Ian Horrocks is a Professor of Computer Science at the University of Oxford and a Fellow of Oriel College. His research focuses on knowledge representation, description logics, automated reasoning, and semantic web technologies. He has held academic positions at the University of Manchester (2003–2007) and served as Chief Scientist at Cerebra Inc. (2001–2006). Horrocks earned his BSc (1st class), MSc, and PhD in Computer Science from the University of Manchester (1981–1997). His work includes foundational contributions to ontology languages (e.g., OWL) and reasoning systems such as HermiT and ELK. He has supervised over twenty doctoral students and postdoctoral researchers. His honors include Fellowships from the Royal Society (2011), ECCAI (2009), and the British Computer Society (2005). He serves as Editor-in-Chief of the Transactions on Graph Data and Knowledge and leads initiatives in semantic web standards and knowledge graph applications. Key Roles: Editor-in-Chief (Journal of Web Semantics), Co-Chair (W3C OWL Working Group) Grants: EPSRC Senior Research Fellowship (2005), numerous international collaborations Labs: Oxford Semantic Technologies, involvement in projects like RDFox and PAGOdA
Daniel Balasubramanian is an Adjunct Associate Professor of Computer Science and Research Scientist at Vanderbilt University's School of Engineering. His research focuses on cybersecurity, software verification, and cyber-physical systems, with expertise in symbolic execution, code analysis, and formal methods. He contributes to advancing secure systems through frameworks like RAMPART for adversarial defense and Syntheto for formal verification. His work intersects edge computing, hardware security, and autonomous systems resilience. Research Interests: Cybersecurity (including ethical hacking, network defense), formal methods (verification, theorem proving), edge computing (tinyML, cloud integration), and cyber-physical systems (emulation, testbeds). His recent work emphasizes assurance provenance in software documentation and adversarially robust autonomous systems. Publications since 2019 highlight contributions to cybersecurity testbeds, reinforcement learning for penetration resistance, and hardware security against rowhammer attacks. He has explored domain-specific languages (Syntheto), incremental modeling techniques (differential-formula), and cloud-edge service resilience against adversarial perturbations. Labs/Teams: Affiliated with the Institute for Software-Integrated Systems (ISIS), focusing on integrating software with physical systems through model-driven approaches and cybersecurity innovations.
Stefania Dumbrava is an Associate Professor of Computer Science at ENSIIE (École Nationale Supérieure d'Informatique pour l'Industrie et l'Entreprise) and a permanent member of the ACMES team in the SAMOVAR laboratory at Télécom SudParis, Institut Polytechnique de Paris. She is also actively involved in the Property Graph Schema Working Group and the European Research Network on Formal Proofs (EuroProofNet). Education PhD in Computer Science, Université Paris-Sud (2016) MSc in Computer Science, Jacobs University Bremen (2012) BSc in Mathematics, Jacobs University Bremen (2010) Research Interests Dumbrava's research lies at the intersection of formal methods and data management . She designs and verifies algorithms and systems for graph databases , with emphasis on property graphs , schema discovery , query optimization , and distributed graph processing . Recently, her work focuses on certifying large-scale distributed graph systems under the ANR JCJC VERDI project (2025–2029). Awards & Honors SIGMOD Best Paper Award 2023 – “PG-Schema: Schemas for Property Graphs” SIGMOD Research Highlight Award 2023 – “Threshold Queries” VLDB 2022 Best Regular Research Paper Runner-Up – “Threshold Queries in Theory and in the Wild” SIGMOD 2025 Distinguished Reviewer Award ICDE 2025 Best Program Committee Member Award EASST Best Software Science Paper Award, ICGT 2025 Students & Grants Dumbrava has supervised numerous research interns and is actively recruiting PhD students for her ANR VERDI project on verified foundations of large-scale distributed graph systems. She has also served on six PhD thesis committees as examiner since 2021. Labs & Teams She leads the ACMES research group within the SAMOVAR laboratory (Télécom SudParis, Institut Polytechnique de Paris), where her team develops formally verified graph-database engines and tools such as GRASP, VerDILog, and DatalogCert.
