Inho Hong is an Assistant Professor at the Graduate School of Data Science, Chonnam National University (Gwangju, Korea), leading the Computational Social Science and Complex Systems Lab (CSL). His research explores socio-spatial systems through data science and complex systems methods, focusing on urban dynamics, human mobility, and AI's societal impact. Education: Ph.D. in Physics (2019), Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH) M.S. in Physics (2012), POSTECH B.S. in Physics (2010), POSTECH Research Interests: Urban Data Science : Analyzing urban scaling laws and innovation pathways Human Mobility : Modeling intra-city movement patterns Social Impact of AI : Ethical and societal challenges Natural Language Processing : Text embedding for policy analysis Complex Systems : Network approaches to protests and epidemics Recent Work Trends: Over 2020–2022, his articles centered on pandemic control, protest networks, and urban green spaces' psychological impact. Recent 2023–2025 work extends to vocational education analysis and mobility laws within cities. His methods combine network science with large-scale data analytics. Awards: Young Statistical Physicist Award (Korean Physical Society, 2021) Best Paper Award (Korea Computer Congress 2021) Global Ph.D. Fellowship (NRF, 2014–2017) Grants & Labs: Current lab focuses on socio-spatial systems. Past roles include Associate Research Scientist at Max Planck Institute for Human Development (2020–2023) and Postdoctoral Fellowships at POSTECH and APCTP.
Dr. Emilio Ferrara is a Professor of Computer Science & Communication at the University of Southern California, holding appointments in the Viterbi School of Engineering, Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, and Keck School of Medicine. He serves as Associate Director of Applied Data Science at USC, Research Team Leader at the USC Information Sciences Institute, and Principal Investigator at the USC/ISI Machine Intelligence and Data Science (MINDS) group. His educational background includes a PhD in Machine Learning and BSc & MSc in Computer Science. Ferrara's research focuses on the intersection of artificial intelligence and computational social science, specifically using AI to model and predict human behavior in techno-social systems. His work spans social networks, machine learning, and network science with applications to understanding communication dynamics in digital environments. Ferrara has published over 150 articles in prestigious venues including Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Communications of the ACM, and Physical Review Letters. His research has been widely featured in major news outlets and examines topics ranging from social media manipulation to AI ethics and online behavior. His scientific achievements have been recognized with numerous awards: 2019 Viterbi Scientific Award 2018 DARPA Director's Fellowship 2016 DARPA Young Faculty Award 2016 Complex Systems Society Junior Scientific Award 2015 IBM Watson Big Data Influencer Ferrara's research is supported by major funding agencies including DARPA, IARPA, Air Force, and Office of Naval Research. He leads the HUMANS LAB (Humans & Machines + Networks & Social Systems) which has trained numerous PhD students who have gone on to successful careers in academia and industry. His work on social bots, election integrity, and AI ethics continues to shape understanding of digital social dynamics.
Prof. Dr. Dirk Heckmann is a prominent academic and legal expert currently serving as a member of the Bavarian Institute for Digital Transformation (bidt) Board of Directors and holding the Chair of Digital Law and Security at the Technical University of Munich . As a constitutional lawyer and judge at the Bavarian Constitutional Court, he bridges legal expertise with digital policy through advisory roles in the Federal Government's Data Ethics Commission and the Chancellor's National IT Summit. In 2020, he established the TUM Center for Digital Public Services to advance legally sound, common-good-oriented digitalization. His research focuses on digital education , digital administration , and healthcare digitalization , with particular emphasis on legal certainty for digital systems . Recent projects like ReDiKo (Regulating Digital Communication Platforms) and AFFAIRE (AI Regulation for Examinations) highlight his commitment to evidence-based digital governance. He has authored the juris Practical Commentary on Internet Law since 2021, shaping Germany's digital legal discourse. Professor Heckmann actively engages in public debates about digital sovereignty and platform regulation , most notably at the 2025 Nuremberg Digital Festival where he will discuss open-source foundations for digital sovereignty. His work spans constitutional law , data ethics , and AI policy , with recent publications analyzing social media harassment, AI's impact on education, and digital violence legislation.
