing optical probes that enable deeper visual penetration into biological tissues, where light scattering is a significant limitation. The Spatial Angle Filtering (SAF) technology uses a specialized fiber-optic plate (FOP) or a Numerical Aperture restriction to reject scattered photons from the tissue while preserving photons that carry subcutaneous visual information. This research aims to address the gap in capillary loop imaging (which is significant for detecting superficial cancers) by proposing an optimized imaging platform that enhances resolution, penetration depth, portability, and cost efficiency.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Dr. Alexandre (Sasha) Douplik has been a Professor and Head of the Photonics Group in the Physics Department at Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University) since 2011, and a Scientist at St. Michael’s Hospital, Toronto, specializing in Advanced Optical Biomedical Imaging and Laser Surgery and Therapy, author of more than 70 peer-reviewed papers, 55 conference papers, seven book chapters, and 18 patents. He was also a visiting researcher at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST) in Japan in 2018 and 2023. From 2008 to 2011, he was a contract (non-tenure-track) Research Professor/Habilitant at Nuremberg-Erlangen University, Germany.

Student roles:
Experimental work, data processing and analysis, report writing, and publication participation.

Skills required:
Mechanical Design, Optics, Physics, Engineering, Programming

135. Behavioural Biometrics and the Hidden Risks of User Privacy Violations in Everyday Computing

Modern computing systems increasingly collect fine‑grained user interaction data such as keyboard strike patterns, mouse movements, and timing information to improve usability, personalization, and security. While these forms of behavioural biometrics are often perceived as low‑risk or anonymous, emerging evidence suggests that they can function as implicit identifiers, enabling the recognition and re‑identification of users without their explicit awareness or consent. This raises serious concerns for digital privacy, particularly in environments where users believe their interactions are not personally identifiable. This research project investigates how everyday interaction data can be exploited to infer user identity and how such practices may lead to privacy violations. The project will analyze common behavioural signals, such as keystroke dynamics and usage patterns, to assess their identifiability, persistence, and potential misuse across applications and platforms. A key objective is to understand the gap between users’ privacy expectations and the actual risks posed by behavioural data collection. Building on principles of usable privacy, the project aims to design and evaluate privacy‑preserving mechanisms that mitigate identification risks while maintaining system usability. Rather than relying solely on complex technical safeguards, this work emphasizes human‑centered privacy solutions that are transparent, understandable, and practical for real‑world adoption. By combining technical analysis with usability considerations, this research contributes to the development of responsible data‑driven systems that respect user privacy.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My specialized research area focuses on data privacy and security, with an emphasis on digital privacy, usable privacy, and searchable encryption methodologies. My research aims to advance usable privacy by designing privacy‑preserving systems that are understandable, practical, and minimally disruptive to users, ensuring that strong privacy protections can be effectively adopted in real‑world computing environments without sacrificing usability or functionality.

Student roles:
The student will play an active and supportive role throughout all stages of the research project under close supervision. The student will assist with conducting a comprehensive literature review, including identifying relevant academic papers, summarizing existing work on behavioural biometrics, data privacy, and usable privacy, and helping to position the project within the current research landscape.

The student will also support the research execution phase, contributing to data collection, analysis, and evaluation of behavioural interaction patterns related to user identification and privacy risks. As part of the technical component, the student will assist in the design of the research framework, helping to translate privacy and usability requirements into a structured system model.

In addition, the student will contribute to the implementation of a prototype tool, using their programming skills (e.g., Java or similar languages) to support development, testing, and refinement. The student will document findings, assist in preparing reports, and participate in regular discussions to reflect on research progress and results.

Skills required:
Ability to help with literature reviews
Strong interest in research
Familiarity with programming languages, such as Java or similar
Self‑motivation and willingness to learn
Basic understanding of data privacy

136. Benchmark and AI Model for Understanding CI/CD Configurations

Modern software projects use automated pipelines (called CI/CD pipelines) to build, test, and deploy code. These pipelines are configured using special files written in a language called YAML. When a pipeline fails, it can delay entire development teams. Currently, general-purpose AI models struggle with these files because they do not understand how CI/CD pipelines actually run. This project builds a benchmark dataset and trains a specialized AI/LLM model on hundreds of thousands of real GitHub Actions pipeline files, paired with their execution histories (whether they succeeded, how long they took, where they failed or passed). The project will involve collecting data from various sources, data processing, implementing evaluation tasks, running experiments comparing our model against existing AI tools, and contributing to research papers.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research specializes in software engineering, with a focus on applying AI and data-driven techniques to improve software development processes. I work on mining software repositories, optimizing continuous integration and delivery (CI/CD), and leveraging large language models (LLMs) for tasks like code generation, testing, and configuration migration.

Student roles:
- Clean, filter, and organize the CI/CD pipeline dataset (deduplication, schema validation, anonymization)
- Implement evaluation scripts for benchmark tasks (e.g., build outcome prediction, duration estimation)
- Run and document baseline experiments (XGBoost, CodeBERT, GPT-4 few-shot)
- Fine-tune pre-trained models on benchmark tasks and record results
- Produce result tables, figures, and statistical summaries for the paper
- Write sections of the technical report and contribute to the paper draft

Skills required:
- Proficiency in Python (data processing, scripting)
- Familiarity with machine learning concepts (classification, regression, model training)
- Basic experience with HuggingFace Transformers or similar ML libraries
- Comfort working in Linux/command-line environments
- Basic understanding of Git and GitHub
- Ability to read and understand research papers
- Knowledge of YAML or similar configuration file formats is a plus, but not required

137. Benchmarking Machine Learning Models for Robust Activity Recognition in Wearable Sensor Data

This project aims to establish initial benchmarks and compare the performance of state-of-the-art machine learning models, including novel foundation models for time series, in the context of wearable sensor-based human activity recognition. The primary goal for the intern is to adapt and evaluate these models across diverse datasets, building a comprehensive understanding of their robustness and performance under various real-world data variabilities. The central problem addressed is the impact of data heterogeneity on model performance. The intern will specifically investigate how models perform when confronted with challenges such as missing data, varying sampling rates, and different sensor types (e.g., accelerometers, heart rate sensors). This will involve conducting cross-dataset evaluations, applying the same models to a mix of publicly available and our own collected datasets to assess generalization capabilities and identify key factors influencing model robustness. The main deliverable will be a whole, reusable data pipeline for specific datasets, encompassing data loading, pre-processing, model adaptation, training, and evaluation for various machine learning models. This pipeline will be designed to be easy to run, modify, and reuse, serving as a foundational toolkit for future research. This project directly contributes to our lab's mission of developing robust and reliable wearable health systems.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: We work at the intersection of machine learning, wearable sensors and software engineering for health applications extracting meaningful insights from continuous physiological and behavioral data. A core challenge we address is bridging the considerable gap between controlled laboratory environments and the complexities of real-life data. We study data variability, temporal patterns, and how individual differences in activity patterns or physiological responses impact data interpretation. We aim to design wearable health systems that are truly robust, reliable, and sustainable for widespread adoption, paving the way for truly personalized and preventable healthcare.

Student roles:
The primary responsibilities will include setting up experimental pipelines for evaluating diverse ML/DL models, pre-processing specific datasets (a mix of public and internal) for analysis, adapting state-of-the-art and novel foundation models for time series to wearable sensor data, running extensive computational experiments, and analyzing statistical differences in model performance. They will also be responsible for debugging models and visualizing complex results to extract meaningful insights.
The intern will be mentored closely by the supervisor and graduate students, gaining hands-on experience and guidance. This internship offers significant learning opportunities, including deepening their understanding of machine learning and deep learning for time series data, mastering robust experimental design and benchmarking methodologies.
The lab provides access to necessary datasets, existing model implementations, relevant scientific literature, and high-performance computational resources. While students need to bring their own laptops, the heavy computation will leverage lab infrastructure. Progress will be regularly evaluated through code reviews and monthly presentations. The intern will be strongly encouraged to present their findings at internal lab meetings, and depending on the depth and impact of their work, there is a potential for co-authorship on a technical report or a research paper summarizing the benchmarking results and their implications.

Skills required:
Strong programming skills
Experience with machine learning libraries such as scikit-learn or tensor-flow even if small
Good oral/written communication
Ability to learn and work independently
Passion for solving problems

138. Benchmarking Quantum Machine Learning vs Classic Machine Learning for Classification

Despite growing interest in quantum machine learning, it remains unclear whether variational quantum classifiers (VQC) are more performant than classical methods on NISQ (Noisy Intermediate-Scale Quantum) hardware. Most existing comparisons use toy datasets, inconsistent preprocessing, or cherry-picked circuit architectures — making results hard to generalize. Objective: Benchmark Variational Quantum Classifiers (VQC) and Quantum Kernel SVMs against classical counterparts (SVM, MLP, Random Forest) across five datasets of increasing complexity: Iris, Breast Cancer Wisconsin, MNIST (binary), Wine Quality, and Credit Card Fraud Detection (binary, imbalanced), under controlled, reproducible conditions. Methodology: - Data encoding: Compare angle encoding vs amplitude encoding vs IQP (Instantaneous Quantum Polynomial) embedding across datasets. - Circuit design: VQC (Variational Quantum Circuit) for classification with three layers: Encoding, variational, measurement. - Execution: Noiseless simulation vs noisy simulation. - Metrics: Accuracy, F1, training time, circuit depth, performance vs training set size. Practical contributions: - A reproducible, open-source benchmarking suite (PennyLane + Qiskit). - Empirical evidence on which dataset characteristics (size, dimensionality, class separability) favor quantum classifiers. - A noise sensitivity analysis identifying the circuit depth threshold at which NISQ errors erode quantum advantage.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Signal and Image Processing Computer Vision Artificial Intelligence

Student roles:
- Study the fundamentals of quantum machine learning: Data encoding strategies (amplitude encoding, angle encoding), Parameterized quantum circuits (PQC), and Variational optimization.
- Select benchmark classification datasets: Iris, Breast Cancer (UCI), MNIST, Wine Quality, Credit Card Fraud Detection.
- Implement classical deep learning architectures: a CNN and a fully connected neural network (MLP) using PyTorch or TensorFlow.
- Build a parameterized variational quantum classifier (VQC).
- Implement a Hardware-Efficient Ansatz (HEA) classifier with PennyLane.
- Collect classification metrics: Accuracy, F1-score, training time vs. circuit depth.
- Analysis and documentation, code to produce and visually represent the results.

Skills required:
- Linear algebra, Calculus and optimization, Probability and statistics.
- Quantum computing, Variational principle, Quantum gates and circuits, Noise and decoherence.
- Supervised machine learning, SVMs and kernel methods, Neural networks.
- Python and scientific libraries, Qiskit or PennyLane, Deep Learning framework (Pytorch, Keras ou Tensorflow).

139. Benchmarking Verified Type Checking Kernel

Mechanizing a type theory and its meta-theory in a proof assistant establishes a high degree of trust in its correctness. However, this is also an intricate and, often time-consuming, endeavor, since such mechanizations often exploit the specific structure of the type theory considered. This results in a patch-work of developments for a range of type theories that are similar, but still largely incompatible. As a consequence, it remains difficult to reuse previous mechanizations. We recently developed a unifying, generic framework, called McTT and generalized it to McPTS for formalizing meta-theoretic results of pure type systems (PTSs) in Rocq. This framework allows us to prove generically meta-theoretic properties. We also designed and proved correct a generic type-checking algorithm for a class of PTSs, called predicative and functional PTSs. By instantiating our developing with the corresponding PTs signature, we obtain directly normalization proofs for the simply-typed lambda calculus, the logical framework LF, and Martin Loef type theory as well as the corresponding verified type-checking implementations. The goal of this project is to build benchmarks and compare the verified, extracted type-checking implementations with existing implementations. In particular, this project will focus on evaluating and benchmarking the type checker for the logical framework LF. This will help us assess whether the verified implementations are competitive with respect to manually written type checking implementations.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Prof. Pientka's rsearch interest lies in developing a theoretical and practical foundation for building and reasoning about reliable safe software systems. To achieve this goal, Prof. Pientka combines theoretical research on the logical foundations of computer science in programming languages and verification with system building. The topics she is interested in include modal logics, type theory, functional programming, logical frameworks, and proof environments.

Student roles:
The student will generate benchmark terms from the developments done in the Twelf system (or Beluga system). Both systems provide an implementation of the logical framework LF. The goal is then to compare the timing for type checking LF terms in Twelf / Beluga and comparing the performance to the extracted , verified type checker.

Skills required:
Ideally the student should have a background in foundations of programming languages such as understanding the lambda-calculus and basic typing. The student also should understand typed functional programming (such as OCaml or SML or F#). A background in the proof assistant Rocq can be helpful but is not necessary.

140. Benchmarking exact solvers for the quadratic knapsack problem

The quadratic knapsack problem (QKP) is an optimization problem which consists of maximizing a quadratic (profit) function with binary variables subject to a single knapsack constraint. This is a well-studied combinatorial optimization problem, with a variety of important applications, for example in the location of satellites, airports, railway stations and freight terminals. This problem is known to be NP-hard in the strong sense. Exact solution techniques for this problems use the branch-and-cut algorithm, which highly rely on linear reformulations. Over the past few years, commercial solvers such as CPLEX or GUROBI have seen a surge of some powerful upgrades that have extended their capabilities in solving integer programs. The aim of this project is to test the limit of the latest version of these solvers on the known benchmark instances of the quadratic knapsack problem. The goal is to assess how best these solvers can perform on this problem as compared to the best known methods in the literature.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Combinatorial optimization is a subfield of mathematical optimization that consists of finding an optimal object from a finite set of objects, where the set of feasible solutions is discrete or can be reduced to a discrete set.

Student roles:
It will be required that the student first acquaint themselves with either CPLEX or GUROBI in a programming environment. Then, the student will have to solve available instances of the quadratic knapsack problem, first in their direct quadratic form, then in their linearized form. The sizes of the instances will be increased gradually until the solvers are no longer able to produce a solution beyond a reasonable time limit. Finally, a thorough analysis of this experiment will be provided.

Skills required:
Linear algebra
Computer programming ( the programming language is not important)

141. Better Continual Learning Methods

Continual Learning involves designing systems that can continually learn over their lifetime, even after deployment. This is one of the long-standing goals of AI and machine learning. However, designing such systems has several challenges, including catastrophic forgetting, loss of plasticity, and capacity saturation. In this project, we will study the problem of loss of plasticity and design better optimization algorithms to avoid loss of plasticity.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My team works in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning. Specifically, we focus on Deep Learning, Reinforcement Learning, Lifelong Learning, Optimization, Foundation Models, and AI for Science. For more details, please check out the lab website: https://chandar-lab.github.io/

Student roles:
Study existing methods to mitigate loss of plasticity; implement existing methods and benchmark them; design new optimization methods to tackle loss of plasticity; implement and benchmark the newly proposed algorithm; write a report.

Skills required:
Strong background in deep learning and continual learning; strong coding skills; proficiency in Python and PyTorch; knowledge of multi-GPU and distributed training.

142. Better User Interfaces for Occasionally Failing Technologies, such as LLMs

This project investigates how we can create better user interfaces for systems that are generally reliable but fail occasionally. Common examples include LLMs and autocorrect. Other examples of occasionally failing systems include speech and gesture recognizers, as well as predictive methods and autocorrect in text entry systems. Dr. Stuerzlinger's lab has recently been investigating novel methods to make it easier for users to deal with hallucinations in LLMs and errors in speech recognizers. The research in this project focuses on new user interface technologies that make it easier for users to deal with occasional system failures and/or reduce the severity of the consequences of a system hallucination/misrecognition/misprediction. This also includes methods to communicate to the system that a given correction is unwanted and should not be repeated.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Dr. Stuerzlinger is a leading researcher in human-computer interaction and virtual, augmented & extended reality (VR/AR/XR). He also has deep expertise in computer graphics and high-performance systems. Dr. Stuerzlinger's lab has created several patented technologies and is actively exploring many new software and hardware solutions to improve user interfaces. Some of the outcomes of Dr. Stuerzlinger's work on better user interfaces for autocorrect have been adopted by Google and Apple. Graduates occupy a wide range of positions, including faculty members, CTOs, several CEO's, startup founders, software and user interface leads, and other leading positions.

Student roles:
The work within this project will happen under the direct supervision of Dr. Stuerzlinger. A part of the work may be performed in collaboration with other students or postdoctoral researchers in the lab. Students working on this project will implement a prototype of one or more novel interaction method(s) to deal with occasionally failing technologies, e.g., by implementing new algorithms or potentially creating new machine learning systems. Students may also perform a user study to evaluate the usability and performance of the prototype, supported by the research team. Finally, students will be involved in the dissemination of the results through co-authorship in scientific publications. Projects will involve the latest-generation input and output technologies.

Skills required:
Required:
- Excellent coding skills, ideally in JavaScript
- LLM experience
- Very good English language skills (speaking, reading, and writing)

Desired:
- Web development (JavaScript, servers, etc.)
- Human-Computer Interaction, Cognitive Science, or equivalent course
- Research experience
- iPhone or Android development
- Good presentation skills

143. Beyond Touch and Voice — Non-Speech Acoustic Interaction for Smartwatches Using Onboard Microphone Sensing

Touch interaction requires looking at a tiny screen. This project explores a third path: using the smartwatch's onboard microphone to recognize subtle non-speech sounds produced by the user — a finger snap near the wrist, a knuckle tap on the watch bezel, or a specific breath pattern — as a private, eyes-free interaction vocabulary. The intern will design a set of 6–10 non-speech acoustic gestures optimized for low social visibility and high acoustic distinctiveness, collect a labelled audio dataset from participants using a commodity smartwatch microphone under both quiet and noisy conditions, and train lightweight on-device classifiers (MFCCs + SVM, 1D CNN) to recognize each gesture with high accuracy and low latency. Key challenges include distinguishing intended gestures from background noise and involuntary sounds, and achieving inference speed fast enough for real-time interaction on constrained wearable hardware.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Our lab investigates novel input techniques for wearable devices, with a focus on using onboard microphones as interaction sensors beyond standard voice command recognition. We explore how the smartwatch microphone can detect subtle non-speech acoustic events as a lightweight, socially unobtrusive interaction vocabulary. Our work combines acoustic signal processing, machine learning for audio event classification, and HCI evaluation to design audio-based wearable interaction systems that work without speech, internet connectivity, or a wake word.

Student roles:
In weeks 1–2, the intern will review literature on acoustic interaction, non-speech audio input, and wearable gesture recognition, and evaluate candidate sounds for social acceptability and acoustic distinctiveness. In weeks 3–5, the intern will design the acoustic gesture vocabulary, develop a data collection app using the WearOS microphone API, and run collection sessions with participants in both quiet and noisy conditions. In weeks 6–8, the intern will extract audio features, train and compare classifiers, and optimize the best model for on-device inference speed on the watch. In weeks 9–10, the intern will implement the prototype application mapping recognized gestures to watch commands and integrate the classifier on-device. In weeks 11–12, the intern will run the user study evaluating accuracy, learnability, and social acceptability, analyze results, and write a final report. The intern meets weekly with the supervisor and contributes to a paper draft targeting CHI or UIST.

Skills required:
Background in computer science, electrical engineering, or signal processing. Python for audio signal processing and machine learning is required. Familiarity with audio feature extraction. Experience with Android/WearOS development for on-device model deployment is a strong asset. Interest in novel interaction techniques, wearable computing, and HCI evaluation.