Dr. Yolanda Gil is a Research Professor in Computer Science and Spatial Sciences at the University of Southern California, where she serves as Principal Scientist and Senior Director for Strategic Initiatives in Artificial Intelligence and Data Science at the Information Sciences Institute (ISI). She is also the Director of AI and Data Science Initiatives in the Viterbi School of Engineering and leads the USC Center for Knowledge-Guided Interdisciplinary Data Science (CKIDS). Dr. Gil received her Licenciatura in Computer Science from the Polytechnic University of Madrid and her M.S. and Ph.D. in Computer Science from Carnegie Mellon University, with a focus on artificial intelligence and cognitive science. Her research focuses on developing AI approaches that use knowledge to accelerate scientific discovery processes. Her key research interests include knowledge capture and representation, semantic workflows, ontology tools, scientific discovery methods, task-based collaboration, provenance tracking, knowledge networks, reproducibility in science, and machine learning for data analysis. She collaborates with scientists across multiple domains to improve how scientific knowledge is created, shared, and used. Dr. Gil's work has significant impact across multiple scientific domains including climate science, neuroscience, and omics research. Her projects demonstrate her commitment to building knowledge-guided systems that transform how scientists conduct research. She has pioneered approaches to capture the provenance of scientific experiments and to automate the analysis of complex scientific data. Fellow of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) Fellow of the Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Fellow of the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI) 24th President of the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence Co-chair of the CRA/AAAI 20-Year Artificial Intelligence Research Roadmap for the US Initiator and leader of the W3C Provenance Group that resulted in a widely-used standard for web trust As an educator and leader, Dr. Gil directs the Data Science Program in Computer Science and serves as Co-Director of multiple joint MSc programs including Communication Data Science, Spatial Data Science, Environmental Data Science, Public Policy Data Science, and Healthcare Data Science. She also leads the new dual degree USC-Tsinghua University on Communication Data Science. Her leadership extends to mentoring numerous students and researchers in AI and data science. Through the USC Center for Knowledge-Guided Interdisciplinary Data Science (CKIDS), Dr. Gil organizes DataFest events each semester, fostering collaboration and innovation in data science across disciplines.
Jiajun Wu is an Assistant Professor of Computer Science and, by courtesy, of Psychology at Stanford University. He holds multiple affiliations including membership in Bio-X, Faculty Affiliate status at the Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence (HAI), and membership in both the Wu Tsai Human Performance Alliance and Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute. Dr. Wu earned his Ph.D. and S.M. in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology before joining Stanford. Dr. Wu's research program focuses on creating AI systems that understand and interact with the physical world through the integration of computer vision, machine learning, robotics, and cognitive science. His work emphasizes physics-based modeling combined with deep learning to develop systems capable of perceiving, reasoning about, and predicting physical interactions. Key research areas include 3D scene understanding, neurosymbolic AI approaches, multimodal perception (combining vision, sound, and language), and embodied intelligence for robotics applications. His lab develops novel frameworks that bridge the gap between neural networks and symbolic reasoning to create more interpretable and robust AI systems. Analysis of Dr. Wu's recent publications reveals a strong trajectory toward integrated multimodal understanding for embodied AI. His work increasingly combines vision, sound, and language processing with physical reasoning to create systems that can interact meaningfully with the physical world. There's a clear progression from foundational computer vision research toward practical robotics applications, with significant emphasis on foundation models for robotics, sim2real transfer techniques, and creating comprehensive datasets for embodied AI research. Dr. Wu's exceptional contributions have been recognized with numerous prestigious awards including the NSF CAREER award (2024), Young Investigator Programs from ONR (2024) and AFOSR (2023), the Okawa research grant (2024), and being named to IEEE Intelligent Systems' 'AI's 10 to Watch' (2024). He has received multiple best paper awards at leading conferences including ICRA (2024), SIGGRAPH Asia (2023), and CoRL (2023). Dr. Wu actively mentors a large cohort of students across multiple levels, serving as primary advisor for doctoral candidates, master's students, and numerous independent researchers. His research is supported by substantial funding from major technology companies including Google, Meta, Amazon, Samsung, and J.P. Morgan, as well as government agencies like NSF, ONR, and AFOSR, reflecting the significance and impact of his work in physical AI and multimodal perception systems. Dr. Wu leads a dynamic research group at Stanford that collaborates extensively with the Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute and Institute for Human-Centered AI. Current projects include developing neurosymbolic models for computer graphics, creating multisensory datasets like OBJECTFOLDER 2.0 for sim2real transfer in robotics, and building foundation models for embodied intelligence that can understand and manipulate objects with human-like physical intuition.
