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The computer science funding will support research computing, AI access and students. A new Miami campus will organize education around societal challenges rather than traditional majors.
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Carnegie Mellon plans to use Ken Griffin’s $3 billion commitment to expand its computing capacity and reshape education across Pittsburgh and a new Miami campus. In Pittsburgh, $500 million is earmarked for computer science and another $500 million is flexible; Miami’s planned campus will organize study around four societal challenges and is expected to serve more than 3,500 students. The gift also renames CMU’s computer science school and brings Griffin onto its board, tying a historic donation to changes in research, teaching and student access.
CMU says the computer science funding will provide GPUs, servers, storage and networking equipment for researchers.
Construction on the Miami expansion is slated to begin in 2027.
The Miami campus is planned for more than 3,500 students, nearly 300 faculty members and over 600 staff.
Ken Griffin’s $3 billion commitment promises a new campus and a different approach to education at Carnegie Mellon. The funding picture is more specific: $500 million is designated for computer science, within a $1 billion Pittsburgh investment. Announced September 30, 2026, the gift combines support for computing research with a Miami expansion whose construction is slated to begin in 2027.
Griffin, the founder and CEO of Citadel, is backing both Carnegie Mellon’s longtime home in Pittsburgh and a planned campus in Miami. The Guardian describes the commitment as the largest single donation in US education history.
Carnegie Mellon’s announcement says the school’s gift will fund computing infrastructure for researchers, including GPUs, servers, storage and networking equipment. The university says those resources will let researchers create and use the next generation of research tools.
CMU also plans to rethink how computer science is taught, begin research in new fields, broaden access to AI tools and strengthen student support.
Dedicated to the renamed computer science school, supporting education, research, computing resources and students.
Flexible funding for Carnegie Mellon’s highest priorities within the Pittsburgh investment.
The Pittsburgh plans also include recruiting prominent academics and making attendance more affordable. Griffin and CMU president Farnam Jahanian identified financial aid among the priorities.
The planned Miami campus is intended to serve more than 3,500 undergraduate, master’s and PhD students, nearly 300 faculty members and more than 600 staff.
The university says education in Miami will be structured around societal challenges instead of the traditional academic-major model. CMU identifies four challenge areas:
Jahanian frames the expansion partly as a response to AI. In his statement, he called artificial intelligence a defining intellectual development that demands changes in how the university educates students, conducts research and works with partners.
The commitment also changes Griffin’s formal relationship with Carnegie Mellon. CMU says its computer science school has been renamed the Kenneth C. Griffin School of Computer Science in recognition of the gift. Griffin will also join the university’s board of trustees.
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