Lijie Chen

Lijie Chen is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences at UC Berkeley, where he is part of the Berkeley Theory Group. Previously, he was a Miller Research Fellow at UC Berkeley, hosted by Avishay Tal and Umesh Vazirani, and earned his Ph.D. from MIT under Ryan Williams. His research focuses on theoretical computer science, particularly computational complexity theory, with applications to quantum physics and AI safety.

• Education: Ph.D. in Computer Science from MIT (2022), B.Sc. from Yao Class at Tsinghua University.
• Research Interests: Complexity theory, quantum complexity, derandomization, circuit lower bounds, and foundational aspects of AI safety.

Chen has made significant contributions to understanding fundamental questions in complexity theory, including circuit lower bounds and the connections between randomness and computation efficiency. His work often bridges theoretical insights with practical implications in quantum computing and algorithm design.

Awards and Honors:

• Machtey Award for Best Student Paper (2019).
• Danny Lewin Best Student Paper Award (2019).
• Invited to SICOMP Special Issues for FOCS and STOC papers.

He has organized workshops on complexity theory and derandomization, and his research has been recognized in venues like STOC, FOCS, and the Journal of the ACM.