Susan A. Murphy is the Mallinckrodt Professor of Statistics and of Computer Science at Harvard University, with affiliations to the Kempner Institute. She leads the Statistical Reinforcement Learning Lab, focusing on developing algorithms to inform sequential decision-making in health, particularly for Just-in-Time Adaptive Interventions (JITAIs) and micro-randomized trials (MRTs). Her work is funded by NIH institutes, including NIDA, NHLBI, and NIBIB. Dr. Murphy has been awarded a MacArthur Fellowship (2013) and is a member of the National Academy of Medicine (2014) and the National Academy of Sciences (2016). Her research integrates statistical methods with computer science techniques to optimize mobile health interventions. She collaborates with d3Lab and mDOT on projects like HeartSteps and Sense2Stop, evaluating real-time treatment policies. Notable contributions include advancing MRT designs, sample size calculations, and reinforcement learning algorithms for personalized healthcare. Dr. Murphy advises a large team of postdocs, graduate students, and undergraduates, many of whom hold academic and industry roles globally. She emphasizes engagement in digital interventions, balancing personalization with ethical considerations. Her lab’s work spans algorithm development, clinical trial design, and causal inference, aiming to improve health outcomes through adaptive interventions.
Huamin Qu is a Chair Professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST). He serves as the Founding Dean of the Academy of Interdisciplinary Studies (AIS), Founding Head of the Division of Emerging Interdisciplinary Areas (EMIA), and was the Founding Acting Head of Computational Media and Arts (CMA) at HKUST(GZ). Qu directs the VisLab and coordinates the Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) group. He obtained his BS in Mathematics from Xi'an Jiaotong University and MS/PhD in Computer Science from Stony Brook University. Qu's research integrates Data Visualization , Human-Computer Interaction , and Human-Centered AI , with applications in urban informatics, social networks, and explainable AI. His work focuses on developing interactive systems for big data analytics, visual storytelling, and AI-driven decision support. Research extends to multimodal communication, fintech, and augmented reality applications. His publications emphasize visual analytics for complex datasets (mobility, social media, financial), interaction techniques for immersive environments, and AI-enhanced visualization tools. Recent works explore explainable AI interfaces and large-scale data communication frameworks. IEEE Visualization Academy (2020) IEEE VGTC Technical Achievement Award AI 2000 Most Influential Scholar (2019, 2023, 2024) 21 Best Paper/Honorable Mention awards IBM Faculty Award (2009) APICTA Merit Award (2015) Yelp Dataset Grand Prize (2018) Qu has advised 48 PhD graduates (21 now faculty at institutions like UC Davis, University of Minnesota, Texas A&M) and 30 MPhil students. He secured major grants including RGC theme-based projects (digital citizenship, air pollution), UGC AoE (slope safety), and China's 973 Program. As VisLab director, he leads 20+ researchers in visualization/HCI projects adopted by Microsoft, IBM, Huawei, and Tencent.
Eva Ascarza is a Professor of Business Administration in the Marketing Unit at Harvard Business School (HBS) . She co-founded the Customer Intelligence Lab at HBS's D 3 Institute, focusing on responsible and effective customer data utilization. Research Interests include: Customer retention and churn analysis Algorithmic bias in marketing AI Field experimentation (A/B testing) for targeting optimization Customer lifetime value (CLV) modeling Dynamic personalization strategies Scientific Awards and Recognitions: 2023 Weitz-Winer-O'Dell Award (winner) 2022 Paul E. Green Award (PNAS publication) 2020 Marketing Science Institute (MSI) Scholar 2019 Erin Anderson Award for Emerging Female Scholar 2018 Paul E. Green Award (JMR publication) 2014 Frank M. Bass Outstanding Dissertation Award Her articles demonstrate cutting-edge applications of statistical modeling , Bayesian methods , and fair AI frameworks in modern marketing challenges.