Luisa Domingues is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Information Science and Technology at ISCTE - University Institute of Lisbon. She serves as an Integrated Researcher at ISTAR-Iscte - Research Center in Information Sciences, Technologies and Architecture, specializing in Information Systems research. Her academic qualifications include a PhD in Information Science and Technology from ISCTE-IUL (2013). Her primary research interests focus on: Project Management : Methodologies, risk assessment, and knowledge sharing Database Systems : Management, interoperability, and standardization e-Government Solutions : Public sector information systems and shared services Ontological Frameworks : Particularly for architectural heritage documentation Educational Technologies : Blended learning approaches in higher education Her recent publications (2016-2024) demonstrate a strong focus on project management methodologies, knowledge transfer, and information systems in public sector contexts. Key thematic trends include PMBOK framework applications, agile methodology adoption challenges, data science project risks, and technological solutions for cultural heritage preservation. Most works employ case study research and empirical validation methods. Dr. Domingues maintains an active advising portfolio with 1 doctoral candidate and 36 master's students, primarily focusing on topics in project management, information systems, and data science applications. She has held significant academic leadership positions including: 4th Year Coordinator for Bachelor's in Computer Science and Business Management (2020-2027) Program Director for the same degree (2017-2019) At ISTAR-Iscte research center, she contributes to projects involving information systems architecture, data standardization, and knowledge management frameworks.
Professor Diana Inkpen is a faculty member at the School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, University of Ottawa. She holds a Ph.D. from the University of Toronto's Department of Computer Science and degrees from the Technical University of Cluj-Napoca, Romania (M.Sc. and B.Eng.). Her research focuses on computational linguistics, natural language processing (NLP), and artificial intelligence, with specialties in natural language understanding/generation, lexical semantics, and semantic web agents. Education: Ph.D., Computer Science, University of Toronto M.Sc., Computer Science and Engineering, Technical University of Cluj-Napoca B.Eng., Computer Science and Engineering, Technical University of Cluj-Napoca Affiliations: Director, NLP Lab Editor-in-Chief, Computational Intelligence journal Associate Editor, Natural Language Engineering journal Her research has led to roles such as program co-chair for AI 2012 and leadership in organizing international workshops. She has received funding from NSERC, SSHRC, and OCE, and was honored with a Visiting Professor title at the University of Wolverhampton, UK. Her teaching spans courses like Information Retrieval, Natural Language Processing, and Prolog programming. Professor Inkpen's work bridges NLP innovations with societal challenges, including mental health surveillance via social media analysis and bias mitigation in AI systems. She actively contributes to interdisciplinary projects, such as detecting hate speech and legal text entailment, while maintaining a global research network through collaborations and international conference involvement.