Prof. Dr. Aimee van Wynsberghe is the Alexander von Humboldt Professor for Applied Ethics of Artificial Intelligence at the University of Bonn. She serves as Director of the Institute for Science and Ethics (IWE) and founded the Bonn Sustainable AI Lab. Her affiliations include the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina, the European Commission's High-Level Expert Group on AI (2018-2020), and advisory roles at Deloitte, the World Economic Forum, and the Konrad Zuse Schools for AI Excellence. . Education PhD in Applied Ethics, University of Twente (2012) M.A. in Bioethics, Erasmus Mundus (2008) M.A. in Applied Ethics, Catholic University of Leuven (2007) B.Sc. in Honours Cell Biology, University of Western Ontario (2006) Research Interests focus on integrating ethical frameworks into AI and robotics design. Key areas include AI ethics, robotics ethics, digital ethics, care ethics, and value-sensitive design. She pioneered ethical guidelines for care robots and explores systemic risks in AI sustainability. Publication Trends show a shift toward sustainability challenges in AI, analyzing hidden environmental costs, post-colonial biases in AI standards, and structural ethical frameworks. Her work bridges philosophy, technology, and policy to address global AI impacts. Scientific Awards L'Oréal UNESCO For Women In Science Award (2018) Grants include a 3.8M EUR Mercator Foundation grant (2022), 3.5M EUR Humboldt Professorship (2021), NWO Gravitation Grant (2020), and others. She advises governments and institutions on AI ethics and co-founded the Foundation for Responsible Robotics. Labs & Teams : She leads the Bonn Sustainable AI Lab and has directed the Artificial Intelligence Lab at TU Delft. Her work involves interdisciplinary collaborations, including the interdisplinary task force at Aarhus University (2025).
Thomas S. Lontzek is Professor of Economics at RWTH Aachen University, holding the Chair of Computational Economics within the School of Business and Economics since October 2016. His research develops numerical methods for economic decision-making with focus on climate change and environmental risks. His educational background includes economics studies at Maastricht University and UC San Diego (1999-2003), followed by PhD from University of Kiel (2009). Prior positions include Assistant/Senior Assistant at University of Zurich (2010-2016) and visiting scholar at Stanford's Hoover Institution (2012). Lontzek's research spans Economic Growth, Quantitative Macroeconomics, Resource and Energy Economics, Computational Economics, Climate Risk Management, and Decision Making under Uncertainty. His work emphasizes unconventional methods for analyzing economic processes through multidimensional, nonlinear stochastic optimization while incorporating ethical principles into economic analysis for sustainability challenges. His publication record reveals a consistent focus on climate economics, particularly the social cost of carbon, climate tipping points, and integrated assessment modeling. These works demonstrate how accounting for economic and climate risks, especially potential tipping points, necessitates more aggressive climate policies than traditional models suggest, often requiring sophisticated computational techniques to handle high-dimensional uncertainty. 2021 Erik Kempe Award for work on calculating an optimal CO2 tax Lontzek actively mentors students through research seminars and teaching, emphasizing methodological diversity and interdisciplinary approaches. He leads the Global Challenges Research Seminar through the Global Challenges Lab, providing students with opportunities to conduct innovative research using quantitative decision-making techniques for sustainable development challenges. His teaching portfolio for Summer Semester 2025 includes Quantitative Macroeconomics, Sustainable Finance, and specialized research seminars. He heads the Chair of Computational Economics, which includes scientific staff members Dr. Marco Thalhammer, Dr. Yifan Zhao, and Philipp Olivier, M.Sc., working collaboratively on climate economics and computational methods. The chair's research bridges theoretical economic modeling with practical policy applications, developing dynamic stochastic integrated assessment models capable of handling complex climate-economy interactions under uncertainty.
