CCA-NVIDIA Incubator for Creative Intelligence
Shape the future of AI, ethically and creatively. Access cutting-edge tools, make industry connections, and shape the future in this groundbreaking collaboration with NVIDIA.
Overview
Build better futures
Why now?
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is transforming our world and industries. As Northern California’s only nonprofit art and design college, this strategic collaboration with industry leader NVIDIA puts creatives at the center of this innovation with agency and impact.
Cutting-edge creative education
This initiative not only opens up possibilities for creative intelligence but models sustainable and ethical practices for higher education and society at large. Building on CCA's nearly 120-year legacy of hands-on making, students will graduate with critical, computational, and creative skill sets to make change in a rapidly evolving world.
Key Objectives
Workforce Development
Expanding student opportunities in AI-driven creative fields while strengthening broader skillsets through industry-recognized certifications and hands-on learning that supports diverse art and design careers.
Collaborative Research
Fostering groundbreaking research between CCA faculty, NVIDIA experts, and industry leaders to push the boundaries of creative technology.
Curriculum Innovation
Integrating AI and GPU-accelerated computing across all arts and design disciplines through cutting-edge educational programs and immersive learning experiences.
Community Impact
Extending AI-arts education beyond campus to local artists, educators, and creative businesses while ensuring inclusive access for underrepresented communities.
We won't just ride the AI wave; we will prepare the next generation of creative shapeshifters who prove that the best future empowers humanity at every turn.”
Opportunity
Access tools, mentorship, and more
Centered on students and faculty, the collaboration launches with strategic initiatives, including AI skills training, customized curricula, industry partner programs, certifications, and joint research.
AI Skills Training
Work with NVIDIA Deep Learning Institute materials, advanced SDKs, and GPU-accelerated platforms. Create with the same tools used by top studios worldwide for animation, immersive design, and digital production.
Custom Curriculum and Certification
Courses integrating AI, generative design, and machine learning across visual arts, architecture, and interactive media, with industry-aligned skills like NVIDIA DLI teaching kits embedded directly into studio programs.
Faculty and Student Certification
Workshops and training sessions for faculty and students with industry-aligned AI-arts skills.
Collaboration and Research
NVIDIA subject matter experts support CCA faculty through technical guidance, guest lectures, and mentoring, while facilitating joint research projects with industry partners
Industry Partnership Programs
Early-phase classroom collaborations with members of the NVIDIA Inception program for startups and development of AI-arts exhibitions, hackathons, and public showcases to engage the broader creative community
Curricular Spotlight: Craft & Creative Technologies
From wearables to biomaterials, experiment with traditional crafts and cutting-edge technology in CCA's forward-thinking concentration within our Interdisciplinary BFA program. Merge practices such as ceramics, furniture, print media, sculpture, and textiles with creative technologies like coding, augmented reality, robotics, and digital fabrication.
Outcomes
From connections to careers
With NVIDIA's mentorship, our students will pursue creative, interdisciplinary, and impactful careers. Graduates leave with a versatile skill set that's adaptable to today's industry needs. Technical skills in AI-powered design, machine learning, data visualization, and GPU-accelerated computing, combined with creative production and critical thinking, equate to long-term career readiness. The possibilities are endless for working in roles as creative technologists, AI product designers, researchers, and creative entrepreneurs.
“Our collaboration with California College of the Arts brings together creativity and computing. By combining CCA's artistic vision with NVIDIA's AI platforms, we aim to set new standards for how technology enhances human imagination and innovation.”
NVIDIA Head of Ecosystem Development
Ready to join the movement?