Ali Tajer

Ali Tajer is a Full Professor in the Department of Electrical, Computer, and Systems Engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) and serves as the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs. He holds a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Columbia University, an M.A. in Statistics from Columbia, and degrees from Sharif University of Technology. His research focuses on theoretical and algorithmic aspects of machine learning, information theory, statistical inference, and causality, with applications to power systems and cyber-physical systems.

Professor Tajer has been honored with the RPI School of Engineering Research Award for Senior Faculty (2024), IEEE Information Theory Society Distinguished Lecturer (2025–2026), NSF CAREER Award, and multiple teaching and research excellence awards. He has over 150 publications in premier venues such as IEEE Transactions on Information Theory and IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing.

His service roles include Senior Area Editor for IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing, Associate Editor for IEEE Transactions on Information Theory, and editorial leadership across multiple journals. He has pioneered work on causal bandits, robust machine learning, and power grid anomaly detection, advancing methods for decision-making under uncertainty and system resilience.

Tajer’s research labs and teams focus on integrating causal inference, reinforcement learning, and statistical methods to address challenges in smart grids, communication systems, and large-scale networks. His work bridges theoretical foundations with practical applications, fostering interdisciplinary collaborations in energy systems and AI.