NVIDIA Graduate Fellowship Program Awards for 2025-2026

For over twenty years, the NVIDIA Graduate Fellowship Program has been a pillar of support for graduate students pushing the boundaries of technology with research closely aligned with NVIDIA’s innovations. This year, the program proudly announces its latest cohort of fellowship recipients for the 2025-2026 academic year. Each of the 10 Ph.D. students selected from a highly competitive pool will receive up to $60,000 to further their groundbreaking research in various fields of computing.

The NVIDIA Graduate Fellowship Program is renowned for nurturing talent from around the globe, offering students not only financial support but also the opportunity to engage in a summer internship that precedes their fellowship year. This immersive experience places them at the cutting edge of accelerated computing, where they tackle projects in domains such as autonomous systems, computer architecture, graphics, deep learning, programming, robotics, and security.

Meet the 2025-2026 Fellowship Recipients

Anish Saxena, Georgia Institute of Technology

Anish Saxena is on a mission to rethink how data moves across different layers of technology. His research focuses on improving the efficiency of Large Language Model (LLM) training and inference by optimizing the interactions between model architectures, system software, and memory systems. This work is crucial as it addresses the growing demand for faster and more efficient data processing in AI applications.

Jiawei Yang, University of Southern California

Jiawei Yang is breaking new ground with scalable and generalizable foundation models for autonomous systems. By leveraging self-supervised learning and neural reconstruction, Jiawei aims to capture intricate environmental geometry and dynamic scene behaviors. This research enhances adaptability in fields like robotics, digital twin technologies, and autonomous driving, paving the way for smarter and more responsive systems.

Jiayi (Eris) Zhang, Stanford University

Jiayi Zhang is dedicated to developing intelligent algorithms and models that boost user creativity and productivity in design, animation, and simulation. Her work empowers users to create more efficiently and with greater flexibility, making technology more accessible and versatile for various design applications.

Ruisi Cai, University of Texas at Austin

Ruisi Cai’s research is at the intersection of efficiency and security in AI. He focuses on enhancing the training and inference processes of large foundation models while ensuring AI systems are secure and private. In a world where data security is paramount, Ruisi’s work is vital in safeguarding sensitive information while maintaining high performance.

Seul Lee, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology

Seul Lee is pioneering the development of generative models for molecules, which are crucial in drug discovery. Her exploration strategies in chemical space aim to accelerate the discovery of new drugs, potentially revolutionizing the pharmaceutical industry by reducing the time and cost associated with bringing new medications to market.

Sreyan Ghosh, University of Maryland, College Park

Sreyan Ghosh is advancing the field of audio processing and reasoning by designing resource-efficient models and training techniques. His work on improving audio representation learning enhances AI systems’ ability to perceive and interpret audio, leading to more nuanced and context-aware applications in sound processing.

Tairan He, Carnegie Mellon University

Tairan He is focused on the development of humanoid robots, particularly in enhancing whole-body loco-manipulation through large-scale simulation-to-real learning. This research is pivotal in creating robots that can interact more naturally and effectively with their environments, opening up new possibilities for automation and assistance in everyday life.

Xiaogeng Liu, University of Wisconsin–Madison

Xiaogeng Liu is committed to developing robust and trustworthy AI systems. His research emphasizes evaluating and improving machine learning models to ensure they perform consistently and are resilient against various attacks and unexpected inputs. This work is essential for building AI that can be reliably deployed in real-world scenarios.

Yunze Man, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Yunze Man’s research is centered around vision-centric reasoning models for multimodal and embodied AI agents. By focusing on object-centric perception systems in dynamic scenes and vision foundation models for scene understanding, Yunze is contributing to the development of AI that can understand and interact with the world more intuitively.

Zhiqiang Xie, Stanford University

Zhiqiang Xie is building infrastructures to enable more efficient, scalable, and complex AI systems. His work enhances the observability and reliability of these systems, ensuring they can be effectively monitored and maintained, which is crucial as AI becomes increasingly integrated into various sectors.

Recognizing the 2025-2026 Fellowship Finalists

While only ten students received the fellowship, several other outstanding candidates were recognized as finalists for their exceptional contributions to computing research:

• Bo Zhao, University of California, San Diego
• Chenning Li, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Dacheng Li, University of California, Berkeley
• Jiankai Sun, Stanford University
• Wenlong Huang, Stanford University

  These finalists represent the next wave of innovators whose research continues to push the boundaries of what’s possible in technology.

  The Importance of Fellowship Programs
  

  Fellowship programs like NVIDIA’s play a crucial role in advancing technology by investing in the future leaders of innovation. These programs provide students with the resources and support they need to pursue ambitious research projects that can lead to significant breakthroughs. By fostering a collaborative environment and offering mentorship opportunities, fellowship programs help bridge the gap between academic research and industry application.

  Why This Matters
  

  The research undertaken by these fellowship recipients has the potential to drive significant advancements in technology. From improving AI efficiency and security to revolutionizing drug discovery, the impact of their work extends beyond academia and into industries that shape our daily lives. As technology continues to evolve at a rapid pace, the contributions of these young researchers will be instrumental in ensuring that innovations are both sustainable and beneficial to society.

  For more details on the NVIDIA Graduate Fellowship Program and to learn about the previous cohorts, visit the official NVIDIA Research page.

  In conclusion, the NVIDIA Graduate Fellowship Program not only highlights the impressive work of these young researchers but also underscores the importance of supporting innovative research that can lead to transformative advancements in technology. As we look to the future, it is programs like these that will drive the next generation of technological breakthroughs.

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