Innovation Engine Opens a New World of Educational Possibilities

HYDE PARK, N.Y., Feb. 26, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The Culinary Institute of America (CIA) today announced that it has been chosen as the exclusive launch partner for MattsonIQ™, an AI platform designed to open new pathways for discovery and innovation across the global food industry. Mattson—a U.S.-based food and beverage product innovation firm—is a recognized leader in bringing artificial intelligence (AI) to the food and beverage space. Available to all CIA students, faculty, and staff, MattsonIQ will help accelerate the pace of learning, inspire creativity, and much, much more. It will facilitate fast and easy deep dives into three key areas: food and beverage ingredients, cuisine, and nutrition. The two organizations also announced the Mattson AI Lab @ The Culinary Institute of America—an AI exploratory group focused on unlocking the future applications of artificial intelligence in food—that will allow CIA students and faculty to explore how to apply AI to create new ideas faster, test them more intelligently, and apply critical thinking skills at the intersection of creativity and the application of AI technology.  

Led by Provost Jeroen Greven, and Vice President of Academic Affairs Michael Sperling, PhD., the lab will be piloted by a select number of CIA faculty and students who will collaborate closely with Steve Gundrum, Mattson’s Chief AI Officer, and Jennifer Pagano, Mattson’s AI Director.   

“With CIA’s 80-year legacy of leadership and Mattson’s reputation for applying artificial intelligence (AI) to food and beverage innovation, this partnership is another step forward in ensuring CIA continues to shape the future of food,” said CIA Provost Jeroen Greven. “By bringing advanced AI into our learning environment, we can explore new ideas faster, test them more intelligently, and train students to think at the intersection of creativity and technology, giving them a competitive advantage as they graduate into an industry that is evolving faster than ever before.”

The lab expands the creative and strategic surface area for exploration—enabling faster discovery, deeper insights, and more ambitious solutions for meeting evolving guest needs, identifying and applying flavor and cuisine trends, and addressing global food systems challenges.

“For decades, food innovation has been limited by the speed of human imagination alone,” said Steve Gundrum, Chief AI Officer at Mattson. “With the Mattson AI Lab @ The Culinary Institute of America, we will be expanding that imagination exponentially. This is about inventing the future of food faster, smarter, and with greater impact.”

About The Culinary Institute of America
Founded in 1946, The Culinary Institute of America is dedicated to developing leaders in food, beverage, and hospitality. The independent, not-for-profit CIA offers associate degrees in culinary arts and baking and pastry arts; bachelor’s degrees with majors in culinary arts, baking & pastry arts, food business management, hospitality management, culinary science, and applied food studies; and master’s degrees in culinary arts, culinary therapeutics, food business, sustainable food systems, and wine and beverage management. The college also offers executive education, certificate programs, and courses for professionals and enthusiasts. Its conferences, leadership initiatives, and consulting services are a valuable resource to industry professionals, and its worldwide network of nearly 60,000 alumni includes innovators in every area of the food world. The CIA has locations in New York, California, Texas, and Singapore. For more information, visit www.ciachef.edu. 

About Mattson
Mattson is the largest end-to-end food and beverage new products innovation firm. Since 1977, Mattson has worked across the food industry playing a major role in bringing 1,000’s of new products to market.  With offices in Silicon Valley California and Chicago, Mattson provides services to all channels within the food and beverage industry, including foodservice, CPG, commercial ingredients, and more. Working with clients both large and small, Mattson identifies new product strategies that fuel future growth platforms for their clients, from ideation through commercialization. For more information, visit https://mattsonco.com or contact Mattson at: MattsonIQ@mattsonco.com

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SOURCE The Culinary Institute of America