Following the line of this question, I'm in my last year of M.Sc., and I'm looking for a place where I can start my PHD. Since that question has been asked 4 years ago, I thought it may be wise to ask whether something has changed.

That is, there are new research groups/universities in the area? The old ones are still active?

With a rapid search, I found RISC and NCSU that SEEMS to be active. How would you rate them?