Dr. Kaibo Liu is the Grainger STAR Professor in the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and serves as Associate Director of the UW-Madison IoT Systems Research Center. He earned his B.S. from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (2009), and M.S. and Ph.D. from Georgia Tech (2011/2013). His research focuses on system informatics, big data analytics, and data fusion for process modeling, monitoring, and decision-making. He has been funded by NSF, ONR, DOE, and industry partners. Notable awards include the 2024 Hromi Medal (ASQ), 2021 IISE Technical Innovation Award, and multiple early-career recognitions. Recent work emphasizes real-time cyber-physical security, reinforcement learning for data streams, and Bayesian methods for prognosis. He edits IEEE Transactions on Automation Science and Engineering and IISE Transactions on Data Science.
Cathy Wu is a distinguished academic holding the Unidel Edward G. Jefferson Chair in Engineering and Computer Science at the University of Delaware. She serves as Director of the Center for Bioinformatics & Computational Biology (CBCB), Data Science Institute (DSI), and Protein Information Resource (PIR). Her roles include professorships in the Departments of Computer & Information Sciences and Biological Sciences. Education: BS in Plant Pathology (National Taiwan University, 1978), MS and PhD in Plant Pathology (Purdue University, 1982–1984), and a second MS in Computer Science (University of Texas at Tyler, 1989). She completed postdoctoral training in Molecular Biology at Michigan State University (1985–1986). Research interests focus on computational biology, bioinformatics, and data science with emphasis on protein informatics, biological text mining, ontology development, gene-disease-drug networks, and machine learning applications. She leads initiatives in integrating FAIR principles into biological databases like UniProt and InterPro. Her work bridges computational methods with biomedical challenges, including cancer genomics, epigenetic regulation, and proteomic analyses. She has spearheaded educational programs such as the Online Graduate Certificates in Applied Bioinformatics and Biomedical Informatics and Data Science. Her contributions include over 290 peer-reviewed publications (48,000+ citations, h-index 71) and authored/co-authored four books on bioinformatics. She directs multidisciplinary research teams and collaborates internationally on projects like the HALO study on ovarian cancer genetics. Awards and recognition are implied through her leadership roles and academic appointments, though specific prizes are not listed here. Her grants and funding support large-scale initiatives in bioinformatics infrastructure and translational research.
Yang Wang is a Professor of Information Science and Computer Science (courtesy) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), where he co-directs the SALT lab and is part of the Interactive Computing group and Security and Privacy Research at Illinois (SPR@I). He holds affiliations with the Institute of Software Research (ISR) at UC Irvine and advises Conviva. His research spans AI governance, privacy, security, and inclusive technologies, focusing on marginalized populations such as people with disabilities and non-Western communities. Education: Ph.D. from the University of California, Irvine (UCI), under advisors Dr. Alfred Kobsa, Dr. André van der Hoek, and Dr. Gene Tsudik. Previous roles include Assistant Professor at Syracuse University and Research Scientist at Carnegie Mellon University’s CyLab. He has collaborated with institutions like Alcatel-Lucent Bell Labs, Intel Research, and Tsinghua University. Research interests include AI safety for children (aisafety4kids.org), inclusive privacy mechanisms, accessible authentication for visually impaired users, and policy implications of AI. Notable projects include Inclusive.AI (funded by OpenAI), privacy in smart homes, and drone privacy studies. Awards and grants include NSF SaTC awards, NSF CAREER, and industry partnerships with Meta/Facebook, Google, and OpenAI. His work has been featured in outlets like the New York Times and Wall Street Journal. Current PhD advisees include Smirity Kaushik and Yaman Yu, with notable alumni such as Dr. Yaxing Yao (now at Johns Hopkins) and Dr. Tanusree Sharma (Penn State). Labs/Teams: Co-director of the SALT lab, part of SPR@I and the Interactive Computing group at UIUC. Collaborates with industry and policy bodies, including the FTC.
