The TILOS mission is to make impossible optimizations possible, at scale and in practice. Our research will pioneer learning-enabled optimizations that transform chip design, robotics, networks and other use domains that are vital to our nation’s health, prosperity and welfare.

TILOS is a National Science Foundation funded National Artificial Intelligence (AI) Research Institute.


TILOS is a partnership of faculty from University of California, San Diego, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, National University, University of Pennsylvania, University of Texas at Austin, and Yale University. TILOS will pioneer learning-enabled optimizations that transform chip design, robotics, communication networks, and other use domains that are vital to our nation’s health, prosperity and welfare. Foundational Research will pursue five main pillars.

  1. Bridging discrete and continuous optimization.
  2. Distributed, parallel, and federated optimization.
  3. Optimization on manifolds.
  4. Dynamic decisions under uncertainty.
  5. Nonconvex optimization in deep learning.

Statement of Values

  • We are a community of cross-disciplinary scholarship, creativity and curiosity, and value the pursuit of knowledge, the advancement of technology, and professional development.
  • We are a community of integrity and character that values what is honorable and honest addressing real societal needs and grand challenges.
  • We are an inclusive and engaged community of diverse people and perspectives that values and seeks out different viewpoints and styles of thinking.