The convergence of mind and matter, of digital and physical technologies lies at the heart of the fourth industrial revolution. The marriage of Artificial Intelligence (A.I.) and materials science represents one of the clearest examples. Pure digital innovation has attracted the greatest attention – and a large share of financial investment – over the last several years. But we live in a material world, where the quality of our lives depends on improvements in physical products and services: food and shelter, health care, transportation,energy. True, we spend a lot more time in our online virtual worlds; but this is mirrored by a growing number of Amazon packages at our doorsteps. Our ability to discover and master new materials has defined successive stages of economic development: wood and clay; bronze and steel; paper; glass; plastics;semiconductors. It is our mastery of silicone that allowed the digital revolution to unfold. Now we can harness the power of digital technologies to accelerate the discovery of new materials, by marrying A.I. and materials science. A.I. often conjures dystopian images of mass unemployment; but this is instead another example of the power of human-machine collaboration.
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