Dr. Balaraman Ravindran is a Professor and Head of the Department of Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (DSAI) at IIT Madras. He also leads the Robert Bosch Centre for Data Science & Artificial Intelligence (RBCDSAI) and the Centre for Responsible AI (CeRAI). His research focuses on reinforcement learning, geometric deep learning, and ethical AI deployment. Education includes a PhD from the University of Massachusetts Amherst (2004) and MSc from the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore (1996). He holds prestigious fellowships from AAAI and INAE, and is an ACM Distinguished Member. Key contributions include work on class imbalance learning (e.g., TODUS algorithm) and applications in healthcare, transportation, and social networks. He has advised over 20 students and secured grants from Google, TCS Research, and others. Labs/Teams: Heads RBCDSAI and CeRAI, collaborates with TCS Research and Google.
Matthew Louis Mauriello is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Computer and Information Sciences at the University of Delaware , where he directs the Sensify Lab . He holds a PhD in Computer Science from the University of Maryland (2018) and completed postdoctoral work at Stanford University (School of Medicine, 2020; School of Public Policy & Environmental Engineering Department, 2019). Research interests span Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Ubiquitous Computing, and User-Centered Design with applications in: Sustainability Human-Building Interaction Wearable Technology Personal Informatics Educational Game Design Mental Health Interventions Recent publications highlight trends in stress monitoring (skin-like biosensors, workplace wellbeing), energy auditing (thermography systems), and educational technology (block-based programming tools for teachers). His work appears in ACM CHI, ACM Human-Computer Interaction, and Building and Environment. Scientific awards include: Best Paper Honorable Mention, CHI 2016 Best Paper Honorable Mention, CHI 2015 Best of WebSci'18 Teaching at University of Delaware encompasses courses like Educational Game Design Operating Systems Advanced Web Technologies Computing for Social Good with a focus on project-based learning and systems thinking.
Esther Duflo is the Abdul Latif Jameel Professor of Poverty Alleviation and Development Economics in the Department of Economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). She is also co-founder and co-director of the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL), holds the Chaire, Pauvreté et politiques publiques at the Collège de France, and serves as President of the Paris School of Economics. Her research focuses on understanding the economic lives of people living in poverty to help design and evaluate social policies. Her work spans multiple domains including: Development Economics Poverty Alleviation strategies Health interventions Educational programs Financial inclusion initiatives Environmental policy Governance improvements Duflo revolutionized developmental economics by pioneering the use of randomized controlled trials to test poverty reduction measures. Her empirical approach has challenged conventional opinions about development and has helped improve the efficient use of resources in poverty alleviation programs worldwide. She co-authored the influential books "Poor Economics" and "Good Economics for Hard Times" with Abhijit Banerjee, demonstrating through field experiments how specific interventions (like providing lentils to mothers for child immunization) can dramatically improve social outcomes. Her notable scientific achievements include: Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel (2019) Princess of Asturias Award for Social Sciences (2015) Infosys Prize (2014) John Bates Clark Medal (2010) MacArthur "Genius Grant" Fellowship (2009) A.SK Social Science Award (2015) Duflo has established J-PAL as a global network of over a hundred affiliated professors who use scientific evidence to inform policy decisions in the fight against poverty. J-PAL has offices across Africa, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, North America, and South and Southeast Asia. Her work has demonstrated the crucial importance of information in policymaking, with numerous field experiments showing how carefully designed interventions can have significant impacts on social outcomes across multiple domains including health, education, and economic opportunity.
