Imperial and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have shared the latest winners of its seed fund as it celebrates its 10 year anniversary.

The MIT-Imperial Seed Fund aims to help kick-start early-stage projects that lead to high-impact research, discovery science and the deployment of frontier technologies.   

The Fund helps to support exploratory research, visits between the teams, hackathons, and exchanges for students and staff. 

The latest winners include: 

• Explainable Multi-Agent Motion Planning via Distributionally Robust Posetal Games. Led by Dr Dario Paccagnan (Department of Computing) and Dr Gioele Zardini (MIT). 

• Improving understanding of therapy induced liver toxicity to improve patient outcomes in acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. Led by Dr Richard Burt (Imperial) and Dr Sangeeta Bhatia (MIT). 

• Biradical constructs to understand biological electron transfer. Led by Dr Maxie Roessler (Department of Chemistry) and Dr Daniel Suess (MIT). 

• Sensing Garden - Biodiversity monitoring in cities. Led by Dr Richard Gill (Life Sciences) and Dr Simone Mora (MIT). 
• Using the laser fusion platform to study plasma effects on astrophysically relevant nuclear reactions. Led by Dr Brian Appelbe (Department of Physics) and Dr Maria Gatu Johnson (MIT). 

10-year anniversary 

Imperial and MIT are celebrating 10 years of a strategic partnership and their pioneering seed fund which has supported dozens of innovative research projects.  

MIT is one of Imperial’s top partners for research collaborations around 400 joint papers published every year.  

To mark the occasion, the two institutes are hosting a special showcase event:

Wednesday, 21 May 2025

• Time:17.00 - 18.00 BST (Online)

Find out more and register

Innovative research 

Since launching in 2015, the MIT-Imperial Seed Fund has supported 43 projects across all faculties and Imperial Business School.  

These have included projects investigating new approaches to measuring and modelling atmospheric air pollution, a project developing a green chemistry alternative to making nitrate fertiliser, another looking at nature-based solutions to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, high energy physics and detecting tuberculosis transmission. 

A project led by Imperial’s Professor Anne Dell, Department of Life Sciences, and MIT’s Professor Matthew Shoulders focused on development of next-generation biotherapeutics for cancers and viral infections. Support from the MIT-Imperial seed fund enabled continued exchange of samples and data as well as accelerating the research. 

Imperial’s Professor Fernando Bello, Department of Surgery & Cancer, and MIT’s Lynette Jones are developing technology that mimics temperature variations on the skin, which can indicate medical conditions such as infections or circulatory diseases. This project is focused on enhancing medical training simulations by integrating thermo-tactile feedback—hot and cold sensations—into advanced soft tactile displays. The ongoing work includes performance testing, user studies, and collaborative research efforts, with expected publications, new methods, datasets, and potential intellectual property.  

Imperial’s Dr Michel-Alexandre Cardin, Dyson School of Design Engineering, and MIT’s Richard de Neufville are exploring how we could mine resources on the Moon in a way that’s sustainable and helps future space missions last longer. The researchers are developing smart technology, like AI and virtual tools, to help people make better decisions about how to use lunar materials efficiently. The work is also connected to making mining on Earth more eco-friendly, and ongoing collaborations are expected to lead to new research, publications, and exciting advancements in space and engineering. 

Student exchanges 

In 2018, the MIT-Imperial Student Exchange program was launched, offering undergraduate students the opportunity to engage in rigorous study abroad and research experiences. This multi-departmental program has seen participation from ten academic departments at Imperial and eight at MIT.   

Since its inception, 30 MIT students have come to Imperial and every year around 10-15 students from Imperial travel to MIT. 

MIT has also been a key partner in Imperial's International Research Opportunities Programme (IROP). 

In the last decade 132 Imperial students have participated in research at MIT through IROP, while 107 MIT students have come to Imperial. 

Read about a student exchange experience at MIT's AeroAstro.

Looking Ahead 

As Imperial and MIT celebrate this milestone, both institutions look forward to continuing their collaboration, driving forward innovative research and fostering academic excellence. This partnership exemplifies the power of international cooperation in advancing knowledge and addressing global challenges.