Justin Johnson is an Assistant Professor at the University of Michigan's College of Engineering, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, and a Research Scientist at Facebook AI Research (FAIR). His work bridges computer vision, machine learning, and deep learning, focusing on visual reasoning, vision-language tasks, image generation, and 3D reasoning using neural networks. PhD, Stanford University (advised by Fei-Fei Li) His research interests span visual reasoning , vision and language , 3D vision , and image generation , with a focus on innovative applications of deep neural networks. Recent publications highlight work on 3D consistency, self-supervised learning, and multimodal integration of vision and text. Notable contributions include PyTorch3D for 3D data processing, and foundational work in visual question answering , neural style transfer , and scene graph-based image generation . Publications span top conferences like ICCV, CVPR, and NeurIPS. He teaches courses including EECS 498/598: Deep Learning for Computer Vision and EECS 442: Computer Vision at University of Michigan, with prior involvement in Stanford's CS 231N in co-teaching roles. Software projects include open-source frameworks like fast-neural-style for real-time artistic style transfer, and PyTorch3D for efficient 3D deep learning. These tools demonstrate his commitment to practical implementations and community-driven research.
Carl Vondrick is a Professor in the Department of Computer Science at Columbia University. His research focuses on creating robust and versatile perception systems that leverage video and interaction with the natural world, with applications in 3D reconstruction, visual question answering, and robot manipulation. Former research scientist at Google Visiting researcher at Cruise Education: PhD (2017) from MIT, advised by Antonio Torralba BS (2011) from UC Irvine, advised by Deva Ramanan His research explores multimodal approaches for cross-task and cross-modal transfer, scene dynamics, audiovisual perception, interpretable models, and spatial awareness systems. The lab emphasizes zero-shot generalization and neuro-symbolic methods while addressing safety and robustness in AI systems. Key publication trends include: 2025: Video generation for robotics 2024: Differentiable rendering and cross-modal reasoning 2023: Robust perception and 3D modeling Scientific Awards: 2024 PAMI Young Researcher Award 2021 NSF CAREER Award Teaching Roles: Teaching Computer Vision II (2021-2025), Computer Vision I (2018-2019), and Representation Learning (2020-2022). Advising: Advises 8 current PhD students and has mentored 5 graduated students now at institutions like MBZUAI and UMD. The lab recruits 1-2 PhD students annually through Columbia’s PhD program. Grants and Collaborations: Funded by NSF, DARPA, Toyota Research Institute, Amazon Research, and Google.
Musa Jouaneh is a Professor in the Mechanical, Industrial and Systems Engineering department at the University of Rhode Island 's College of Engineering . His research spans Robotics, Automation, Mechatronics , and Motion Control systems, with recent work focusing on robotic rehabilitation platforms, fastener extraction, and neural network applications in disassembly processes. Education: Ph.D., Mechanical Engineering, University of California at Berkeley (1989) M.Eng., Mechanical Engineering, University of California at Berkeley (1986) B.S., Mechanical Engineering, University of Louisiana, Lafayette (1984) Research Trends in Jouaneh's recent publications emphasize robotic rehabilitation using magnetic actuation, automated fastener detection via neural networks, and trajectory optimization for servo motor systems. His work bridges mechatronic design with industrial automation , particularly in disassembly and assembly applications. Grants include projects like "Cobots for Outfitting of Hangers" (ONR, 2023) and "Device for Proprioception Training" (RI Commerce, 2024). He leads the Mechatronics Lab and Intelligent Control and Robotics Laboratory , focusing on practical automation solutions.
Robert West is an Associate Professor at EPFL (École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne) in the School of Computer and Communication Sciences , leading the Data Science Lab (dlab) . His research focuses on Natural Language Processing , Machine Learning , and Computational Social Science , analyzing human-generated data from the web, social media, and online platforms. Education : PhD in Computer Science (2016) - Stanford University MSc in Computer Science (2010) - McGill University BSc in Computer Science (2007) - Technische Universität München Research Interests : West develops algorithms for analyzing large-scale web data, with emphasis on multilingual NLP , social network analysis , and AI ethics . His work bridges machine learning with social science to understand digital human behavior. Scientific Awards : ICWSM’22 Adamic–Glance Distinguished Young Researcher Award Google Faculty Research Award Facebook Research Award Multiple Outstanding Paper Awards at ICWSM and WWW Advising & Grants : He advises 12 PhD students and has secured funding from the Swiss National Science Foundation , Swiss Data Science Center , and industry partners. His lab maintains collaborations with Microsoft Research and CROSS . Labs & Collaborations : West leads the Data Science Lab at EPFL, which focuses on web-scale data analysis , privacy-preserving machine learning , and AI for social good . The lab develops tools like Wikispeedia and Quotebank for public data exploration.