Professor Jo Barraket is a leading academic and researcher in social equity, social innovation, and public policy. As Director of the Melbourne Social Equity Institute and member of the Dilun Duwa Centre for Indigenous Business Leadership, she focuses on improving social equity through organizational innovation, cross-sector collaboration, and policy design. Her research addresses social procurement, health equity, digital inclusion, and employment pathways for marginalized groups. Her work includes landmark projects such as the Australian Digital Inclusion Index and evaluations of Commonwealth Social Enterprise Development Funds. She has secured over $11M in research grants, including multiple ARC grants, and produced over 75 scholarly publications. Her current projects compare social procurement policies in Australia and Scotland, and study youth unemployment in construction via employment-focused procurement. Key research themes include: social enterprise scaling strategies, cross-sector partnerships for policy implementation, and the role of philanthropy in equitable housing. She advises governments and OECD on inclusive employment policies and chairs major research initiatives like the Social Enterprise Impact Lab. Prof Barraket’s transdisciplinary approach combines rigorous academic research with practical outputs like policy guides and digital tools to maximize societal impact. She previously founded the Centre for Social Impact Swinburne, now a global leader in social economy research.
Sunita Sarawagi is a Professor at Computer Science and Engineering , IIT Bombay, and a member of AI Labs@CSE . She is also associated with the Center for Machine Intelligence and Data Science (CMInDS), which she founded in 2020. Education: PhD in Computer Science from UC Berkeley (Thesis: Query Processing in Tertiary Memory Databases), BTech in Computer Science from IIT Kharagpur Research Interests span machine learning , data analytics , graphical models , and structured learning , with applications in text segmentation, sequence modeling, domain adaptation, and human-in-the-loop systems. Her publications reveal a strong focus on integrating data mining with database systems , temporal data analysis , and information extraction using probabilistic methods. Professional Activities include serving on the IEEE John Von Neumann Medal committee (2017-), VLDB 2011 Research Track Co-chair , and multiple program committee roles at top conferences like ICML, KDD, and SIGMOD. Labs & Teams : Leads the SS Lab , a research group focused on probabilistic graphical models, sequence modeling, and data integration techniques.
Gierad Laput is a Senior Engineering Manager at Apple, leading the Perception and Interaction Engineering organization under Machine Intelligence Neural Design (MIND) at Apple AI/ML (AIML). He is also an Adjunct Professor at Carnegie Mellon University's School of Computer Science and Human-Computer Interaction Institute. His research sits at the intersection of sensing systems, interactive technologies, and machine learning, with applications in ambient intelligence, wearables, and AI-driven interactive experiences. Ph.D. in Computer Science from Carnegie Mellon University Founding member of CMU's Future Interfaces Group Former Google Ph.D. Fellow, Disney Imagineer, and recipient of 10 Best Paper Awards/Nominations His research agenda at Apple leverages cutting-edge hardware to develop multimodal ML systems for vision, audio, and motion sensors, enabling features like head gesture detection for AirPods, Apple Intelligence integrations, and health monitoring tools. Recent collaborative projects include Vision Pro hand interaction systems and WatchOS updates for cycling/fall detection. Key research areas include human-computer interaction , machine learning for sensor fusion , and smart environment sensing . Over 35 publications cover transformative technologies like ViBand (bio-acoustic sensing), EM-Sense (touch recognition), SkinTrack (arm as touchpad), and ElectroDermis (stretchable electronics). Scientific honors include: Fast Company Innovation by Design Award (2017) Google PhD Fellowship (2018) Swartz Entrepreneurial Fellowship (2018) Best Paper Awards at ACM UIST (2016) and ACM CHI (2015) As an educator, he has taught courses at CMU and the University of Michigan on on-device machine learning , signal processing , and human-centered design . His lab has mentored numerous researchers now pursuing PhDs at MIT, UW, CMU, and Northwestern.
