Forest Agostinelli

Forest Agostinelli is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at the Molinaroli College of Engineering and Computing, University of South Carolina, where he is also affiliated with the AI Institute. His research focuses on designing AI algorithms for pathfinding problems, integrating deep learning, reinforcement learning, heuristic search, and formal logic. He holds a Ph.D. in Computer Science from the University of California, Irvine, an M.S. from the University of Michigan, and a B.S. in Electrical and Computer Engineering from The Ohio State University.

Research Overview: Agostinelli’s work emphasizes solving pathfinding problems in domains like robotics, theorem proving, and molecular optimization. His group develops explainable AI methods to enable collaboration between humans and machines. Key projects include DeepCubeA (solving the Rubik’s Cube via deep reinforcement learning) and neural activation function research.

Funding & Awards: He has secured grants from NSF, NASA EPSCoR, and South Carolina’s ASPIRE and MADE programs. Notable awards include the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship and the Graduate Education for Minority Students Fellowship.

Teaching: He teaches courses in Artificial Intelligence (CSCE 580) and Deep Reinforcement Learning and Search (CSCE 790), mentoring over 15 students at undergraduate and graduate levels.

Labs & Collaborations: Active in AI-driven education and interdisciplinary projects, his lab contributes to tools like ALLURE for children’s learning and Bioinformatics platforms like CircadiOmics.