Elite new master’s course seeks to bring maths students further into the AI fold
AIML and Adelaide University are thrilled to announce a new master’s course designed to bring mathematics students into the dynamic world of foundational AI.
The post-graduate course, entitled Master of Mathematical Sciences specialising in Artificial Intelligence, will be administered by the School of Mathematics at Adelaide University beginning in February 2026. The forward-thinking degree bridges theoretical knowledge with practical skills to prepare students for exciting opportunities in AI-driven fields.
“We developed this program to try and create a training ground for students who are interested in being at the cutting edge of AI research and development, and who are interested in developing the next generation of AI technologies with Adelaide University’s leading research groups like AIML and the Adelaide Data Science Centre,” said Professor Lewis Mitchell, a professor of data science at the University’s School of Mathematics and Computer Science.
“We’re hoping that this program will train the next generation of AI researchers, who … can go on to work at the leading AI companies around the world — OpenAI, Google, Apple, etc.”
Professor Mitchell worked with AIML colleagues and professors, to develop the master’s course. The course will cover topics like the mathematics of generative AI, transformer architectures, and newer topics like “equivariant learning” or the use of ideas from mathematical geometry and topology to improve the performance of AI models. The program also hopes to eventually provide internships to students.
“We’re hoping that this program will cater to students who want to build next-generation AI technologies… and are not afraid of learning some of the higher-level mathematics that are required to do so,” he said. The fact is that “quantum leaps” in AI, such as the development of the “attention mechanism” that powers large language models like ChatGPT, are the result of new mathematical ideas being applied to large datasets. We’re planning to give students the tools [so] that they can go on to make these contributions themselves in future.”
AIML Senior Researcher and mathematician, Dr Hemanth Saratchandran, played an integral role in the course's development.
A force behind the course's creation
The course was created in large part due to the extraordinary contributions of AIML Senior Researcher and mathematician, Dr Hemanth Saratchandran, to the Institute’s research outputs. The work Dr Saratchandran has conducted in AI, deep learning, computer vision, optimisation, geometry, and topology, led AIML leadership to want to bring more mathematicians into AIML’s research areas.
“Mathematics is the language through which AI truly comes alive,” he said. “My journey into AI and machine learning began through mathematics, and that foundation has shaped everything I do."
Mathematics didn’t just lead me to AI, it allowed me to see it from an entirely different perspective.”AIML Senior Researcher and mathematician, Dr Hemanth Saratchandran
“Knowing that my mathematical insights have helped shape this program fills me with pride and excitement. It’s inspiring to imagine the next generation of AI experts embarking on their own mathematical journeys through these courses, discovering, just as I have, how deeply beautiful and transformative this field can be.”
Dr Saratchandran led the creation of two elective courses that are part of the master’s program; Deep Signal Processing and Deep Geometry.
“Deep Signal Processing introduces students to the mathematical foundations that underpin modern AI, revealing how core mathematical principles shape today’s intelligent systems,” he said. “Deep Geometry explores how geometry forms the backbone of modern AI architectures and applications.”
Dr Saratchandran believes that the program will inspire students to see AI as a discipline that incorporates maths in a way that fundamentally complements computer science.
“Mathematicians bring a unique way of thinking, one that’s deeply quantitative, rigorous, and often more abstract, which allows us to uncover the fundamental principles underlying intelligent systems,” he said. “Their perspective complements the practical and engineering focus of computer scientists, creating a richer understanding of how AI truly works.”
“In my view, the future of AI will be driven by collaboration – mathematicians, computer scientists, and engineers working together in harmony to design systems that are not only powerful, but also efficient, responsible, and safe.”
Creating a skills repository
AIML Professor Dino Sejdinovic, who helped develop the course and will serve as one of its lecturers, said that the program will not only provide students with the skills needed to pursue careers in AI research and development, but will also serve as a skills repository while bolstering growing calls for increased focus on responsible AI development and use.
“We envisage the graduates from this program [will] have the skills necessary for entry into higher degree research programs at AIML and elsewhere, creating the next generation of AI experts who can think deeply and carefully about foundations of the field,” said Professor Sejdinovic. “This initiative will help strengthen Australia's innovation-led position in the global AI ecosystem, creating a pipeline of skilled talent [that] the sector needs.”
Professor Mitchell shares the hope that the new master’s course will form the basis of a skilled pipeline of AI experts.
“We’re hoping that this program forms part of the pathway for the next generation of AI researchers and have designed the courses to give students the training they need to do that,” he said. “So, I’m hoping that we will see students thinking ‘I want to build the next ChatGPT… and I have an idea of how to do it’ and then going on to do so, either as a PhD student with one of their lecturers at Adelaide University, or maybe by founding the next OpenAI!”
For more information on the Master of Mathematical Sciences specialising in Artificial Intelligence program, please visit https://adelaideuni.edu.au/study/degrees/master-of-mathematical-sciences-artificial-intelligence/#section-entry-requirements