Andrea Voyer is a Professor of Sociology at Stockholm University , focusing on social norms, boundaries, and their role in shaping social inequality , particularly in the context of immigrant integration , class disparities, and ethnic inequality. She employs both qualitative and computational methods , including large-scale text analysis and cultural theory, to explore these themes. Her research has received funding from Riksbankens Jubileumsfond , the Swedish Research Council , the National Science Foundation (USA) , and the Russell Sage Foundation . Voyer serves as a program coordinator for master's programs in sociology and applied social research, and leads the department's research groups in qualitative methods , computational sociology , and cultural sociology . She is also an editorial board member for Sociological Theory and American Journal of Cultural Sociology , and contributes to public discourse on immigration, segregation, and social norms. Her recent publications highlight the use of computational techniques to analyze immigrant incorporation through shifts in mainstream discourse, the cultural processes of inequality during the COVID-19 pandemic , and the evolving role of class distinction-making in etiquette literature. These works bridge cultural theory with empirical analysis, offering actionable insights for addressing social inequality.
Prof. Konrad Schindler holds the position of Full Professor at the Department of Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering at ETH Zürich. He is also the Head of the Institute of Geodesy and Photogrammetry (IGP), leading research and educational activities in geomatics and computer vision. His career spans roles as a Photogrammetric Engineer, scientific assistant, postdoc researcher, and academic faculty across institutions including Graz University of Technology, Monash University, and TU Darmstadt before joining ETH Zürich in 2010. Education: Undergraduate studies in Geodesy (1992–1995), Graz University of Technology, Austria MEng in Photogrammetry and Geoinformation (1995–1999), Vienna University of Technology, Austria PhD in Computer Science (2001–2003), Graz University of Technology, Austria Research focuses on Photogrammetry , Remote Sensing , Computer Vision , and Image Understanding with interdisciplinary applications in environmental monitoring, geospatial analysis, and disaster response. He develops computational methods for 3D reconstruction, fusion of multi-modal data, and AI-driven solutions for satellite imagery interpretation. His work bridges geomatic engineering and machine learning to address challenges in urban mapping, climate modeling, and biological systems analysis. Publications reflect expertise in geospatial AI, diffusion models, and benchmarking datasets for disaster resilience. Notable works include Marigold (image analysis adaptation) and BRIGHT (building damage assessment). His research emphasizes practicality and scalability, such as affordable depth estimation and global biomass datasets. He has received the 2013 Marr Prize Honourable Mention (IEEE) and the 2012 U.V. Helava Award (ISPRS), alongside several Best Presentation Awards. His contributions span technical leadership, editorial roles (ISPRS Journal), and service to Swiss remote sensing commissions. Advising and grants: While no specific advisee names or grant details are listed, his career trajectory includes mentoring postdocs and junior faculty. He teaches advanced courses in Photogrammetry , Image Interpretation , and Machine Vision , integrating cutting-edge AI techniques into curricula. His research group collaborates on global-scale projects like canopy height mapping and satellite-based climate variable assessments. Labs/Teams: As Institute Head, he oversees the IGP lab at ETH Zürich, with prior affiliations including the Digital Perception Lab (Monash University) and the Computer Vision Lab (ETH Zurich). His work often involves multi-institutional collaborations focused on geospatial AI and environmental science.
Professor Hutan Ashrafian is a clinician-scientist and surgeon at the University of Leeds Business School, holding dual roles as Professor of Research Impact and Senior Research Fellow at Imperial College London. His expertise spans AI in healthcare, metabolic surgery, and ancient history. He pioneered STARD-AI and QUADAS-AI guidelines for AI diagnostics, collaborated on AI-driven breast cancer screening with Google and NHS, and led global health policy initiatives. Ashrafian’s work bridges medicine, history, and philosophy, including his contributions to understanding historical figures’ medical conditions, such as King Tutankhamun’s epilepsy. He has authored over 550 publications, 12 books, and holds a PhD in computational physiology and an MBA with distinction. Awards include the Hunterian Prize and Wellcome Trust Fellowship. His research also explores AI ethics, quantum physics paradoxes, and art-based medical diagnostics. Education: PhD in Computational Physiology (Imperial College London) MBA (Warwick Business School) MD (University College London) Bachelor of Science in Immunology (University College London) Research Interests: Ashrafian’s work spans: AI in Medicine: Diagnostic algorithms, guideline development (STARD-AI/QUADAS-AI), and ethical frameworks. Metabolic Surgery: Bariatric interventions, gut microbiome, and obesity treatments. Ancient History: Medical analyses of historical figures (e.g., Tutankhamun, Julius Caesar) and art-based pathology identification. Philosophy: AI rights (AIONAI law), temporal paradoxes, and the Simulation Argument. Awards: Royal College of Surgeons Arris and Gale Lectureship Hunterian Prize Wellcome Trust Research Fellowship Advising & Innovation: Supervised >50 PhD students, co-founded Oxford Medical Products (weight loss tech), and serves as CSO at Flagship Pioneering’s Preemptive Health division. He advises on NHS digital transformation and global health policy. Labs/Teams: Leads AI initiatives at Imperial’s Institute of Global Health Innovation and collaborates with Google, NICE, and international institutions on health tech solutions.
