Indian-origin couple donates $20 million to US university to set up AI, advanced analytics college; institute to be named after them

Indian-origin couple Anuradha and Vikas Sinha have donated $20 million to the University of North Texas to expand education and research in artificial intelligence and advanced analytics, according to the university’s press release.The university will name its new Anuradha and Vikas Sinha College of Artificial Intelligence and Advanced Analytics in recognition of the gift, creating an academic centre focused on developing and using AI and intelligent systems.The donation will fund six permanent endowments covering college leadership, scholarships, professorships, entrepreneurship and incubation, advanced research and emerging technologies.The new college will bring together programmes in areas including artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, data science, health informatics, information science, library science and learning technologies. It will also connect researchers and students across disciplines through shared infrastructure, research projects and industry partnerships.Vikas Sinha, who earned his PhD in information science from UNT in 2023, said the couple wanted the investment to expand what students can do with AI."Artificial intelligence will be one of the defining technologies of our generation, and universities have an essential role to play in preparing the people who will shape its future," he said.The college is expected to have two academic divisions. One will focus on developing and deploying intelligent systems, while the other will examine how information and intelligent systems operate in human and institutional settings.UNT will also establish an Applied Artificial Intelligence and Data Science Institute to link AI and analytics research and education across the university, with a focus on interdisciplinary research, external funding and industry collaboration.The Sinhas moved to the US after completing bachelor's degrees in civil engineering at Sri Venkateswara University. They later earned graduate degrees from Florida Atlantic University.Vikas Sinha subsequently studied at Northwestern University before completing his doctorate at UNT. He is now vice president of the Mainframe Software Division at Broadcom and has served on the UNT College of Information Leadership Board since 2023.The couple has previously supported UNT's data science programmes. In 2024, they helped establish the Anuradha and Vikas Sinha Department of Data Science, followed by a major gift in 2025 that created the Sinha Innovation Lab for Data Science.Sinha said his experience as an international student influenced the couple's decision to support education."Education has opened doors for us throughout our lives, and we want to hold those doors open for others," he said."For us, this gift is about paying that opportunity forward and recognising that immigrants don't simply participate in the American dream, they help build it."UNT President Harrison Keller said the new college would help the university respond to the rapid changes brought by AI in work and research.The University of North Texas is a public research university in Denton, north of Dallas, and was founded in 1890.Catch the latest World News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.