CIC, C10 Labs launch an AI hub in Kendall Square
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C10 Labs' new digs are at CIC's space in Cambridge. Photo: Steph Solis/Axios
The creators of a new venture studio in Kendall Square aim to make Massachusetts the global center of the AI industry.
Driving the news: CIC, which operates "innovation campuses" worldwide, partnered with C10 Labs, an MIT Media Lab spinout, to launch an AI venture studio space.
- C10 Labs is moving into a space leased by CIC at 245 Main St., where it will scale up to a staff of 15 and host a cohort of 15 startups, Shahid Azim, one of C10 Labs' founders, tells Axios.
Why it matters: The founders want to harness the brain power from the local tech sector and universities to build a global AI hub that will outlast the initial hype surrounding AI, per the founders and CIC's CEO, Tim Rowe.
Zoom out: New England is already on its way to becoming an AI hub, with dozens of AI startups in the software, robotics and life sciences industries.
- MassChallenge and other organizations have also supported AI startups in recent years.
- But C10 Labs and CIC want to build an ecosystem where experts across several industries, ethics advisers, investors and entrepreneurs can collaborate — one that reaches the same global renown as the state's life sciences and robotics industries.
Details: C10 Labs formed earlier this year with Azim and fellow MIT Media Labs instructors Ramesh Raskar and Patricia Geli, all of whom have founded startups in the past.
- They want to focus on "physical AI," harnessing AI's powers beyond the screen and into the real world. Examples of physical AI include using the technology to create a copilot for nurses or make manufacturing more efficient.
- The first cohort includes an app that connects sensors to gym equipment, a startup using AI to cut middlemen from lease agreements and an AI marketplace and copilot to help fertility clinics with treatment and purchasing decisions.
What's next: The staff will include experts in various sectors, including health care, energy and transportation, Azim says.