While the concept was proposed half a century ago, Digital Twin gains popularity recent years as a vision to replicate physical objects and systems in the digital world to have a comprehensive understanding of the current status, predictions for the future, and capabilities of answering what-if questions. This vision is not only serving the purpose of leveraging recent advancements in digital technologies from new observation systems, big data, cloud computing, AI/ML, to virtual reality, but also becomes a driver for advancing these digital technologies and relevant domains by conceptually integrate available data for actionable information to address evolving problems in physical systems. However, to achieve the objectives of such a vision, there are many challenges facing us today. We are organizing a series of webinars to capture the recent advancements in digital twins, discuss the various driving technologies, and the domain science that serve as both an enabler and been advanced for the evolution of digital twins. This monthly hybrid session series will be concluded with an in-person workshop to integrate the discussions and form a research agenda for digital twins.

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Collaborative Research Initiative: Advancing Digital Twins

A collaborative research initiative is underway among Harvard University, George Mason University, Penn State University, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Emory University, and University of Washington-Seattle to advance the field of digital twins. These universities are renowned for their dedication to research, community engagement, and fostering exceptional academic environments. By combining their mentors, research resources, and undertaking joint projects, as well as exchanging knowledge and forming industry partnerships, these institutions aim to make significant contributions to the field of digital twins. Their efforts will contribute to a deeper understanding of digital twin applications and pave the way for broader utilization in various domains.