Elena Simperl is a Professor of Computer Science and Deputy Head of Department for Enterprise and Engagement at King's College London's Department of Informatics. She co-directs the King's Institute for Artificial Intelligence and serves as Director of Research for the Open Data Institute. As a Hans Fischer Senior Fellow at the Technical University of Munich's Institute for Advanced Study, she leads the Trustworthy Knowledge Graphs focus group and contributes to advancing human-centric AI research across European institutions. Professor Simperl obtained her doctoral degree in Computer Science from the Free University of Berlin and her diploma from the Technical University of Munich. Prior to joining King's, she held academic positions in Germany, Austria, and at the University of Southampton, and was a Turing Fellow. Her career trajectory demonstrates consistent leadership in bridging academic research with practical applications in data ecosystems. Her research sits at the critical intersection of AI and social computing, focusing on human-centric approaches to building sociotechnical systems that integrate data, algorithms, and human capabilities. She investigates how to make knowledge engineering more accessible, how to leverage collective intelligence for data quality improvement, and how to design participatory AI systems that address societal challenges like misinformation. Her work spans knowledge graphs, semantic technologies, crowdsourcing, and open data, with particular emphasis on the social dimensions of data-intensive systems and the governance frameworks needed for trustworthy AI deployment. Analysis of her recent publications reveals a strong evolution toward integrating large language models with traditional knowledge engineering practices while maintaining human oversight. There's a clear trajectory from foundational work on knowledge representation toward increasingly applied research addressing real-world challenges in media ecosystems, citizen science, and data governance, with growing attention to policy implications of AI technologies. Fellow of the British Computer Society Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts Hans Fischer Senior Fellow at TUM-IAS (2023) Ranked among top 100 most influential scholars in knowledge engineering of the last decade Included in Women in AI 2000 ranking Professor Simperl has led 14 major European and national research projects totaling millions in funding, including MediaFutures (a Horizon 2020 program tackling online misinformation), QROWD, ODINE, Data Pitch, and ACTION. She currently co-chairs the Croissant working group in ML Commons developing data standards for AI, and serves as president of the Semantic Web Science Association. Her research has directly influenced the development of data ecosystems supporting startups and citizen science initiatives across Europe, demonstrating exceptional ability to translate theoretical advances into practical impact. As Director of Research at the Open Data Institute, she oversees initiatives connecting data entrepreneurs with artists and civic organizations. Her leadership in the MediaFutures project established a data-driven innovation hub that supported 51 startups/SMEs and 43 artists through three open calls, creating a sustainable model for arts-technology collaborations addressing media challenges. Her work with the ODINE project helped create a European ecosystem for data-driven startups, demonstrating her commitment to building practical applications of open data principles.
Mazdak Nik-Bakht is an Associate Professor at Concordia University's School of Building, Civil, and Environmental Engineering. His work bridges construction engineering with digital innovation, focusing on smart infrastructure and sustainable development. PhD, Construction Engineering & Mgmt., University of Toronto PhD, Structural Engineering, Iran University of Science & Technology MASc & BASc, Structural and Civil Engineering, Iran University of Science & Technology His research integrates Artificial Intelligence and Social Network Analysis into construction management systems. Key areas include: Smart infrastructure and urban computing Deconstruction and circular economy principles Building Information Modeling (BIM) and digital twinning Process mining in Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) industry Decision models in construction project management Semantic computing and computational linguistics applications Recent publications show a focus on BIM analytics , urban resilience , and social media's role in infrastructure planning . Papers often combine AI and network theory to solve complex construction challenges. 2015 Outstanding paper award - Built Environment Project and Asset Management journal He teaches courses on: Big Data Analytics for Smart City Infrastructure Building Information Modeling (BIM) for Construction Building Economics Project Cost Estimating
Dr. Theophilus A. Benson is a Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University, with additional responsibilities at Carnegie Mellon University-Africa. His research group focuses on improving network performance and availability through models, algorithms, and frameworks that manage network state semantics. Key application areas include addressing the digital divide, optimizing microservices/cloud systems, software-defined networks, and CDN designs. Education: Ph.D., University of Wisconsin, Madison (2012) M.S., University of Wisconsin, Madison (2008) B.S., Tufts University (2004) Research Focus: Professor Benson's work spans three core domains: Democratizing Web Performance (measurements and optimizations for developing regions), Systems Abstractions for Programmable Infrastructures (eBPF/P4 frameworks), and Self-Managing Networks (ML-driven configurations). His African Internet Observatory initiative analyzes Africa's internet ecosystem to address digital inequity through assessment probes and statistical methods. Publication Trends: Recent works (2021-2024) demonstrate a strong focus on programmable networks (eBPF/P4 management), web performance in developing regions, and data-driven cloud/CDN optimizations. Earlier foundational work established expertise in SDN fault tolerance, network updates, and video streaming characterization. Awards & Honors: SIGCOMM Test of Time Award NSF CAREER Award NEC Faculty Award Google Faculty Award Facebook Faculty Award (2x) DARPA ISAT Study Group Member Grants & Advising: Secured funding from NSF (CAREER, NeTS), Google, Facebook, and Yahoo. Current advisees include 4 PhD/MS students working on programmable networks and web performance. Actively recruiting post-docs and students for African connectivity and eBPF projects. Leadership: Co-chairs NSDI'25 and ApNet'24 conferences. Leads the NetLab research group developing deployable systems adopted by web-scale companies and open-source communities.
