Lab leader

Nicolo Fusi

Also known as Nicolò Fusi

As of October 2026, Nicolo Fusi is a Vice President and Distinguished Scientist at Microsoft Research, where he leads AI research teams in New York, Boston, and Montreal. His research sits at the intersection of AI and the life sciences, and he leads a research program that uses generative AI to accelerate scientific discovery. He completed a PhD in statistical genomics at the University of Sheffield in 2015, and in 2016 he co-authored a Nature Biotechnology paper on optimized sgRNA design for CRISPR-Cas9. In 2017 the Cambridge Chamber of Commerce honored him with a Visionary Award, and in 2018 he co-authored a NeurIPS paper on probabilistic matrix factorization for automated machine learning. In 2026 he co-wrote the launch post for Quine, an AI research system designed for the complexity of biology.

Works
66
Citations
7,830
h-index
20

Publication numbers from OpenAlex, as of 15 October 2026.

Timeline

  1. January 2012

    Joint modelling of confounders

    In January 2012 he co-authors a paper with Oliver Stegle and Neil Lawrence on joint modelling of confounding factors and prominent genetic regulators.

  2. 2015

    A PhD in statistical genomics

    He completes a PhD thesis on probabilistic latent variable models in statistical genomics at the University of Sheffield in 2015.

  3. 2016

    Optimized sgRNA design

    In 2016 he co-authors a Nature Biotechnology paper with John Doench and colleagues on optimized sgRNA design for CRISPR-Cas9.

  4. 2017

    A Visionary Award

    In 2017 the Cambridge Chamber of Commerce in Massachusetts honors him, Jennifer Listgarten, and John Doench with a Visionary Award.

  5. 2018

    AutoML with matrix factorization

    In 2018 he co-authors a NeurIPS paper on probabilistic matrix factorization for automated machine learning. In September 2018 he is the guest on a Microsoft Research podcast about automated machine learning.

  6. September 2026

    Quine, an AI research system

    In September 2026 he co-writes the launch post for Quine, an AI research system designed for the complexity of biology.

  7. As of October 2026

    Vice president at Microsoft Research

    He is a Vice President and Distinguished Scientist at Microsoft Research, where he leads AI research teams in New York, Boston, and Montreal. His research sits at the intersection of AI and the life sciences, and he leads a research program that uses generative AI to accelerate scientific discovery.

Sources and credits

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  1. Joint Modelling of Confounding Factors and Prominent Genetic Regulators Provides Increased Accuracy in Genetical Genomics Studies | PLOS Computational Biology journals.plos.org. Checked 15 October 2026.
  2. Joint Modelling of Confounding Factors and Prominent Genetic Regulators Provides Increased Accuracy in Genetical Genomics Studies - PMC ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. Checked 15 October 2026.
  3. Items where Author is "Fusi, Nicolo" - White Rose eTheses Online etheses.whiterose.ac.uk. Checked 15 October 2026.
  4. Optimized sgRNA design to maximize activity and minimize off-target effects of CRISPR-Cas9 - PMC pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. Checked 15 October 2026.
  5. Optimized sgRNA design to maximize activity and minimize off-target effects of CRISPR-Cas9 - Microsoft Research microsoft.com. Checked 15 October 2026.
  6. Nicolo Fusi at Microsoft Research microsoft.com. Checked 15 October 2026.
  7. Probabilistic Matrix Factorization for Automated Machine Learning papers.neurips.cc. Checked 15 October 2026.
  8. All about automated machine learning with Dr. Nicolo Fusi - Microsoft Research microsoft.com. Checked 15 October 2026.
  9. Introducing Quine: An AI research system designed for the complexity of biology - Microsoft Research microsoft.com. Checked 15 October 2026.
  10. Speaker Details: EmTech Future 2026 event.technologyreview.com. Checked 15 October 2026.
  11. Nicolo Fusi at Microsoft Research microsoft.com. Checked 15 October 2026.
  12. Nicolò Fusi nicolofusi.com. Checked 15 October 2026.