144. Beyond the Grid: Using Data-Driven Networks for Sports Analytics Research

This project is not specific to soccer, but consider a soccer pitch. Most sports analytics techniques will convert the units to be 100 units from goal to goal and 50 units between the sidelines, making a 100x50 grid of possible places for events (shots, passes, tackles, etc.) to happen. However, the vast majority of those grid cells in the middle of the pitch, where nothing really happens. This project involves converting the grid to a network of locations that summarises the game but removes extraneous information. By looking at real match data, we can quantify how often an event happens at each grid cell (and pairs of cells in the case of passes). If two neighbouring grid cells have similar types of events and passes go to similar locations, these cells can be merged into one "node" in the network, with development of rules to ensure that the network is small but useful. Considerations will be made to ensure sufficient coverage of the play area. Sports analytics models can be applied over this network. If the network is sufficiently well defined, the models should produce the same results but with a much smaller computational burden. Furthermore, the network can be used to develop new models, such as characterizing the sequence of passes through the network prior to a goal. This work is a proof-of-concept; I am happy to work in any team sport where passing and shooting are events of interest.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My sports analytics research focuses on quantification of strategy and player actions. I am especially interested in the usage of the playing area, such as shot locations in hockey or pass completions in soccer.

Student roles:
1. Accessing and familiarization with the data (the sport is chosen by the student).
2. Summarising the events that happen within each grid cell and each pair of cells into a network with information stored at each node.
3. Development of algorithms to simplify the network based on the nodes and their relationships.
4. Document and share the algorithm in an open source repository.
5. Demonstrate the utility of the network using pre-existing or new sports analytics methods.
6. Communicate the results in a technical report.

Skills required:
- Programming skills in either Python or R.
- Experience with developing and implementing algorithms in code.
- Some knowledge of mathematical graphs is preferred.
- Ability to communicate technical ideas to a broader knowledge.
- Statistical modelling is preferred.
- Familiarity with code sharing platforms such as git/GitHub is preferred.

145. Bias Analysis in Machine Learning Models for Computational Pathology

Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) models are increasingly used in computational pathology to assist with cancer diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment planning from whole-slide histopathology images. While these models have demonstrated promising performance, their reliability and fairness across diverse patient populations, healthcare institutions, and imaging conditions remain significant concerns. Hidden biases in training data or model design can lead to unequal performance across demographic groups and clinical settings, potentially limiting the safe deployment of AI in healthcare. This research project aims to investigate and quantify bias in state-of-the-art machine learning models used for computational pathology. Students will analyze publicly available pathology datasets and evaluate model performance across different patient demographics, disease subtypes, institutions, and image acquisition conditions. The project will involve implementing bias assessment metrics, identifying sources of performance disparities, and exploring techniques to improve model fairness and generalizability. Participants will gain hands-on experience in machine learning, deep learning, medical image analysis, and statistical evaluation. They will work with large-scale histopathology image datasets, develop computational pipelines for bias analysis, and apply modern explainable AI techniques to better understand model behavior. Depending on the student's background and interests, the project may also include developing novel bias mitigation strategies and evaluating their effectiveness. The expected outcomes include a comprehensive assessment of bias in computational pathology models, recommendations for improving fairness and robustness, and potential contributions to scientific publications. This project provides an excellent opportunity for students interested in artificial intelligence, biomedical data science, and responsible AI, while addressing an important challenge in the development of trustworthy healthcare technologies.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on the development of advanced artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), and evolutionary optimization methods for solving complex real-world problems, with a particular emphasis on healthcare applications. A major component of my work is computational pathology, where machine learning and deep learning models are used to analyze large-scale histopathology images for disease diagnosis, prognosis, and biomarker discovery. My research also investigates trustworthy and responsible AI, including model interpretability, fairness, bias analysis, and robustness.

Student roles:
The student will play an active role in a research project investigating bias and fairness in machine learning models for computational pathology. The primary objective is to assess whether state-of-the-art artificial intelligence models perform consistently across different patient populations, disease subtypes, healthcare institutions, and image acquisition conditions.
The student will begin by conducting a literature review on computational pathology, machine learning fairness, and bias evaluation methodologies. They will assist in collecting, organizing, and preprocessing large-scale histopathology image datasets and associated clinical information. The student will implement and evaluate machine learning and deep learning models using Python and modern AI frameworks such as PyTorch or TensorFlow.
A major component of the project involves designing and conducting experiments to measure model performance across different subgroups, identifying potential sources of bias, and analyzing factors that may affect model reliability and generalizability. The student will apply statistical and computational methods to interpret results and compare findings with existing studies in the literature.
The student will participate in regular research meetings, present progress updates, and collaborate with other members of the research team. They will maintain clear documentation of experiments, results, and code to ensure reproducibility. Depending on the project's progress and the student's interests, there may also be opportunities to explore bias mitigation techniques and contribute to the development of more equitable and trustworthy AI systems.
By the end of the internship, the student is expected to have gained practical experience in machine learning, computational pathology, scientific research, and data analysis. They will contribute to technical reports, conference presentations, and potentially peer-reviewed publications arising from the project. This role provides valuable exposure to interdisciplinary research at the intersection of artificial intelligence, healthcare, and responsible AI.

Skills required:
Applicants should have a background in Computer Science, Data Science, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, or a related field. Strong Python programming skills are required, along with familiarity with machine learning libraries such as Scikit-learn, PyTorch, or TensorFlow. Students should understand fundamental concepts in machine learning, data analysis, and statistics. Experience with deep learning, computer vision, or medical image analysis is an asset but not mandatory. The project requires strong analytical and problem-solving abilities, attention to detail, and the ability to read scientific literature. Motivated students interested in AI for healthcare are encouraged to apply.

146. Bidirectional Continual Active Learning for Autonomous Robots

For robots to be able to provide assistance to their users, it is essential that they are personalized to their users' specific needs and environments. Research in active learning has made breakthroughs in developing machine learning (ML) methods that can allow robots to query the users to learn about unknown information to quickly adapt to their environments. However, most of this research has focused on learning the most uncertain information regardless if this information is necessary to perform tasks that the user needs assistance with. These methods do not consider user preferences regarding when to ask for information from the users, as users might be busy and not answer questions or like to be interrupted all the time. Therefore, the goal of this project is to develop adaptive deep neural network (DNN) models that can use the task knowledge stored in memory as well as user preferences acquired through interactive feedback to be able to focus on learning new information related to the user-defined tasks that the robot needs to perform. Additionally, breakthroughs in reinforcement learning and human pose estimation will be leveraged to develop DNN models that can rely on users' current state to determine when to query the user. The project will also involve developing a simulation home environment for a robot to move around in the habitat simulator.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research falls in the broad areas of AI, ML, and Robotics, and specifically it focuses on interactive machine learning. The goal of my research is to develop personalized autonomous systems that can continually interact with and learn about their users’ individual preferences and unique environments to provide personalized assistance to their users over the long term. Currently, I am interested in working on challenges associated with interactive continual learning both from the ML and human-robot interaction (HRI) perspectives to improve scalability, efficiency, and explainability of ML methods applied to robotics and autonomous vehicles.

Student roles:
The student will mainly be involved in learning and implementing active learning (AL) methods integrated with large language models (LLMs) in Python/Pytorch. They will get hands-on experience with state-of-the-art research in ML, and robotics to improve robots' personalization capabilities in dynamic unstructured environments. The student will meet with me once every week to go over the project objectives and progress. I will answer questions about the project and guide them to learn about the new technology in AL. The student will develop
various multi and interdisciplinary skills related to AI, and ML. Specifically, they will learn SOTA research in AL and adaptive AI.

Skills required:
1) Strong fundamentals in computer programming (preferably Python).
2) Motivation to learn new tools and research methods in AI.
3) Background in software engineering is a plus.
4) Background in AI (through courses or projects) is a plus, but not required.
5) Some experience with Pytorch is a plus, but not required.
6) Knowledge of Linux based systems is a plus, but not required
7) Knowledge of version control (git: GitHub, Gitlab) is a plus, but not required

147. Big Data Cybersecurity: Designing a Benchmarking Toolkit to Validate Detection Algorithm Scalability in Production Environments

The vast majority of academic cybersecurity research suffers from an inherent scale bias: models are trained and validated on heavily filtered, low-volume datasets. While these "small data" experiments achieve high laboratory accuracy, they routinely fail when deployed in enterprise environments where networks ingest terabytes of raw telemetry daily. Under true production loads, standard machine learning and anomaly detection algorithms frequently suffer from massive false-positive inflation, catastrophic processing latency, and memory starvation. This research project confronts this disconnect by systematically stress-testing and breaking regular cybersecurity algorithms against authentic, large-scale datasets to engineer resilient alternatives. The intern will establish a high-capacity data sandbox utilizing massive open-source operational repositories (such as the 100-million record WitFoo Precinct 6 dataset or multi-gigabyte CSE-CIC-IDS2018 network flows). The first phase of the research involves executing an empirical "break-test": Replicating current research methods and measuring exactly where and how their performance degrade under realistic volume and velocity constraints.Once these structural failure points are documented, the core research focus shifts to innovation. The student will propose, prototype, and validate scalable architectural adaptations. This includes evaluating distributed data structures, streaming anomaly detection models, or dimensionality reduction techniques capable of processing high-velocity signals in real time without sacrificing classification fidelity.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Our laboratory bridges the gap between academic innovation and real-world adoption across trustworthy technology, security operations, and human readiness. On the technological dimension, we study how cybersecurity models scale within high-throughput, enterprise infrastructures. Our current research investigates the systemic limits of traditional machine learning and anomaly detection algorithms when exposed to actual Big Data environments. Rather than relying on curated, low-volume datasets that skew experimental accuracy, we evaluate system resilience against massive, raw telemetry streams. The objective is to identify algorithmic breakdown points and engineer resilient, high-capacity methods that practitioners can deploy seamlessly within live, high-velocity defensive pipelines.

Student roles:
The selected intern will function as a Big Data Engineer and Security Analytics Researcher, taking full ownership of building our algorithmic stress-testing sandbox. Over the 12-week internship, the student will drive an intensive, empirical research and engineering lifecycle:

Initially, the student will architect the data ingestion pipeline, importing and parsing massive, multi-gigabyte cybersecurity datasets into a distributed storage format (like Apache Parquet). They will then implement a suite of baseline machine learning detection algorithms. The first major technical milestone involves designing and running the "break-test" experiments—simulating high-velocity network traffic streams to measure and map out performance bottlenecks, memory usage limits, and accuracy degradation points.

Upon identifying these failure thresholds, the student will pivot to developing and testing optimized alternatives. They will write the code to adapt these algorithms for distributed processing environments, leveraging frameworks like PySpark or Dask to handle feature extraction and anomaly classification concurrently across large data matrices. They will mathematically validate that their proposed methods yield a significant reduction in computational latency while stabilizing false-positive rates.

In alignment with our lab’s emphasis on research entrepreneurship, the student will package their code into a highly polished, open-source benchmarking engine. This requires creating modular configurations (Docker), documenting data preparation pipelines, and building clean API endpoints for telemetry collection. The student will present data visualizations of their computational performance metrics during weekly laboratory briefings.

Skills required:
Applicants must be pursuing a degree in Computer Science, Data Science, or Software Engineering with a strong focus on data engineering or distributed computing. Advanced proficiency in Python and solid experience with Big Data analytics frameworks (such as Apache Spark, PySpark, or Dask) are required. Familiarity with machine learning libraries (Scikit-learn, PyTorch) and working with large structured/unstructured log files (PCAP, Parquet, JSON) is highly desirable. We seek performance-focused, systems-oriented students who are excited to work with large-scale storage arrays, optimize runtime computational efficiency, and bridge the gap between abstract algorithms and enterprise-scale data infrastructure.

148. Big data science and data analytics for useful information (2027)

This Globalink 2027 research project focuses on Big data analytics. Due to advances in technology, high volumes of valuable data are generated in various real-life business applications in modern organizations and society. This leads us into the new era of Big Data. In general, Big data are interesting high-velocity, high-value, and/or high-variety data with volumes beyond the ability of commonly-used software to capture, manage, and process within a tolerable elapsed time. Hence, new forms of processing data are needed to enable knowledge discovery. Having developed systematic or quantitative processes to mine and analyze Big data allows us to continuously explore, investigate, and understand the past business performance so as to gain new insight and drive business planning. Over the past few years, several algorithms have been proposed to use the MapReduce/Spark/Flink models (which mine the search space with distributed, parallel, cloud, or fog/edge computing) for different Big data mining and analytics tasks. In this project, students will apply the knowledge and skills they acquired in their undergraduate database courses to build a database for capturing relevant information from Big data. They will then develop a data science, data analytics, business analytics, business intelligence (BI), and/or human-centered data-driven artificial intelligence (AI) solution that applies knowledge discovery and data mining techniques to Big data so as to analyze and discover implicit, previously unknown, and useful knowledge (e.g., frequently co-located events and/or frequent purchased bundles of merchandise items) from Big data.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My specialized research area in computer science relates to data management and data mining. In particular, my research team focuses on (a) data science, (b) data mining and analytics, (c) visualization and visual analytics, as well as (d) social network analysis and mining in recent years. Similar to the Mitacs Globalink Research Interns (GRIs) in summers 2013-2026, the student participates in this Globalink 2027 project will learn knowledge discovery and data mining techniques to provide a data science or business intelligence solution for Big data mining and analytics. Recent research outcomes can be found in https://sites.google.com/site/dblabuofm/publications

Student roles:
Research within the Database and Data Mining Laboratory in Department of Computer Science at University of Manitoba mainly focuses on databases and data mining, which includes efficient and effective management of, knowledge discovery from, as well as analysis of, large amounts of data (such as transactional, uncertain, social media, Web, biomedical & healthcare data, and/or streams of data, as well as Big data). My current research programs focus on data mining as well as applications of data mining technologies to social computing and/or social network analysis. Our lab is a multi-cultural environment. Current and previous lab members include students from Asia (e.g., Bangladesh, China, India, Japan, Malaysia, South Korea), Central and South Americas (e.g., Brazil, Mexico, Paraguay), and Africa (e.g., Tunisia). Current and previous collaborators include researchers from Australia and France. Following our success in the Globalink 2013-2026 projects with GRIs (who have published their research findings from their Globalink research with me in refereed international conferences/journals & who are now graduate students in Canadian/US universities such as UBC, Waterloo, Columbia, CMU & UIUC or working in companies such as Google), the student participating in this MITACS Globalink 2027 project will work under the same supervision model. In other words, the student will academic supervised by me (a Full Professor at the University of Manitoba) for an approximate 12-week research internship in the summer (with a flexible start date in May, June, or July). In addition, the student will also work closely with a senior lab member (who will serve as a mentor) and will contribute a small concrete data science component of the project suitable at the level for the undergraduate students.

Skills required:
Similar to skill requirements for Globalink 2013-2026 GRIs (now in top Canadian/US universities like UBC, Waterloo, Columbia, CMU & UIUC or companies like Google), students participating in this 2027 project are expected to have taken some third-year computer science courses (e.g., database courses) when they started the internship. Specific details of the project will be finalized after discussion and mutual agreement between the professor and student. In general, the student will be asked to design/implement in C/C++, Java, Python, R, Scala (or others), and may use Jupyter, a data science/analytics component that is suitable and manageable for an undergraduate student.

149. BioTherm-OPT: Intelligent Multi-Objective Optimization of Nature-Inspired Fractal Heat Exchangers Using Bayesian, Evolutionary, and Reinforcement Learning Methods

Identifying the optimal bio-inspired heat exchanger design is a formidable challenge. The design space is vast, continuous, and high-dimensional: geometric parameters (branching angles, diameter ratios, fractal iteration levels, cross-sectional shapes) interact non-linearly with operating parameters (flow rate, inlet temperature, fluid properties) to determine thermal performance. Furthermore, the optimization problem is inherently multi-objective: maximizing heat transfer and minimizing pressure drop are fundamentally conflicting goals, and no single optimal design exists — instead, a Pareto frontier of trade-off solutions must be identified. Classical gradient-based optimization methods require differentiability and struggle with the highly non-linear, non-convex nature of the heat exchanger performance landscape. Population-based methods like basic genetic algorithms have been applied, but their direct coupling with CFD simulation is computationally prohibitive — each evaluation requires hours of simulation time, making thousands of evaluations infeasible. ML surrogate model replaces the CFD solver entirely, enabling each design evaluation to be performed in milliseconds rather than hours. This radical reduction in computational cost unlocks the use of sophisticated, sample-intensive optimization algorithms — Bayesian Optimization, multi-objective evolutionary algorithms, and Deep Reinforcement Learning — that would otherwise be completely impractical. This proposal focuses exclusively on leveraging this surrogate to find optimal bio-inspired heat exchanger designs and operating strategies.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: The supervisor's work sits at the intersection of building physics, environmental engineering, and human physiological science. His recent research focuses on the development and application of advanced machine learning architectures that integrate physical knowledge, spatial structure, and temporal dynamics applied to complex engineering and scientific systems where data is sparse,

Student roles:
The student occupies a central and autonomous role in this project. They are not a support technician, they are the main researcher responsible for the scientific output working under the guidance of two supervisors (one thermal engineering expert, one ML expert). Below the main requirements and the proposed timeline.

Requirements :
1. Define a systematic, ML-compatible parametric representation of multiple classes of bio-inspired fractal heat exchanger geometries
2. Apply Gaussian Process-based Bayesian Optimization to efficiently identify top-performing designs under individual performance criteria
3. Apply NSGA-III to generate the full Pareto frontier of optimal trade-off designs across conflicting objectives (heat transfer vs. pressure drop)
4. Train a Deep Reinforcement Learning agent to discover optimal dynamic operating strategies that maximize thermal efficiency under time-varying load conditions
5. Benchmark the AI-driven optimization results against classical methods and existing literature designs

Timeline (12 weeks) :
weeks 1–2: Literature review
weeks 3–5: Develop and validate ML model
weeks 5–8: BO implementation; single-objective exploration; top candidate identification per geometry family
weeks 9–10: PPO agent design; environment setup with surrogate; training and policy validation
weeks 11–12: Writing / publication

Skills required:
The ideal candidate holds a degree in Mathematics, computer or data science with solid proficiency in scientific machine learning or deep learning, Applied mathematics / numerical methods and scientific computing (ex : CFD).

150. BioTherm-SIM: A Physics-Informed Multi-Fidelity Machine Learning Surrogate for Thermal Simulation of Nature-Inspired Fractal Heat Exchangers

Heat exchangers are fundamental components for thermal energy management across a wide range of industrial sectors, including power generation, aerospace, automotive, and HVAC systems. Enhancing their heat transfer performance while minimizing pump energy consumption is a major driver of energy efficiency and sustainability. Even marginal improvements in heat exchanger performance can translate into substantial reductions in energy consumption and carbon emissions at industrial scale. Nature has, over millions of years of evolution, developed highly optimized transport networks for heat and mass transfer. Fractal geometry, widely observed in respiratory systems, vascular networks of plants and animals, and leaf-vein distributions, has been introduced into heat transfer research because of its intrinsic advantages of minimized flow resistance and enhanced heat transfer capability. Specific bio-inspired architectures of interest include: • Fractal tree-like networks mimicking vascular systems • Y-shaped bifurcating channels inspired by branching biological structures • Lung/alveolar-inspired geometries optimized for fluid distribution • Leaf-vein fractal microchannels with hierarchical bifurcation-confluence topology • TPMS (Triply Periodic Minimal Surface) lattice structures enabled by additive manufacturing Despite their enormous promise, bio-inspired fractal heat exchangers impose a severe computational burden. Full-resolution CFD simulations of such geometries are highly time-consuming and often computationally prohibitive, especially when hundreds or thousands of design evaluations are needed during parametric studies or optimization. This bottleneck severely limits the design exploration capability of traditional engineering workflows. Machine learning surrogate models, trained on combined experimental and CFD data, offer a transformative solution. A well-trained ML surrogate can predict the full thermo-hydraulic behavior of a bio-inspired heat exchanger in milliseconds, replacing hours of CFD computation, while remaining physically consistent through physics-informed training. This project focuses entirely on building, validating, and delivering such a surrogate, establishing the computational foundation for the optimization work. .

