Elite new master鈥檚 course seeks to bring maths students further into the AI fold
AIML and Adelaide University are thrilled to announce a new master鈥檚 course designed to bring mathematics students into the dynamic world of foundational AI.
The post-graduate course, entitled , will be administered by the School of Mathematics at Adelaide University beginning in February 2026. The forward-thinking degree bridges theoretical knowledge with practical skills to prepare students for exciting opportunities in AI-driven fields.
鈥淲e developed this program to try and create a training ground for students who are interested in being at the cutting edge of AI research and development, and who are interested in developing the next generation of AI technologies with Adelaide University鈥檚 leading research groups like AIML and the ,鈥 said Professor Lewis Mitchell, a professor of data science at the University鈥檚 School of Mathematics and Computer Science.
鈥淲e鈥檙e hoping that this program will train the next generation of AI researchers, who 鈥 can go on to work at the leading AI companies around the world 鈥 OpenAI, Google, Apple, etc.鈥
Professor Mitchell worked with AIML colleagues and professors, to develop the master鈥檚 course. The course will cover topics like the mathematics of generative AI, transformer architectures, and newer topics like 鈥渆quivariant learning鈥 or the use of ideas from mathematical geometry and topology to improve the performance of AI models. The program also hopes to eventually provide internships to students.
鈥淲e鈥檙e hoping that this program will cater to students who want to build next-generation AI technologies鈥 and are not afraid of learning some of the higher-level mathematics that are required to do so,鈥 he said. The fact is that 鈥渜uantum leaps鈥 in AI, such as the development of the 鈥渁ttention mechanism鈥 that powers large language models like ChatGPT, are the result of new mathematical ideas being applied to large datasets. We鈥檙e planning to give students the tools [so] that they can go on to make these contributions themselves in future.鈥
AIML Senior Researcher and mathematician, Dr Hemanth Saratchandran, played an integral role in the course's development.
A force behind the course's creation
The course was created in large part due to the extraordinary contributions of AIML Senior Researcher and mathematician, , to the Institute鈥檚 research outputs. The work Dr Saratchandran has conducted in AI, deep learning, computer vision, optimisation, geometry, and topology, led AIML leadership to want to bring more mathematicians into AIML鈥檚 research areas.
鈥淢athematics is the language through which AI truly comes alive,鈥 he said. 鈥淢y journey into AI and machine learning began through mathematics, and that foundation has shaped everything I do."
Mathematics didn鈥檛 just lead me to AI, it allowed me to see it from an entirely different perspective.鈥AIML Senior Researcher and mathematician, Dr Hemanth Saratchandran
鈥淜nowing that my mathematical insights have helped shape this program fills me with pride and excitement. It鈥檚 inspiring to imagine the next generation of AI experts embarking on their own mathematical journeys through these courses, discovering, just as I have, how deeply beautiful and transformative this field can be.鈥
Dr Saratchandran led the creation of two elective courses that are part of the master鈥檚 program; Deep Signal Processing and Deep Geometry.
鈥淒eep Signal Processing introduces students to the mathematical foundations that underpin modern AI, revealing how core mathematical principles shape today鈥檚 intelligent systems,鈥 he said. 鈥淒eep Geometry explores how geometry forms the backbone of modern AI architectures and applications.鈥
Dr Saratchandran believes that the program will inspire students to see AI as a discipline that incorporates maths in a way that fundamentally complements computer science.
鈥淢athematicians bring a unique way of thinking, one that鈥檚 deeply quantitative, rigorous, and often more abstract, which allows us to uncover the fundamental principles underlying intelligent systems,鈥 he said. 鈥淭heir perspective complements the practical and engineering focus of computer scientists, creating a richer understanding of how AI truly works.鈥
鈥淚n my view, the future of AI will be driven by collaboration 鈥 mathematicians, computer scientists, and engineers working together in harmony to design systems that are not only powerful, but also efficient, responsible, and safe.鈥
Creating a skills repository
AIML Professor Dino Sejdinovic, who helped develop the course and will serve as one of its lecturers, said that the program will not only provide students with the skills needed to pursue careers in AI research and development, but will also serve as a skills repository while bolstering growing calls for increased focus on responsible AI development and use.
鈥淲e envisage the graduates from this program [will] have the skills necessary for entry into higher degree research programs at AIML and elsewhere, creating the next generation of AI experts who can think deeply and carefully about foundations of the field,鈥 said Professor Sejdinovic. 鈥淭his initiative will help strengthen Australia's innovation-led position in the global AI ecosystem, creating a pipeline of skilled talent [that] the sector needs.鈥
Professor Mitchell shares the hope that the new master鈥檚 course will form the basis of a skilled pipeline of AI experts.
鈥淲e鈥檙e hoping that this program forms part of the pathway for the next generation of AI researchers and have designed the courses to give students the training they need to do that,鈥 he said. 鈥淪o, I鈥檓 hoping that we will see students thinking 鈥業 want to build the next ChatGPT鈥 and I have an idea of how to do it鈥 and then going on to do so, either as a PhD student with one of their lecturers at Adelaide University, or maybe by founding the next OpenAI!鈥
For more information on the Master of Mathematical Sciences specialising in Artificial Intelligence program, please visit