Dan Mikulincer

Dan Mikulincer is the Brian and Tiffinie Pang Assistant Professor at the University of Washington in the Department of Mathematics, College of Arts and Sciences. He previously held a postdoctoral Instructor position at MIT Mathematics and earned his Ph.D. from the Weizmann Institute of Science under Ronen Eldan. He completed his B.Sc. in Mathematics and Computer Science at Ben-Gurion University, where he also studied Cognitive Neuroscience.

• B.Sc.: Ben-Gurion University (Mathematics, Computer Science, Cognitive Neuroscience)
• Ph.D.: Weizmann Institute of Science, Faculty of Mathematics
• Postdoc: MIT Mathematics
• Current: Assistant Professor, University of Washington, Department of Mathematics

His research lies at the intersection of high-dimensional geometry, probability, statistics, information theory, and data science. He is particularly focused on normal approximations, Stein's method, stochastic analysis, and dimension-free phenomena. His work explores foundational aspects of learning theory, random matrices, transportation inequalities, and neural networks, often using probabilistic and analytic tools to derive sharp, robust results in high dimensions.

The recent publications reflect a consistent focus on probabilistic methods in high-dimensional settings. Key themes include normal approximation via Stein's method, optimal transport, concentration and anti-concentration inequalities, random graph models, and theoretical aspects of machine learning such as learnability and neural network expressivity. The work spans both pure mathematics (e.g., GAFA, PTRF) and top-tier computer science venues (e.g., COLT, STOC, NeurIPS), highlighting interdisciplinary impact.

Although no formal scientific awards are listed in the provided text, his publications in premier journals and conferences (Annals of Probability, STOC, NeurIPS, COLT) indicate significant recognition in the theoretical community.

Dan Mikulincer has advised or collaborated with several researchers including Yair Shenfeld, Max Fathi, Ronen Eldan, and Sébastien Bubeck. He has served as a TA for 18.650: Statistics for Applications at MIT and taught programming courses (Java, Python, JavaScript) at the Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya. He is also a senior lecturer at WeCode, a nonprofit providing free programming education to underrepresented youth in Israel, indicating a strong commitment to education and outreach.

He has been affiliated with research groups at MIT Mathematics, Weizmann Institute, and Microsoft Research AI, where he spent the summer of 2019 hosted by Sébastien Bubeck. These collaborations span theoretical machine learning, stochastic processes, and algorithmic foundations.