Thomas Hacker is a Professor in the Department of Computer and Information Technology at Purdue Polytechnic Institute, Purdue University. His research focuses on cloud computing, high-performance computing, operating systems, computer networking, and cyber infrastructure . He holds a Ph.D. and M.S. in Computer Science & Engineering from the University of Michigan, along with dual B.S. degrees in Computer Science and Physics from Oakland University. Education: PhD (Computer Science & Engineering), University of Michigan (2004) MS (Computer Science & Engineering), University of Michigan (1993) BS (Computer Science, Mathematics Minor), Oakland University (1989) BS (Physics), Oakland University (1989) Dr. Hacker's research spans cloud and grid computing, operating systems, and distributed systems , with applications in earthquake engineering data systems and AI-driven infrastructure analysis. His recent work explores extended layer 2 networking for bare-metal provisioning ( 2023 IEEE Cloud Summit ) and machine-supported bridge inspection using artificial intelligence ( Transportation Research Record, 2023 ). Notable scientific contributions include 15+ publications on topics like cyberinfrastructure for earthquake engineering, container-based virtualization, and data-intensive systems. His work has been recognized with awards such as the NSF CAREER Award (2010) and multiple Purdue Seed for Success Awards . Key Scientific Awards: NSF CAREER Award (2010) Purdue Seed for Success Awards (2008-2013) ASEE Information Systems Division Best Paper Award (2012) College of Technology Outstanding Faculty in Discovery Award (2010) He has held leadership roles at Purdue, including Department Head (2018-2021) and Interim Department Head (2011-2016) . His career spans academic positions at Indiana University, University of Michigan, and industry roles at Storage Technology Corporation.
Paolo Gardoni is the Alfredo H. Ang Family Professor and an Excellence Faculty Scholar in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, with additional professorial appointments in Industrial & Enterprise Systems Engineering and Biomedical & Translational Sciences. He also serves as Director of the MAE Center and Editor-in-Chief of Reliability Engineering & System Safety. Education Ph.D. in Civil Engineering, University of California, Berkeley (2002) M.A. in Statistics, University of California, Berkeley (2001) M.Eng. in Structural Engineering, University of Tokyo (1997) Laurea (BS+MS equivalent) in Structural Engineering, Politecnico di Milano (1997) Research Interests Gardoni’s scholarship integrates probabilistic methods with large-scale infrastructure systems to advance reliability, risk, and life-cycle analysis. His work quantifies the performance of deteriorating systems under natural and anthropogenic hazards, models societal impacts of disasters, and develops decision frameworks for sustainable and resilient infrastructure. He also examines ethical, social, and legal dimensions of risk, and investigates optimal strategies for hazard mitigation, disaster recovery, and climate adaptation. Across more than 250 refereed journal papers, he has advanced sub-fields ranging from probabilistic mechanics and earthquake engineering to catastrophe bond pricing and engineering ethics, leveraging tools such as stochastic differential equations, Bayesian networks, and physics-informed machine learning. Awards & Honors Alfredo Ang Award on Risk Analysis and Management of Civil Infrastructure (ASCE, 2021) Best Paper Awards in ASCE Journal of Sustainable Water in the Built Environment (2019) and Geotechnical Research (2018 Telford Premium Prize) Fellowships and named professorships: Alfredo H. Ang Family Professor, Excellence Faculty Scholar, and courtesy or honorary professorships at Tsinghua, IIT Guwahati, Tongji, Jianghan, and Loughborough universities. Research Leadership & Funding Gardoni has secured over $58 million in research funding from NSF, DHS, NIST, USAID, Qatar National Research Fund, and other agencies. He directs the MAE Center—formerly an NSF Engineering Research Center—focused on multi-hazard engineering approaches, and is Editor-in-Chief of Reliability Engineering & System Safety (Elsevier, IF 9.4). He founded and formerly led the journal Sustainable and Resilient Infrastructure (Taylor & Francis) and serves on editorial boards of nine additional journals. Advising & Mentorship He has graduated 27 PhD and 35 Master’s students, many of whom now hold faculty positions worldwide. His group maintains an active pipeline of doctoral and post-doctoral researchers working on resilience analytics, infrastructure monitoring, and risk-informed decision-making. Laboratories & Collaborations He leads the MAE Center and is affiliated with the Critical Infrastructure Resilience Institute (CIRI) and the Biomedical and Translational Sciences group. International collaborations span the UK (Loughborough), India (IIT Guwahati), and China (Tsinghua, Tongji, Jianghan), fostering cross-disciplinary research in reliability and resilience engineering.
Chen Li is a Professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University of California, Irvine (UCI), affiliated with the Donald Bren School of Information and Computer Sciences (ICS). He holds a Ph.D. from Stanford University and bachelor's and master's degrees from Tsinghua University. His research focuses on data management, including databases, query optimization, machine learning systems, and open-source tools like AsterixDB and Texera. He has received prestigious awards such as the NSF CAREER Award and IEEE Fellow recognition. Li is also a board member of the VLDB Endowment and the former Faculty Director of UCI's ICS Master of Computer Science Program. Education: Ph.D., Computer Science, Stanford University M.S. and B.S., Computer Science, Tsinghua University Research interests span next-generation databases, approximate query processing, and AI-driven data analytics. Notable contributions include the Texera system for collaborative data science workflows and the Apache AsterixDB project. He has led NIH-funded initiatives in diabetes research and pandemic prediction, emphasizing real-world applications of data science. Professional roles include PC co-chair of VLDB 2015, General Co-chair of SIGMOD 2027, and a visiting research scientist at Google. His awards highlight his impact in both academia and industry. Advising and mentoring are central to his career, with a focus on graduate education. He has pioneered outreach programs like DS4ALL to teach high-school students data science using Texera.
