Cohere For AI is a research lab that seeks to solve complex machine learning problems. We believe the best minds transcend borders and that discoveries are often made off the beaten path. Today, we are excited to launch the second cohort of our Cohere For AI Scholars Program, designed to help change where, how, and by whom research is done.

In 2022, we launched the Cohere For AI Scholars Program to help close the gap between research experience and opportunity. In our inaugural year, we welcomed talented researchers who worked on open ended questions for 10 months. We are incredibly proud of the scientific contributions they have made during the program. Some examples of work from our inaugural scholars program include Luiza Pozzobon’s first work on the challenges of using black-box APIs for toxicity evaluation and Arash Ahmadian's release of work that explores intriguing properties of quantization at scale.

Progress in machine learning is moving at an incredible pace, and broadening access to participation in fundamental research is essential to pioneering new advancements. Still, there are very few settings to conduct research on cutting-edge NLP problems, and limited access to large-scale ML experimental settings. Our goal is to change that and support the next generation of rising stars as they embark on their research journey.

What is the Scholars Program?

The Scholars Program provides the opportunity to work alongside some of the best researchers and engineering expertise in the world — exploring the unknown, together. It will serve as an open, supportive environment that provides an alternative point of entry into NLP research. We won’t insist on prior degrees or formal experience working in a research lab. Instead, our goal is to identify emerging talent around the world. Different from last year, we will accept scholars who have previously published. We received meaningful feedback that this was an imperfect measure, and excluded aspiring researchers who face great obstacles in entering the field of machine learning. However, we remind applicants that our goal is to be the first door to open for someone starting out. If you already have considerable research experience, this program is not suitable for you.

If accepted, you’ll join a dedicated team of passionate researchers and industry experts from January 2024 to August 2024, and will be paired with a project proposal, allowing you to grow as a researcher. Participation is full-time and paid. As part of the program, Scholars will have access to a large-scale experimental framework, world class research experts and will help advance our commitment to supporting responsible, fundamental research on machine learning topics while prioritizing good stewardship of open source scientific practices.

If you are an aspiring NLP researcher and looking for an opportunity to develop your research skills, your journey starts here. To learn more about our mission, program specifics, and to stay up-to-date on the application process, check out our website and follow us on Twitter. Applications are due September 11, 2023.

On August 15th we hosted a virtual information session that provided a Scholars Program overview and Q&A session - Click here to watch the recording.

About Cohere For AI

Cohere For AI launched in June 2022. We are a hybrid research lab and open science community dedicated to contributing fundamental research in machine learning, working to solve some of the field's most challenging problems. Our programs include our full-time research positions and lab, our open science initiatives supporting community-driven research across fundamental machine learning topics, and projects like AYA. We welcome anyone to apply to join our open science community.

Brittawnya Prince