Dawn Song is a Professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the University of California, Berkeley, affiliated with multiple research centers including the Berkeley Artificial Intelligence Research Lab (BAIR) and the Berkeley Center for Responsible, Decentralized Intelligence (RDI). She holds leadership roles in AI safety, cybersecurity, and blockchain research. Her work bridges machine learning, security, and distributed systems, with notable contributions to formal verification, privacy-preserving technologies, and AI governance. Education: Ph.D. (2002) and M.S. (1999) in Computer Science from UC Berkeley and Carnegie Mellon University, respectively. She previously served as an Assistant Professor at Carnegie Mellon University before joining UC Berkeley in 2007. Research Interests: Dawn's work focuses on AI safety, cybersecurity, and the ethical implications of frontier AI. She explores topics such as large language model vulnerabilities, zero-knowledge proofs, blockchain security, and policy frameworks for AI governance. Her research combines theoretical rigor with practical applications, addressing challenges in secure systems, adversarial machine learning, and privacy-preserving computation. Publications: Her recent work includes groundbreaking studies on LLM memorization, smart contract decompilation, and AI agent cybersecurity evaluation. She also leads initiatives like the Singapore Consensus and California Report on AI safety priorities, emphasizing global collaboration in risk mitigation. Notable Awards: MacArthur Fellowship (2010), ACM Fellow (2019), IEEE Fellow (2019) Advising & Grants: She advises projects on AI policy and cybersecurity, securing grants from NSF, DARPA, and industry collaborations. Her lab develops tools like CyberGym for evaluating AI agents and zkPyTorch for secure machine learning. Labs & Teams: Her research groups at UC Berkeley focus on cutting-edge projects in AI safety, blockchain, and cybersecurity, collaborating with industry leaders and policymakers to advance both technical and ethical standards.
Tianqi Chen is an Assistant Professor at the Machine Learning Department and Computer Science Department of Carnegie Mellon University (CMU), with a courtesy appointment as a Professor in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department within the College of Engineering. His research focuses on scalable machine learning systems, compiler optimization, and efficient deep learning frameworks. He holds a PhD from the Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering at the University of Washington. Key contributions include the creation of XGBoost, Apache TVM, and MLC-LLM—widely adopted systems for machine learning and large language models. His work bridges algorithmic innovation with high-performance computing, emphasizing efficient deployment, quantization, and edge computing. Recent publications highlight advancements in LLM serving (e.g., WebLLM, Flashinfer), compiler-driven optimizations (e.g., TVM, Relax), and low-latency inference techniques (e.g., Magicdec, Tilus). These efforts address scalability, energy efficiency, and cross-platform compatibility in modern AI systems. Chen’s research has been applied to diverse domains, including music AI, browser-based inference, and microservice architectures for LLMs. His work underscores the importance of system-level thinking in advancing AI capabilities.
Abhijit Banerjee is a Professor in the Department of Economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). His research focuses on development economics, public health policy, and social protection programs, particularly addressing poverty and inequality in low- and middle-income countries. He has conducted large-scale experiments evaluating interventions such as conditional cash transfers, universal basic income, and healthcare policies. Key areas of interest include the design and implementation of anti-poverty programs, behavioral economics, and the long-term health impacts of infectious diseases like COVID-19. His work often integrates experimental methods to assess policy effectiveness, with contributions to global health studies and economic development strategies. Notably, his research on the RECOVERY trial evaluates treatments for hospitalized COVID-19 patients, while other studies explore financial spillover effects of electronic government transfers in Indonesia and savings behavior interventions in Chile. Banerjee has collaborated on projects analyzing post-COVID-19 health outcomes, labor market dynamics in India, and the role of trusted messengers in public health communication during crises. Despite the breadth of his contributions, specific details about his educational background, grants, or lab affiliations are not explicitly provided in the source text.
Ronald C. Lasky is a Professor of Engineering at Dartmouth College's Thayer School of Engineering and a Senior Technologist at the Indium Corporation. His academic roles include teaching courses such as ENGM 187: Technology Innovation and Entrepreneurship and ENGS 155: Intermediate Thermodynamics . Dr. Lasky holds a BS in Engineering Physics from Cornell University (1970), an MS in Applied Mathematics from Binghamton University (1974), and a PhD in Materials Science from Cornell University (1986). His research focuses on process optimization, electronic assembly, materials science, and environmental compliance. Notable contributions include work on lead-free solder assembly and Lean Six Sigma methodologies. He received the Member of Technical Distinction Award from the SMTA in 2021. Dr. Lasky actively engages with industry, exemplified by his collaboration with Galanz in China, exploring modern manufacturing practices and infrastructure. His insights on global supply chains and technological advancements highlight his dual academic and professional expertise.