Suchi Saria is the John C. Malone Associate Professor at Johns Hopkins University , with appointments in the Whiting School of Engineering (Computer Science), the Bloomberg School of Public Health (Health Policy & Management), and the Whiting School (Applied Math & Statistics). She directs the Machine Learning and Healthcare Lab and co-founded the Bayesian Health startup. Education: PhD in Computer Science from Stanford University (advisor: Daphne Koller), NSF Computing Innovation Fellowship at Harvard (2011), prior research at UMass (Barto, Madhavan), and industry experience at Aster Data Systems (acquired by Teradata). Research Focus: Saria develops statistical machine learning tools to extract insights from heterogeneous clinical data (structured/unstructured EHRs, sensor streams). Her work enables counterfactual reasoning for personalized treatment plans, dataset shift mitigation in healthcare AI, and weak supervision frameworks for mobile health apps. Key applications include sepsis prediction , Parkinson’s symptom tracking , and critical care optimization . Article Trends: Recent publications emphasize AI safety (2024-2025), addressing racial bias , transparency frameworks , and dynamic monitoring for clinical deployments. Her work spans conformal prediction , causal modeling , and policy guidelines for health AI. Scientific Awards: Sloan Research Fellowship (2018) DARPA Young Faculty Award (2016) MIT Technology Review TR35 Innovator (2017) Popular Science Brilliant 10 (2016) IEEE Intelligent Systems AI’s 10 to Watch (2015) NSF Computing Innovation Fellowship (2011) Rambus Fellowship (2004-2010) Best Paper Awards in ML, Informatics, and Medicine venues Advising & Grants: Saria mentors PhD students/postdocs in machine learning and health informatics , including funded projects like the NSF Smart and Connected Health Grant (2014) and Google Research Award (2014). Her lab’s TREWScore system (Science Translational Medicine 2015) is deployed in hospitals, while her Bayesian Health startup commercializes AI solutions for provider experience.
Luca Peretti is an Associate Professor in Electric Machines and Drives at KTH Royal Institute of Technology, affiliated with the School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and the Department of Electrical Engineering, Division of Electric Power and Energy Systems. He works as a researcher in the EMD (Electric Machines and Drives) group and serves as Partner Director for KTH's strategic partnership with ABB. Education: M.Sc. in Electronic Engineering (2005) from University of Udine, Ph.D. from University of Padova (2008) Professional Experience: Postdoc at University of Padova (2009-2010), Principal Scientist at ABB Corporate Research (2010-2018), Associate Professor at KTH (2018-present) His research focuses on: Automatic parameter estimation in electric machines Multiphase drive systems Sensorless control algorithms Loss segregation in drive systems Condition monitoring of industrial and transportation applications Recent publications demonstrate expertise in variable phase-pole machines, harmonic plane decomposition, predictive control algorithms, and advanced modeling of permanent magnet motors. Key application areas include transportation electrification, wind energy systems, and industrial drive technologies. Scientific roles include: Associate Editor, IET Electric Power Applications Journal (2019-present) Theme Co-Leader, Swedish Electromobility Center (2020-present) Member, IEEE (2021-present) and IET (2006-present) He leads the strategic partnership with ABB and contributes to doctoral program committees at University of Padova.
