ELLIS Partners with New Max Planck Artificial Intelligence Network to Expand Doctoral Opportunities
The European Laboratory for Learning and Intelligent Systems (ELLIS) is strengthening its role in training the next generation of AI researchers by joining forces with the newly launched Max Planck Artificial Intelligence Network (MP-AIX). This collaboration enhances doctoral opportunities for young scientists across Europe, connecting them to world-leading faculty and fostering interdisciplinary research at the cutting edge of machine learning and its applications.
Newly founded and officially announced today, the Max Planck Artificial Intelligence Network is a doctoral program initiated and funded by the Max Planck Society. It provides fully funded PhD fellowships to outstanding candidates in machine learning, artificial intelligence, and their applications.
The program is distinctive in its dual-supervision model. PhD students are jointly supervised by directors or group leaders from different Max Planck institutes, with the possibility of co-advisors from the ELLIS network:
- one advisor works in a field close to ML/AI, and
- the other advisor works in an application area
Through ELLIS’s involvement, students can benefit from co-advisors within the ELLIS community, strengthening ties across Europe’s AI ecosystem and ensuring a vibrant exchange of expertise.
In addition to supervision, the program offers structured training, workshops, summer and winter schools, internships, and networking events.
For ELLIS, this partnership represents a unique opportunity to extend its mission: promoting open, excellent research in machine learning while ensuring that it addresses real-world challenges across disciplines. By combining the Max Planck Society’s strong institutional foundation with ELLIS’s dynamic research network, admitted students will gain access to unparalleled scientific mentorship, interdisciplinary projects, and a collaborative environment that spans institutes and countries.
How to apply
Interested candidates in the Max Planck Artificial Intelligence Network should submit their applications online via the ELLIS PhD & Postdoc Program central portal. The portal opens October 1, 2025, and applications are due by October 31, 2025, 23:59 AoE. Registration on the portal is required before applying.
Applicants may choose to apply exclusively to the Max Planck Artificial Intelligence Network or to both - the Max Planck Artificial Intelligence Network and the ELLIS PhD & Postdoc Program by entering "Max Planck AI Network" as research field of their interest.
To learn more about the application process, please visit https://ai.mpg.de/application.
To learn more about the Max Planck Artificial Intelligence Network program, please visit https://ai.mpg.de/ and feel free to contact the coordination team at ai@is.mpg.de.
About ELLIS
ELLIS (European Laboratory for Learning and Intelligent Systems) is a pan-European AI network of excellence founded in 2018. It builds upon machine learning as the driving force of modern AI and aims to secure lasting international leadership in AI developed in Europe. By fostering collaboration among top researchers and creating a multi-centric research laboratory, ELLIS ensures that Europe remains at the forefront of cutting-edge AI innovation. The network has grown to include 43 ELLIS Sites at world-class institutions across 16 countries, 16 specialised research programs, and a pan-European PhD/Postdoc program. Through these efforts, ELLIS shapes the future of artificial intelligence in alignment with Europe’s values of openness, collaboration, and societal impact.
More about ELLIS: ellis.eu
For media: ellis.eu/media