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: The supervisor's work sits at the intersection of building physics, environmental engineering, and human physiological science. His recent research focuses on the development and application of advanced machine learning architectures that integrate physical knowledge, spatial structure, and temporal dynamics applied to complex engineering and scientific systems where data is sparse,

Student roles:
The student occupies a central and autonomous role in this project. They are not a support technician, they are the main researcher responsible for the scientific output working under the guidance of two supervisors (one thermal engineering expert, one ML expert). Below the main requirements and the proposed timeline.

Requirements :
1. Define a systematic, ML-compatible parametric representation of multiple classes of bio-inspired fractal heat exchanger geometries
2. Generate a large, structured multi-fidelity simulation database (low-fidelity + high-fidelity CFD) covering the full design parameter space
3. Develop and train a Physics-Informed Neural Network (PINN) that embeds governing transport equations to predict full thermo-hydraulic fields
4. Develop a Multi-Fidelity Graph Neural Network that leverages the tree-like topology of fractal channels for fast and accurate field prediction
5. Develop a Deep Operator Network for geometry-agnostic thermal inference, generalizing to unseen fractal geometries without retraining
6. Deliver a fully validated, packaged surrogate model

Timeline (12 weeks) :
weeks 1–2: Literature review
weeks 3–5: CFD campaign
weeks 5–8: PINN development and training; MF-GNN architecture design and training; DeepONet training
weeks 9–10: Cross-validation; leave-one-geometry-out tests; experimental blind test; benchmark comparison
weeks 11–12: Writing / publication

Skills required:
The ideal candidate holds a degree in computer or data science with solid proficiency in scientific machine learning or deep learning, Applied mathematics / numerical methods and scientific computing (ex : CFD).

151. Bioinformatics analysis of autoimmune inflammatory myopathies immune landscape

Autoimmune inflammatory myopathies (AIM) are autoimmune diseases where the immune system attacks the muscles. They cause muscle inflammation, progressive weakness (usually in the proximal muscles), and often affect other organs such as the skin, lungs, joints, and heart. Some cancer patients treated with immunotherapy can also develop immune‑mediated myositis, giving us another useful model to study how immune tolerance fails in muscle. In this project, we will use advanced imaging and bioinformatics to map immune cells in muscle biopsies and link these patterns to clinical and biological data. Our aim is to better understand how loss of peripheral tolerance causes muscle damage and to identify ideas for more targeted treatments.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Our laboratory works on the development of personalized therapies in ovarian cancer. We employ longitudinal multi-omique analysis of clinical and pre-clinical samples to identify therapeutic vulnerabilities and therapeutic opportunities.

Student roles:
The student will be working with a database of single-cell proteomics and will build a new software that will be integrated to our cyclic-immunofluorescence platform.

Skills required:
Skills in coding is required. Python language knowledge is preferable.

152. Blockchains for Data Storage and Mining in Learning Analytics

The central technology being explored as a platform for this learning trace process is the blockchain algorithm, popularized in cryptocurrency transactions. Blockchain algorithms use a hash algorithm, nonce and block code, along with the message packet, to generate a hash code. These can be arranged into a chain by embedding the hash of a previous block into the packet of the next. The nonce key is chosen such that the generated hash is signed, with a static header. Cryptocurrency blockchains use the hash header “0000” as its signature. Unsigned hashes can be fixed by changing all following messages in the chain. Therefore, to ensure tampering security, multiple trace stores will have to be installed for error detection and correction. By following this procedure, tampering in the chain can be detected by the fact that any tampered block in the chain will have an unsigned hash, or by the fact that a particular blockchain does not agree with its comparable chains stored in other servers. This will make the learning trace immutable. In addition to this feature, this project will explore the ability for a student to extend and retract read permissions to this blockchain, or segments thereof, through the use of RSA encryption algorithms. This will make the learning trace under the control of the owner. Additional features of this format to be explored include the ability of evaluating institutions to independently and verifiably add assessments to a learning trace chain, the use of chain attributes as indicators for learning performance, and the use of learning trace chains as a resource for employers evaluating potential and current employees. Architectural features of this project will involve a learning event chain server and data store, a learning event ingestion system, a learning event inferencing system, and a learning event chain browser.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: This project proposes to create a durable, secure learning trace recording and analytics inferencing process for use in any environment which wants to record learning traces. As a priority, this system will record raw data and inferences in an immutable branching chain of learning events. In so doing, the resulting learning traces will be resistant to tampering and will be in a form amenable to encryption and controlled sharing.

Student roles:
First, the candiates will explore the problem and conduct literature review on blockchain and learning analytics. Then, they will then develop a prototype blockchain using existing freeware and populate it with data from an existing learning analytics system. Finally, they will then conduct tests on immutability of blockchains and explore the inferencing capacity of the learning analytics system with preexisting algorithms.

Skills required:
The candidates should have coding skills in Python or exposure to Claude coding environments.

153. Blue Zone Bistro: A Serious Game for Healthy Eating Decisions

The "Blue Zone Bistro" is a serious, educational 2D game designed to teach healthy nutritional habits by focusing on food processing and global longevity rather than restrictive fad diets. Most modern dietary advice is contradictory and overwhelming. This project bypasses the noise by focusing on two universally accepted nutritional truths: the long-term harms of ultra-processed foods and the proven health benefits of whole-food, plant-forward eating. Players manage a cafe in a sluggish, high-stress city dominated by heavily processed foods. The gameplay loop centers on three core mechanics: The Ingredient Inspector: Players scan nutrition labels, rejecting items with artificial additives, preservatives, or long ingredient lists (the "Rule of 5"). The Blue Zone Desk: Players unlock whole-food, plant-based recipes inspired by the world's healthiest, longest-living populations (e.g., Okinawa, Ikaria). The Customer Feedback Loop: Players watch customers physically transform from gray and fatigued to vibrant and energetic as they switch to whole foods. Developed by a team of two undergraduate interns over 12 weeks, the project aims to deliver a polished, video game. By gamifying the choices behind what we consume, the project demonstrates how avoiding processed toxins and embracing clean, plant-forward eating directly impacts human vitality.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: I am a former professional game developer whose research group explores game design and development, human-computer interaction, games user research, AI, AR/MR/VR, and serious games. We are recruiting undergraduate interns for our upcoming project, "Blue Zone Bistro," an educational, narrative-driven management simulation and serious game. Through the journey of running a neighborhood cafe, the game teaches critical thinking about modern nutrition, digital-age food marketing, and long-term physical vitality. Players will learn to recognize and reject harmful dietary variables, including ultra-processed foods, deceptive chemical ingredient labels, and industrial food additives.

Student roles:
The project utilizes a "Divide and Conquer" strategy, splitting responsibilities into specialized disciplines while requiring close collaboration on design and playtesting.

Intern A: Lead Programmer & Systems Designer
This intern is responsible for the game’s technical architecture, logic, and state management. Core duties include:
*Developing the structural mechanics for the "Ingredient Inspector" label-scanning system.
*Implementing the data structures that track customer health metrics, progression systems, and "Blue Zone" unlocks.
*Coding the user interface functionality and ensuring responsive drag-and-drop systems.
*Managing the Git repository and handling final WebGL optimization for browser deployment.

Intern B: Lead Artist & Narrative Designer
This intern owns the visual identity, user experience, and educational storytelling of the game. Core duties include:
*Creating all 2D art assets, including environmental backgrounds, UI elements (food labels), and character sprites that visually transition from sluggish to energetic.
*Designing intuitive layouts for menus, the kitchen workspace, and tooltips.
*Writing engaging dialogue, tutorials, and integrating educational "pop-ups" that explain the real-world science behind processed foods and longevity zones.
*Managing sound design integration (background tracks and audio feedback).

Joint Responsibilities
Both interns will collaborate heavily during Weeks 1–3 to design the Minimum Viable Product (MVP) and map out the user flow. They will jointly run mid-project playtesting sessions, evaluate user feedback, and spend the final two weeks balancing the gameplay economy to ensure the educational message is seamlessly integrated, rewarding, and fun.

Skills required:
Applicants should be undergraduate students in Computer Science, Game Design, Digital Arts, or related fields. Experience with a 2D game engine (Unity, Unreal or Godot) and version control (Git) is highly recommended.

One intern should possess strong programming skills (C#/C++ or GDScript) and an interest in systems architecture and UI implementation. The other should have a background in 2D digital art (sprites, UI layout, animation) and creative writing. A shared interest in health sciences, nutrition, or public health education is a major asset for both roles.

154. Brain age and brain rhythms in routine clinical electroencephalography

This project aims to estimate "brain age" using routinely collected clinical electroencephalography (EEG) data. The concept of brain age, which reflects the biological age of the brain as opposed to chronological age, is emerging as a powerful biomarker for neurological health. Deviations from this measure may indicate accelerated ageing or neurodegenerative risk. While current brain age models predominantly rely on neuroimaging like MRI, this project seeks to develop and validate a more accessible and scalable alternative by leveraging the rich, temporal information embedded within EEG signals. Your primary role will involve working with our extensive, multi-center clinical EEG database. This will include the application of advanced machine learning regression algorithms (such as support vector regression, random forests, or deep neural networks) to build robust predictive models of chronological age. A key outcome will be the calculation of the "brain age gap" (the difference between predicted brain age and chronological age) and subsequent investigation into how this gap correlates with existing clinical diagnoses and expert-identified EEG abnormalities within our diverse patient cohort. This research presents a unique opportunity to develop innovative AI tools for neurophysiological data analysis and contribute to the understanding of brain health trajectories. This project is an integral part of a larger, ambitious research initiative that unites several leading research institutions and public hospitals around the wealth of data generated by routine clinical EEG. These public hospitals produce a continuous stream of valuable neurological information, including the EEG recordings themselves, which are long, multivariate, and highly sampled time series, alongside detailed expert reports on EEG abnormalities and comprehensive diagnostic details. A core focus of this broader initiative is the development and application of cutting-edge data science tools, which push the boundaries of how we analyse brain data in clinical neurophysiology and advance healthcare through data-driven insights.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research program is dedicated to translating insights derived from non-invasive neuroimaging modalities, specifically electroencephalography (EEG), magnetoencephalography (MEG), and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), into clinically relevant applications for brain disorders. Leveraging my dual affiliation as a scientist at Simon Fraser University and within local public hospitals, I explore how variability and pathological alterations in these brain signals manifest across diverse neurological populations and throughout typical development and ageing processes. A central aim is to elucidate the functional correlates of this neurophysiological variability, with the ultimate goal of developing and validating clinically translatable computational methods that enhance diagnostic accuracy.

Student roles:
The student intern's primary responsibility will be to analyze associations between patients’ age and electroencephalograms (EEGs) from an extensive clinical database. This will involve employing advanced statistical techniques (largely in Python), including predictive analytics and machine learning models, to identify correlations and potential predictive relationships. Key tasks include data preprocessing, feature extraction, model development, and validation of analytical pipelines.
A significant component of this role involves disseminating research outcomes. The intern will be expected to contribute substantially to, and potentially lead, the preparation of a research manuscript suitable for peer-reviewed publication. This will entail articulating the study's rationale, methodology, results, and their broader scientific implications.
Furthermore, the intern will actively collaborate with other students and researchers within the broader research initiative focused on clinical EEG and data science applications. This collaborative engagement is crucial for exchanging knowledge, addressing methodological challenges, and advancing the collective development of AI tools in clinical neurophysiology and healthcare.

Skills required:
The ideal candidate for this internship will possess a strong academic background in a quantitative discipline. This typically includes fields such as Mathematics, Statistics, Computer Science, Physics, Engineering, or a closely related area with a significant analytical component, providing the foundational knowledge necessary for complex data analysis and modeling.
Familiarity with Python is beneficial, as it will be the primary tool for data manipulation, analysis, and algorithm implementation within this project.
Furthermore, the candidate should have an understanding of statistical principles and techniques. Prior experience applying machine learning concepts, even in academic coursework or personal projects, would be advantageous.

155. Bridging the Skill Gap: A Knowledge Graph Framework for Employment Readiness in Canada’s 2030 Economy

This project proposes to develop a data-driven recommendation system using Knowledge Graphs and labour market analytics to examine skill demands across Canadian sectors—both in the near term and toward 2030. By integrating and analyzing data from sources like Job Bank, LinkedIn, Statistics Canada, Future Skills Centre, and provincial labour outlooks, the system will: Map emerging occupations and skillsets across industries, Identify at-risk job categories due to automation or decline, Forecast future skill demand by region and sector, Recommend tailored reskilling pathways for workers and policy planners. The broader goal is to inform employers, educators, workforce development agencies, and policymakers on how to close the skill gap in Canada, enabling an inclusive, future-ready workforce that thrives in the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My specialized research area focuses on data analytics, algorithm design, and information visualization, with applications in workforce intelligence and skill forecasting. I explore computational methods to analyze labor market trends, forecast future skill demands, and develop decision-support systems. My work also involves the application of knowledge graphs and machine learning to model employment patterns, enabling strategic planning in education and workforce development aligned with emerging technological transformations.

Student roles:
The student will play a critical role in supporting the research and development of a knowledge graph and recommendation system aimed at analyzing emerging skill demands across various sectors in Canada for 2030. Their responsibilities will include collecting and preprocessing data from labor market sources, national databases, and industry reports; conducting literature reviews on skill transition trends; assisting in the design and implementation of the knowledge graph structure; and contributing to data analysis and visualization. The student will also help validate results through stakeholder feedback and assist in drafting technical documentation and research summaries. Active participation in team meetings, collaboration with academic and industry mentors, and an interest in labor market analytics, AI/ML applications, and public policy will be expected.

Skills required:
The ideal student should have a foundational understanding of data science, including skills in data collection, cleaning, and analysis. Proficiency in programming languages such as Python or R is essential, along with familiarity in using data visualization tools (e.g., Tableau, Power BI, or Matplotlib). A basic knowledge of machine learning concepts and techniques, especially those related to recommendation systems or predictive modeling, is desirable. The student should be comfortable working with structured and unstructured datasets and possess strong analytical and problem-solving abilities. Familiarity with employment data, labor market trends, or economic forecasting will be considered an asset.

156. Build an AI-Powered AR Assistant for Collaborative Manufacturing

Modern factories increasingly rely on collaborative robots (cobots) that work alongside humans. However, workers often need support in understanding task progress, coordinating actions, and responding to changing situations. This project explores how augmented reality (AR) and artificial intelligence (AI) can help create more effective and human-centered collaboration between people and robots. The student will contribute to the development of a mixed-reality assistant that provides interactive guidance during industrial assembly and training tasks. Working within a virtual manufacturing environment developed in collaboration with researchers and industry partners, the student will help design and implement features such as visual instructions, contextual prompts, and multimodal feedback. The project will involve software development using technologies such as Unity, AR/VR devices, and AI-assisted interaction techniques. The student will also participate in evaluating the system through user studies and data analysis to understand how these technologies affect task performance and user experience. This project is ideal for students interested in human-computer interaction, artificial intelligence, robotics, virtual reality, augmented reality, or industrial innovation. By the end of the internship, the student will have contributed to a functional prototype and gained experience with cutting-edge technologies that support the future of human-robot teamwork.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research explores how people interact with intelligent technologies. I design and evaluate interactive systems that combine AI, visualization, computer vision, and extended reality technologies to support learning, decision-making, creativity, and collaboration. Students in my lab work on projects involving human-AI interaction, educational technologies, mixed-reality experiences, and novel user interfaces, with opportunities to build and evaluate real-world systems.

Student roles:
The students will:

- Develop software components for a mixed-reality assistance system.
- Implement and test interactive guidance features.
- Contribute to the design of user interfaces and user experiences.
- Assist with integrating AR/VR technologies and AI-driven functionality.
- Participate in prototype evaluation and data collection.
- Analyze results and contribute to research reports and presentations.
- Work closely with graduate students and faculty researchers in a collaborative research environment.

The student will gain hands-on experience in research, software development, human-computer interaction, and emerging technologies while contributing to an active research project with potential real-world industrial applications.

Skills required:
Applicants should have completed coursework in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Mechatronics, Human-Computer Interaction, Artificial Intelligence, or a related field. Experience with programming (e.g., Python, C#, JavaScript, Java, or C++) is required. Familiarity with Unity, AR/VR development, computer vision, robotics, or user interface design is an asset but not required. Students should be motivated, curious, and comfortable learning new technologies and working as part of a multidisciplinary research team.

157. Building Data Visualization Products for Communicating Insights from Migration Research

Migration is a powerful lever of social and economic development and, simultaneously, an important concern. It comes with many benefits, but also significant challenges and inequalities. Governments are eager to find ways to anticipate future migration flows and deal with international migration efficiently. In order to achieve rights-based, efficient and effective migration governance, understanding the complex factors that result in migration and the dynamic nature of migrant decision-making is of utmost importance to policy makers around the world. This is especially timely in the aftermath of a global pandemic which caused migrants to be stuck in their country of origin, destination or in transit, or led to return movements. Migration is a crucial factor in the socio-demographic and economic growth and well-being of the society. Understanding better its dynamics will support efficient and effective policy design and implementation. The MEMO Partnership focuses on mixed migration flows and seeks to develop a socio-ecological systems approach. Uniquely, MEMO integrates macro, meso and micro data to develop a single framework for understanding the behaviour of migration systems, meaning it considers: Micro ― features unique to individuals that affect their decision-making and agency, such as their desires, hopes and means to seek opportunity away from their home; Meso ― drivers, or specific factors or actors, that have an impact on individuals, such as institutions, cultural practices, or policies, which may have an uneven effect on members of communities; Macro ― drivers that impact an entire population group, such as conflict, climate change, or a country’s policies affecting economic opportunity. MEMO also takes a geographic approach, providing a systematic comparison of internal, intra-regional and intercontinental migration flows across the three regional systems (Americas, West Africa, South Asia). To illuminate insights from this research, our team will focus on developing data-driven interactives.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: I conduct research that explores new methods for making sense of data as it moves between physical and digital worlds. Recent research has focused on virtual reality games for spatial cognition, augmented and virtual reality environments for motor learning, immersive media for medical training, and data interactives for migration research. I approach these topics from the position that novel digital media, HCI, and data journalism present valuable opportunities to expand how training and insight generation can be undertaken. While data visualization is at the core of my research, I work with methods that are not constrained by dashboard development.

Student roles:
Student(s) will work directly with the supervisor and research team (spread across three universities in the Greater Toronto Area) to design, build, and evaluate data visualization products for translating insights from the MEMO research project. These will include custom-built geospatial dashboards, scrollytelling pages, data explainer videos, infographics, collaborative interfaces that include tangible and embodied interaction, and more. Students will explore cutting-edge methods for building data-driven interactives, and will implement them to develop prototypes for knowledge translation that may be used by researchers, policymakers, and the general public.

Skills required:
Student(s) should have an academic background in Design, HCI, Data Science, Information Visualization, Migration Studies, or a related field. They should possess basic working knowledge of visualization software (e.g. Tableau, Power BI, Flourish), GIS (e.g. ArcGIS, QGIS), visualization libraries for web development (e.g. D3, Observable, Mapbox GL), and the ability to work with R, Python, JavaScript, and web dev languages. Good graphic design skills and a portfolio of visualization projects will be valuable. The ability to read and interpret academic papers from HCI, data science, or Infovis will be valuable.