Ruben Juanes is a Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences at MIT. His research focuses on multiphase flow in porous media, energy resources, and CO₂ sequestration. He holds appointments in both departments and has a strong interdisciplinary focus on geosciences and environmental engineering. His work bridges theory, simulation, and experimentation to address energy and environmental challenges. Education: Ingeniero de Caminos (Civil Engineering), University of La Coruña, Spain (1997) MS in Civil Engineering, UC Berkeley (1999) PhD in Civil Engineering, UC Berkeley (2003) Research interests emphasize fluid dynamics in geologic media, especially CO₂ storage, methane hydrates, and ecohydrology. His group develops computational models to predict large-scale Earth processes, with applications to carbon capture and storage, energy resource management, and subsurface engineering. Notable contributions include advancing understanding of fluid displacement mechanisms, capillary trapping in aquifers, and induced seismicity risks during CO₂ injection. His work has been recognized through awards like the APS Fellowship (2024), DOE Early Career Award (2010), and ARCO Energy Professorship (2008). Advising and Grants: Juanes advises graduate students in CEE and EAPS, focusing on thesis research in multiphase flow and geomechanics. His grants include NSF and DOE funding for projects on subsurface energy systems and induced seismicity. His lab, the Juanes Research Group, collaborates on experimental facilities like the FluidFlower CO₂ storage simulator. Labs/Teams: Active in MIT's Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage (CCUS) initiatives and the MIT Energy Initiative (MITEI). Collaborates with industry partners on field-scale CO₂ storage validation and subsurface monitoring technologies.
Arvind Parkhe is a Laura H. Carnell Professor of Strategy and International Business at Temple University’s Fox School of Business. He previously taught at Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business (1989–2003) and holds degrees from IIT Bombay (B.Tech.), Georgia State University (MBA), and Temple University (Ph.D.). His research focuses on strategic alliances, global supply chains, international joint ventures, and trust in cross-border partnerships. He has published in top journals like the Academy of Management Journal and Strategic Management Journal, earning awards such as the AIB Best Dissertation Award (1990) and JIBS Decade Award (2001). Teaching excellence spans all academic levels: recognized as outstanding faculty for Ph.D., MBA, and undergraduate programs. Service leadership includes Vice President of the Consortium for Undergraduate International Business Education (2014), Chair of Fox’s Strategic Management Department (2010–2020), and Managing Director of Fox MBA Programs (2005–2010). He received Temple’s Musser Outstanding Service Award (2012) and Faculty Service Excellence Award (2012). Key research contributions emphasize interorganizational networks, global competitive strategies, and trust mechanisms in alliances. His work bridges theory and practice, addressing challenges in global business operations and strategic collaboration.
Prof. Konrad Schindler holds the position of Full Professor at the Department of Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering at ETH Zürich. He is also the Head of the Institute of Geodesy and Photogrammetry (IGP), leading research and educational activities in geomatics and computer vision. His career spans roles as a Photogrammetric Engineer, scientific assistant, postdoc researcher, and academic faculty across institutions including Graz University of Technology, Monash University, and TU Darmstadt before joining ETH Zürich in 2010. Education: Undergraduate studies in Geodesy (1992–1995), Graz University of Technology, Austria MEng in Photogrammetry and Geoinformation (1995–1999), Vienna University of Technology, Austria PhD in Computer Science (2001–2003), Graz University of Technology, Austria Research focuses on Photogrammetry , Remote Sensing , Computer Vision , and Image Understanding with interdisciplinary applications in environmental monitoring, geospatial analysis, and disaster response. He develops computational methods for 3D reconstruction, fusion of multi-modal data, and AI-driven solutions for satellite imagery interpretation. His work bridges geomatic engineering and machine learning to address challenges in urban mapping, climate modeling, and biological systems analysis. Publications reflect expertise in geospatial AI, diffusion models, and benchmarking datasets for disaster resilience. Notable works include Marigold (image analysis adaptation) and BRIGHT (building damage assessment). His research emphasizes practicality and scalability, such as affordable depth estimation and global biomass datasets. He has received the 2013 Marr Prize Honourable Mention (IEEE) and the 2012 U.V. Helava Award (ISPRS), alongside several Best Presentation Awards. His contributions span technical leadership, editorial roles (ISPRS Journal), and service to Swiss remote sensing commissions. Advising and grants: While no specific advisee names or grant details are listed, his career trajectory includes mentoring postdocs and junior faculty. He teaches advanced courses in Photogrammetry , Image Interpretation , and Machine Vision , integrating cutting-edge AI techniques into curricula. His research group collaborates on global-scale projects like canopy height mapping and satellite-based climate variable assessments. Labs/Teams: As Institute Head, he oversees the IGP lab at ETH Zürich, with prior affiliations including the Digital Perception Lab (Monash University) and the Computer Vision Lab (ETH Zurich). His work often involves multi-institutional collaborations focused on geospatial AI and environmental science.