Gang Wang is an Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), affiliated with the Siebel School of Computing and Data Science. He also holds affiliate roles in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, the Informatics Program (School of Information Sciences), and the Coordinated Science Laboratory (CSL). He joined UIUC in 2019, previously serving as an Assistant Professor at Virginia Tech. Education: Ph.D. in Computer Science from UC Santa Barbara (2016), advised by Ben Y. Zhao and Heather Zheng; B.E. from Tsinghua University (2010). Awards include the NSF CAREER Award (2018), Amazon Research Award (2021), and multiple best paper awards in top conferences like USENIX Security and ACM CCS. Research focuses on Security and Privacy, Internet Measurement, and Data Mining. Key areas include email spoofing vulnerabilities, adversarial machine learning, and AI-driven security tools. Recent projects involve explainable AI for phishing detection, benchmark contamination in LLMs, and mitigating deepfake disinformation. Publications span top venues like USENIX Security, IEEE S&P, ACM CCS, and IMC. He collaborates with industry partners and researchers in HCI and AI. Current roles include Associate Director of the Capital One Illinois Center for Generative AI Safety (ASKS) and leadership in NSF-funded initiatives like the ACTION AI Institute.
Naisyin Wang is a Professor of Statistics at the University of Michigan, where she has been since 2009. Previously, she served as a faculty member in Statistics and Toxicology at Texas A&M University from 1992. She holds a Ph.D. in Statistics from Cornell University (1992), an M.A. in Statistics from Ohio State University (1987), and a B.S. in Mathematics from National Tsing-Hua University, Taiwan (1986). Her research focuses on longitudinal and functional data analysis, measurement error models, semiparametric methods, and applications in biological and medical fields, particularly genomics and metabolomics. Key contributions include methodologies for handling missing data, mixed effects models, and clustering techniques. Education: Ph.D. in Statistics, Cornell University (1992) M.A. in Statistics, Ohio State University (1987) B.S. in Mathematics, National Tsing-Hua University (1986) Dr. Wang’s honors include the College of Science Distinguished Alumni Award (2012), the Distinguished Achievement Award in Research (2003), and fellowships from the AAAS, ASA, and IMS. She has held leadership roles, including Co-editor of Statistica Sinica (2011–2014) and President of the International Chinese Statistical Association (2010). Her teaching includes courses such as Applied Statistics (STATS 500), Linear Models (STATS 600), and Special Topics in Applied Statistics (STATS 700). She has advised numerous students and contributed to research on cancer genomics, dietary interventions, and statistical methodology.
Professor Dawn A. Lott holds the position of Professor of Applied Mathematics at Delaware State University. She obtained her Ph.D. in Engineering Sciences & Applied Mathematics from Northwestern University (1994), M.Sc. from Michigan State University (1989), and B.Sc. from Bucknell University (1987). Her postdoctoral training was at the University of Maryland (1997). Her research focuses on numerical and analytical studies of nonlinear partial differential equations modeling solid/fluid mechanics, biomechanics, and physiology. She also investigates decision-making processes using operations research and machine learning techniques. Key areas of expertise include computational methods, artificial intelligence, and algorithm design. Recent work emphasizes decision-making under uncertainty in IoT-enabled battlefield scenarios. Her publications explore MATLAB/Java comparisons for decision algorithms, graph-based reasoning systems, and SAGE-inspired optimization frameworks. Collaborations with researchers like Raglin and Metu highlight interdisciplinary approaches to military and operational challenges. No specific grants, awards, or student advisories are noted in the provided materials. Her contributions bridge applied mathematics with real-world applications in defense, healthcare, and computational systems.
