George J. Pappas

George J. Pappas is the UPS Foundation Professor and Chair of the Department of Electrical and Systems Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania. He also holds secondary appointments in the Departments of Computer and Information Sciences, and Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics. As Associate Dean for Research and Innovation in the School of Engineering and Applied Science, and Director of the Raj and Neera Singh Program in Artificial Intelligence, he leads initiatives in cutting-edge research.

His research spans control systems, robotics, formal methods, and machine learning, with a focus on safe and secure cyber-physical and autonomous systems. Recent work emphasizes interpretable networks, distributed intelligence, and precision agriculture applications.

Awarded the NSF PECASE, Antonio Ruberti Young Researcher Prize, George S. Axelby Award, O. Hugo Schuck Best Paper Award, and George H. Heilmeier Faculty Excellence Award, Pappas is a Fellow of IEEE and IFAC, and was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 2024.

He has mentored over 50 students and postdocs now serving as faculty at leading universities, and is affiliated with the GRASP Lab and PRECISE Center. His work bridges theoretical rigor and practical implementation in emerging AI and control systems.