Dr.-Ing. Tobias Fiebig is a Senior Researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Informatics (Internet Architecture department) since April 2022. He previously served as a permanent Assistant Professor at TU Delft's Faculty of Technology, Policy and Management from 2017-2022. His work combines network measurement with human factors to improve security practices, focusing on email protocols, DNS infrastructure, and academic cloud migration. PhD in Computer Science from TU Berlin (2017) MSc in System and Network Engineering from University of Amsterdam (2013) BSc in Cognitive Science from University of Osnabrück (2012) His research spans Internet security (DNS, IPv6, email), academic freedom in cloud contexts, and human-centered security challenges. Recent work analyzes MTA-STS deployment, DNS sampling biases, and university cloud migration privacy implications. He has presented at top conferences including USENIX Security , IEEE Symposium on Security and Privacy , and ACM CCS . Teaching roles include lecturing Data Networks (2023-24) and On the Practice of System and Network Engineering (2024), with prior module management in cyber security analytics and sustainable system operations.
Elena Simperl is a Professor of Computer Science and Deputy Head of Department for Enterprise and Engagement at King's College London's Department of Informatics. She co-directs the King's Institute for Artificial Intelligence and serves as Director of Research for the Open Data Institute. As a Hans Fischer Senior Fellow at the Technical University of Munich's Institute for Advanced Study, she leads the Trustworthy Knowledge Graphs focus group and contributes to advancing human-centric AI research across European institutions. Professor Simperl obtained her doctoral degree in Computer Science from the Free University of Berlin and her diploma from the Technical University of Munich. Prior to joining King's, she held academic positions in Germany, Austria, and at the University of Southampton, and was a Turing Fellow. Her career trajectory demonstrates consistent leadership in bridging academic research with practical applications in data ecosystems. Her research sits at the critical intersection of AI and social computing, focusing on human-centric approaches to building sociotechnical systems that integrate data, algorithms, and human capabilities. She investigates how to make knowledge engineering more accessible, how to leverage collective intelligence for data quality improvement, and how to design participatory AI systems that address societal challenges like misinformation. Her work spans knowledge graphs, semantic technologies, crowdsourcing, and open data, with particular emphasis on the social dimensions of data-intensive systems and the governance frameworks needed for trustworthy AI deployment. Analysis of her recent publications reveals a strong evolution toward integrating large language models with traditional knowledge engineering practices while maintaining human oversight. There's a clear trajectory from foundational work on knowledge representation toward increasingly applied research addressing real-world challenges in media ecosystems, citizen science, and data governance, with growing attention to policy implications of AI technologies. Fellow of the British Computer Society Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts Hans Fischer Senior Fellow at TUM-IAS (2023) Ranked among top 100 most influential scholars in knowledge engineering of the last decade Included in Women in AI 2000 ranking Professor Simperl has led 14 major European and national research projects totaling millions in funding, including MediaFutures (a Horizon 2020 program tackling online misinformation), QROWD, ODINE, Data Pitch, and ACTION. She currently co-chairs the Croissant working group in ML Commons developing data standards for AI, and serves as president of the Semantic Web Science Association. Her research has directly influenced the development of data ecosystems supporting startups and citizen science initiatives across Europe, demonstrating exceptional ability to translate theoretical advances into practical impact. As Director of Research at the Open Data Institute, she oversees initiatives connecting data entrepreneurs with artists and civic organizations. Her leadership in the MediaFutures project established a data-driven innovation hub that supported 51 startups/SMEs and 43 artists through three open calls, creating a sustainable model for arts-technology collaborations addressing media challenges. Her work with the ODINE project helped create a European ecosystem for data-driven startups, demonstrating her commitment to building practical applications of open data principles.
