University of Toronto to create AI role named after Nobel laureate Geoffrey Hinton

The University of Toronto says it’s on the hunt for the next Geoffrey Hinton.

The school says it will create a new chair role named after the Nobel laureate and artificial intelligence pioneer.

The Hinton Chair in Artificial Intelligence will help the university recruit, teach and train students and inspire promising AI startups.

They will also help fuel AI innovations across medicine, engineering, scientific discovery and the humanities and expand the university’s AI networks and international partnerships.

UofT says the new role will be supported by a $10 million donation from Google that the school will match.

Hinton, who is a professor emeritus at UofT, worked for Google until May 2023. He quit so he could discuss the dangers of AI without having to consider how his remarks would impact Google.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 3, 2025.

Tara Deschamps, The Canadian Press