Amir-Hossein Karimi

Dr. Amir-Hossein Karimi is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Cheriton School of Computer Science at the University of Waterloo, with a cross-appointment and Vector Institute affiliation. He leads the CHARM Lab, focusing on safe human-AI collaboration through causal inference, explainable AI, and neuro-symbolic systems. Prior to academia, he held research roles at DeepMind, Google Brain, and Meta, and industry positions at BlackBerry and Meta (Facebook).

Education:

• Ph.D. in Computer Science, Max Planck Institute & ETH Zürich (2018-2023)
• M.Math in Computer Science, University of Waterloo (2016-2018)
• B.A.Sc. in Engineering Science, University of Toronto (2010-2015)

Research Interests: The CHARM Lab develops AI systems that integrate metacognitive strategies and causal reasoning to enhance safety, reliability, and human alignment. Key areas include algorithmic recourse, causal explainability, and applications in healthcare, finance, and transportation. Collaborations span social sciences, cognitive science, and reinforcement learning.

Recent Trends in Publications: His work emphasizes causal foundations of AI explanations, fairness in recourse mechanisms, and robust system design. Notable contributions include defining algorithmic recourse frameworks and influencing Canada’s automated decision-making policies.

Awards:

• 2024 Igor Ivkovic Teaching Excellence Award
• 2021 Google PhD Fellowship
• 2024 ETH Zurich Medal

Advising & Grants: Supervises PhD/Master’s/postdoctoral researchers across disciplines. Secured funding from NSERC, CIFAR, Google, and Waterloo.AI. Alumni placements include OpenAI, Microsoft, and Google.

CHARM Lab Activities: Hosts interdisciplinary collaborations with experts in human-computer interaction, game theory, and behavioral economics. Develops open-source tools and benchmarks for reproducible research.