Professor Oula Ghannoum is a renowned plant scientist and academic leader at the Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment (HIE), Western Sydney University. She serves as Director of the ARC Training Centre for Smart and Sustainable Horticulture and holds leadership roles, including Biological Sciences Discipline Lead and Associate Editor at Functional Plant Biology . Her research focuses on photosynthesis, global change biology, and protected cropping, aiming to enhance food security and climate resilience through crop improvement and sustainable agricultural practices. Education: BSc (Honours) in Plant Biochemistry, University of NSW (1993) PhD in Plant Physiology, Western Sydney University (1998) Research Interests: Professor Ghannoum’s work addresses global challenges like food security and climate change by exploring plant responses to environmental stress. Her lab uses advanced technologies like smart glasshouses and hyperspectral imaging to optimize crop yield and quality. Key areas include sugar signaling pathways in C3/C4 plants, water use efficiency, and heat tolerance in cereal crops. Grants & Funding: She has secured over $25M in research funding, leading projects on C4 photosynthesis, automated crop monitoring, and protected cropping systems. Notable collaborations include the ARC Centre of Excellence for Translational Photosynthesis and Future Food Systems CRC. Awards: 2024 Vice-Chancellor’s Excellence in Research Award 2023 Education and Outreach Award (Australian Society of Plant Scientists) 2001 ARC Postdoctoral Fellowship Labs & Teams: Her team develops innovative frameworks for sustainable horticulture, combining biology with AI and smart technologies. Ongoing work includes imaging-based crop monitoring and phenotyping for climate-resilient crops.
Ioannis Athanasiadis is a Full Professor and Chair of Artificial Intelligence at Wageningen University & Research (The Netherlands). He leads the Artificial Intelligence (AIN) group, focusing on advancing AI methods for global challenges in agriculture, ecology, and sustainability. Previously, he was faculty at the Dalle Molle Institute for Artificial Intelligence (IDSIA, Switzerland) and the Democritus University of Thrace (Greece). He holds a PhD (2005, cum laude) in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. His research integrates machine learning, knowledge engineering, and environmental modeling to address food security, climate adaptation, and ecosystem services. He leads initiatives like AgML (AgMIP's machine learning benchmarking effort) and coordinates European grants such as LTER-LIFE and CYBELE . Prof. Athanasiadis has supervised over 40 PhD/postdoc researchers and serves as Editor of Environmental Modelling and Software . He collaborates internationally on projects involving AI for crop modeling, digital twins, and sustainable agriculture. His team develops frameworks like Crop2ML and PyCrop2ML to enhance interoperability between process-based models and machine learning systems.
Stratis Ioannidis is a Professor in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department at Northeastern University, with a courtesy appointment in the Khoury College of Computer Sciences. His research focuses on distributed systems, networking, machine learning, big data, and privacy. He earned his B.Sc. from the National Technical University of Athens, and M.Sc. and Ph.D. from the University of Toronto. Prior to Northeastern, he worked at Technicolor and Yahoo Labs. Education: B.Sc. in Electrical and Computer Engineering (2002, National Technical University of Athens); M.Sc. and Ph.D. in Computer Science (2004, 2009, University of Toronto). Research interests span machine learning, distributed systems, optimization, and privacy. Key projects include the NSF AI Institute for Future Edge Networks and Distributed Intelligence (AI-EDGE), and work on federated learning, continual learning, and privacy-preserving algorithms. His research has been supported by NSF, Google, and Facebook grants. Recent publications emphasize federated learning, continual learning, and edge computing. Awards include the NSF CAREER Award, Søren Buus Outstanding Research Award, and multiple best paper awards. He advises numerous PhD students and collaborates across disciplines, including healthcare and wireless networks. Lab activities include SPIRAL and WIoT labs, focusing on machine learning at the edge and network optimization. Grants include the NSF AI Institute and multiple collaborative projects with industry and academia.
