On May 4, Northwestern's Network for Collaborative Intelligence hosted a soft launch for FORGE, its new AI Makerspace program, at The Garage on the Evanston campus. The open house introduced upcoming cohorts, workshops, and other ways to work across data science, artificial intelligence, and domain expertise.

FORGE is designed to bring students, faculty, staff, and industry partners together around real-world challenges. Its cohorts bring together teams of three to six students for eight- to ten-week engagements, supported by mentorship, collaborative space, and access to technical infrastructure.

That structure will feel familiar to LEAD students and sponsors: start with a meaningful problem, work across disciplines, and turn an open-ended question into something tangible. FORGE projects can end in a prototype, analytical model, proof of concept, or exploratory research finding, with a final poster session and celebration to share the work.

Learn more about FORGE at Northwestern → You can also read the announcement for the May 4 open house.