New UAlbany Faculty to Explore AI, Quantum Tech and the Human Brain ALBANY, N.Y. (Aug. 18, 2026) — UAlbany researchers are studying how to combine the enormous power of quantum computing with the unparalleled adaptability and energy-efficiency of the human brain thanks to a new endowment from the Simons Foundation to the State University of New York. The endowment of UAlbany’s Neuromorphic Quantum Computing Constellation will fund four Simons Empire Faculty Fellows — two focused on neuroscience and one each in mathematics and computer hardware engineering. SUNY announced the fellows Tuesday. The fellows joining the campus this month will work at the frontier of two so-far distinct computing fields whose integration may be essential to harnessing the power of artificial intelligence. Despite the dizzying pace of recent advances in AI and quantum computing, our own brains remain the most powerful processors known to humans. The goal of this new cluster is to model, simulate and build next-generation intelligent systems inspired by the complex organization and function of the brain. “As a research university, we know the incredible potential of the human mind. Now, thanks to the Simons Foundation, University at Albany researchers are leveraging expertise from across the university to develop AI computing systems that mimic the adaptability, efficiency and processing power of the human brain,” UAlbany President Havidán Rodríguez said. “We are so grateful to the Simons Foundation for funding this initiative and for their tireless support of scientific research.” Four new faculty members The Simons Foundation’s support will fund four new tenure-track faculty members in UAlbany’s College of Arts and Sciences and College of Nanotechnology, Science, and Engineering. The newly hired faculty members are: - Assistant Professor Kristyn Lizbinski, Department of Biological Sciences - Assistant Professor Tahereh Jabbari, Department of Nanoscale Science & Engineering - Assistant Professor Kent