Our research

[Research] - Introduction

IIT's research results aim to benefit humanity and promote prosperity by transferring knowledge and technologies to society and industry

IIT overarching priority is to develop Human-Centered Science and Technology with a multidisciplinary approach that merges different skills and expertise.

Click on the banner below to learn more about IIT’s research results.

[Research] - IIT Numbers

[Research] - Strategic Plan introduction

Strategic plan

IIT's scientific activity is based on a strategic plan, updated every six years

The 2024-2029 Strategic Plan prioritizes Artificial Intelligence for Healthcare and Earthcare. It is organized into four research domains: Computational Science, Life Technologies (LifeTech), Nanomaterials, and Robotics. Each research domain consists of independent research units, each led by a principal investigator, and it is supported by state-of-the-art facilities.

IIT Domains

Computational Sciences

Our focus is on massive simulations of physical systems, repeated to generate robust statistics, and mining vast datasets to identify explanatory patterns.

LifeTech

We are dedicated to developing advanced genetic, molecular, electrophysiological, computational, imaging, and perturbation tools aimed at dissecting the biological processes underlying brain function and RNA physiology.

Nanomaterials

Our research includes new sustainable/biodegradable materials, nanocomposites, 2D materials, nanofabrication technologies and nanodevices, and new colloidal chemistry approaches.

Robotics

We advance the state of the art by developing new robotic hardware and software in platforms for rehabilitation, prosthetics, surgery, agriculture, disaster recovery, industrial, and space applications.

[Research] - Flagships Programs banner

Flagships Programs

Flagship Programs are visionary large-scale collaborations across Research Units and Domains with well-defined ambitious goals.

[Research] - Flagships' Introduction

The Flagships Programs

The Strategic Plan recognizes the need for broader synergies to focus and deploy sufficient critical mass on selected topics. To this end, the current Strategic Plan introduces five Flagship Programs.
The Flagships Programs aim to attack large-scale problems which require extremely transversal skills and large collaborative teams. They are visionary large-scale collaborations across Research Units and Domains with well-defined ambitious goals.

[Research] - Flagships' List

Technologies for Sustainability

The goal is to use our capacity to manipulate matter at various scales to create a world without pollutants. Pollutants can be plastics, heavy metals, toxic nanomaterials, flame retardants, volatile organic compounds, and greenhouse gases.

Scientific and intellectual contribution of each Research Domain (bigger icon, bigger contribution).

Brain and Machines

The goal is to understand how the brain processes information to generate behavior. Computational methods, specifically machine learning, will be used to model neural and cognitive processes and to embody these models in robots.

Scientific and intellectual contribution of each Research Domain (bigger icon, bigger contribution).

RNA Technologies

The goal is to study RNA in order to fundamentally understand biology and so to find druggable pockets in the molecular processes of cells. Bioinformatics and computational tools are already the hallmark of IIT's research on RNA. The ambition of the RNA Technologies Program is to drug the undruggable.

Scientific and intellectual contribution of each Research Domain (bigger icon, bigger contribution).

Teaching Science to Computers

The goal is to develop new methods for instilling knowledge about the laws of physics into data-driven algorithms. Our ambition is for computational efficiency, safety, and trust to make the use of AI more democratic and open to all.

Scientific and intellectual contribution of each Research Domain (bigger icon, bigger contribution).

Technology for Healthy Living

The goal is to develop low-cost, noninvasive sensing devices to assess, in real time, the health status of a person. The flagship investigates technologies to remotely activate and precisely dispense therapeutics. We foresee a future home that takes good care of us, improving our independence and quality of life.

Scientific and intellectual contribution of each Research Domain (bigger icon, bigger contribution).

[Research] - Blue Sky Research banner

Blue Sky Research program

In addition to IIT's traditional applied science approach, the current plan introduces the Blue Sky Research program, aimed at fostering curiosity-driven science, whose outcomes can be unpredictable and surprising.

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[Research] - Moonshot projects introduction

Moonshot projects

Ambitious plans designed to achieve seemingly impossible goals. By pushing the boundaries of knowledge, these projects help shape the future.
Current moonshot projects at IIT include research on space and cultural heritage.