Technological Futures

At the intersection of data privacy, open science and public health, the University of Waterloo has initiated a collaborative effort with several Canadian government agencies to explore the use of synthetic data for research and analysis.

Dr. Helen Chen, a professor in the Faculty of Health and director of the Professional Practice Centre in Health Systems is leading the initiative.

A team of University of Waterloo researchers has created smart, advanced materials that will be the building blocks for a future generation of soft medical microrobots.

These tiny robots have the potential to conduct medical procedures, such as biopsy, and cell and tissue transport, in a minimally invasive fashion. They can move through confined and flooded environments, like the human body, and deliver delicate and light cargo, such as cells or tissues, to a target position.

As artificial intelligence (AI) challenges us to reimagine new ways of doing and being, Dr. Marcel O’Gorman, professor of English Language and Literature, embraces emerging technologies and applies them to his pedagogy in the classroom.  

O’Gorman has published widely about the impacts of technology, and his most recent research focuses on how critical and inclusive design methods might help tackle some of the moral and ethical issues faced by contemporary technoculture. 

An international team of interdisciplinary researchers has successfully created a method for better 3D modelling of complex cancers.

The University of Waterloo-based team combined cutting-edge bioprinting techniques with synthetic structures or microfluidic chips. The method will help lab researchers more accurately understand heterogeneous tumours: tumours with more than one kind of cancer cell, often dispersed in unpredictable patterns.

Mastercard and the Cybersecurity and Privacy Institute (CPI) at the University of Waterloo have announced a $550,000 partnership focused on research and talent advancement in cybersecurity. The funding will support projects that increase “Trust in Data” around:  fingerprinting, identification and validation, and data protection. 

You can talk to a therapist or take medication to treat stress and burnout, but what happens if you can’t afford therapy and medications don’t work for you?

Roga, a company that recently joined Velocity, University of Waterloo’s startup incubator, has developed a wearable mental wellness device, giving users stress relief options when therapy is too expensive or inaccessible, or when medication usage is limited due to side effects or stigma.

Banking with a virtual reality headset may not be as far-fetched as you might think after students from the University of Waterloo’s startup incubator Velocity wrapped up a two-week-long “hackathon”, an innovation challenge aimed at augmenting the future of finance with VR and high-speed wireless technology.

Lookr, a new company at Velocity, University of Waterloo’s startup incubator, takes inspiration beyond the search engine and uses on-location spatial information and artificial intelligence to inspire creators to capture the perfect shot. 

The University of Waterloo hosted a global network of national news agency leaders on campus this week to share the expertise of our AI researchers.