158. Building Next-Generation Vehicle Traffic Forecasting Models and Simulators

Traffic congestion is something we all experience, but its impact goes far beyond daily frustration. It affects urban planning, public transportation efficiency, delivery systems, and even the response times of emergency vehicles. On top of that, congestion plays a significant role in worsening climate change due to increased fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. This project explores how intelligent traffic forecasting can help tackle these challenges by making transportation systems more efficient and sustainable. The goal of this project is to design and develop a modern traffic forecasting model that can predict multiple aspects of traffic, such as flow, speed, and congestion, over both short and longer time horizons. The project will include the development of a traffic simulation tool that allows users to explore "what-if" scenarios, such as road closures, accidents, or changes in traffic demand. By leveraging diverse data sources, including historical traffic patterns, weather conditions, road closures, and accident reports, the system will provide a more complete and interactive picture of how traffic evolves across a city. These capabilities can support smarter traffic re-routing, better infrastructure planning, and improved decision-making for transportation systems. Existing models typically do not scale well to large urban areas or longer forecasting windows. Many also underutilize the rich historical datasets that are already available. This project aims to overcome these gaps by building a unified, data-driven model capable of handling multiple inputs, producing comprehensive forecasts, and integrating simulation capabilities for scenario analysis across a wider geographic region. In addition, simulation tools can further help cities evaluate alternative transportation strategies such as public transit improvements and cycling infrastructure, before implementing them in the real world. Students working on this project will gain hands-on experience with machine learning techniques and simulators, while contributing to solutions that make cities greener, smarter, and more livable.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research area is focused in wireless and mobile networks, and traffic forecasting and simulation, with emphasis on three sub-areas: 1) vehicular networks (connected cars, smart cities, etc.) 2) wireless sensor networks 3) Vehicular Traffic Forecasting and Simulation using Machine Learning I've been working with machine learning methods to improve vehicle traffic simulation. I am looking for students to work with machine learning, federated learning, reinforcement learning, data mining, and traffic simulators to improve accuracy.

Student roles:
- Design and implement components of a traffic forecasting system that predicts flow, speed, and congestion using real-world datasets
- Collect, clean, and preprocess data from multiple sources such as traffic sensors, weather reports, and incident logs
- Explore and analyze datasets to identify patterns, trends, and useful features for modeling
- Develop and evaluate machine learning or statistical models for short and long-term traffic prediction
- Integrate multiple input variables into a unified forecasting framework
- Contribute to the design and development of a traffic simulation tool for "what-if" scenario analysis (e.g., road closures, accidents, demand changes)
- Attend weekly research meetings, and report to the supervisor and/or graduate students involved in this project
- Assist in designing visualizations or dashboards to communicate model outputs and simulation results
- Continuously research and learn new techniques relevant to traffic modeling, machine learning, and smart city applications
- Contribute to a final report and/or presentation summarizing the project outcomes and impact

Skills required:
- Strong programming skills (preferably Python) for data processing and modeling
- Familiarity with libraries such as NumPy, pandas, and basic visualization tools (training can be provided)
- Understanding of data structures and algorithms for handling large datasets
- Basic knowledge of machine learning (e.g., regression, time series, neural networks) is helpful
- Interest in working with real-world, multi-source data (traffic, weather, incidents)
- Interest in simulation, modeling, or system design
- Bonus: front-end or visualization skills for interactive tools
- Strong problem-solving, teamwork, and willingness to learn

159. Building Trustworthy Digital Twins with LLMs and Formal Methods

Consider a Digital Twin of a manufacturing line where a data acquisition component streams sensor readings to a real-time anomaly detector. If it falls behind under load, the detector may miss faults entirely, with no error raised. This kind of subtle incompatibility is hard to catch in a system with many interacting components such as simulators, data streams, and machine learning services. Contract-based design offers a solution: each component comes with a contract specifying what it expects from its environment (assumption) and what it promises in return (guarantee). These contracts can be formally verified to ensure components compose correctly. However, writing them manually requires too much expertise and is time-consuming. As the intern on this project, you will investigate how Large Language Models (LLMs) can automatically generate assume/guarantee contracts from natural-language and structured descriptions of DT components. You'll then use contract verification tooling to ensure that the contracts hold and the DT is correct. Your goal is to create a pipeline from component description to verified DT composition, using LLMs to ease the contract-writing step. You'll collaborate with local and international experts: researchers at Aarhus University working on DT platforms, a collaborator from Mila specializing in LLMs and formal methods, and colleagues at Polytechnique Montréal specializing in DT construction and interoperability. Your strong work will likely lead to publication, conference travel, and an invitation to join the Oakes lab as a graduate student.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on Digital Twins (DTs) which are virtual representations of physical systems such as manufacturing equipment. I want to make them easier to build, connect, and trust by capturing and formalizing domain knowledge. In particular, I want to make sure that DT components can be composed reliably and verified to behave correctly. My work spans DT engineering, architecture modelling, and the formal verification of software models. My team has recently been exploring LLMs for lowering the barrier to applying rigorous techniques, so that engineers can benefit from formal methods without extensive expertise. This project is the next step.

Student roles:
You'll join my team, which researches techniques for accelerated and trustworthy DT construction. The lab atmosphere is friendly and supportive. Montréal is one of the world's great student cities: bilingual, affordable, with a thriving arts and food scene and an exceptional place to spend a summer.

At least once a week, you'll meet with me to discuss project progress, and I'll help guide you to keep the project moving. Senior PhD students specializing in DT interoperability and our collaborators can also assist you where needed.

You'll take the lead in researching and implementing LLM-assisted contract generation for DT components, using DT case studies available in the lab. The project has three objectives:

- **O1:** Use an LLM to generate assume/guarantee contracts from DT component descriptions
- **O2:** Verify the generated contracts using a contract verification tool and iterate on the prompting strategy to improve correctness
- **O3:** Integrate the full pipeline into a small tool that takes a component description and outputs verified contracts

Each objective is scoped to roughly four weeks. DT case studies are available in the lab, so you can begin building and testing the pipeline from the start.

Skills required:
## Required Technical Skills

- Basic software engineering (Python, version control, etc.)
- Experience with LLMs or prompt engineering
- Interest in software correctness or reliable system composition

## Optional Technical Skills

- Formal methods, logic, or contract-based design (e.g. temporal logic, model checking)
- Digital Twins or cyber-physical systems

Curiosity and willingness to learn matter most.

Students should be motivated and able to work independently. A strong past project in a related area is an asset.

160. Building Verified Quantum Programming Language Implementations

With the increase in availability and feasability of quantum computing hardware, there has been a growing importance in understanding quantum programming from the programming languages perspective. Over the past decade, a particular paradigm that has been emerging is to use a functional language to generate quantum circuits that are eventually executed on a quantum processor. One such example is the Quipper family of quantum programming languages. Unfortunately, Quipper languages have complex operational semantics: they are inherently effectful, and they rely on set-theoretic operations and fresh name generation to manipulate quantum circuits. This makes them difficult to reason about using standard programming language techniques and, ultimately, to mechanize. Recently, we introduced Proto-Quipper-A, a rational reconstruction of Proto-Quipper languages for static circuit generation. It uses a linear λ-calculus to describe quantum circuits with normal forms that closely correspond to box-and-wire circuit diagrams. We then integarate this circuit language with a linear/non-linear functional language using a modality. The goal of this project is to build a verified language implementation of Proto-Quipper-A in Rocq and extract a stand-alone implementation and understand how to model some basic quantum algorithms with this language.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Prof. Pientka's research interest lies in developing a theoretical and practical foundation for building and reasoning about reliable safe software systems. To achieve this goal, I combine theoretical research on the logical foundations of computer science in programming languages and verification with system building. My work is grounded in the Curry-Howard isomorphism where we build elegant and robust foundations for the next generation of programming languages grounded in logic and type theory. The topics I am interested in include modal logics, type theory, functional programming, logical frameworks, and proof environments.

Student roles:
The student will build on our existing theoretical work that provides a logically grounded reconstrution of the Quipper programming language and its extensions. The student will implement this foundation in the Rocq proof assistant and implement the proofs that have mostly been done on paper (or in the proof environment Beluga). The goal is to implement in Rocq a reference implementation of the Proto-Quipper language that is proven correct and extracted to an OCaml program. If time permits, the student will use the framework to implement some basic quantum algorithms within this framework.

Skills required:
Ideally students have a background in typed functional programming and an understanding on how to define and reason about programming languages (for example at the level of the first 8 Chap of Types and Programming Languages by B. Pierce). Exposure to the proof assistant Rocq through for example Software Foundations is an asset.

161. Building Virtual Brain Twin Models for Children with Epilepsy

We invite talented individuals with a passion for brain science to join our Virtual Epilepsy Twin project. This cutting-edge approach uses real-world data to create intricate simulations of human brain activity. We are building these models by incorporating existing information on electrical and magnetic signals in addition to magnetic resonance imaging from epilepsy patients, using structurally constrained neural networks to accurately represent the dynamic patterns of brain function during seizures. These advanced simulations allow us to test potential therapies for epilepsy before clinical application, providing a unique opportunity for students interested in pushing the boundaries of neurological research. The project's goal is to expand this model beyond its current single seizure type by incorporating diverse types of seizures and simulating their different dynamics. Participants will have an opportunity to contribute to the development of more comprehensive models, enabling researchers to better predict and understand how epilepsy manifests differently across individuals. This work is essential for refining neuromodulatory targets prior to treatment. By collaborating with our team, students will gain valuable experience working on cutting-edge research using state-of-the-art tools like BrainXplore (Virtual Brain Technologies, Marseille France), learning about the complexities of brain activity during seizures and developing a deeper understanding of current treatments. If you are interested in dynamical brain models and their application to neuromodulatory and surgical interventions for children with epilepsy using stereo-electroencephalography, magnetoencephalography, and magnetic resonance imaging data with applications to real-world treatment strategies, please join us. This is an exceptional opportunity to contribute to meaningful advancements in epilepsy treatment and pave the way for improved patient outcomes.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Epilepsy, the most common chronic neurological disorder in children, is characterized by recurrent unprovoked seizures due to uncontrolled brain activity, over 30% of epilepsy cases do not respond to standard anti-seizure medications. Alternative treatments include surgery, neuromodulation, the ketogenic diet, and experimental therapies. I actively engage in investigator-driven studies and serve as the principal investigator on several clinical trials. My interests include identifying EEG findings as clinical predictors, exploring epilepsy-related psychiatric comorbidities, evaluating epilepsy surgery outcomes, and investigating innovative treatments for the condition.

Student roles:
We offer two opportunities for individuals interested in epilepsy research and treatment. The first role involves computational modelling. Participants will expand the Epileptor model to better represent the variety of seizure patterns observed in children with drug-resistant epilepsy. While no prior experience is required, a strong foundation in dynamical systems modelling and an interest in brain activity simulation are crucial assets. This project offers hands-on experience building and validating simulations that can help us understand how different seizure types emerge and identify effective treatment strategies through virtual models of the human brain.

The second opportunity focuses on the neurological treatment of epilepsy, where students will learn to evaluate potential treatments within BrainXplore's framework. This role provides a chance for those interested in applying neuroscience research to real-world clinical settings. Students will be trained to use BrainXplore to simulate different neuromodulation techniques such as TDCS and Temporal Interference. They'll learn how to translate simulation results into practical treatment recommendations, collaborating with clinicians along the way. This role allows students to gain experience evaluating the potential benefits and risks of various therapies and contribute to a better understanding of how we can improve epilepsy care for children facing drug-resistant seizures.

Mentors will work closely with each student, offering guidance throughout the internship. Each position offers a unique opportunity for hands-on research experience while learning from leading experts in the field.

Skills required:
Candidates should possess a solid foundation in computational neuroscience, demonstrated through experience analyzing brain imaging data from EEG, MRI, or DTI, and understanding neuroimaging software like Freesurfer, MNE, or MRTrix. Previous experience with dynamical systems theory is valuable, particularly when applied to brain activity modeling. Familiarity with neuromodulatory treatments such as TMS or DBS is a plus, although computational model building skills are also highly sought after. Passion for epilepsy research, especially in children with drug-resistant cases, is essential; candidates should be enthusiastic about contributing impactful findings in a collaborative environment.

162. Building an Adaptive Crisis Simulation Platform for Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery Training

This project focuses on building an adaptive simulation platform for business continuity and disaster recovery (BC/DR) training. While most organizations have continuity plans in place, these are often static documents that are rarely tested in realistic conditions. The aim of this project is to develop an instructor-led, interactive education tool that allows users to design and test continuity strategies in a practical and engaging way. The project will focus on how planning decisions, such as backup strategies, redundancy, and resource allocation, influence outcomes during a crisis. A key part of the work is developing a simulation engine that connects these decisions to measurable impacts, including recovery time, data loss, and overall business disruption. This will allow users to move beyond theoretical planning and evaluate how their choices perform under pressure. The platform will simulate events such as cyberattacks, system failures, and infrastructure outages, and show how these can spread across interconnected systems. Users will be required to make decisions under realistic constraints, including limited time, budget, and incomplete information. The simulation will evolve over time, introducing new challenges and forcing users to adapt their plans as conditions change. In addition, the tool will support structured teaching scenarios, allowing instructors to guide sessions, introduce new events, and compare outcomes across different strategies. This creates opportunities for discussion, reflection, and iterative improvement, which are often missing from traditional BC/DR training approaches. The expected outcome is a working prototype that can be used as an instructor-led education tool to support more practical, experience-based learning in business continuity and organizational resilience. The project is relevant to both academic and industry settings, particularly in sectors where maintaining operations is critical.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research sits at the intersection of cybersecurity and critical infrastructure, focusing on how complex systems can be made more resilient to disruption. My work has primarily examined energy systems, operational technologies, and other high-impact sectors. I am particularly interested in how technical vulnerabilities translate into operational and business risk, and how these risks can be effectively detected, managed, and communicated. More recently, I have been developing simulation-based training environments, including SOC/SIEM platforms, to bridge the gap between theory and practice and support more realistic, experience-driven approaches to cybersecurity and resilience training.

Student roles:
The student will be involved in the early scoping and design of the simulation platform, helping to shape how the tool functions and what features are included. This will involve translating business continuity concepts into interactive scenarios and thinking through how different decisions should be represented within the simulation.

They will also contribute to the development of the platform, primarily in Python, working on components such as the simulation logic, user interaction, and basic interface elements. The student will work closely with Dr. Higgins throughout the project, with regular discussions to refine ideas, review progress, and guide implementation.

In addition, the student will help test and iterate on the tool, ensuring that it is both technically functional and effective as an educational resource. This may include running trial scenarios, identifying areas for improvement, and making adjustments based on feedback. Overall, the role is hands-on and applied, with a balance between design, development, and practical problem-solving.

Skills required:
The ideal student will have some experience with programming or software development, with familiarity in Python being particularly useful. A background in computer science, engineering, or a related field would be beneficial, but students from other disciplines with relevant technical skills are also encouraged to apply. An interest in cybersecurity, systems design, or interactive applications would be helpful. The project will suit students who enjoy building practical tools, thinking through complex problems, and working in an applied, hands-on environment.

163. Building an Interactive Web and Mobile Platform for Statistical Ecological Modeling

This project bridges advanced computational statistics and ecology by developing user-friendly machine learning software to analyze soil biodiversity. Students will integrate large-scale sequencing and environmental datasets, implement probabilistic modeling algorithms, and conduct robust ecological data analysis. A key deliverable is the creation of an interactive web and mobile application that democratizes access to these sophisticated statistical tools, allowing non-expert users to easily interpret complex environmental scenarios and ecosystem health metrics.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research centers on computational statistics and complex probabilistic modeling, with a specific focus on developing advanced Bayesian inference and Monte Carlo methods for high-dimensional data analysis. A core component of my work involves explicitly integrating domain-specific knowledge into these statistical frameworks to produce highly accurate, context-aware algorithms. I am equally committed to translational research, engineering user-friendly software packages and web applications that democratize access to these sophisticated machine learning and inference tools for the broader scientific community.

Student roles:
Project Roles and Responsibilities:

1. Statistical Machine Learning Implementer: The student in this role will focus on the analytical core of the project, implementing statistical methods based on provided pseudocode. Strong proficiency in Python or R is required to build robust, scalable software packages.

2. Frontend Application Developer: This student will drive the user-facing development of the web and mobile applications. Using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, they will design interactive and accessible interfaces to ensure the complex predictive models are usable by community stakeholders.

3. Backend Infrastructure Developer: This student will be responsible for the server-side architecture. They will configure the database, build secure APIs to handle data requests, and integrate the machine learning models into the web platform's backend ecosystem.

4. Data Analyst and Software Tester: This role bridges software validation and scientific research. The student will rigorously test the developed software packages and applications for bugs and edge cases. Subsequently, they will apply these tools to analyze targeted datasets and synthesize their findings into formal research reports.

Skills required:
I am seeking motivated students with a strong foundation in computer science, statistics, or software engineering. Because this is a highly interdisciplinary project, applicants can apply under one of two primary tracks:

Machine Learning & Backend Track: Requires proficiency in Python or R for statistical modeling and data analysis. Familiarity with database management (e.g., MySQL, PostgreSQL) and building backend APIs is highly desirable.

Web & Application Development Track: Requires strong programming skills in frontend web technologies (HTML/CSS, JavaScript/TypeScript). Experience with modern web frameworks (e.g., React, Vue) and UX/UI design principles is a major asset.

164. CFD meets Additive Manufacturing

We are focused on exploring the intersection of additive manufacturing and predictive CFD simulations in the design and creation of architected porous structures for aerospace applications. The work will involve simulation, using a Lattice Boltzmann solver, of engineered porous materials with triply periodic, minimal surfaces (TPMS). The student will conduct exhaustive literature review, interact with graduate students and colleagues at the University of Waterloo, and run simulations. We are seeking a highly-creative student that combines the technical and computational skills to tackle this emerging new field of research. Our ultimate objective is to develop a framework to engineer the porous materials to have user-defined structural and thermal properties.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: We focus on the study of engineering-relevant fluid flows that are characterized by a strong interaction between thermodynamics, acoustics and chemical kinetics using high-fidelity numerical simulations. Our research addresses problems in the fields of rocket propulsion, aerospace and novel energy production systems.

Student roles:
The student will collaborate with other team members to advance this project. The student will do simulations, conduct literature reviews, and post-process/visualize the resulting flow fields.

Skills required:
The student should have a strong computational background with advanced level of fluid mechanics/thermodynamics/heat transfer courses.

165. CSI-Based Human Activity Recognition with AI Neuromorphic Learning

Project 2: CSI-Based Human Activity Recognition with Neuromorphic Learning aims to develop an intelligent, low-power, and privacy-preserving system capable of recognizing human activities using WiFi Channel State Information (CSI) combined with neuromorphic learning models. CSI provides fine-grained measurements of the wireless channel, capturing subtle variations caused by human motion, body posture, and environmental interactions without requiring cameras or wearable sensors. The project focuses on transforming raw CSI time-series data into meaningful spatiotemporal representations that can be efficiently processed by biologically inspired learning architectures. In particular, Spiking Neural Networks (SNNs) are employed as the core computational paradigm, leveraging event-driven processing to encode CSI dynamics into spike trains, enabling energy-efficient inference and real-time decision-making. The system pipeline includes data acquisition from WiFi transceivers, preprocessing and denoising of CSI signals, feature encoding using temporal filtering or spike encoding schemes, and classification of activities such as walking, sitting, standing, falling, or hand gestures. Learning mechanisms may incorporate spike-timing-dependent plasticity (STDP) or hybrid training strategies combining backpropagation with surrogate gradients to improve accuracy while maintaining neuromorphic efficiency. The project also investigates robustness against multipath fading, environmental changes, and device placement variability. Performance is evaluated in terms of classification accuracy, latency, computational cost, and power consumption, with comparisons against conventional deep learning models. Applications include smart homes, healthcare monitoring, assisted living for elderly individuals, and human–computer interaction systems. Ultimately, this project demonstrates how neuromorphic computing can be integrated with wireless sensing to create scalable, non-intrusive, and intelligent activity recognition systems suitable for next-generation edge AI deployments in real-world environments.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: This project lies at the intersection of Artificial Intelligence (AI), neuromorphic engineering, CMOS integrated systems, MEMS sensing technologies, and wireless signal processing, targeting next-generation intelligent sensing platforms. It utilizes WiFi Channel State Information (CSI) as a privacy-preserving, contactless sensing method capable of capturing subtle human movements through wireless channel variations. The system integrates Spiking Neural Networks (SNNs), a neuromorphic AI approach that enables event-driven and energy-efficient computation. The research focuses on hardware–algorithm co-design, optimizing AI models not only for accuracy but also for low-power operation compatible with CMOS-based edge devices and potentially MEMS or RF front-end integration.