Matteo Maffei is a Full Professor at TU Wien, leading the Security and Privacy group. He joined in 2017 after 11 years at Saarland University's CISPA. He holds a Ph.D. in Computer Science from Ca’ Foscari University of Venice (2006). He coordinates the TU Wien Cybersecurity Center, the SecInt Doctoral School, and the FWF Special Research Program SPyCoDe. His research focuses on formal methods for security and privacy, blockchain technologies, and web security. Roles: Full Professor, Coordinator of TU Wien Cybersecurity Center, Module Head of Christian Doppler Lab for Blockchain Technologies (CDL-BOT), Board Member of Vienna Cybersecurity and Privacy Research Cluster (ViSP). His work emphasizes formal verification of cryptographic protocols, smart contracts, and decentralized systems. Key achievements include ERC Advanced (2024) and Consolidator (2018) Grants, and leadership roles in conferences like IEEE Computer Security Foundations Symposium (CSF). Research Interests: Formal methods, smart contracts, blockchain scalability, web security, privacy-preserving protocols, and decentralized systems. His recent projects include optimizing Lightning Network channels, secure multi-hop payments, and AI-driven robustness verification. Publications: Over 200 publications in top venues like CCS, IEEE S&P, and CRYPTO. Recent work includes advancements in blockchain interoperability (e.g., Alba bridges), light client protocols (Blink), and neural network verification techniques. Grants & Awards: ERC Advanced Grant (2024), ERC Consolidator Grant (2018), DFG Emmy Noether Fellowship (2009). Led projects funded by EU Horizon, FWF, and industry partners like ABC Research GmbH. Advising & Labs: Supervised over 20 PhD/Master theses. Active in the Christian Doppler Lab for Blockchain Technologies and the SPyCoDe SFB. Collaborates with institutions like SBA Research and Stanford University.
Prof. Dr. Mona Hess is a Full Professor and Chairholder of the Chair of Digital Heritage Technologies at Otto-Friedrich-Universität Bamberg , Germany. She directs the M.Sc. Digital Technologies in Heritage Conservation program and serves as Vice-Speaker at the Centre for Heritage Conservation Studies and Technologies (KDWT) . Her work bridges digital documentation, 3D imaging, and heritage conservation, with a focus on cultural landscapes, historic timber, and artifact preservation. Education : Dipl.-Ing. in Architecture (TUM), M.A. in Heritage Conservation (University of Bamberg), Ph.D. in 3D Imaging Metrology for Cultural Heritage (University College London, 2015) Her research spans 3D laser scanning, photogrammetry, SLAM-based recording , and digital twin environments , particularly for structural monitoring, museum artifacts, and historic gardens. She leads projects like VirScan3D (virtual laser scanner simulator) and 3DPetrie (UCL Petrie Museum 3D models) and collaborates on international initiatives such as the British Museum War Canoe digital repatriation. Recent publications emphasize automated defect analysis in timber, multi-modal imaging for ceiling art, and linked open data in heritage. She has contributed to CIPA ICOMOS as an expert member and will chair their Education and Dissemination Commission (2024). Scientific Awards : Fellow of the UK Higher Education Academy (2016), Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (2014) She teaches courses in Digital Object Recording , 3D Spatial Data Modeling , and Science Communication , and organizes international summer schools on heritage monitoring. Her lab, the Chair of Digital Heritage Technologies , collaborates with institutions in Italy, Spain, and the UK, focusing on interdisciplinary innovation in heritage conservation.
