Ziang Xiao

Ziang Xiao is an Assistant Professor in Computer Science at Johns Hopkins University. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) and a B.S. in Psychology and Computer Science from UIUC. His research focuses on human-computer interaction (HCI), natural language processing (NLP), and social psychology, aiming to bridge human behavior, decision-making, and technology.

Education:

• Ph.D. in Computer Science, UIUC (Advisors: Prof. Hari Sundaram & Prof. Karrie Karahalios)
• B.S. in Psychology and Computer Science, UIUC (Advisor: Prof. Dov Cohen)

Research Interests:

Xiao’s work explores AI for social science, human-centered model evaluation, and information seeking. He designs systems that leverage LLMs to study human behavior at scale, emphasizing ethical and transparent AI integration. His interdisciplinary approach combines HCI, NLP, and psychology to address challenges like bias in multilingual models and trust in AI systems.

Teaching:

• EN.601.790: Advanced HCI: Research Methods (Spring 2025)
• EMNLP 2024 Tutorial: Human-Centered Evaluation of Language Technologies
• EN.601.490/690: Introduction to Human-Computer Interaction (Fall 2024)

Key Awards:

• Best Paper Award at CHI 2024 for work on LLM-driven search systems
• Honorable Mention at ICML 2023 for rethinking model evaluation frameworks

Grants & Labs:

Xiao leads projects on LLM ethics, adaptive AI systems, and HCI methodologies. His lab collaborates with industry partners (e.g., Microsoft, Google) and academic institutions to advance human-AI interaction paradigms.