Student roles:
The student will be responsible for the end-to-end development of the CSI-based human activity recognition system. This includes collecting and organizing WiFi CSI datasets, performing signal preprocessing (denoising, normalization, and segmentation), and designing effective feature extraction or spike encoding methods suitable for neuromorphic processing. The student will implement and train Spiking Neural Networks (SNNs), exploring learning rules such as STDP and surrogate gradient backpropagation. They will also benchmark results against traditional machine learning and deep learning models. Additional responsibilities include optimizing model performance for low-latency and low-power inference, analyzing robustness under different environments, and documenting experimental results.

Skills required:
We are looking for a student with a strong background in computer engineering, or a related field, with solid knowledge of wireless communication systems. Understanding of radio propagation and metrics such as (CSI) is desirable. Prior experience in machine learning is an important asset. Familiarity with biologically inspired neural architectures such as (SNNs) is a plus but can be developed during the project. The candidate should have high programming skills (Python required, MATLAB preferred). Exposure to embedded systems or IoT platforms is also beneficial. Overall, we are seeking a motivated and independent student capable of working across interdisciplinary.

166. Can AI Managers Be Trusted? Stress-Testing LLM Advisors for Bias, Invariance, and Decision Risk

Large language models (LLMs) are increasingly used as advisors that recommend and justify decisions in business, operations, and financial contexts. However, it remains unclear whether these systems provide reliable advice when the same decision is described in different but economically equivalent ways. This project will develop a Python-based benchmark to stress-test LLMs as decision advisors, focusing on bias, advice invariance, and decision quality. The project will use a canonical managerial decision task selected from settings in which the optimal solution can be derived analytically, equivalent formulations can be constructed, and model recommendations can be evaluated using measurable performance metrics. Candidate domains include resource allocation, pricing, capacity planning, budgeting, and operational decision-making. The goal is to test whether LLM recommendations are shaped solely by the underlying economics of the task or also by language features such as framing, labels, and contextual cues. The project will proceed in four phases. First, students will review related work on LLM evaluation, decision bias, and AI-assisted decision-making, and help refine the experimental task. Second, they will help generate equivalent decision scenarios and build a Python pipeline to query selected LLMs via APIs. Third, they will extract and structure model outputs, including recommendations and justifications, and compute metrics related to decision quality, framing sensitivity, and advice invariance. Fourth, the project will explore whether simple multi-agent protocols, such as independent second opinions and aggregation of recommendations, improve the reliability of LLM advice. The project will give the students hands-on experience with LLM APIs, experimental design, Python-based evaluation pipelines, prompt design, data analysis, multi-agent AI systems, and responsible AI governance. The expected output is a reusable benchmark pipeline and an empirical assessment of LLM reliability in decision-making contexts.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on AI governance, responsible machine learning, sustainability, judgment and decision-making, and business and health analytics. I study how AI systems, including large language models, influence organizational decisions and how their outputs can be evaluated, audited, and governed. My work examines issues such as reliability, accountability, bias, advice quality, and responsible AI use in business and health contexts. I apply these questions to areas such as operations, accounting, auditing, corporate reporting, sustainability, EDIAB, and board and executive decision-making. Methodologically, my research combines experimental design, statistical modelling, simulation, machine learning, natural language processing, and computational text analysis.

Student roles:
The student will contribute to the design and implementation of a research project that evaluates the reliability of large language models (LLMs) as decision advisors. The role combines literature review, experimental design, Python-based implementation, data analysis, and research reporting.
The student’s responsibilities will include:
1) Literature review: The student will help identify, read, and summarize relevant research on LLM evaluation, responsible AI, decision bias, human-AI interaction, AI governance, and AI-assisted decision-making. The student will contribute to organizing the literature and identifying concepts that inform the experimental design.
2) Experimental design and scenario development: The student will help create decision scenarios that allow LLM-generated advice to be compared across equivalent formulations. This will include assisting with the design of prompts, structured output templates, and experimental conditions.
3) Python-based implementation and data collection: The student will help build and run a Python-based experimental pipeline for querying selected LLMs through APIs, storing model outputs, and organizing responses in structured formats such as CSV or JSON.
4) Data cleaning and analysis: The student will help extract recommendations and justifications from LLM outputs, compute evaluation metrics such as decision error, regret, framing sensitivity, and advice invariance, and prepare tables, figures, and summary statistics.
5) Multi-agent protocol testing: The student may assist in implementing and comparing simple multi-agent LLM protocols, such as independent second opinions, structured critique-and-revision, and aggregation of recommendations.
6) Reporting and communication: The student will help document the research pipeline, summarize results, prepare visualizations, and contribute to a final project report and potential academic outputs.
Through this role, the student will gain hands-on experience with LLM APIs, experimental evaluation, Python-based research workflows, prompt design, data analysis, multi-agent AI systems, and responsible AI governance.

Skills required:
Students should have a background in computer science, data science, artificial intelligence, machine learning, engineering, or a related quantitative field. Strong Python programming skills are required, including comfort with APIs, data handling, and basic analysis libraries such as pandas or NumPy. Interest in large language models, natural language processing, machine learning evaluation, human-AI interaction, or responsible AI is strongly preferred. Experience with LLM APIs, prompt design, Git/GitHub, JSON/CSV files, statistical analysis, or data visualization would be an asset. The student should be able to read academic papers, implement reproducible experiments, clean and analyze model outputs, and communicate findings clearly.

167. Can AI Teach Origami? Designing an Intelligent Mixed-Reality Tutor

Origami is more than an art form—it is a challenging spatial skill that requires following instructions, understanding geometric transformations, and recovering from mistakes. This project explores whether artificial intelligence (AI) and mixed-reality technologies can help people learn origami more effectively. The student will contribute to the development of an intelligent origami tutor that combines computer vision, AI, and wearable technologies to provide real-time assistance while users fold paper models (using Origami techniques). Using cameras and other sensors, the system will track the progress of a folding task and provide guidance through visual, audio, or haptic feedback. The project may explore technologies such as augmented reality, smartwatches, head-mounted displays, or AI-based image recognition. The student will help design and implement prototype features, evaluate how users interact with the system, and investigate how intelligent tutoring technologies can support the learning of physical skills. By the end of the internship, the student will have contributed to a working prototype and gained experience in AI, computer vision, human-computer interaction, and mixed-reality development. This project is ideal for students interested in artificial intelligence, computer vision, augmented or virtual reality, educational technology, user experience design, or interactive systems.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research explores how people interact with intelligent technologies. I design and evaluate interactive systems that combine AI, visualization, computer vision, and extended reality technologies to support learning, decision-making, creativity, and collaboration. Students in my lab work on projects involving human-AI interaction, educational technologies, mixed-reality experiences, and novel user interfaces, with opportunities to build and evaluate real-world systems.

Student roles:
The students will:

- Develop software components for a mixed-reality assistance system.
- Implement and test interactive guidance features.
- Contribute to the design of user interfaces and user experiences.
- Assist with integrating AR/VR technologies and AI-driven functionality.
- Testing and refining the system through iterative prototyping.
- Participate in prototype evaluation and data collection.
- Analyze results and contribute to research reports and presentations.
- Work closely with graduate students and faculty researchers in a collaborative research environment.
- Contribute to project documentation, reports, and research dissemination activities.

The student will work closely with faculty and graduate student mentors and will gain hands-on experience with AI, computer vision, mixed reality, user experience design, and human-centred technology development. The project emphasizes creativity, experimentation, and the design of technologies that support learning through physical interaction.

Skills required:
Applicants should have completed coursework in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Artificial Intelligence, Human-Computer Interaction, Computer Engineering, or a related field. Experience with programming (e.g., Python, JavaScript, C#, Java, or C++) is required. Familiarity with computer vision, machine learning, AR/VR development, wearable technologies, or user interface design is an asset but not required. Students should enjoy building interactive systems, experimenting with new technologies, and working collaboratively in a research environment.

168. Carbon neural transportation and emission analyses

As a key net-zero pathway in transportation sector, it is essential to track and quantify GHG emissions in response to EV travels and penetrations. This project is to examine the impacts of EV adoption on urban, regional and national GHG mitigations respectively with machine learning predictions and a large-scale simulation framework.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Traffic and Transportation Engineering, Analysis, modeling and optimization of the transportation system (Mobility-As-A-Service, public transport, ride-sharing, and emerging transportation technologies), travel behavior and transport economics, data mining and decision analytics (statistical model, machine learning/deep learning), mechanism design and game theory.

Student roles:
Students will participate in the following research activities:
- Literature review in transport clean energy strategic planning, electrical vehicle initiatives, technologies and applications.
- Case study research for cities in Canada including data analysis, technical program summaries, and strategy design
- Technical report and manuscript editing and formatting, assistance in conference papers and technical reports
- Support in programming and develop artificial intelligent models for electric vehicle travels and emission estimations based on multi-dimensional traffic data
- Visualize and integrates data that communicates clear information and conclusions with Python.

Skills required:
- Strong interests in traffic and transportation engineering, sustainable energy systems and artificial intelligence.
- Background in data analysis, system programming and artificial intelligence models.
- Experience in electric vehicles and emission predictions.
- Background in optimization and operation management
- Skilled in python or/and MATLAB software

169. Cardiac Blood Flow Virtual Reality

Advanced cardiovascular blood flow imaging enables 4D quantification of the heart's hemodynamics. Although we can visualize and quantify blood flow, the full potential of its 4-dimensional nature remains underutilized. This project aims to develop virtual reality tools for immersive understanding of the heart's complex blood flow patterns and surgical strategies.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My laboratory specializes in advanced cardiovascular blood flow using magnetic resonance imaging. My team develops tools for acquisition, analysis, clinical translation, and innovation of cardiovascular blood flow assessment.

Student roles:
Develop dicom reader intefaces, data loading, navigation, data management, user interaction, and live stream multi-user experience.

Skills required:
For this project, students require expertise in programming and visualization. Python, ML, past experience with VR developments.

170. Carrots and sticks: assessing intervention effectiveness for sustainable mobility systems to reduce GHG emissions

Transportation is the second-largest source of Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in Canada. Promoting people to change to sustainable mobility options (e.g., tramway, bus, and bike) is an important solution to reduce GHG emissions. Governments at various levels provide a number of attractive measures in favor of alternative transport (e.g., “carrots”), and others that aim to discourage unsustainable modes (e.g., “sticks”), to address this challenge of modal shift. The objective of this research program is to develop innovative models, new survey and experiment methods, and applicable tools to simulate and evaluate the effects of modal shift strategies on mobility and their contribution to GHG goals according to their type (Carrots, Sticks, or Combined).

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My team specializes in Transportation Engineering, Transportation and Climate Change, Travel Behavior Analysis, Transportation Network Analysis, Machine Learning Methods, Decision-Making Theories, Econometrics, Statistical Modelling, and Big Data Analysis. Advanced decision-making theory and machine learning methods are applied in our research, and we have handled different types of data, such as survey data, RP&SP data, GPS data, longitudinal panel data, etc. Our research field covers different areas, especially in urban planning, environmental studies, smart cities, and intelligent transport systems initiatives.

Student roles:
The intern will be in charge of their project, with a weekly meeting with the supervisor and day-to-day interactions with graduate students. Specific training schemes will be made for every intern based on their goals, unique situation, and capabilities, and adapted regularly. Moreover, I will hold group meetings once per month to let the interns follow up on their teammates’ research and benefit from the expertise available in the lab. The intern will be involved with case studies and the application of basic models to get a full understanding of transportation engineering. More specifically, the intern will participate in the literature review, survey and experiment design, data analysis, model generation, and policy suggestions. We expect the technical report to be of a good level, and to serve as the basis of a scientific paper on the outcome of the project. All the interns in the program can enjoy equal training and development opportunities.

Skills required:
We are looking for students doing a degree in civil engineering, computer engineering, computer science, statistics, psychology, social science, or a related specialty. A good background in modeling (e.g., optimization model, statistical model, etc) and programming (e.g., Python, Matlab, R, etc.) is essential. Some knowledge and interest in machine learning and artificial intelligence are assets. Strong professional software skills (e.g., GIS, simulation software, statistical software, etc.) are a plus. Aptitude for technical writing in English is also important, as we expect the student to write technical reports and possibly scientific papers.

171. Characterization of Closed Strings

Closed strings are an important concept in string algorithms and combinatorics on words, capturing a useful notion of internal repetition and structure within strings. Informally, a string is called closed, if it contains a proper factor (substring) that occurs both as a prefix and as a suffix, and this factor has no other occurrences inside the string. The idea of closed strings helps formalize how repetition appears in a controlled manner, which is central to many problems in string processing. It is known that there are O(n^2) closed substrings in a string www of length n. In this research project, we aim to characterize closed strings in terms of existing notions of repetition in strings, to facilitate the study of their combinatorial properties. We also aim to develop efficient algorithms to compute and enumerate closed strings based on these characterizations.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on data structures and algorithms, with a specific emphasis on strings and combinatorics on words, with applications in bioinformatics and information retrieval.

Student roles:
The prospective undergraduate student will play an active role in both the theoretical and computational aspects of the project. They will study relevant literature on string algorithms and combinatorics on words, with a particular focus on repetitions and related concepts such as borders, periods, and runs. Using this foundation, the student will contribute to developing characterizations of closed strings in terms of existing notions of repetition and assist in formulating and proving combinatorial properties. On the algorithmic side, the student will implement and test efficient algorithms in Python or C++ to compute and enumerate closed substrings, analyze their performance, and validate theoretical results through experimentation.

Skills required:
Excellent background in discrete mathematics; Excellent programming skills in Python and C++, Excellent data structure and algorithms and complexity knowledge

172. Characterizing Crossing Selection in Virtual Reality

This project focuses on the characterization of "crossing" selection within virtual reality environments. Instead of using raycasted selectors and clicking or dwelling actions to indicate interest in an object, crossing involves intersecting the object of interest with a tool. Crossing selection has been shown to have many benefits in 2D graphical environments, and this project will extend this knowledge for 3D virtual and augmented reality systems.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on Human Computer Interaction, especially as applied to creative and expressive interaction with digital tools. This includes new interfaces and support tools for performative interaction with computational audio, graphics, and other media; realtime continuous interaction supported by various types of sensing; playfull/ludic interaction; and ambient information displays.

Student roles:
The student(s) will assist in running human-participant studies in our motion-capture laboratory, collection and analysis of study data, and preparation of results for publication. Depending on contribution to the final document, the student(s) could also be listed as coauthor in the final publication.

Skills required:
The 3D crossing system is implemented in the Unity game engine, so experience with Unity is an advantage—otherwise any experience with alternate game engines (e.g. Unreal, Godot) and/or virtual reality development is advantageous.

173. Characterizing Entanglement Requirements for Distributed Quantum Data Analysis

Current quantum processors are limited by noise, qubit count, and connectivity, which constrains the size and structure of quantum data-analysis workflows executable on near-term hardware. Quantum data-analysis methods are nevertheless promising because quantum encoders can map data into high-dimensional Hilbert spaces, where a single operation can influence many components of the quantum state at once. At the same time, distributed quantum computing (DQC) is emerging as a path toward larger computations by connecting several quantum processing units (QPUs). In this setting, entanglement becomes both a computational resource and a cost: it may help reflect structure in data, improve the expressivity of quantum feature maps, or connect distributed QPUs through teleportation, circuit cutting, or local operations with classical communication. This project aims to characterize the entanglement requirements of quantum data-analysis methods. The student will investigate how different levels and structures of entanglement affect the performance and distribution cost of quantum machine-learning models and hardware-friendly models such as quantum reservoir computing. The project will compare architectures with limited, local, global, and task-informed entanglement, and analyze trade-offs, both analytically and numerically, between accuracy, circuit depth, sampling overhead, Bell-pair requirements, and classical simulability. In particular, it will distinguish useful from unnecessary entanglement: too little may make a model efficiently simulable by classical methods such as tensor-network techniques, while too much may increase sampling cost, noise sensitivity, or quantum data-concentration issues. The student will also analyze and develop quantum encoders, also known as quantum feature maps, and partitioning strategies based on experimental observations. By combining literature review, analytical derivation, numerical simulation, and benchmarking, this project will identify when entanglement is necessary, beneficial, or excessive for quantum data analysis on near-term and distributed quantum hardware.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Our research group, led by Prof. Hans-Arno Jacobsen, focuses on distributed systems and interdisciplinary quantum computing. The group works on a broad range of quantum computing topics, including quantum algorithms, quantum error correction, quantum software, and quantum machine learning. Prof. Jacobsen also leads Canada’s Quantum Software Consortium (QSC), which explores distributed quantum solutions. This project aligns closely with QSC’s objectives and fits well within the group’s expertise in quantum software and distributed quantum computing.

Student roles:
At the start of the program, the student will review literature on quantum machine learning, quantum encoders, entanglement measures, barren plateaus, tensor-network simulability, and distributed quantum computing. They will also complete tutorials and become familiar with the group’s software environment, coding practices, and research workflow.

The student will first become familiar with analytical tools for studying entanglement in quantum circuits and encoders. This includes reviewing when entanglement can be characterized exactly, for example through Schmidt rank, entanglement entropy, operator entanglement, or other relevant measures, and identifying the limitations of purely analytical approaches for realistic, data-dependent, noisy, or distributed circuits.

The student will then implement and benchmark quantum data-analysis models with different entanglement structures, such as product-state encodings, locally entangling circuits, globally entangling circuits, and task-informed entanglement patterns. Using Python and quantum-computing software such as Qiskit or PennyLane, the student will run numerical simulations to compare model performance, circuit depth, sampling cost, and distribution overhead. Where relevant, they will estimate resources such as the number of inter-QPU cuts, quasiprobability sampling overhead, Bell-pair requirements, or tensor-network bond dimensions.

Throughout the project, the student will maintain a clean codebase using Git, perform computational resource profiling, run experiments on HPC infrastructure, document experiments, organize results, and present weekly progress updates. They will contribute to data analysis, figure preparation, and manuscript writing from the beginning of the internship. By the end of the project, the expected deliverables are a literature summary, a documented benchmarking codebase, reproducible experimental results comparing entanglement regimes, and, provided that sufficient progress and results are obtained, a manuscript released as a public preprint, with the longer-term goal of supporting a future peer-reviewed publication.

Skills required:
The student should be comfortable programming in Python and using common scientific libraries such as NumPy, pandas, and Matplotlib. A solid background in linear algebra, probability, or machine learning is also expected. Familiarity with basic Bash usage and best practices for Git-based version control would be an asset. Prior experience with quantum computing concepts or frameworks such as IBM Qiskit or Xanadu PennyLane is highly desirable but not required. The successful candidate should be motivated to read scientific literature, write clear technical reports, present results, manage time effectively, and work collaboratively in a research environment.

174. Characterizing Health Service Utilization as Phylogenetic Trees

We want quantify hospital Resources Utilization Questionnaires (RUQ) data organized as phylogenetic trees by formalizing patterns of connectivity, applying machine learning used in neuroscience and neuroimaging analysis procedures to hospital administrative data at person level and predict outcomes or intervention plans. Functional analysis is planned to be performed using representational similarity analysis and hierarchical clustering to identify patterns of connectivity represented as a tree Comparison of RUQ trees, as done in phylogenetic data analytics. Making use of well-established methods in the field of phylogenetics, we embed the brain state tree structure into a geodesic metric space called the Billera-Holmes-Vogtmann (BHV) space. The BHV space provides a geometric framework for comparing tree structures, where distances reflect the dissimilarity between trees. Modeling Having embedded the state tree structure into a metric space, we define an appropriate iterated function system [Bar06] on that space to model the transition of states over time as a dynamical longitudinal process. By the appropriate definition of a contraction in wald space using the energy cost of geodesics (paths between points representing trees), the dynamical process is shown to have a unique fixed point that includes all brain states (i.e. both the tree representing resting state and the tree representing task state). a metric space, we define an appropriate iterated function system on that space to model the transition of brain states over time as a dynamical process. By the appropriate definition of a contraction in wald space using the energy cost of geodesics (paths between points representing trees), the dynamical process is shown to have a unique fixed point that includes all brain states (i.e. both the tree representing resting state and the tree representing task state).

