Parastoo Abtahi

Parastoo Abtahi is an Assistant Professor in the Computer Science Department at Princeton University. She leads the Situated Interactions Lab (Ψ Lab) as part of the Princeton HCI Group, focusing on AR/VR and spatial computing. Prior to Princeton, she worked at Meta Reality Labs Research.

• PhD in Computer Science from Stanford University
• BSc in Electrical and Computer Engineering from University of Toronto (Engineering Science program)

Her research explores wearable interactive technologies that augment human intelligence in physical contexts through:

• Input on-the-go: Low-effort, privacy-preserving multimodal interfaces
• Intelligent output: Timely, minimal multisensory systems
• Situated AI: Personalizable, predictable, safe physical-digital interaction

Recent publications analyze:

• Drone-based haptic illusions for AR/VR
• Microgestures for mobile AR input
• Interactivity in explainable AI systems
• Temporal dynamics in VR haptics

Awards include:

• 2025 Google Research Scholar Award
• CHI 2019 & 2018 Honorable Mentions

She teaches courses like:

• COS 436: Human-Computer Interaction
• COS IW: AR Meets AI