Dr. Arnab Bhattacharya is a Professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur since December 2020. He previously served as Associate Professor (2014–2020) and Assistant Professor (2007–2014) at IIT Kanpur. Education: PhD in Computer Science (2007), University of California, Santa Barbara MS in Computer Science (2007), University of California, Santa Barbara Bachelor of Computer Science and Engineering (2001), Jadavpur University Research Focus spans Databases , Data Mining , Information Retrieval , and Artificial Intelligence . His work emphasizes graph analytics , skyline queries , probabilistic data , and knowledge graph management . Article Trends reveal expertise in graph neural networks , trajectory-aware systems , statistical significance in databases , and legal/medical data mining . His methodologies often integrate chi-square statistics , approximate indexing , and provenance tracking . Scientific Awards: IBM Faculty Research Award Yahoo! Faculty Research and Engagement Program Award Best Paper at COMAD 2011 Best Student Paper at COMAD 2010 Top-Five Student Paper at ICDM 2005 ICDM Student Travel Award sponsored by IBM Contact: Office RM 409, Department of Computer Science and Engineering, IIT Kanpur Email: arnabb@iitk.ac.in | Phone: +91-512-259-7650
Jeffrey P. Bigham is an Associate Professor at the Human-Computer Interaction Institute within the School of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University . His research spans human-computer interaction , human-AI interaction , accessibility , dialog systems , NLP , and crowdsourcing . Current PhD Students: Hamza El Alaoui, Jessica Yin Huynh, Sara Kingsley, Peya Mowar, Yi-Hao Peng, Atieh Taheri PhD Graduates: Erin Brady, Yu Zhong, Ting-Hao Huang, Anhong Guo, Cole Gleason, Prakhar Gupta, Stephanie Valencia, Kundan Krishna, Jason Wu His work is funded by Apple , Bosch , DARPA , Google , Microsoft , the National Institute of Disability Rehabilitation Research , the National Science Foundation , and Yahoo! He also holds a CMU HCII Career Development Fellowship . Selected Awards: NSF CAREER Award 2019 Best Paper at ASSETS 2021 Best Paper Nomination at CHI 2024 Best Paper Nomination at CHI 2021 Best Paper Nomination at DIS 2021
See Kiong Ng serves as Professor of Practice in the Department of Computer Science at the School of Computing, National University of Singapore (NUS), while concurrently holding leadership roles as Director of AI Technology at AI Singapore and Deputy Director of NUS's Institute of Data Science (IDS). His work focuses on translational data science research and developing integrated capabilities for Singapore's Smart Nation initiative through industry and public agency collaborations. His academic credentials include a B.S. in Applied Mathematics (Computer Science Track) from Carnegie Mellon University (1989), an M.S.E. in Computer & Information Science (Artificial Intelligence) from the University of Pennsylvania (1990), and a Ph.D. in Computer Science from Carnegie Mellon University (1998), supported by Singapore's National Computer Board overseas scholarship. Professor Ng's research bridges artificial intelligence with real-world applications across diverse domains. His primary interests span Data Mining, Machine Learning, Natural Language Processing, Smart Cities, and Computational Biology, with emphasis on extracting value from big data through interdisciplinary approaches. He actively pioneers applications in urban systems and bioinformatics, demonstrating data science's transformative potential beyond traditional boundaries. His publication record reveals consistent innovation in algorithm development for complex data challenges, with recent work focusing on taxonomy construction, single-cell genomics analysis, urban transportation systems, and imbalanced time series classification. These contributions demonstrate his commitment to solving practical problems through cutting-edge data science techniques. His major recognitions include: MTI Borderless Award (2014) as Green Growth Working Group project member Minister for National Development's R&D Award 2017 (Distinguished Award) for city-level analytics platform innovation A*STAR Borderless Award (2014) as Urban Systems Initiative team leader MTI Innovation Award (2013) for Strategic Technology Translation in Business Analytics Professor Ng has established significant research infrastructure including founding A*STAR's Data Analytics Department and leading the Urban Systems Initiative. His translational research model emphasizes industry partnerships and practical implementation, particularly in smart city development where he connects data science with urban planning challenges across Singapore's government agencies.
