Why modell.ai

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Throughout my career—first in academia, then in business—I often struggled to find deep meaning in the problems I worked on.

In business, problems are typically framed by short-term goals, leaving fundamental issues unexamined. In academia, research is often steered by closed communities, narrowing its real-world impact. While neither realm is inherently wrong, both felt misaligned with my desire to tackle deep and impactful problems. 

To truly follow Thompson’s advice, I had to create something different—a way to merge deep understanding with real-world relevance. This vision became the foundation of modell.ai.

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Taking purpose and fulfillment seriously has real consequences. Unlike for-hire R&D labs, modell.ai does not take on commissioned work. Instead, we target high-impact AI challenges within a carefully curated portfolio of business problems.

Our approach starts with a key question: 

How would business practices in a given domain be disrupted by an advanced AI? 

By rigorously answering this question (easier said than done), we expose the limitations of current business practices and simultaneously identify:

1. A business problem worth solving.

2. A set of AI challenges that must be overcome. 

Solving the latter automatically drives major progress in addressing the former.

This problem-first approach ensures that we focus on root causes, not just symptoms. It blends business and technical research to define the right problems before diving into solution-focused AI development. This way, we don’t just tackle any AI challenge—we focus on the ones that truly drive business innovation. 

By committing to a deep, joint understanding of both business and AI challenges—and then solving those AI challenges—we develop solutions that seed new products, startups, and even industries.

Check our R&D page to see this approach in action.

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We’re not the only ones thinking this way, but we know that our approach is difficult to replicate elsewhere. That’s why modell.ai is more than an R&D lab—it’s also an R&D hub. 

Through strategic partnerships, we collaborate with:

• Forward-thinking companies seeking to engage in AI research to unlock business opportunities.

• Academic researchers eager to align their AI expertise with real-world business needs.

These partnerships enable a dynamic exchange of knowledge, resources, and opportunities—creating meaningful value for all involved. 

If you’re interested in collaborating, I encourage you to visit our partnerships page.

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Artificial Intelligence may be the trend of the moment, but modell.ai's commitment to it runs far deeper than hype. My nearly two decades of academic and industry experience in AI have shaped the way we approach this technology—one rooted in expertise, not fleeting trends. More importantly, our problem-first imperative ensures that we tackle AI’s most meaningful challenges—those with real, lasting impact. 

Hype aside, AI is here to stay. Its current rise parallels the internet boom of the 1990s, when visionaries with deep technological understanding—like the teams behind Amazon, Google, and PayPal—redefined industries and shaped the future.

Today, AI presents the same opportunities for those with the expertise and vision to lead.

If my “ninth path” resonates with you, I invite you to join us. Whether as a partner or a team member, let’s push the boundaries of AI and business—and reshape the future together.