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: We ar eworking on creating precision models of hospital service data to provide personalization intervention and treatment for neurodivergent complex pediatric populations.

Student roles:
Work to build machine learning models and be able to talk and relate to clinicians and health scientists.

Skills required:
Applied mathematics, machine learning and neural networks

175. Children Privacy Protection Engine for Smart Anthropomorphic Toys

The long-term objective of this research is to build a theoretical and technical privacy-aware context data model with an alert mechanism for smart anthropomorphic toys on enabling parents/guardians to be in control of their child’s privacy by specifying their privacy preferences in this emerging paradigm. Based on Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) and related eXensible Markup Language (XML) technologies, the major short-term objectives are: a) Context Data Model: Develop a context data model to support information flow between children and smart toys; b) Smart Toy Privacy Requirements: Define the privacy requirements in the information flow between children and smart toys; c) Theoretical Child Protection Model: Build a theoretical model with a technical architecture to protect children privacy with smart toys; and d) Malicious Dialogue Detection Model: Develop an alert mechanism based on the dialogue between children and smart toys.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Referring to the direction of the United States Federal Trade Commission Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act and the European Union Data Protection Directive, this research adopts the definition of a child as an individual under the age of 13 years old. The first assumption is that children do not understand the concept of privacy. Second assumption is that children will disclose as much information to people they can trust. Many studies found that anthropomorphic toys serve a purpose, as children trusted such designs and felt at ease disclosing private information.

Student roles:
The required role of the student would be tasked with pulling together materials for the literature review on these topics: smart toys and privacy.

Skills required:
The students should have a background in Business, Social Science or Computer Science/Information Technology.

176. Chinese Dialect (Cantonese) NLU benchmarking – humans and LLMs

We have developed CantoNLU, a benchmark comprising 7 tasks that tests proficiency and competence in Cantonese. Min et al. (2025) also measure performance of 2 existing and 2 newly trained models. We would like to extend this baseline performance measurement to: 1. Commercial LLMs like ChatGPT, Gemini, Deepseek, Qwen and larger generative LLMs like Llama, OLMo, GPT-4. They claim that they support Cantonese–can they live up to their word? 2. Human performance. What is the upper bound for CantoNLU tasks?

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Natural language understanding (NLU) is a core area of natural language processing (NLP) and involves linguistics-informed classification tasks designed to test whether the LMs possess linguistic competence. This is in contrast to NLG, whose evaluation paradigms may test for fluency, or knowledge benchmarks, which test for knowledge retrieval, like MMLU (Hendrycks et al. 2020). NLU benchmarks include general language understanding benchmarks like GLUE (Wang et al. 2018).

Student roles:
The student will learn to perform one or more the following: linguistic annotation, experiment implementation, result analysis, and scientific writing.
Linguistic annotation comprises of the following:
- Understand the goals and applications of data collection
- Establish annotation guidelines
- Annotate dataset
- Validate and strengthen annotation guidelines if necessary
Experiment implementation comprises of the following:
- Search and compile relevant literature in low-resource NLP, low-resource MT, representation learning, cross-task transfer
- Select a suite of experiments that reflect prior work in the area and our research questions
- Contribute to the codebase of the pipeline using development best practices
- Review pull requests and write documentation
Result analysis comprises of the following:
- Perform statistical analysis on results
- Formalize how the results support or contradict the hypotheses, how they answer our research questions
Scientific writing comprises of the following:
- Motivate the research questions and hypotheses based on current research literature in representation learning, cross-task transfer, and pre-training dynamics
- Review related literature, including and not limited to similar work in other languages, prior work on which this work stands, and works that make similar yet distinct contributions
- Report experimental setup, result analysis in reproducible detail while motivating each major decisions
- Highlight why these contributions are important, and discuss an explanation of the results

Skills required:
The ideal student will have interest and prior experience in programming in Python and version control, as well as one or more of the following stacks:
- NLP stack: neural frameworks like torch and transformers, fine-tuning, evaluation frameworks
- API and inference stack: OpenAI API, vllm, high-performance cloud computing (gcp, slurm, etc)
- Language stack: native proficiency in Cantonese or other Sinitic languages other than Mandarin

177. Classification of B-cell types

ne of the primary challenges in computational immunology involves the analysis of the B cell receptor repertoire within the clinical context. This entails the development and proposal of novel methodologies for clonal clustering, intra-clonal diversity investigations, and repertoire visualization. In this project, we aim to build upon an established collaborative effort between two research laboratories at the Université de Sherbrooke and the Université de Montpellier. Our objective is to validate the results obtained by clinicians using an automated approach. This approach will facilitate the integration of phylogenetic trees derived from distinct leaf sets, resulting in a composite phylogenetic tree referred to as a "supertree." Determining the level of support or contradiction provided by multiple trees for a complete bipartition is not always straightforward. While it is possible to tally the frequency of occurrence of an incomplete bipartition in the input trees, this statistical information alone cannot be directly employed to infer the majority of complete bipartitions. Consequently, we must employ an alternative criterion to establish a majority supertree.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Nadia Tahiri has been an assistant professor in the Department of Computer Science at the Université de Sherbrooke since July 2021. Her research program focuses on the development of new criteria to better understand the processes that generate and maintain biodiversity, mainly through the identification of evolutionary processes. She has worked on various projects, including the development of a new rapid method for detecting and validating horizontal gene transfer events using phylogenetic trees, the design of a phylogeographic approach to understanding wild coffee species in Madagascar, and the construction of explicit hybridization networks using the maximum likelihood approach.

Student roles:
During this internship, students will undertake the task of developing a novel approach for classifying phylogenetic trees, drawing inspiration from immunological studies. This approach will introduce a weighting system that takes into account various factors, such as the abundance of clones within cells, multifurcation, and internodes with a degree of 2. By incorporating these considerations, this innovative approach aims to identify carcinogenic lineages by detecting an excessive presence of specific clones in comparison to others within the same cell population.

Furthermore, students will be expected to propose a new metric for evaluating phylogenetic trees, choosing from options such as Robinson and Foulds distance, Quartet distance, or least-squares distance. Alongside this, interns will be responsible for implementing an efficient data structure that facilitates seamless insertion, deletion, and search operations. Subsequently, they will integrate these metrics into the existing algorithms of the laboratory, specifically those developed by Tahiri et al. in 2018 and 2022, in collaboration with the research teams from the University of Sherbrooke and the University of Montpellier labs.

Finally, as part of their internship, students will have the opportunity to analyze real-world data alongside the aforementioned research teams.

Skills required:
Good programming skills (e.g. C, C++, Python).
Algorithm. Graph Theory. Some knowledge in
bioinformatics (a plus). The student must be very
autonomous and show initiative. The student must
speak and write in English or French.

178. Classification of pain sensitivity profiles using brain imaging and machine learning.

The objective of this research project is to determine the physiological responses, including brain responses, that determine invidivual differences in pain sensitivity and pain regulation capacity. We use electroencephalography and other physiological recordings to measure pain responses to various painful stimuli, including electrical, thermal and laser stimuli. We also use validated questionnaires to characterize individual profiles and account for individual differences in psychosocial factors that influence pain perception. Using machine learning, we will examine the psychological characteristics and physiological responses that allow the classification of individuals with low and high pain sensitivity, low or high endogenous pain inhibition capacity, and low or high endogenous pain facilitation capacity. We will also explore regression models with machine learning to examine these individual differences on a spectrum from low to high sensitivity/capacity.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: We are a team with various expertise working on pain neurophysiology and the brain and we conduct research in the broad field of Neuroscience with various approaches and methodology. We aim to understand the mechanisms of pain perception and regulation and how we can develop innovative non-pharmacological approaches for pain management.

Student roles:
Ability to communicate well and work with a team of students of different backgrounds (from computer science to health care), different origins and languages, as well as different academic levels (undergraduate to postdoc).

Skills required:
The student should have basic skills to work with Python or Maltlab or be interested in learning these software. As far as motivation is demonstrated, the candidate will be considered. Of course, if the candidate is motivated and already skilled with these software, it is a competitive advantage.

179. Classification of the categories of lymphocites

One of the main problems of computational immunology is to analyze the B cell receptor repertoire in the clinical context. This includes the development and proposal of new approaches for clonal clustering, intra-clonal diversity studies and repertoire visualization. This project will build on an existing close collaboration between two research laboratories at the Université de Sherbrooke and the Université de Montpellier. Our objective is to confirm the results of the four categories obtained by clinicians by an automatic approach. This approach will allow the combination of phylogenetic trees defined on different sets of leaves. The phylogenetic tree (i.e. the additive tree) is called "supertree". It is not always possible to determine how many trees support (or contradict) a complete bipartition. It is not difficult to count the number of times a given incomplete bipartition appears in the input trees, but this statistic cannot be used directly to infer the majority of complete bipartitions. Therefore, we must use a different criterion to define a majority supertree.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Nadia Tahiri received her M.Sc. and Ph.D. in Computer Science from the University of Quebec in Montreal, Canada. She was a postdoctoral researcher and worked on QSAR/PBPK (machine learning) model prediction in environmental health sciences at Université de Montréal, Canada. She has received several awards and grants during her career. She is currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Sherbrooke, Canada. Her research interests include bioinformatics, phylogenetic tree, phylogeography, clustering, classification, computational biology, supertree, consensus tree, and machine learning theory.

Student roles:
In this internship, students will develop a new approach to classifying phylogenetic trees (based on immunological studies) that will allow giving weight to the abundance of clones present in cells. This innovative approach will make it possible to highlight carcinogenic lineages, by an overabundance of a given clone compared to other clones present in the same cell. In addition, students will propose a new phylogenetic tree metric (e.g. Robinson and Foulds distance, Quartet distance or least-squares distance will be chosen). Interns will implement an efficient data structure with respect to inserting, deleting, and searching for data. They will then integrate the metrics into the lab's algorithms (Tahiri et al. 2018 and Tahiri et al. 2022) with the collaboration of the University of Sherbrooke and the University of Montpellier labs. Finally, they will analyze real data with the same research teams.

Skills required:
Good programming skills (e.g. C, C++, Python). Algorithm. Graph Theory. Some knowledge in bioinformatics (a plus). The student must be very autonomous and show initiative. The student must speak and write in English or French.

180. ClusterVision: Automatic Unsupervised Video Classification Through Multimodal Feature Clustering

This project investigates automatic methods for grouping large collections of unlabeled videos into semantically coherent clusters without requiring human annotation. As video content grows exponentially across platforms, manual categorization becomes impractical, motivating the need for scalable and unsupervised approaches. The project focuses on extracting rich multimodal feature representations from raw video data, combining visual, temporal, and optionally audio signals. Deep learning architectures - including convolutional neural networks (CNNs) for spatial features, recurrent or transformer-based models for temporal dynamics, and pre-trained video encoders such as TimeSformers - will be used to produce compact and expressive embeddings for each video. These embeddings will serve as input to clustering algorithms such as k-means or hierarchical agglomerative clustering, with the objective of grouping videos that are visually or semantically similar. A key challenge in this work is to define and measure cluster quality in the absence of ground-truth labels. The project will evaluate clustering performance using internal metrics as well as external benchmarks on labeled datasets treated as unsupervised problems (e.g., UCF-101, Kinetics). The expected outcomes include a reproducible pipeline for unsupervised video clustering, and a comparative analysis of feature extraction strategies and clustering algorithms. Potential applications are: content moderation, video recommendation systems, media archiving, and surveillance analytics. This work contributes to the broader field of self-supervised and unsupervised representation learning for video understanding.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Signal & Image Processing Computer Vision Artificial Intelligence

Student roles:
- State of the art in unsupervised and self-supervised video representation learning
- Identify and analyze relevant clustering methods and deep learning architectures
- Collect, download, and preprocess benchmark video datasets (UCF-101, Kinetics)
- Implement data loading and feature extraction pipelines
- Implement and adapt deep learning architectures (CNNs, Transformers, pre-trained encoders) for video embedding generation
- Integrate and configure clustering algorithms (k-means, hierarchical)
- Explore dimensionality reduction techniques (e.g., t-SNE) for visualization and preprocessing
- Evaluate clustering quality using internal and external metrics (silhouette score, Davies-Bouldin)
- Build a modular, reproducible, and well-documented codebase
- Write regular progress reports for the supervisor
- Prepare a final report, present results through meetings

Skills required:
- Linear algebra
- Probability and statistics
- Optimization theory
- Supervised and unsupervised learning fundamentals
- Deep learning architectures: CNNs, RNNs, LSTMs, Transformers
- Deep learning frameworks: PyTorch or Tensorflow
- Libraries: OpenCV, Scikit-Learn, NumPy, Matplotlib
- Video processing tools: FFMpeg, Decord
- Self-supervised and contrastive learning methods
- Clustering algorithms
- Pre-trained models and transfer learning
- Image and video feature extraction
- Familiarity with video datasets (UCF101, Kinetics, HMDB51)
- Knowledge of clustering evaluation metrics (silhouette score, Davies-Bouldin)

181. Co-designing a virtual mental health courtroom to prepare patients who are scheduled to appear in court

People living with a mental health disorder are at a higher risk of becoming involved in legal proceedings at some point in their lives compared to the general population. For those who must appear in court, legal proceedings can be stressful and anxiety-inducing. Testifying can be a challenge for some. Impaired social skills, the formal court setting, or others’ biases regarding testimony can all impact participation in these processes. This project aims to provide these individuals with an immersive environment to familiarize themselves with the court, in this case the Review Board for Mental Disorders. This space will also allow individuals to practice giving testimony before this board.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: In recent years, I have become interested in the use of immersive technologies to support the rehabilitation of people living with schizophrenia in prison and forensic psychiatry. My current research focuses more specifically on the contribution that different forms of immersive technology can make to relaxation, social skills training and emotion regulation.

Student roles:
Depending on the student’s background and level of fluency in French, they will play a role in either 1) conducting codesign workshops with patients and court members to help define and design the virtual environment, or 2) programming the virtual environment, characters, and animations. If the student participates in the codesign workshops, they will play a role in collecting and analyzing qualitative data. The student will also take part in team meetings held throughout the project. They will also be involved in drafting written or oral communications related to the project. In all cases, the student will have the opportunity and necessary autonomy to familiarize themselves with the research topic, the internship environment, the required activities, and the technologies used (virtual reality applications, softwares, qualitative analysis tools, etc.).

Skills required:
We are looking for a student with a background in design or in computer science and programming. For design students, skills in graphic design, UX design, or participatory design are a valuable asset. For computer science and programming students, an understanding of object-oriented programming is a valuable asset. Knowledge of Unity or Unreal for game development is an additional asset. The student should be comfortable interacting with people with mental health disorders. A basic knowledge of French is an asset in this project.

182. Code in artist's social media

Generative artists write code, run code, tweak code in order to generate artworks. Many artists share the artworks on online platforms, such as instagram or bandcamp. Sometimes, artists also share the code. Sharing code can have mutliple meanings: cool medium, transparency, generosity, traceability. Sharing code can take several forms, such as posting a link to a code repository along a social media post, sharing a picture or screencast of the code that performs the artworks, or it might be that the act of writing code is part of the artistic performance. In this project, the student will develop novel methods to collect source code that is shared on social media platforms. The goal is to explore these different practices of artistic code sharing as well as the different motivations of artists for sharing code. https://spectrum.library.concordia.ca/id/eprint/992759/1/Thow_MA_F2023.pdf https://www.google.com/search?q=%22github.com%22+site%3Abandcamp.com https://youtu.be/ca7xzqR7WaY

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: I do research in software engineering. I work on various techniques that involve source code analysis, execution traces, code transformation, software dependencies, build systems, with applications to internet-based systems and generative art systems. I have worked in France, Sweden and Canada with graduate students from all five continents. More details about my contributions and our current research crew: https://softwarediversity.eu/

Student roles:
The student will perform the following tasks
- curate a list of social media platforms that can be queries automatically and where artists share code
- build a diverse dataset of posts where artists share code and art
- establish a typology of different sharing practices
- report on this work in scientific report

Skills required:
Data mining, data analysis, image analysis, code analysis, an interest for digital art and internet culture

183. Collaborative Education Game Development

My main ongoing research project is the development and use of a research platform and serious gaming tools, designed to educate teens about social engineering attacks like sextortion (currently the fastest growing crime against minors in Canada and across the world). I am interested in improving the effectiveness of the education and improving both learner engagement and the retention of that learning over a sustained period of time. These new tools will measure quantitative and qualitative improvements in learning in the way that users can identify and avoid such attacks and/or provide better mentorship to friends in the support network of potential victims to such attacks. As part of this work, I am developing a new, collaborative peer-based learning environment and implementing specific game features and improvements in a new multi player game that leverages story telling techniques and recent advances in applied Artificial Intelligence, with multimedia synthesis. This game emphasizes social learning as well as personal and group-based reflection techniques. Both of these have been shown to be effective on long-term retention of information and skills and also for sustained behavioural changes. Despite this, existing commercial security awareness products and services seldom incorporate such mechanisms, which is surprising.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research area is security and privacy, as well as education/teaching, with some application of Machine Learning techniques. In fact, my research now combines these things together. Given that cybersecurity skills are in high demand (i.e. there are considerably more cybersecurity jobs than qualified candidates for those jobs) I am interested in how to educate people more effectively and more efficiently in the security/privacy area and the effects of GenAI on education. Besides doing technical research in the authentication area, I also do research in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SOTL) area too.

Student roles:
The student will be developing game features, based on sound pedagogical or cognitive psychological learning principles. The student will be testing these software features with real users and revising the code appropriately, with an overall objective of optimizing long-term retention of cybersecurity skills, knowledge and ability for users.

Specifically, the following will be required:
. Implement and test different features for a collaborative learning game with users
. Capture defects and improvements using github and github issues
. Prioritize and then incorporate required fixes and feature improvements, in consultation with other team members
. Collect Data from a "reasonable" set of users and analyze that data, critically, for ways to optimize learning further for a wide range of users
. Timelines need to be defined in collaboration with the student, based on their specific and real experience, but (roughly):
- 2 weeks of system and game understanding and code familiarization
- 2 weeks of implementation and feature testing
- 2 weeks of setup and then testing with real users and the resulting related bug fixes and feature enhancements
- a further 2 weeks of testing with a distinct set of real users to collect actual data for analysis
- 2 weeks of analysis of that collected data and the creation of a technical report draft
- review of that report with graduate student and supervisor
- 2 weeks of revisions of the report, with extra time required to collect more data or re-collect previous data, depending on the analysis results.
- 2 weeks of slop time, if above estimates are overly optimistic

Basic deliverables: back-end python design work, front-end UI/UX testing and revision, use of AI/ML methods (e.g. chatgpt or Claude) to optimize learning, "other" innovative ways of improving user learning and retention (e.g. story-telling or multimedia synthesis)

Skills required:
The ideal student would have computer programming aptitude (e.g. python) and the ability to work with others in a programming environment. Industrial programming experience is, therefore, an asset, although course-based programming skills are fine too. The ability to work independently and use tools like github, effectively, would be assets, as would an appreciation of the importance of writing maintainable code. Additionally, the candidate would have an interest in user-based design and applied Artificial Intelligence, user testing, or an interest in education and learning, since the basic purpose of the research is to improve education using online computer-based tools and methods.

