Explore our core facilities and related labs
The AC is creating a world-leading centre for accelerated materials discovery, thanks in part to a historic $200 million grant from the Canada First Research Excellence Fund.
We are building a world-leading centre for accelerated materials discovery, thanks in part to a $200 million grant from the Canada First Research Excellence Fund.
Our facilities include 6 self-driving labs (SDLs) at the University of Toronto (Uof T) and an additional lab at one of our partner institutions, the University of British Columbia, with access to more than 30 SDLs worldwide through our consortium members. As part of our mandate for open innovation, the AC’s labs are user facilities that also support research and development of our academic, industry, and government partners. Our SDLs are led by more than 35 staff scientists anda cohort of over 75 faculty. Renovations are currently underway at the U of T’s Lash Miller building, which will house a selection of our SDLs and other facilities.
Values-based research design
As materials discovery becomes rapid, inexpensive, automated, and democratized, it is essential that we, with community partners, be guided by shared values. Our values can work positively to ensure that the broader impact of materials is considered before they are deployed and that their production is towards collective benefit and sustainability. These values demonstrate our commitment to open science, collaboration, agility, diversity and inclusion, as well as the importance of Indigenous approaches to sustainability and governance, including the CARE Principles for Indigenous Data Governance:
Care and reciprocity
Timeliness and connecting back to values
Processual consent
Sustainability and harm reduction
Data justice
Collective benefit, community governance, and accountability
Accessibility and open listening
Meaningful transformation
Collaborating labs
Each of the AC’s SDLs also work with:
Self-driving labs use AI and automaton to accelerate the discovery or optimization of almost any type of material or molecule. At the AC, we are building a series of SDLs designed to explore a wide range of technological applications:
Summary:
A research hub to develop AI tools and robotic lab automation hardware for self-driving labs at the AC
members:
Kourosh Darvish
Sergio Pablo-García Carrillo
Florian Shkurti
Kelvin Chow
Sissi Feng
Chris Sutton
Maunica Toleti
Geneva Neal
institution:
University of Toronto
TOPIC:
Summary:
Autonomous inorganic materials discovery comprising synthesis, characterization of structure and function; and application testing across CO2 capture and conversion, energy storage, structural materials, photonics, electronics, and more
members:
Yang Bai
Ali Shayesteh
David Sinton
Mohamad Moosavi
Yu Zou
Jason Hattrick-Simpers
Maral Vafaie
institution:
University of Toronto
TOPIC:
Summary:
Autonomous organic small molecule discovery comprising synthesis, workup, separation, characterization of structure and function; and application testing across drugs, electronics, photonics, energy storage, green products, and more
members:
Yang Cao
Xiaoman Guo
Han Hao
Eric Isbrandt
Sophie Rousseaux
Alán Aspuru-Guzik
institution:
University of Toronto
TOPIC:
Summary:
Autonomous medicinal chemistry comprising synthesis and bioassays for chemical probe development and hit-to-lead for drug discovery
members:
Santha Santhakumar
Carla Brown
Stuart Green
Cheryl Arrowsmith
Robert Batey
David Kim
Lihi Habaz
institution:
University of Toronto
TOPIC:
Summary:
Autonomous polymeric materials discovery comprising synthesis, characterization of structure and function, and application testing across healthcare, sustainability, energy storage, and more
members:
Nipun Gupta
Owen Melville
Harrison Mills
Helen Tran
Dwight Seferos
Jay Werber
Chanelle Brown
institution:
University of Toronto
TOPIC:
Summary:
Autonomous formulation of materials comprising combinatorial mixing; formation of liquids, semi-solids, solids; characterization of structure and function, and application testing across personal care, healthcare, and more
members:
Zeqing Bao
Frantz Le Dévédec
Aaron Clasky
Christine Allen
Frank Gu
institution:
University of Toronto
TOPIC:
Summary:
Autonomous workflows bridging molecular and materials discovery with scale-up and translation
members:
Ekaterina Trushina
Jason Hein
Curtis P. Berlinguette
Zahra (Sonia) Azimi Dijvejin
Mehrdad Mokhtari
Ryan Oldford
Ivory (Wenyu) Zhang
Matthew Reish
Joshua Derasp
institution:
University of British Columbia