Marc Hodes is Professor in Mechanical Engineering and Mathematics at Tufts University. With a PhD from MIT, his research focuses on heat transfer phenomena with applications in electronics cooling, supercritical fluids, and thermoelectric systems. He directs the graduate program in Mechanical Engineering. Education: BS, University of Pittsburgh (1990) MS, University of Minnesota (1994) PhD, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1998) Research Areas: Thermal management of electronics through microchannel cooling and liquid metal technologies; Apparent slip phenomena in microstructured surfaces; Mass transfer in supercritical CO 2 systems for aerogel processing; Thermoelectric module optimization for precision temperature control. Awards & Honors: NSF REU Fellowship (1989) E.T.S. Walton Visitorship Award Best Associate Editor, ASME Journal of Heat Transfer (2023) Research Leadership: Principal investigator on multiple NSF grants including projects on aerogel manufacturing, dropwise condensation, and analysis of convection in slip flows. Industry collaborations include Google, DARPA, and Bell Labs.
Dr. Bin Zhou is a Research Fellow in Health Analytics and Machine Learning at Imperial College London's School of Public Health, affiliated with the Global Environmental Health Research Group and the Abdul Latif Jameel Institute for Disease and Emergency Analytics. He holds a PhD in Epidemiology and Biostatistics from Imperial College London and degrees from Tsinghua University (BEng, MEng, Bachelor of Economics). His research focuses on global cardiovascular health, environmental health, and data analytics. Key areas include worldwide trends in cardiometabolic risk factors, treatment coverage, and co-occurrences, with contributions to the Non-communicable Disease Risk Factor Collaboration (NCD-RisC). His work integrates large-scale health data and advanced statistical methods to support global NCD prevention strategies, collaborating with the WHO and national health agencies. Dr. Zhou is a World Heart Federation Salim Yusuf Emerging Leader, a member of the European Society of Cardiology and the International Society of Global Health, and serves on the editorial board of the Journal of the American Heart Association. His research has addressed topics such as obesity trends in China, global diabetes prevalence, hypertension management, and the health impacts of urbanization and air pollution. He has published extensively on epidemiological trends and health policy, with a focus on translating data into actionable public health interventions.
Chantal Pellegrini is a Lecturer and PhD student at the Chair of Computer Aided Medical Procedures (Prof. Navab) at Technical University of Munich (TUM). Her research focuses on Deep Learning applications in medical imaging, including explainable AI for radiology report generation and Vision-Language Models for clinical decision support. She actively contributes to the DHM, NARVIS Lab, and RobUSt research groups. Teaching responsibilities include courses such as 'Computer Aided Medical Procedures', 'Medical Augmented Reality', and 'Surgical Robotics'. She supervises student projects in medical AI and healthcare innovation, with recent projects involving multimodal report generation and graph pretraining for medical applications. Education: BSc/MSc Computer Science (TUM), current PhD student since 2022 Labs: DHM (German Heart Center), NARVIS Lab, RobUSt Robotics & Ultrasound Research Keywords: Medical Image Understanding, Radiology Reports, LLMs in Healthcare Her publications span surgical OR dataset development, reinforcement learning for clinical decisions, and explainable X-ray diagnosis systems. She mentors MA/BA students in medical AI and project management for healthcare applications.
Kartik Hosanagar is the John C. Hower Professor of Technology and Digital Business and a Professor of Marketing at The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. He is also the Co-Director of the Wharton Human-AI Initiative. His work spans the Department of Operations, Information and Decisions, focusing on the intersection of technology, business, and society. Education: PhD in Management Science and Information Systems, Carnegie Mellon University MPhil in Management Science, Carnegie Mellon University Masters in Information Systems, Birla Institute of Technology and Sciences (BITS, Pilani), India Bachelors in Electronics Engineering, Birla Institute of Technology and Sciences (BITS, Pilani), India Research Interests: Kartik’s research focuses on the digital economy, particularly the impact of AI, algorithms, and analytics on consumers, businesses, and society. His work explores internet marketing, e-commerce, digital media, information diffusion, platform economics, and the ethical implications of AI. He investigates how technology transforms business models and consumer behavior in online environments. Publication Trends: His recent research combines machine learning, causal inference, and behavioral modeling to study digital platforms, user behavior, and AI applications in marketing and operations. The articles reflect a strong focus on empirical analysis of social media, search engines, and platform design, with applications in advertising, content sharing, and product adoption. Scientific Awards: Best Information Systems paper published in Management Science, 2013-2016 Finalist for Best Information Systems paper in Management Science (2012-2015) Recognized as one of the world’s top 40 business professors under 40 Eleven-time recipient of teaching excellence awards at Wharton MBA Excellence in Teaching Award, 2007 “Goes above and beyond the call of duty” award (multiple years) Advising and Grants: While no formal PhD students are listed, Kartik has supervised independent studies and mentored numerous students through research projects. His entrepreneurial ventures, such as Yodle and Jumpcut Media, reflect real-world applications of his research. He has also secured significant industry engagement through consulting and executive education with major firms like Google, American Express, and Citi. His work is supported by academic recognition, editorial roles, and media outreach. Labs and Teams: Kartik co-directs the Wharton Human-AI Initiative, a research hub exploring the integration of human and artificial intelligence in business. He also leads research groups focused on digital platforms and AI ethics, collaborating with scholars across disciplines to advance understanding of algorithmic decision-making and its societal impact.