184. Collaborative Robot Arm Software Development

Currently available collaborative robots, such as the Universal Robots UR5, are safe enough to be able to work alongside people without being fenced in. However their capabilities are still quite limited. We are working on the next generation of collaborative robots that will be smarter, safer and much more interactive with users. We have developed a collaborative robot arm, and C++ software for controlling it using sensor data. The arm is equipped with a variety of sensors, including RGB-D sensors that provide real-time image and depth data. The objective of this project is to design, program and experimentally test robot software for collaborative tasks. Of particular interest is the so-called “handoff” or “handover” task where the robot retrieves a desired object (e.g., a tool) and passes it to the person, or the person passes an object to the robot. This project will provide an opportunity to learn and apply 3D vision, kinematics, and control algorithms to a next generation collaborative robot. The software development will be in C++.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Creating control software, sensors and actuators for robotic systems with a focus on collaborative and autonomous robots. Mentoring students is a very important part of my job.

Student roles:
The student is expected to design, program and experimentally test software for controlling the robot arm. They will be working as a member of the robotics research team at McMaster University.

Skills required:
Programming in C++.
Some knowledge of robotics.

185. Combinatorial optimization under advanced discrete choice models / Optimisation combinatoire sous modèles de choix discrèts avancés

The research will be carried out either on a new project or integrated within an existing project on a combinatorial optimization problem in the domains of logistics (facility location), transportation (location-routing; inventory-routing; city logistics) or revenue management (assortment optimization). The considered planning problems will make use of advanced discrete choice models. Examples of possible projects on choice models are: - developing new choice models - learning choice models from historical data - developing optimization models based on choice models - developing solution methods to solve the previous optimization methods - carrying out case-studies on real-world data

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Choice modeling is concerned with representing the preferences of consumers (for example, product preferences retail, mode preference in transportation, etc.) as a mathematical model. Those models can be learned (calibrated) by historical data, and then used to predict future consumer choices. Choice models are useful to gain market insights, but are particularly suited to be used for further optimization (for example, to optimize a new assortment that maximizes the total profit).

Student roles:
The student will carry out a well-defined research project. While the student will be supervised, she/he is encouraged to work as independently as possible and propose solutions to the given problem. Research will be carried out either at CRI2GS at ESG UQAM, or at the Interuniversity Research Centre for Enterprise Networks, Logistics and Transportation (CIRRELT). Ideally, the student will contribute to writing a scientific paper that is submitted to a scientific journal.

Skills required:
Good programming and Mathematics skills are essential. Knowledge in mathematical optimization (linear programming, integer programming, etc.) and/or machine learning or statistical learning are a plus.

186. Communication and Control Co-Design in Cyber-Physical Systems

In cyber-physical system applications such as the Tactile Internet and Industrial IoT (IIoT), there are two objectives to be solved: communication and control objectives. In this sense, these applications have to deal with joint communication-control models and a design approach we refer to as coupled communication-control design. For instance, the Tactile Internet paradigm enables near real-time interactive communication with haptic feedback, allowing users to remotely manipulate physical environments over communication networks. The haptic devices evolve according to physical dynamics which defines a control-system with closed-loop feedback. The feedback loop traverses communication networks (e.g., mobile broadband networks), and network impairments such as delay, jitter, and packet loss directly affect stability, responsiveness, and safety. In the tactile Internet domain, control and communication objectives are commonly formulated as joint optimization problems, with one domain is treated as the primary and the other as a constraint, or dual optimization problems with shared constraints, depending on the case. This research project aims at developing a formal/analytical framework for communication-control co-design optimization in cyber-physical systems, which will enable complexity-performance tradeoff analysis, communication constraint vs. control feasibility tradeoff analysis, as well as feasibility analysis of these co-design problems.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research area is in the area of advanced wireless communications, mobile networking, machine learning, and multi-agent systems. Information about our research publications can be found at: https://home.cc.umanitoba.ca/~hossaina

Student roles:
The student will work with a PhD student and a Post-Doctoral Fellow in my research group, and help them in developing simulation modules and collection of simulation results.

Skills required:
The student will need to have background in communications and control theory, programming experience in MATLAB and/or Python. Background in optimization theory and machine learning techniques will be a plus.

187. Comparative Analysis of Token Pruning Techniques for Energy-Efficient Large Language Model Inference

Large Language Models (LLMs) have achieved remarkable performance across a wide range of natural language processing tasks. However, their deployment is associated with significant computational, memory, and energy costs. During inference, LLMs process a large number of tokens through multiple transformer layers, resulting in substantial GPU utilization and energy consumption. Recent research has proposed token pruning techniques to improve inference efficiency. The key idea is that not all input tokens contribute equally to the final prediction. By identifying and removing less important tokens during inference, LLMs can reduce computational workload while maintaining acceptable output quality. Several token pruning approaches have been proposed, including Dynamic token pruning, Progressive token pruning, Layer-wise token pruning, Learned token importance estimation, Adaptive token selection, and Early token dropping mechanisms, etc. While these methods demonstrate promising reductions in latency and computational cost, their impact on energy consumption, memory usage, and quality-performance trade-offs remains insufficiently understood. This project aims to experimentally compare representative token pruning techniques and evaluate their effectiveness for sustainable and energy-efficient LLM inference.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research focuses on Sustainable Artificial Intelligence (Sustainable AI), with an emphasis on developing efficient, scalable, and environmentally responsible AI systems. As modern AI models continue to grow in size and computational requirements, my work explores methods to reduce their energy consumption, carbon footprint, and infrastructure costs while maintaining high performance and reliability. In addition, I am interested in Large Language Model (LLM) optimization and efficiency, particularly in reducing model complexity and designing lightweight architectures that can be deployed in resource-constrained environments.

Student roles:
The student will:

- Read and summarize relevant research papers.
- Reproduce existing token pruning methods from the literature.
- Implement experimental pipelines in Python and PyTorch.
- Run inference experiments on selected LLMs.
- Collect energy, latency, memory, and quality metrics.
- Analyze results using statistical and visualization tools.
- Prepare weekly progress reports.
- Present findings during research meetings.
- Contribute to writing research papers and technical reports.

Skills required:
The ideal student should have:

- Advanced programming experience in Python.
- Fundamental knowledge of machine learning and deep learning concepts.
- Familiarity with neural networks and transformer architectures.
- Basic understanding of transformer-based LLMs
- Experience using PyTorch or a willingness to learn it.
- Ability to read and understand scientific research papers.
- Basic knowledge of Linux and command-line tools.
- Familiarity with data analysis and visualization tools such as Pandas and Matplotlib.
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
- Interest in sustainable AI, efficient computing, and systems optimization.

188. Compréhension multimodale de scènes écoénergétique fondée sur les réseaux de neurones impulsionnels

Ce projet vise à explorer l’utilisation des réseaux de neurones impulsionnels, ou Spiking Neural Networks (SNN), pour l’intégration efficace de données multimodales dans des systèmes de perception artificielle. Les approches classiques d’apprentissage profond offrent de bonnes performances, mais elles peuvent être coûteuses en calcul et en énergie, surtout lorsqu’elles doivent traiter simultanément plusieurs modalités comme l’image, le son, le toucher ou les signaux de mouvement. Ces contraintes limitent leur déploiement dans des systèmes embarqués, robotiques ou nécessitant une réponse en temps réel. Le projet portera d’abord sur l’étude des principes de calcul neuromorphique et des SNN, notamment la représentation de l’information sous forme de trains d’impulsions temporelles. L’étudiant examinera ensuite des techniques de codage des données en événements, telles que le codage par taux d’impulsions, le codage temporel ou le codage basé sur les changements du signal. Ces représentations permettront de transformer des données issues de capteurs hétérogènes en signaux compatibles avec des architectures SNN. Sur le plan expérimental, l’étudiant développera un prototype de fusion multimodale à l’aide de simulateurs ou de bibliothèques existantes pour les SNN telles que Norse, snnTorch, Nengo, etc. Le projet pourra inclure des stratégies de fusion précoce, intermédiaire ou tardive afin de combiner les différentes modalités. Les performances seront comparées à celles de modèles classiques d’apprentissage profond, par exemple des réseaux de neurones convolutifs, récurrents ou des architectures de fusion multimodale standards. L’évaluation portera sur la précision, le coût de calcul, la consommation énergétique estimée, la robustesse aux données asynchrones et la capacité du modèle à traiter des informations temporelles.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Ce domaine de recherche porte sur l’intelligence artificielle multimodale et les techniques de fusion intelligente de données hétérogènes. Nos travaux visent à développer des modèles capables d’intégrer efficacement plusieurs sources d’information, telles que les images, les vidéos, les images thermiques, les données tactiles, l’audio et les signaux physiologiques, tout en réduisant le coût computationnel afin de faciliter leur déploiement dans des environnements réels. Ces approches ont des applications importantes en santé, notamment pour soutenir le dépistage de problèmes neurodéveloppementaux, ainsi qu’en perception artificielle, en modélisation intelligente et en systèmes d’aide à la décision.

Student roles:
Dans le cadre de ce stage de 12 semaines, les stagiaires participeront aux différentes étapes d’un projet portant sur le développement d’approches neuromorphiques et impulsionnelles pour la compréhension multimodale de scènes. Le projet s’appuie sur des travaux déjà amorcés depuis plusieurs mois par deux étudiants à la maîtrise, notamment en collecte de données, en développement de modèles et en exploration d’approches d’apprentissage profond. Les stagiaires collaboreront avec ces étudiants afin de contribuer à l’avancement du projet et de tirer parti des résultats déjà obtenus.
Leur rôle comprendra d’abord une revue de la littérature portant sur les réseaux de neurones impulsionnels, la fusion de données multimodales, la perception artificielle et l’apprentissage profond écoénergétique. Ils contribueront ensuite à l’examen des données déjà collectées dans nos laboratoires, à leur organisation, à leur préparation et, au besoin, à de nouvelles collectes de données multimodales. Ils participeront également à l’élaboration d’une stratégie rigoureuse d’acquisition, de structuration et de gestion des données afin d’assurer la qualité, la cohérence et la reproductibilité des expérimentations.
Les stagiaires contribueront au prétraitement des données, ainsi qu’à l’entraînement, au test et à l’évaluation de modèles classiques d’apprentissage profond et d’architectures neuromorphiques ou impulsionnelles. Les résultats seront comparés selon plusieurs critères, notamment la précision, la complexité du modèle, le coût computationnel, le temps d’inférence, la consommation énergétique estimée et le potentiel de déploiement sur des dispositifs embarqués.
Enfin, les stagiaires participeront à l’organisation du code, à la documentation technique, à l’analyse des résultats et à la préparation de figures, de tableaux, de rapports ou de résumés scientifiques. Selon l’avancement du projet, ils pourront également contribuer à la préparation de publications scientifiques.

Skills required:
La candidate ou le candidat devrait avoir une formation en informatique, en génie informatique, en intelligence artificielle, en science des données ou dans un domaine connexe. Des connaissances de base en apprentissage automatique, en apprentissage profond et en programmation Python sont souhaitées. Une expérience avec PyTorch, TensorFlow, la vision par ordinateur, le traitement du signal ou les données multimodales serait très importante. La personne devrait être motivée, autonome et capable de lire des articles scientifiques en anglais. Une expérience en recherche appliquée, en approches neuromorphiques ou avec des bibliothèques telles que Norse et snnTorch constituerait un grand atout.

189. Computational Decision-Support Tools for Risk Diversification in Construction Project Portfolios

This research project will develop a software prototype based on a schedule-risk-financial model for construction project portfolios. The main purpose of the software is to help project owners understand how shared risks across multiple projects can affect schedules, cash flows, and portfolio-level financial performance. In construction portfolios, risk is not limited to individual projects. Several projects may be exposed to the same contractors, suppliers, labour constraints, funding limitations, regional conditions, or other common risk drivers. These shared exposures can create dependencies across projects and increase the chance of portfolio-level losses. The software will convert the proposed research model into a structured computational prototype. It will organize project schedule information, risk and issue records, cost information, and financial data in a consistent format that can be used for analysis and simulation. The prototype will be designed using an object-oriented structure, so the main elements of the portfolio model can be represented as reusable software components. It will also use graph-based modeling to show how projects are connected through schedule relationships, shared exposures, and risk dependencies. The software will allow different portfolio scenarios to be created and compared. These scenarios may include alternative budget allocation strategies, risk mitigation options, risk-transfer decisions, or strategies for reducing dependencies across projects. Through simulation, the prototype will estimate how these scenarios affect project completion dates, cash-flow patterns, NPV, downside-risk measures, probability of ruin, and diversification benefits. The final goal is to create a reusable and scalable research prototype that supports real-data validation and provides a foundation for future decision-support tools in construction project portfolio management.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: The research focuses on construction project portfolio management, with an emphasis on risk analysis and computational decision-support systems. It aims to develop schedule-risk-financial models and software tools for evaluating risk diversification in construction and infrastructure project portfolios. The research integrates project schedules, risk drivers, inter-project dependencies, cost data, and financial performance metrics to support strategic portfolio decisions, budget allocation, and portfolio optimization. The ultimate objective is to provide project owners and decision-makers with scalable analytical tools for improving portfolio resilience and financial performance under uncertainty.

Student roles:
The student will support the development of a research software prototype for a schedule-risk-financial model in construction project portfolio management. The role is suitable for a student with strong programming skills who is interested in applying software development to project analytics, risk modeling, and decision-support systems.
The student’s main responsibility will be to implement the software structure in Python using object-oriented programming. This includes developing modular and reusable code, organizing input and output data formats, processing project-related datasets, and supporting the integration of schedule, risk, and financial information within the prototype.
The student will also assist with building the simulation workflow, testing model functions, debugging code, documenting the software, and preparing structured outputs such as tables, figures, and scenario comparison results. The work will involve close collaboration with the research team to translate the proposed conceptual model into a functional computational tool.

Skills required:
The student should have a strong background in Python programming and software development. Experience with object-oriented programming, data structures, data processing, and modular code design is required.
Knowledge of project management, construction scheduling, risk analysis and financial modeling would be an asset. The student should be able to work with structured and semi-structured data, translate conceptual model requirements into code, and contribute to the development of a reliable research software prototype.

190. Computational Design and Analysis of Novel Fluorescent Molecules

This project will involve the use of computational chemistry to identify promising fluorescent molecules for future synthesis. The MITACS intern will apply Density Functional Theory (DFT) to model and evaluate fluorophores and help prioritize targets for lab synthesis. They will use industry-standard software packages, including Gaussian and ORCA, to model ground- and excited-state properties and explore how electron-donating and -withdrawing groups affect optical behavior. Introductory scripting in Python or Bash will support task automation and data management. Through this work, the intern will explore structure–property relationships and contribute to the development of design principles that guide experimental validation.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Our group designs, synthesizes, and applies unique fluorescent molecules. We use computational chemistry to guide synthesis and identify fluorophores optimized for super-resolution microscopy.

Student roles:
The student will work on-site to receive mentorship and participate in group meetings, presentations, and informal discussions that support professional growth. They will receive foundational training in computational chemistry, including command-line navigation, input file preparation, and the execution of quantum chemical calculations using Gaussian and ORCA. They will analyze ground and excited state optimizations, as well as predict absorbance and fluorescence spectra of many different fluorophores modified with electron-donating and electron-withdrawing groups.

By the end of the internship, the student will have developed technical skills in computational chemistry, data analysis, and scientific documentation. These skills are highly transferable to careers in academia, industry, and government. They will also gain broader research experience, including problem-solving, critical thinking, and contributing to interdisciplinary discussions on fluorophore design.

Skills required:
The student should have a classroom understanding of organic chemistry and be comfortable using Microsoft Excel and Word. Familiarity with command-line tools, Gaussian, Python, or Bash is not required, but exposure to any of these areas would be helpful. Most importantly, the student should be enthusiastic about learning and able to work respectfully and collaboratively within a diverse research group.

191. Computational Finance using Machine Learning Techniques

Optional pricing is one of the central activities in computational finance. The well-known Black-Scholes model of pricing the European option leads to a time dependent partial differential equation (PDE). While analytic solutions exist for special cases, numerical computation is necessary to approximate the solution. Beyond the standard Black-Scholes model for European option, many numerical methods have been developed for pricing American and exotic options such as Asian option. Furthermore, new features such as jumps in underlying asset prices and nonconstant volatility have been incorporated in jump-diffusion, Heston's, and regime-switching models. In practice, it is important that one can obtain the solutions fast and accurate. However, the complexity of the solution process depends on the number of underlying assets. When the number of assets are limited to 1 or 2, efficient PDE methods have been developed. In practice, the number of assets is often much higher in the order of tens or even hundreds. Statistical methods such as Monte Carlo have been proposed but still they are inefficient when the asset number is very high. The research project is to explore machine learning technology in order to solve option pricing equations from computational finance in high dimensions. The project will particularly focus on applying the state-of-the-art machine learning models to improve the efficiency of financial computation. Machine learning has been showing success in different applications such as computer vision, but relatively few in computational finance. This project is to investigate the possibility of solving finance equations using machine learning technology that would be more effective than traditional approach.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research is generally in the area of scientific computing. My research interests include numerical solutions of partial differential equations, fast linear and nonlinear solvers, with applications in computational finance, computer graphics, medical image processing, and parallel computation on high performance platforms.

Student roles:
Students will be involved in:

1) studying of machine learning techniques

2) studying of numerical methods for computational finance

3) implementation of the computational methods

4) writing up of the results including the documentation of the code developed

Skills required:
Students working in this project are preferred to have the following background:

1. Calculus and linear algebra
2. Numerical computation
3. Programming in python
(Background in finance/machine learning is not required, but it would be useful)

192. Computer Vision Methods for Surgical Navigation in Spine Surgery

This project aims to develop an ultrasound-based surgical navigation solution to make spine surgery more accurate, safer, and more accessible. Each year, thousands of patients require spinal procedures involving the placement of pedicle screws to restore or maintain the biomechanical stability of the spine. However, inaccurate screw placement can lead to serious neurological, vascular, or mechanical complications. Current navigation approaches often rely on fluoroscopy or CT imaging, which can increase radiation exposure, require expensive equipment, and remain unavailable in many clinical settings. The goal of this project is to create and evaluate reliable ultrasound-based navigation methods that can support pedicle screw insertion during minimally invasive spine surgery. The project will combine ultrasound-to-3D model registration, automatic segmentation, adaptive planning, and real-time visualization of surgical instruments relative to patient anatomy. These methods will be integrated into an open-source surgical navigation platform, making the technology more accessible for research, training, and future clinical translation. A key scientific challenge will be to account for anatomical variability and biomechanical deformation during surgery, enabling robust registration between intraoperative ultrasound images and preoperative or patient-specific 3D models. The intern will contribute to the development, implementation, and evaluation of computer vision and image-guided surgery methods designed for realistic surgical conditions. The proposed approach will be quantitatively evaluated using ex vivo porcine spine models in minimally invasive pedicle screw insertion scenarios. Accuracy, robustness, repeatability, and usability will be assessed to determine the potential of the method as a radiation-free alternative to conventional navigation systems.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Dr. Gueziri's research focuses on the design and evaluation of ultrasound-guided navigation systems in neurosurgery, the development of new smart sensor technologies, and the application of immersive visualization in medicine. This work encompasses three key research areas: surgical assistance, education and simulation, and the design of low-cost medical systems.

Student roles:
The student will contribute to the development and evaluation of image processing methods for ultrasound-based surgical navigation in spine surgery. Their main role will be to design, implement, and test algorithms for processing intraoperative ultrasound images and supporting accurate registration between ultrasound data and 3D anatomical models.

The student will work on tasks such as image enhancement, feature extraction, segmentation, and preparation of ultrasound data for registration. They will also contribute to the implementation and evaluation of registration methods, with a particular focus on measuring accuracy, robustness, and repeatability under realistic experimental conditions.