Atreyi Kankanhalli is a Professor at the National University of Singapore, specializing in Information Systems with a focus on knowledge management, healthcare IT, and digital innovation. Their research spans over three decades, with prolific contributions in top journals like MIS Quarterly, Journal of AIS, and Information & Management. They have co-authored over 150 papers addressing topics such as crowdsourcing, online communities, and the impact of AI on scholarly practices. Notable work includes studies on user adherence to health apps, innovation in public sector data utilization, and the ethical challenges of generative AI in peer review. Kankanhalli has also led research on global virtual teams and digital technologies' role in social justice, reflecting a commitment to both technical and societal dimensions of information systems. Education & Background: While specific degree details are not provided, their extensive publication history and academic roles imply advanced qualifications in Information Systems or related fields. They have collaborated with global researchers across institutions like NUS, University of Illinois, and Singapore Management University. Research Themes: Core areas include digital health interventions (e.g., fitness app adherence), organizational innovation via open data and crowdsourcing, and the socio-technical challenges of AI in academia. Their work often bridges theoretical frameworks with practical applications, such as healthcare decision support systems and policy-driven technology adoption. Impact & Influence: As an editorial board member and frequent conference contributor (e.g., ICIS, PACIS), Kankanhalli shapes the field's research agenda. Their recent focus on generative AI's implications highlights proactive engagement with emerging technologies' ethical and methodological challenges.
Prof. Alexander Pretschner is a Professor of Software & Systems Engineering at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) and Founding Director of the Bavarian Research Institute for Digital Transformation (bidt). He also serves as Scientific Director of fortiss, a Bavarian research institute for software-intensive systems. His research focuses on software engineering, testing, information security, and ethical software development. Pretschner holds a PhD from TUM and has held academic positions at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) and TU Kaiserslautern. He is a co-editor of several prestigious journals, including IEEE Transactions on Reliability and the Journal of Software Testing, Verification and Reliability. Education: PhD in Computer Science, Technical University of Munich MSc in Computer Science, University of Kansas (on Fulbright Scholarship) Diplom in Computer Science, RWTH Aachen University Research Interests: His work spans testing methodologies, secure software design, and ethical considerations in agile development. Notable contributions include frameworks for metamorphic testing, distributed data usage control, and accountability mechanisms for cyber-physical systems. Awards: IBM Faculty Award (2012, 2013) Google Focused Research Award (2011, 2012) EARTO Innovation Prize (2014) 2nd Platz Supervisory Award (2020) Advising & Grants: Pretschner has supervised numerous PhD and Master’s students, contributing to over 200 publications. He leads projects like EDAP (Ethical Deliberation in Agile Processes) and collaborates with industry partners on cybersecurity and AI ethics initiatives. Labs & Teams: His work is anchored in bidt, fortiss, and TUM’s Chair of Software & Systems Engineering, focusing on societal impacts of digitalization and trustworthy AI systems.
Prof. Jochen Hartmann holds the Digital Marketing professorship at the TUM School of Management (Munich). Previously, he was an assistant professor at the University of Groningen's School of Business and Economics and worked as a management consultant at McKinsey & Company. He earned his doctorate from the University of Hamburg and coordinated the DFG research group FOR 1452 (2019-2022). His research focuses on digital marketing and machine learning, particularly analyzing unstructured data (computer vision, NLP) and generative AI. Key themes include social media, algorithmic fairness, diversity in advertising, and human-machine interactions. Education: Ph.D. in Business Administration (University of Hamburg), Management Consulting experience at McKinsey & Company. Research interests combine cutting-edge AI techniques with marketing challenges. Recent work explores generative AI's impact on advertising, algorithmic bias in finance, and visual search innovations. His text/image mining studies rank among top-cited articles in marketing journals like the International Journal of Research in Marketing and Journal of Marketing Research. Awards include the EMAC-Sheth Sustainability Award, Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings' Young Economist distinction, and multiple best dissertation awards. Grants: Led DFG-funded research group (2019-2022). Affiliated with Columbia Business School (visiting scholar) and Mannheim Business School (lecturer in machine learning). Labs/Teams: Active in interdisciplinary research groups focusing on AI applications in marketing and business analytics.
