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The ATLAS Institute is a deeply interdisciplinary source for radical creativity and invention at University of Colorado Boulder.

ATLAS is home to faculty and students who transcend traditional disciplines of engineering, design, science and art to inspire new realms of discovery. We make tangible and digital tools and methods that shape how people interact with the world for a more inclusive, inspired and sustainable society.

Founded in the information age

ATLAS was envisioned in 1997 by then-Chancellor Dick Byyny and Bobby Schnabel, CIO of CU-Boulder, to broaden the benefits of the information age by providing multidisciplinary curricular, research and outreach programs that integrate information technology with a wide variety of practices and people on and off campus.

Grounded in the maker movement

Over the decades, ATLAS evolved into its current role bridging engineering and radical creativity by empowering researchers and students to bring their most inspired ideas to life through collaborative design, experimentation and prototyping. This approach has attracted a vibrant community with the shared understanding that different backgrounds, perspectives and passions are essential to discovery.

ATLAS research and teaching labs intentionally span many areas of study from etextiles to biohacking to human-computer interaction to nanomaterials and beyond, creating an environment where we can explore unconventional ideas, unfettered by traditional academic silos. And it’s working:

• We’ve been home to 5 NSF CAREER award-winning faculty members.
• One quarter of our PhD alumni hold faculty jobs at peer institutions.
• Our researchers engage in dozens of ongoing research projects, resulting in hundreds of publications.

ATLAS academic programs in Creative Technology and Design, granted by the College of Engineering and Applied Science, equip the next generation of strategic problem solvers, designers and makers with cross-functional expertise. We prepare students to adapt, figure things out, lead teams, make decisions and build practical solutions—skills critical to ensuring they continue to succeed in ever-evolving industries.

Bounding into the future

We believe ATLAS embodies an ideal: a place where interdisciplinary research and education coexist to move society forward from the edges. We’ve quietly cultivated a diverse and dedicated community of scientists, tinkerers, designers, artists and technologists who share an optimism for crafting the future we want to see.

Not content with the dominant culture in tech innovation that emphasizes “move fast and break things” regardless of the implications—we work with consideration to repair, improve, and invent useful tools and techniques to empower and enlighten.

Now ATLAS is poised to build on our achievements toward even greater impact. To realize this vision, we seek partners at the vanguard who believe in the power of radical creativity and invention.

The Roser ATLAS Center

The Roser ATLAS Center opened in 2006 and is LEED certified Gold by the U.S. Green Building Council. It was funded through an initial $2.25 million gift from Jim and Becky Roser, along with student-approved fees, and public and private funding.

The 66,000-square foot building houses the ATLAS Institute, including research and teaching labs, classrooms, a makerspace, study areas and cafe as well as the B2 Center for Media Arts & Performance. The Department of Cinema Studies & Moving Image Arts is housed on the top floor.

The B2’s 2,700-square-foot Black Box Experimental Studio is a flexible, technologically-enhanced research and performance space that supports 270° HD projection, 44-channel Ambisonic spatial audio, 20-camera Qualisys motion capture, advanced LED lighting and much more.