Qing (Cindy) Chang is a Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the University of Virginia, where she directs the Intelligent Systems Lab. She joined UVA in 2019 after serving as an associate professor at Stony Brook University. Prior to academia, she spent a decade at General Motors R&D, receiving their highest innovation awards. Education: M.S. from University of Wisconsin-Madison Ph.D. in Manufacturing from University of Michigan Research Focus: Chang's work integrates math-based modeling and data-driven methods to optimize manufacturing systems. Key areas include: Adaptive control and machine learning for production efficiency Human-robot collaboration frameworks Sustainable manufacturing through energy management Real-time control of cyber-physical production systems Reinforcement learning applications in industrial automation Research Trends: Her recent publications (2024-2025) demonstrate strong focus on AI-driven manufacturing optimization, with 80% leveraging reinforcement learning/LLMs for robotic control. Key themes include multi-agent coordination (67% of papers), energy efficiency (53%), and flexible production systems (47%). Awards & Recognition: Inducted as SME Scholar (2024) 20 Most Influential Professors in Smart Manufacturing - SME (2020) NSF CAREER Award (2014) Three-time GM Boss Kettering Award winner (2005,2006,2008) ASME and SME Fellow Leadership & Funding: Serves on NAMRI/SME Board of Directors with editorial roles across ASME/IEEE/SME journals. Research supported by NSF (including CAREER), Department of Energy, and multiple industry partners. Leads projects on human-robot collaboration and sustainable manufacturing. Lab & Collaboration: Directs the Intelligent Systems Lab at UVA, focusing on industrial AI applications. Collaborates with automotive and energy sectors to translate research into practical solutions for smart factories.
Takeshi Ikenaga is a Professor at Waseda University’s School of Fundamental Science and Engineering and Graduate School of Information, Production and Systems . He earned his Ph.D. in Information & Computer Science from Waseda University in 2001, following B.E. and M.E. degrees in Electrical Engineering (1988–1990). His career spans roles at NTT LSI Laboratories (1990–2002), Kitakyushu Foundation for Advancement of Industry, Science and Technology (FAIS) (1999–2002), and visiting researcher at the University of Massachusetts (1999–2000). Research Interests : Application-specific SoCs for video/image processing, including compression (H.264/AVC, H.265/HEVC), filters (super-resolution, noise reduction), recognition systems (feature detection, object tracking), and communication (UWB, LDPC). He also works on many-core processor design, ultra-low-delay vision systems, and sports analytics (volleyball, figure skating) with real-time 3D pose estimation and ball tracking. Awards : Recipient of the Furukawa Sansui Award (Waseda University, 1988) IEICE Research Encouragement Award (1992) Multiple Best Paper/Presentation Awards (2006–2022) at conferences including DAC/ISSCC, LSI IP Design, ISOCC, ISPACS, and CVIT APSIPA Distinguished Lecturer Certificate (2015) Waseda University Presidential Teaching Award (2020)
Tianxi Cai, ScD, holds the John Rock Professorship in Population and Translational Data Sciences at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and is a Professor of Biomedical Informatics at Harvard Medical School. She directs the Translational Data Science Center for a Learning Health System (CELEHS). Her work bridges clinical and basic science data to advance personalized medicine and disease understanding. Institution: Harvard University Departments: Biostatistics (T.H. Chan School) and Biomedical Informatics (HMS) Key Roles: Faculty member since 2002, NIH-funded researcher, and leader in EHR data analytics Research focuses on biomarker evaluation, predictive modeling, high-dimensional data analysis, and survival analysis. Collaborates with the I2B2 Center to integrate clinical and genomic data. Active in developing semi-supervised learning methods for noisy EHR data and real-world evidence generation. Funding : Recent grants include NIH projects on rheumatoid arthritis treatment response (R01AR080193, R21AR078339) and semi-supervised EHR denoising (R01LM013614). Co-leads initiatives on chronic disease endpoints using multi-source data (U01FD007929). Labs/Teams : Directs CELEHS and leads the Cai Lab, focusing on translational data science and machine learning applications in healthcare.
Dr. Euijin (Alley) Choo is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Alberta, specializing in data-driven cybersecurity and big data analytics. Her research focuses on AI-based cybersecurity solutions, anomaly detection in network traffic, and adversarial attacks on federated learning systems. She holds a Ph.D. from North Carolina State University and has held roles at Qatar Computing Research Institute, Korea University, and the University of Missouri-Rolla. Education: Ph.D., Computer Science, North Carolina State University (2015) M.S., Computer Science & Engineering, Korea University (2008) B.S. Dual Degree in Computer Science & Mathematics, Korea University (2006) Research Interests: Security and big data analysis intersections Federated learning security and privacy Anomaly detection in network logs and enterprise systems Malware/phishing detection using graph inference AI-driven threat intelligence aggregation Recent Grants: Mitacs Accelerate Program Grant: Fraud Detection in Financial Graphs ($60,000, 2025) National CyberSecurity Consortium Grant: IntruderInsight ($2M, 2025-2027) NSERC Discovery Grant: Threat Detection Framework ($180,000, 2025-2031) Awards: Best Paper Award at DBSEC 2015 NSERC Early Career Researcher Award (2025) Provost Fellowship (NC State, 2009-2010) Labs/Teams: Leads the Data-driven Network and Cyber Security (DANS) Lab, focusing on federated learning defenses, compromised entity detection, and malicious domain analysis.