A key part of the project will involve quantitative validation using ex vivo spine models. The student will help design evaluation protocols, process experimental datasets, compute registration error metrics, and analyze the factors that influence registration performance. This may include assessing target registration error, surface alignment accuracy, sensitivity to initialization, and variability across repeated acquisitions.

The student will be expected to document their methods, maintain clean and reusable code, and communicate results clearly through reports, figures, and presentations. They will work closely with the research team in an interdisciplinary environment combining computer vision, medical imaging, and surgical navigation.

Through this project, the student will gain hands-on experience in medical image processing, image registration, quantitative validation, and the development of practical tools for image-guided surgery.

Skills required:
- Background in computer science, biomedical engineering, medical imaging, electrical engineering, or a related field
- Strong programming skills in Python and/or C++
- Experience in computer vision, image processing, machine learning, or medical image analysis
- Experience with 3D data, image registration, segmentation, ultrasound imaging, or surgical navigation is highly desirable
- Ability to work in an interdisciplinary research environment involving engineering, computer science, and clinical applications
- Interest in developing practical solutions and validating algorithms on realistic ex vivo models
- Strong problem-solving skills, autonomy, scientific curiosity, and clear communication skills

193. Computer Vision and Object Tracking for creative project on AI Surveillance

For this project, we will develop a computer-vision system capable of tracking the movement of objects in a controlled environment (eg: ants in an ant-farm, fish in an aquarium). The system will be used as part of an art project around AI surveillance, applying such algorithms to illustrate how connections, assumptions and projections are made in a dangerous fashion. Tracking information will be projected back onto the objects (eg: projecting images onto glass, with bounding-boxes around fish), tracking behaviours over time, and applying human/social-level suspicions to their behaviours.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research includes explorations of the social implications of advanced technolgies such as artificial intelligence and mixed realities/VR. I am a computer scientist engaged in developing prototypes, research, and research-creation that directs and critiques technologies through novel approaches and collaborations with communities.

Student roles:
There are a host of new machine-learning object-tracking/computer-vision tools on the market,
both open-source and comemrcial, and the student will evaluate, select, and develop a reusable
approach as part of the larger research-creation project. The student will work under the
supervision of the faculty-member, but must be comfortable finding options, code-documentation,
recommendations and code-samples online. They must also be comfortable with open-ended exploration, building prototypes of physical and digital ideas.

Skills required:
A computer-science student with either experience in computer-vision, or comfort learning new
APIs and tools to develop the object-tracking portion of the project. They must be a comfortable
coder able to develop well-documented, modular code as part of a larger project
OR
An engineering or digital-art student comfortable with Arduino, physical prototyping, electronics prototyping
OR
An industrial design or other student comfortable with physical prototyping, installation art, fabrication

194. Computer-Aided Convex Analysis

The project aims at extending a numerical library to more easily manipulate convex and nonconvex functions of two variables. The resulting toolbox aims at computing and visualizing convex operators thereby facilitating computer-aided convex analysis. The goal is to visualize in real time modifications of an input function and its associated operator. The challenge is the creation of online algorithms and their efficient implementation for visualization in 2d and 3d. Some operators live in 4d and require more advanced visualization techniques.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Convex analysis provides powerful tools to solve optimization problems in a wide range of fields: business (minimizing costs, maximizing profit), economics, etc. As an extension of the classical linear programming theory, convex optimization algorithms are among the most used algorithms ever. While operators routinely involved in convex analysis have been used theoretically for decades, very limited symbolic computation of convex operators is available today and manual calculation is still the only method to build examples. Computational Convex Analysis is my specialty and I focus on building symbolic-numeric algorithms to compute convex operators in the most efficient way.

Student roles:
The student will first become familiar with the existing numerical library and visualization tools. Then (s)he will implement the data structure to manipulate operators and code the visualization tools in a mathematical software (MATLAB, Python or JavaScript/TypeScript). The student will then test the code on specific numerical examples. The internship will provide exposure and training in software engineering, scientific computing, and visualization. The student is not expected to create new algorithms (although volunteering new ideas is definitely welcome) but to implement fully specified algorithms in a high level programming language. Exploration of parallelization of the computation may be investigated. The background required is experience in programming in a high level programming language (C/C++, Java, python, MATLAB, etc.), and interest in Mathematics. Any background in optimization or AI is welcome but not required.

Skills required:
An interest in mathematics, good programming skills, and good oral communication skills are all that is required. Most of the development will be performed in MATLAB, Python or JavaScript/TypeScript. Some knowledge of software engineering would be helpful, especially unit/coverage/acceptance testing but can be taught at the beginning of the project. Mathematical concepts and ideas in convex analysis, complexity, and numerical analysis are elementary and at the level of a third year undergraduate student. Experience with AI and LLMs-especially for coding-is optional, and would be leveraged if available.

195. Computer-Assisted Analyses for Algorithms for Min-Max Optimization

This project focuses on analyzing algorithms for min-max optimization, which is a widely used framework for classical problems in game theory as well as machine learning (ML) applications such as robust ML or adversarial ML. We will focus on using the performance estimation problem (PEP) framework which aims to pose the problem of convergence analysis as an optimization problem. Then the numerical solution of this problem helps discover analytical convergence proofs. PEP arose as an extremely powerful tool in the recent optimization literature to both discover new algorithms with unique properties or analyze algorithms that have been showing numerical promise with lacking convergence analysis. There exist excellent resources and code packages for PEP (such as PEPit in python or Julia) which makes it easy to use it in algorithmic research. The goal of this project is to use this tool to study min-max optimization algorithms. In particular, we will focus on primal-dual algorithms as well as their stochastic variants (randomized-coordinate or stochastic gradient-type). We will also look into how to solve both convex-concave and classes of nonconvex-nonconcave problems relevant in ML. The goal will be to discover optimal algorithms and their analytical convergence analyses by using the PEP framework. Then, numerical performance of schemes will also be performed in an appropriate environment (using Julia or Python).

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My area is continuous optimization. In particular, I focus on optimization algorithms, including their design, convergence/complexity analysis and efficient implementation, for solving problems arising in machine learning and data science. My research uses theoretical tools from convex analysis, monotone operator theory, applied probability and theoretical computer science. Moreover, my interests also concern efficient implementation of optimization algorithms in modern large scale computing platforms.

Student roles:
The student will be responsible for reading research papers, which will be mathematical and computational, that contain the algorithms that we will study and the performance estimation problem (PEP) framework which is the main tool we will use for computer-assisted analyses of the algorithms. The student will experiment with this platform and then use it to investigate the convergence analyses of algorithms in question. This will involve many meetings between the PI and the
student for trouble-shooting and debugging as well as studying algorithms and analyses from papers. During this process, there will be regular meetings between the PI and the student. The student will be a part of the research group of PI which involves multiple graduate students, with potential collaboration opportunities. The student will show their progress to the PI and to the group via oral presentations and written reports.

Skills required:
The student is required to have mathematical maturity to be able to read and understand highly mathematical papers that develop optimization algorithms and their convergence analysis. Particularly, the PI expects proficiency with optimization theory, machine learning, linear algebra, probability and real analysis. The the project has major computational aspects as well: as a result, the student is expected to be proficient with programming languages and environments including Julia, Python, C/C++, PyTorch.

196. Conception d'avatars humains dans une installation industrielle et mise en oeuvre en réalité augmentée

In order to help humans in an industrial installation, the objective is to create a virtual human avatar added in augmented reality. This avatar becomes the companion and the helper to his real partner. This avatar must converse and interact in a natural way based on generative AI technologies.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: The laboratory area of expertise covers design and evaluation of interactive and intelligent assistive systems using multi-modality including haptic as communication channel and artificial intelligence. These systems are usually portable, but also concern design of semi-autonomous robotic mechanisms such as cable driven parallel robots. The main objective is to design, implement and evaluate technologies for people with disability or in loss of autonomy.

Student roles:
The role of the student is to develop on an augmented reality glasses (Hololens) a human avatar able to interact with a human in an industrial installation including collaborative robots. The design will be done with ROS, JuliaRobotics or RoboDK.

Skills required:
The student must master 3D design and visual rendering techniques. Preferably, the ideal candidate has the knowledge on rotation matrices, generative artificial intelligence. Finally, knowledge of robotics, in particular manipulators is desirable. An additional asset would be to have knowledge of haptics and virtual reality.

197. Concurrent Data Structure: B+-Tree

B+-trees are fundamental data structures that are widely used in database management systems, file systems, and key-value storage engines. Efficient concurrent B+-tree implementations are essential for supporting high-throughput data access on modern multicore architectures. Although numerous concurrent B+-tree designs have been proposed, including recent latch-free approaches such as FB-tree [2], these implementations often rely on sophisticated synchronization mechanisms, making them difficult to design, implement, verify, and maintain. This project aims to investigate the use of Multi-Compare-and-Swap (MCAS) [1] as a synchronization primitive for simplifying the design of concurrent B+-trees while maintaining competitive performance on multicore shared-memory systems. We will first conduct experimental comparisons of representative concurrent B+-tree implementations. Based on that, we will design and implement an MCAS-based concurrent B+-tree and evaluate its scalability, throughput, latency, and memory overhead under a variety of workloads and concurrency levels. In addition to experimental evaluation, the project will establish the correctness of the proposed design through formal reasoning and analyze its time and space complexities. The outcomes of this research will contribute to the development of maintainable, verifiable, and scalable concurrent indexing structures for modern multicore systems and may provide general insights applicable to other concurrent search-tree data structures. [1] Guerraoui, Rachid, et al. "Efficient Multi-Word Compare and Swap." 34th International Symposium on Distributed Computing. 2020. [2] Chen, Yuan, et al. "FB-tree: A Memory-Optimized B-tree with Latch-Free Update." VLDB 2025

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: B+-trees are fundamental data structures that are widely used in database management systems, file systems, and key-value storage engines. Efficient concurrent B+-tree implementations are essential for supporting high-throughput data access on modern multicore architectures. Although numerous concurrent B+-tree designs have been proposed, including recent latch-free approaches such as FB-tree [2], these implementations often rely on sophisticated synchronization mechanisms, making them difficult to design, implement, verify, and maintain.

Student roles:
1. Literature Review and Analysis: Conducting a comprehensive review of research papers on concurrent B+-trees, Multi-Compare-and-Swap (MCAS), lock-free data structures, and multicore synchronization techniques. The student will summarize key findings, identify research gaps, and develop a strong theoretical foundation for the project.

2. Algorithm Design and Development: Investigating existing concurrent B+-tree designs and developing new algorithms or enhancements based on MCAS. The student will analyze design alternatives and explore techniques to improve implementation simplicity, correctness, and scalability.

3. Software Implementation: Implementing concurrent B+-tree algorithms in C++, with an emphasis on performance, correctness, modularity, and code maintainability. The student will also develop benchmarking and testing frameworks to support experimental evaluation.

4. Experimental Evaluation: Designing and conducting experiments on multicore shared-memory systems to evaluate the scalability, throughput, latency, memory overhead, and correctness of the proposed methods. The student will compare the proposed approach against representative state-of-the-art concurrent B+-tree implementations using both synthetic and realistic workloads.

5. Research Reporting and Scientific Writing: Contributing to the preparation of technical reports and research manuscripts that document the methodology, experimental results, analysis, and conclusions. The student will also create figures, tables, and visualizations to effectively communicate the research findings.

Skills required:
The ideal student should have a strong background in computer science or a related field, with a specific interest in algorithms and data structures. Proficiency in C++ programming is essential, including experience with object-oriented design, algorithm implementation, and efficient memory management.

198. Configuration Debt in DevOps

Modern software projects depend on configuration files such as GitHub Actions workflows, Dockerfiles, Terraform scripts, and Kubernetes manifests to automate software delivery and operations. Like source code, these files can accumulate technical debt: shortcuts, poor design decisions, or outdated practices that make systems harder and more costly to maintain over time. In configuration files, like YAML, we would refer to this as configuration debt. Common examples include duplicated configurations, hardcoded values, unpinned dependency versions, inefficient container images, and overly complex workflows. Despite their importance, configuration debt in DevOps artifacts remains largely unexplored. This project aims to analyze thousands of open-source repositories to investigate how prevalent configuration debt is in practice, across CI/CD, containerization, and infrastructure-as-code files. The student is expected to develop techniques to detect/categorize common debt patterns, measure their prevalence, and study how they evolve over time. The findings will contribute to a research paper and improve our understanding of software configuration quality.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: My research specializes in software engineering, with a focus on applying AI and data-driven techniques to improve software development processes. I work on mining software repositories, optimizing continuous integration and delivery (CI/CD), and leveraging large language models (LLMs) for tasks like code generation, testing, and configuration migration.

Student roles:
- Review the literature to identify common types of configuration debt
- Collect CI/CD, containerization, and infrastructure configuration files from open-source repositories
- Develop static analysis tools to detect configuration debt patterns
- Measure the prevalence, co-occurrence, and evolution of configuration debt
- Investigate whether configuration debt is explicitly acknowledged by developers
- Study the relationship between configuration debt and project outcomes such as build failures and maintenance effort
- Analyze results and produce figures, tables, and statistical summaries
- Contribute to the technical report and research paper

Skills required:
- Proficiency in Python
- Familiarity with Git and GitHub
- Basic Linux and command-line skills
- Basic data analysis skills (e.g., pandas and statistical analysis)
- Ability to read and understand research papers
- Experience with CI/CD services and their configuration
- Experience with DevOps tools such as Docker, Terraform, or Kubernetes is a plus but not required

199. Consciousness and Creativity in Humans and AI systems

The human brain displays rhythmic neuronal activity and complex network dynamics at multiple temporal and spatial scales. These neuronal activation patterns are present during active tasks but also during spontaneous resting states. Brain recording techniques used in our lab, such as MEG and EEG, directly measure neuronal activity and offers a high temporal resolution. Analyzing brain dyanmics using these methods carries the potential to significantly extend our knowledge of how the healthy brain operates and what causes its breakdown in neurological disorders. Several short-term project opportunities will be conducted. Some will focus on data from healthy participants, others will examine the alterations in data from neurological disorders. All projects will involve processing brain data with state-of-the-art techniques using advanced tools available in our lab. The methods used will include signal processing and machine-learning (both shallow and deep learning methods). In particular, calssification techniques (such as SVM, Random Forests and Artificial Neural Networks) will be used to attempt to automatically differentiate brain states in healthy subjects, or to automatically identify brain dysfunction in patient data. Modeling projects, where deep neural network architectures are used to model information processing in biological networks are also available. All projects will be conducted in close collaboration with doctoral or post-doctoral students in the lab who will assist the students with their projects. More information: www.karimjerbi.com + LinkedIn

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: The research focus of my Lab at the University of Montreal is on Neuroscience, Brain Imaging and Artificial Intelligence. The aim of our multidisciplinary research project is to improve our understanding of brain function and dysfunction. Our research relies on analyzing brain signals recorded with multiple techniques including electroencephalography (EEG) and magnetoencephalography (MEG). The data analysis methods used in our lab rely on state-of-the-art methods that come from numerous fields, such as Artificial Intelligence, Biomedical Engineering, Computer Science, Mathematics, Neuro-informatics, Neuro-Engineering, Signal processing, etc. The intersection between Neuroscience, Neuro-imaging and AI is an emerging field with cutting-edge research applications.

Student roles:
Role of the student:
---------------------------
-Brief literature research to understand the background of the research project
-Explore/learn the data anlysis tools that will be needed for the project
-Discuss project objectives and data analyses options with the supervisor
-Carry out the analysis and provide regular reports
-Participate in Laboratory life (Lab meetings and scientific events)
-Maintain a clean and documented codebase
-Provide a short report of the obtained results at the end of the project and possibly contribute to a research article.

Skills required:
The required skills include any of the following:

Programming (proficient in Python)
Signal processing knowledge (e.g. time and frequency-domain analyses, fractal analyses)
Experience with brain data analysis (e.g. MEG or EEG)
Machine-learning methods (theory and practice, Scikit-Learn and/or Pytorch)
Experience with foundation models (Self-Supervised Learning / Transformers / etc)
Knowledge of (or at least a strong interest in) neuroscience and higher-order cognitive processes, including consciousness and creativity
Prospective students are not expected to have all the above skills, but at least 2-3 skills from the above list is expected.

200. Context-Aware Recommendation Engines & Ambient Assistive Systems for Smart Cities

Smart Cities represent augmented environments that seamlessly utilize the Internet of Things (IoT) and multi-modal sensory networks to embed computational intelligence ubiquitously into the urban fabric. By transforming everyday objects into "smart" interactive nodes, these emerging technologies yield continuous data streams that complement advanced Artificial Intelligence (AI) algorithms, enabling them to deliver deeply contextual, proactive, and personalized services. Promoting an active lifestyle within these smart ecosystems is pivotal to fostering healthy aging, as sustained participation in physical and social activities directly enhances the well-being and independence of the aging population. While modern media platforms continuously advertise a vast array of community events, these information sources are broadly structured and are fundamentally unadapted to the specific physiological, cognitive, or accessibility requirements of older adults. To bridge this gap, the AMI-Lab (www.ami-lab.ca) is developing QueFaire—a context-aware, in-person social activity recommendation framework designed to empower older adults to lead independent, purposeful lives through ambient assistive technology. The QueFaire architecture utilizes Natural Language Processing (NLP) to parse and interpret unstructured activity descriptions from social media, subsequently filtering and proposing optimized options based on an individual's real-time user profile, medical context, and environmental conditions. Furthermore, the platform incorporates intelligent routing mechanics to structurally assist users in safely navigating to their chosen social events.

Research area, student roles & skills

Research area: Dr. Abdulrazak research interests include Ambient-Intelligence (AmI), IoT, Smart-Homes, Smart-Cities and Digital health. He works on various R&D projects at the AMI laboratory. The projects range from Assistive Home Environment for the aging people, Electronic Organizer, Pervasive Reminder System, Mobility Assistance, Smart cities for active aging, etc. These technologies aim at being used either inside or outside (city, home, retirement communities, community clinics, on the street, etc.)

Student roles:
The selected intern will serve as a core developer and researcher for the next iteration (QueFaire v2) of our assistive framework. The role bridges the gap between software engineering, semantic reasoning, and physical computing to deliver a cohesive user ecosystem.
Key responsibilities and expected deliverables include:
• Algorithmic Text Analysis: Designing and developing an intelligent text-parsing algorithm to scrape, process, and structure unstructured activity descriptions from various social media networks.
• Semantic Reasoning Engine: Architecting an automated reasoning engine that evaluates real-time environmental context against highly individualized user profiles to safely recommend optimal, personalized activities.
• Advanced Interaction Mediums: Engineering intuitive, accessible human-computer interaction modules—spanning mobile apps and embedded ambient devices—tailored explicitly for non-technical older adults.
• System Integration: Deploying and testing the final algorithmic components on localized embedded infrastructure to ensure real-time, low-latency execution.
Through this internship, the student will transition from theoretical algorithms to a tangible, high-impact deployment. This position offers rigorous technical exposure to end-to-end AI pipelines, cross-platform mobile-embedded orchestration, and assistive technology design—skills that are highly sought after in advanced graduate research and cutting-edge industrial R&D labs—while directly improving the quality of life for aging populations.

Skills required:
Core Qualifications:
• Research Motivation: High degree of self-motivation to engage with complex, multi-disciplinary R&D challenges.
• Programming Proficiency: Superior software development skills with core competence in object-oriented programming .
Technical Assets:
• Practical experience in Mobile Application Programming.
• Foundational skills operating within Linux environments and deploying software on embedded hardware.
• Practical understanding of Web Services and cross-platform API integrations.
• Basic curiosity regarding Natural Language Processing (NLP), Semantic Reasoning Engine design, or Human-Computer Interaction (HCI).

1234