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| Jasbir Dhaliwal PhD MBA |
THE MIDSOUTH AI Research Consortium has been co-founded by the leaders of University of Tennessee Health Science Center, University of Arkansas, University of Memphis and University of Mississippi, all recipients of the coveted and sometimes controversial Carnegie R1 rankings system.
In a joint press release April 20, Consortium members said they seek "to unify the region’s fragmented AI capabilities into a scalable ecosystem, leveraging the region’s status as a global hub for transportation, energy and advanced computing."
The consortium aims to provide a "living laboratory" for AI research, utilizing shared high-performance computing resources, real-world test beds and collaboration among the consortium’s world-class researchers.
The consortium has adopted research and development priorities:
- Rural & Precision Health: Addressing disparities through AI-enabled healthcare evaluation.
- Supply Chain & Logistics: Partnering with industry leaders like FedEx and JB Hunt to secure next-generation global trade.
- Energy & Data Centers: Solving the energy consumption challenges of massive supercomputers.
- Agriculture & Food Security: Advancing sustainability analytics for the nation’s leading producers of rice, cotton and poultry.
- National Defense: Supporting federal mandates to accelerate AI innovation for tactical readiness.
Affirming that the "Mid-South Delta region has been attracting significant AI data center investment," University of Memphis EVP for Research and Innovation Jasbir Dhaliwal PhD MBA explained the consortium's work engages hundreds of PhD-trained AI research scientists and scholars by "providing the soft creative brain trust for applied AI efforts. It positions our tri-state region as a strong national hub for the exponential growth of AI, both as a science and economic development engine."
The consortium also said it will focus on workforce development by creating "upskilling opportunities for the region’s citizens and for the students and graduates of the member institutions."
The new organization says it aims to operate within a "low overhead" model that facilitates rapid action by, for example, jointly developing federal grant applications and "shared digital environments" for faculty and students.
VNC research indicates such digital environments are often referred to as virtual learning environments, often including collaboration hubs, digital twins of campus resources, etc.
As of 2025, Achieving Research-1 status requires that institutions meet only two criteria per year: spending at least $50MM on total annual research and awarding at least 70 research doctorates.
Criteria for Research-2 status include spending at least $5MM on research and development per year and awarding a minimum of 20 research doctorates per year.
In 2022, The American Council on Education (ACE)--based in Washington, D.C. and collaborating with the Stanford, Calif.-based Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching--assumed responsibility for updating and managing Carnegie Classifications, including R1 and R2 and related university measurements.
Related resources: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 + UM Press release. VNC
.last edited 1448 22 April 2026