Ulrik Schroeder is a Universitätsprofessor (Full Professor) at RWTH Aachen University, leading the Chair of Learning Technologies within the Faculty of Computer Science. His research focuses on the intersection of educational technology, learning analytics, and immersive technologies with particular emphasis on practical implementations in higher education settings. Professor Schroeder's research spans multiple interconnected domains in educational technology. His primary interests include Learning Analytics implementation (particularly using xAPI standards), Virtual Reality applications for education, Open Educational Resources development and conversion, and gamification approaches for programming education. He has developed several notable tools including convOERter for OER conversion, WebWriter for creating explorable explanations, and various xAPI-based learning analytics infrastructures. His work consistently bridges theoretical frameworks with practical educational applications, often focusing on computer science education contexts. Analysis of his recent publications reveals a strong trend toward integrating Learning Analytics with immersive technologies, particularly Virtual Reality environments. His research demonstrates a systematic approach to educational technology development, with emphasis on scalability, interoperability through standards like xAPI, and practical implementation in real educational settings. The work increasingly focuses on personalized learning paths, quality assurance for educational resources, and privacy-conscious data collection. Co-editor of 21. Fachtagung Bildungstechnologien (DELFI) (2023) Co-editor of Hochschuldidaktik der Informatik HDI 2018 Co-editor of DeLFI 2018 conference proceedings Professor Schroeder has supervised numerous doctoral and postdoctoral researchers who frequently appear as co-authors on his publications, indicating an active research group. His projects often involve interdisciplinary collaborations across computer science, education, and psychology. Current major initiatives include the AIStudyBuddy project for study path analysis and the development of VR classroom simulations for teacher training. His research group, the Learning Technologies Innovation Lab, develops open research tools that support various aspects of educational technology research and implementation.
Magnus Liebherr is a Professor at the University of Duisburg-Essen , focusing on Technology Acceptance , Artificial Intelligence , and Sustainable Transportation . His work bridges Business Administration with Human-Computer Interaction , exploring how users adapt to emerging technologies like autonomous vehicles and AI systems. Key research areas include: Acceptance of AI applications in mobility Business model development for climate-neutral transportation Cognitive and psychological factors in technology interaction Digital media effects on adolescent well-being Trust calibration in automated systems His recent publications examine Large Language Model dependency , gamified language learning , and mental workload metrics for autonomous vehicles. While no formal awards are listed, his interdisciplinary work spans psychology , engineering , and business strategy .
Lisa Soder serves as Senior Policy Researcher and Acting Head of Technical AI Governance at Interface, a leading European tech policy think tank, and is an incoming Visiting Research Fellow at Stanford University's Intelligent Systems Laboratory within the School of Engineering. She holds a Master's degree from the London School of Economics focusing on comparative transatlantic approaches to technology regulation and competition law, and brings prior experience from the Centre for the Governance of AI, Boston Consulting Group, and global health NGO work in Ethiopia. Her research centers on establishing AI accountability infrastructures with particular emphasis on developing third-party auditing ecosystems and bridging technical and regulatory aspects of AI governance. She has developed a taxonomy for Technical AI Governance organized along technical targets (Data, Compute, Algorithms and Models, Deployment) and governance capacities (Assessment, Access, Verification, Security, Operationalization, Ecosystem Monitoring). Her work examines open problems across these dimensions, highlighting the critical need for technical tools to support effective AI governance. Analysis of her publications reveals a strong focus on practical implementation challenges in AI regulation, particularly regarding the EU AI Act's provisions for general-purpose AI systems. Her research consistently addresses the gap between policy aspirations and technical capabilities, with particular attention to verification mechanisms, risk assessment frameworks, and the development of technical infrastructure necessary for oversight. She advocates for closer collaboration between technical experts and policymakers to ensure governance mechanisms are both feasible and effective. Lisa has been actively engaged in high-level policy discussions, participating in events such as the AI Action Summit in Paris, Sino-German Track 2 Dialogues on AI governance, and expert briefings on frontier AI systems. Her upcoming visiting research fellowship at Stanford University represents a formal academic affiliation that complements her policy-focused work at Interface.
