Research & Innovation
The Allen School advances research excellence from the foundations of computing to emerging applications that are shaping the future of not just our field but also our broader society.
We have deep technical expertise that touches every aspect of computing, and we have a long and proud tradition of interdisciplinary collaboration on cross-cutting research with real-world impact. Our researchers continue to build on this tradition while opening up new avenues of exploration, harnessing the transformative power of computing to develop solutions that benefit people, society and the planet while expanding the frontiers of our field.
Explore Allen School Research
Artificial
Intelligence
Our researchers are driving exciting developments in AI while cultivating a deeper understanding of the science and impact of these rapidly evolving technologies on industries, cultures and communities.
Computing +
Biology
Our researchers are advancing computational methods to help solve biology and medicine’s biggest mysteries while taking inspiration from nature to reimagine what a computer can be.
Human-Centered
Computing
Our researchers are enhancing the ways in which people and communities engage with technology to maximize the benefits and minimize the harms to individuals, groups and society.
Interaction with the
Physical World
Our researchers are tapping into the potential of low- and no-power sensing, communication and interaction technologies to transform how we experience the world around us.
Software & Hardware
Systems
Our researchers are driving innovation across the entire hardware, software and network stack to ensure the computer systems that we depend upon everyday are reliable and secure.
Theory & Models
of Computation
Our researchers are answering fundamental and long-standing questions about the capabilities and limitations of computing, with practical implications in a variety of real-world domains.
Faculty in Focus: Natasha Jaques
Professor Natasha Jaques, head of the Allen School’s Social RL Lab, talks about her research advancing techniques for training AI models to interact safely with users regardless of the input.
Highlights
Allen School News
The Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) recognized Mahajan (Ph.D., ‘05) among its 2025 class of ACM Fellows for his groundbreaking “contributions to network verification and network control systems and their transfer to industrial practice.”
GeekWire
At an event in the Paul G. Allen Center for Computer Science & Engineering, UW President Robert J. Jones and Microsoft Vice Chair and President Brad Smith announced they are deepening their partnership with a new effort aimed at preparing Washington state residents for an AI-driven economy.
Allen School News
As part of this year’s cohort in the Outstanding Undergraduate Researcher Awards, the Computing Research Association (CRA) recognized four Allen School undergraduates — awardee Haoquan Fang, finalist Hao Xu and honorable mention recipients Kaiyuan Liu and Lindsey Wei.
Advancing open AI for science
The Allen School is working with Ai2 and other academic partners on Open Multimodal AI Infrastructure to Accelerate Science (OMAI), a $152M project to accelerate scientific discover and advance the science of artificial intelligence itself, with support from the U.S. National Science Foundation and NVIDIA.
Campus Collaborations
The Allen School partners with units across the UW on interdisciplinary research and education initiatives to advance knowledge and benefit society.
Click on the map below to explore our campus collaborations.