Huining Li is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Computer Science at North Carolina State University . Her research focuses on Internet of Things (IoT) , cybersecurity , and mobile computing , with a specialized emphasis on mobile health (mHealth) technologies. Education: Ph.D. in Computer Science and Engineering from University at Buffalo (2024). Her work addresses privacy-preserving sensing mechanisms , biomarker measurement , and fairness in dynamic mobile environments , developing systems for chronic wound care, Parkinson’s disease management, and mental health therapy. Recent publications highlight innovations in mmWave biometrics , machine learning for health diagnostics , and non-contact monitoring . Scientific Awards: Best Paper Awards (SenSys 2019, BodyNet 2021, ICHI 2022) Best Paper Candidate (SenSys 2022) Harold O. Wolf Achievement Award (2024) EECS Rising Star (2023) NIH mHealth Training Institute Scholar (2025) She teaches courses in Mobile Health Systems and Applications and Computer Networks , and actively serves on NSF panels , TPC committees (ACM MobiSys, IEEE-EMBS BSN), and as Associate Editor for journals like Elsevier Smart Health.
Francesco Pilati is an Associate Professor at the Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Trento, where he serves as local coordinator for the scientific field ING-IND/17 (Industrial Plants and Logistic Systems). He chairs the research group on Industrial Plants, Production Systems, and Logistics, and teaches courses in Industrial Plants and Design of Digital Production and Assembly Systems. As coordinator of the Master's program in Management and Industrial Systems Engineering and University Coordinator for the EIT double degree in Zero-Defect Manufacture, Pilati bridges academic leadership with advanced manufacturing research. He has also served as Invited Lecturer at universities in Vienna and Göttingen. His research focuses on integrating environmental sustainability with technical-economic criteria through multi-objective optimization and impact assessment. Key areas include: Distribution networks and warehousing systems Manufacturing and assembly line design Hybrid energy production systems Digitization of manual production processes using depth cameras Recent publications highlight applications of Industry 4.0 technologies to pandemic safety, logistics optimization, and smart manufacturing. Pilati has received significant recognition including the Philip Morris Italia Empowering Research Award (2016) and Autostrade per l'Italia academic recognition. His editorial contributions include guest editing special issues on Digital Twins and Smart Factories in Q1 journals.
Mi Zhang is an Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at The Ohio State University and Director of the OSU AIoT and Machine Learning Systems Lab. He holds multiple affiliations including the Institute for Cybersecurity and Digital Trust, Translational Data Analytics Institute, and 5G and Broadband Connectivity Center. Dr. Zhang received his Ph.D. from University of Southern California and B.S. from Peking University, followed by a postdoctoral position at Cornell University. His academic journey previously included a position at Michigan State University before joining OSU. His research focuses on Empowering Billions of Everyday Devices with AI to realize the Artificial Intelligence of Things (AIoT) vision. His lab works across several interconnected domains including efficient generative AI (multimodal LLMs, diffusion models), edge AI for mobile/AR/wearables, systems for AI agents, spatial computing, foundation models for IoT, and human-centered mobile health applications. This interdisciplinary work draws from mobile/edge computing, AI/machine learning, distributed systems, computer networks, and human-centered computing. Analysis of his recent publications reveals a strong focus on making AI more efficient and accessible for resource-constrained devices. His research trajectory shows increasing emphasis on large language models and their optimization for edge deployment, alongside continued work in federated learning for IoT applications. The publications demonstrate both theoretical contributions and practical applications across healthcare, wireless networks, and human-computer interaction. Best Paper Award, IEEE Internet Computing Magazine (2024) University of Chicago Outstanding Educator Award (2024) Best Paper Award, ECCV'24 Workshop (2024) USC ECE SIPI Distinguished Alumni Award (2023) Multiple Best Paper Awards from ACM/IEEE conferences NSF CRII Award Facebook/Meta Faculty Research Award Amazon Research Award MSU Innovation of the Year Award (2020) Dr. Zhang actively mentors students at all levels, with a current group of Ph.D. students working on cutting-edge AI/ML systems. His lab has secured significant funding including Meta Reality Labs Faculty Awards, NVIDIA academic grants, and NSF grants. The OSU AIoT and Machine Learning Systems Lab serves as the central hub for his research activities, fostering collaboration across multiple disciplines to advance the field of AIoT.