Dr. Anett Hoppe is a research staff member at the Leibniz Information Centre for Science and Technology (TIB) in Hannover, Germany, where she works in the Visual Analytics research group. Her research focuses on the intersection of artificial intelligence, education technology, and information science, with particular emphasis on how people learn through search processes and educational video consumption. Dr. Hoppe completed her academic journey with: Ph.D. in Semantic Web technologies for online user profiles from the University of Burgundy, Dijon, France Her primary research interests span Search as Learning, software-based support for scientific reproducibility, and ethical considerations in computer-based decision making. She investigates how visual elements, reading sequences, and AI technologies impact knowledge acquisition during web search and educational video consumption. Her work bridges human-computer interaction, educational psychology, and information retrieval to create more effective learning experiences, with recent publications examining the role of large language models, vision-language models, and visual complexity in educational contexts. Analysis of her recent publications (2024-2025) reveals a strong interdisciplinary focus combining computer science, educational psychology, and information science. Her research examines video-based learning effectiveness, knowledge gain prediction, educational resource discovery, and the impact of visual elements on learning outcomes. She consistently explores how AI technologies can be leveraged to enhance educational experiences while maintaining attention to ethical considerations and scientific reproducibility. Dr. Hoppe maintains active collaborations with researchers across multiple institutions, with frequent co-authorship patterns indicating strong research partnerships, particularly with Ralph Ewerth and other members of the Visual Analytics group at TIB. Her work supports TIB's mission to advance knowledge infrastructure and scholarly communication through innovative technological solutions while directly addressing practical challenges in educational technology and information retrieval.
Krishna Gummadi is a Scientific Director and Professor at the Max Planck Institute for Software Systems (MPI-SWS) in Germany, where he leads the Networked Systems Research Group. He also holds a professorship at the University of Saarland, demonstrating his dual commitment to research and academic instruction in computer science. His educational background includes: Ph.D. in Computer Science and Engineering from the University of Washington (2005) B.Tech. in Computer Science and Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras (2000) Gummadi's research spans networked and distributed computer systems with a current focus on social computing systems. His work addresses critical challenges in algorithmic fairness, privacy in social media, trustworthiness of online identities, and information dissemination in social networks. He approaches these problems through interdisciplinary methods combining user-centric studies, data-centric analysis, and systems-centric design to create practical solutions that enhance fairness, transparency, and user control in online platforms. His methodology integrates large-scale observational studies, computational modeling, and system implementation to tackle complex human-computer interaction challenges at societal scale. His recent publications reveal a strong emphasis on fairness in algorithmic decision making, with significant contributions to quantifying and addressing discrimination in machine learning systems. His work bridges computer science, social science, and ethics, creating frameworks for fair classification, understanding media bias, and developing privacy-preserving techniques that maintain functionality while protecting user data. The research demonstrates a progression from technical system design to addressing societal implications of computing systems. Among his notable scientific achievements: ERC Advanced Grant in 2017 for 'Foundations for Fair Social Computing' Test of Time Awards at ACM SIGCOMM and AAAI ICWSM Casper Bowden Privacy Enhancing Technologies (PET) and CNIL-INRIA Privacy Runners-Up Awards IW3C2 WWW Best Paper Honorable Mention Multiple Best Paper awards across prestigious conferences Gummadi has advised numerous PhD students and postdoctoral researchers who have gone on to prominent positions in academia and industry. His ERC Advanced Grant has supported extensive research into fair social computing, while his leadership in major conferences (including serving as General Chair for ICWSM 2016 and Program Chair for WWW 2015) has shaped research directions in the field. His teaching portfolio includes courses on Distributed Systems, Human-Centered Machine Learning, and Social Media Analysis. He leads the Networked Systems Research Group at MPI-SWS, which has developed several publicly available systems including tools for fair classification, privacy risk assessment, trust evaluation in social media, and information diet management. The group's work bridges theoretical advances with practical implementations that address real-world challenges in social computing, with numerous software releases and datasets made available to the research community.
