USC Receives $200 Million Gift to Build AI Research School
Mark and Mary Stevens have donated $200 million to USC to establish the USC Mark and Mary Stevens School of Computing and Artificial Intelligence. The gift, announced May 5, will fund interdisciplinary research across AI applications in health sciences, business, security and the arts.
Stevens, a USC trustee and partner at Sequoia Capital, made early investments in Google, Yahoo, YouTube and NVIDIA. He earned his bachelor's and master's degrees from USC in 1981 and 1984.
"We know the next great universities will be those that invest in computing," Stevens said. "This is a key moment. I am confident that USC has the leadership and direction to run quickly and stake our position as the trailblazer."
What the School Does
The Stevens School launched in 2024 with initial funding from the Lord Foundation of California. It operates from the Dr. Allen and Charlotte Ginsburg Human-Centered Computation Hall and serves as the university's hub for AI research and teaching.
The school houses several existing programs that the Stevens gift will expand:
- An undergraduate degree in Artificial Intelligence for Business, which teaches students to apply AI in commercial settings
- The USC Institute on Ethics and Trust in Computing, which brings together philosophers, computer scientists, journalists, doctors and policymakers to address responsible AI use
- The USC Center for AI in Society, which focuses on computing applications for vulnerable populations
AI research extends beyond computer science departments. The university's No. 1-ranked game design program and School of Cinematic Arts use AI and virtual production technologies in student work.
USC's Computing History and Current Position
USC acquired its first mainframe computer in the mid-1960s and played a role in early internet development during the 1970s. The university began AI and creative technology research in the late 1990s.
Today, USC offers more than 30 AI and computing-related majors, minors and graduate programs. A new Bachelor of Science in Artificial Intelligence launches this fall. USC ranks in the top 25 for computer science and produces more computer science graduates than any other U.S. university. It is the second-most common alma mater in Silicon Valley.
Gaurav Sukhatme, the inaugural director of the Stevens School, said the timing of the gift positions USC to lead nationally and globally for decades. "The momentum of our launch, the opening of Ginsburg Hall and the rapidly growing impact of computing and AI on every field has positioned USC to be a national and global leader," he said.
The Stevens Family's History at USC
This is the fourth major gift from Mark and Mary Stevens to USC. In 2004, they gave $22 million to establish the USC Stevens Center for Innovation, which moves university discoveries to the marketplace. A $50 million gift in 2015 created the USC Mark and Mary Stevens Neuroimaging and Informatics Institute to support brain imaging research. They donated $10 million to establish the USC Mark and Mary Stevens Center for Orthobiologics at the Keck School of Medicine. Last year, they contributed another $10 million to the Bloom Football Performance Center.
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