About Vipul Jain: Associate Professor Vipul Jain leads Supply Chain and Logistics Management at RMIT University’s School of Accounting, Information and Supply Chain Management. With over 20 years of academic experience, he has held senior roles at institutions like Victoria University of Wellington (NZ) and IIT Delhi (India), contributing to curriculum development, research strategy, and academic-industry collaboration. His international collaborations span over 20 global institutions, emphasizing interdisciplinary research in supply chain resilience, sustainability, and Industry 4.0. Education & Academic Leadership: Previously served as Programme Director for Master of Technology (Industrial Engineering) at IIT Delhi, leading the establishment of the Modelling and Analysis of Supply Chain (MASC) Lab. Holds editorial roles for journals like International Journal of Intelligent Enterprise and Computers & Industrial Engineering . Research Focus: Specializes in supply chain design, sustainability, circular economy, and business analytics. His work integrates ICT and big data to address complex supply chain challenges, with notable contributions to vaccine distribution, blockchain adoption, and post-pandemic resilience. Over 145 peer-reviewed publications, including high-impact journals like OMEGA and International Journal of Production Economics , reflect his prolific output. Industry Impact: Conducted management training for organizations like JCB and IBM. Served as an expert assessor for New Zealand’s Ministry of Business and Industry and advised the Indian Railways. His research has been funded by the Department of Science and Technology (India) and EU initiatives like FP6 I*PROMS. Awards & Recognition: Ranked #7 in India’s top logistics academics (2018), recipient of Literati Awards (2024, 2020), and multiple editorial leadership roles. Active in global conferences, including co-chairing ANZAM 2023. Labs & Collaborations: Founded MASC Lab at IIT Delhi. Collaborates with Coventry University, Monash University, Hong Kong Polytechnic, and institutions in Switzerland, Spain, Canada, and the U.S. Focus areas include sustainable supply chains, digital transformation, and crisis resilience.
Sarah Pink is a leading Professor at Monash University , holding a joint appointment across the Faculty of Art, Design and Architecture and the Faculty of Information Technology . She serves as Director of the FUTURES Hub and Emerging Technologies Research Lab , focusing on human futures in digital and net zero transitions. PhD in Social Anthropology, University of Kent Honorary Doctorates from Malmö and Halmstad Universities Fellow, Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia Her research spans design anthropology, emerging technologies, automated decision making, and future mobilities . Recent work examines: AI ethics in clean energy Smart homes for seniors Automated mobility futures Selected 2025 article trends show focus on technological ethics, urban data systems, and human-machine interaction across 6 subfields including automated decision making and sensory design. Major awards: CIOB Award for Best International Paper (2016) Asia Pacific Eldercare Innovation Gold (2021) Good Design Awards (2023) As research director for Monash Grid Innovation Hub and Human-Centred Computing , she leads projects funded by Australian Research Council, EU, and national research councils across five countries. Her lab engages 20 active projects and 20+ industry partners globally.
