Rice Engineering and Computing

💡 Rice Engineering and Computing faculty recently hosted two premier summits on AI and quantum computing: Quantum Information Processing Systems (QuantIPS 2025) and the Texas Colloquium on Distributed Learning (TL;DR 2025).

These events brought together global experts to set the vision for the future of quantum computing, machine learning and artificial intelligence.

🔗 Revisit these exciting events here: https://engineering.rice.edu/news/rice-ignites-innovation-two-premier-summits-cutting-edge-technologies

Rice University Electrical & Computer Engineering Rice University Computer Science Rice University Computational Applied Mathematics and Operations Research

Lei Li, assistant professor of Rice University Electrical & Computer Engineering at Rice University Rice Engineering and Computing, has received a National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER Award for a project that aims to shrink hospital-grade imaging into wearable devices. Congratulations!

“This is about giving people access to powerful diagnostic tools that were once confined to hospitals,” Li said. “If we can make imaging affordable, wearable and continuous, we can catch disease earlier and treat it more effectively.”

🔗 Read more here: https://news.rice.edu/news/2025/nsf-career-award-funds-rice-project-shrink-hospital-grade-imaging-wearable-devices

Rice researchers made CO₂ conversion last 50x longer. http://bit.ly/4euuHbs

Rice University bioengineer Mario Escobar has won a Transformational Project Award from the American Heart Association to develop a new therapy for heart failure, one of the most common and deadly cardiovascular conditions.

Escobar, assistant research professor of Rice University Department of Bioengineering working in the Hilton lab at Rice, will explore a new way to help the heart replenish its energy reserves by boosting the number and function of mitochondria.

🔗 Learn more about this exciting research here: https://news.rice.edu/news/2025/rice-bioengineer-looks-mitochondria-key-heart-failure-recovery

We congratulate Future Faculty Fellows (FFF) program alumni Peng Yang ’25, Jimin Wu ’25 and Thiago Jose Pinheiro dos Santos ’25 on their exciting postdoctoral appointments!

As they take the next steps in their academic careers, we celebrate their accomplishments and the impact of the FFF program in preparing future leaders in research and teaching.

🔗 Read their stories here: https://engineering.rice.edu/news/three-future-faculty-fellows-accept-exciting-postdoctoral-appointments
🔗 Learn more about the FFF program here: https://engineering.rice.edu/academics/future-faculty-fellows

Rice University Statistics Rice University Department of Bioengineering Rice University Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering

Rice University's OpenStax has partnered with Microsoft Education for AI-enhanced learning:

📚 OpenStax was founded at Rice University by Rich Baraniuk, C. Sidney Burrus Professor of Rice University Electrical & Computer Engineering and professor of Rice University Statistics and Rice University Computer Science, with the mission to improve educational access and learning for everyone. Microsoft Learning Zone, originally announced by Microsoft at BETT 2025, utilizes on-device AI to generate interactive lessons for students. The integration with OpenStax content means educators can safely rely on OpenStax’s digital library of 80 openly licensed titles to create effective and engaging learning experiences, without needing to source and vet content independently.

This partnership will make high-quality, personalized education more accessible for all students.

🔗 Learn more: https://news.rice.edu/news/2025/rice-universitys-openstax-partners-microsoft-ai-enhanced-learning

📢 Two distinguished Rice Engineering and Computing alums have been appointed to the Rice University board of trustees: media and software innovator William “Bill” V. Neville III ’84 and energy and sustainability leader Charlos C. Ward ’98. Congratulations! 🎉

Neville is a former member of Rice’s Reunion Giving Committee, and Ward actively supports the university through service on the School of Engineering and Computing advisory board and the REINVENTS external advisory committee and with multiple alumni and student engagement programs.

🔗 Learn more: https://news.rice.edu/news/2025/rice-welcomes-3-new-members-board-trustees


Rice University Computer Science Rice University Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering

"No one had done this before."

In an elegant fusion of art and science, Rice University researchers have achieved a major milestone in nanomaterials engineering by uncovering how boron nitride nanotubes (BNNTs) — touted for their strength, thermal stability and insulating properties — can be coaxed into forming ordered liquid crystalline phases in water.

Their work, published in Langmuir, the premier American Chemical Society journal in colloid and surface chemistry, was so visually striking it graced the journal’s cover.

Learn more: https://news.rice.edu/news/2025/no-one-had-done-art-science-and-surprising-versatility-boron-nitride-nanotubes

Rice authors include: Matteo Pasquali, the A.J. Hartsook Professor of Rice University Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, professor of chemistry, Rice University Materials Science and Nanoengineering; first author and Ph.D. candidate Joe Khoury; and Angel Martí, professor and chair of chemistry and professor of Rice University Department of Bioengineering and materials science and nanoengineering

Calling all undergraduate researchers — especially our incredible Bioengineering students!

Have original research to share? The Gulf Coast Undergraduate Research Symposium (GCURS) at Rice University is your chance to give a 10–12 minute talk (no posters!), get faculty mentorship, and connect with peers from across the country.

It’s a unique opportunity to showcase your work and grow as a scholar in a supportive, engaging environment.

Applications are now open: https://gcursapply.rice.edu/

We can’t wait to see what you’re working on!

Future Faculty Fellow Ali Siahkoohi, a Simons Postdoctoral Fellow in Rice University Computational Applied Mathematics and Operations Research, has been appointed to a tenure-track assistant professor position at the University of Central Florida (UCF), where he will contribute to the university’s AI initiative. Congratulations, Ali! 🎉

🧠 With an academic background that bridges electrical engineering, geophysics and computer science, Siahkoohi’s work revolves around developing computational tools for real-world applications. In his new role, he plans to focus on uncertainty in AI models and building community.

🔗 Learn more about Ali’s journey here: https://engineering.rice.edu/news/future-faculty-fellow-ali-siahkoohi-joins-university-central-florida-assistant-professor
🔗 Learn more about the Future Faculty Fellows program here: https://engineering.rice.edu/academics/future-faculty-fellows

The universities already offering AI degrees, from Penn to Rice University The advent of the AI degree means the computer science major, long viewed as a pipeline into Big Tech, has some more competition.