Dr. Diyi Yang is an Assistant Professor in the Computer Science Department at Stanford University. She leads the Social and Language Technologies (SALT) Lab, affiliated with the Stanford NLP Group, Stanford HCI Group, Stanford AI Lab (SAIL), and Stanford Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence (HAI). Her research focuses on socially aware natural language processing, large language models (LLMs), and human-AI interaction, aiming to improve human-human and human-computer communication through socially grounded AI systems. Education: Ph.D. in Language Technologies Institute, Carnegie Mellon University (2013–2019) B.S. in ACM Honored Class, Shanghai Jiao Tong University (2009–2013) Research Interests: Dr. Yang’s work bridges computational social science and NLP. She explores how AI can understand social contexts in language use and develop systems that respect cultural norms, ethical standards, and human values. Her lab’s projects include AI companions for skill training (e.g., Rehearsal Dialects), norm-aware LLMs (NormBank), and frameworks for human-AI collaboration (Co-Gym). Recent efforts address bias in AI, societal impacts of LLMs, and ethical evaluation of human-AI systems. Awards & Honors: 2024: Sloan Research Fellowship, ONR Young Investigator Award 2023: Adamic-Glance Young Distinguished Award (ICWSM), Kavli Fellow (NAS) 2022: NSF CAREER Award, Microsoft Research Faculty Fellow 2020: IEEE AI’s 10 to Watch Advising & Grants: Dr. Yang advises over 10 PhD students and postdocs, co-leading projects on LLM evaluation (SWE-bench/SWE-smith), human-AI ethics, and culturally aware NLP. Her research is supported by NSF, Amazon, DARPA, Google, and Stanford’s HAI initiative. Labs & Teams: The SALT Lab collaborates across disciplines, with projects spanning computer science, linguistics, and social sciences. Current initiatives include developing AI tools for mental health support (AI Partner & Mentor) and auditing societal impacts of LLMs.
Benjamin Van Roy is a Professor at Stanford University since 1998, affiliated with the Departments of Electrical Engineering and Management Science and Engineering, and the Institute for Computational and Mathematical Engineering. He leads the Efficient Agent Team at Google DeepMind and previously held leadership roles at Morgan Stanley, Unica, and Enuvis. He holds SB, SM, and PhD degrees in Computer Science and Electrical Engineering from MIT, advised by John Tsitsiklis. His research focuses on reinforcement learning, alignment, and information theory, with contributions to machine learning foundations, optimization, and finance. He has authored over 150 publications, including influential works on Thompson Sampling, approximate dynamic programming, and exploration strategies. His honors include INFORMS and IEEE Fellowships and the INFORMS Lanchester Prize. Van Roy advises doctoral students across academia and industry, with graduates at top institutions and companies like Meta, Tesla, and Citadel. He teaches courses on reinforcement learning, stochastic control, and optimization. His open-source projects include Epistemic Neural Networks and the Neural Testbed for evaluating machine learning models. Key contributions include foundational work in reinforcement learning theory, scalable methods for recommendation systems, and applications in finance and resource allocation. His research bridges theoretical insights with practical applications, emphasizing alignment and safety of AI systems.