Shrikanth (Shri) Narayanan is a University Professor and holder of the Niki and Max Nikias Chair in Engineering at the University of Southern California (USC), serving as the inaugural Vice President for Presidential Initiatives. He leads the Signal Analysis and Interpretation Lab (SAIL) and holds joint appointments in Computer Science, Linguistics, Psychology, Neuroscience, Pediatrics, and Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery. His research focuses on speech and audio processing, behavioral signal processing, and real-time MRI of speech production, with applications in healthcare, education, and technology. Education: B.E. in Electrical Engineering from College of Engineering, Guindy (Chennai, India, 1988); M.S., Engineer, and Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from UCLA (1990, 1992, 1995). Research interests span computational linguistics, machine learning, and multimodal human behavior analysis. He pioneered technologies for speech biomarkers in mental health, real-time MRI of speech production, and wearable sensor systems for longitudinal health studies. His work in speech emotion recognition, forensic interviews, and clinical applications has been recognized through over 40 awards, including the IEEE Flanagan Award and ISCA Medal. He has published extensively in journals like Proceedings of the IEEE , Journal of the Acoustical Society of America , and PLOS One . Key Grants: NSF CAREER, Okawa Research, IBM Faculty, Google/Amazon awards. Labs/Teams: Signal Analysis & Interpretation Lab (SAIL), USC Information Sciences Institute (ISI), Google Visiting Faculty Researcher.
Dr. Diyi Yang is an Assistant Professor in the Computer Science Department at Stanford University. She leads the Social and Language Technologies (SALT) Lab, affiliated with the Stanford NLP Group, Stanford HCI Group, Stanford AI Lab (SAIL), and Stanford Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence (HAI). Her research focuses on socially aware natural language processing, large language models (LLMs), and human-AI interaction, aiming to improve human-human and human-computer communication through socially grounded AI systems. Education: Ph.D. in Language Technologies Institute, Carnegie Mellon University (2013–2019) B.S. in ACM Honored Class, Shanghai Jiao Tong University (2009–2013) Research Interests: Dr. Yang’s work bridges computational social science and NLP. She explores how AI can understand social contexts in language use and develop systems that respect cultural norms, ethical standards, and human values. Her lab’s projects include AI companions for skill training (e.g., Rehearsal Dialects), norm-aware LLMs (NormBank), and frameworks for human-AI collaboration (Co-Gym). Recent efforts address bias in AI, societal impacts of LLMs, and ethical evaluation of human-AI systems. Awards & Honors: 2024: Sloan Research Fellowship, ONR Young Investigator Award 2023: Adamic-Glance Young Distinguished Award (ICWSM), Kavli Fellow (NAS) 2022: NSF CAREER Award, Microsoft Research Faculty Fellow 2020: IEEE AI’s 10 to Watch Advising & Grants: Dr. Yang advises over 10 PhD students and postdocs, co-leading projects on LLM evaluation (SWE-bench/SWE-smith), human-AI ethics, and culturally aware NLP. Her research is supported by NSF, Amazon, DARPA, Google, and Stanford’s HAI initiative. Labs & Teams: The SALT Lab collaborates across disciplines, with projects spanning computer science, linguistics, and social sciences. Current initiatives include developing AI tools for mental health support (AI Partner & Mentor) and auditing societal impacts of LLMs.
Laurel MacKenzie is an Associate Professor in the Department of Linguistics at New York University (NYU), affiliated with the Faculty of Arts and Science. She specializes in variationist sociolinguistics, dialectology, and language change, with a focus on English and French varieties. Her work integrates quantitative analysis of speech data to explore intra-speaker variation and language evolution. She co-directs the NYU Sociolinguistics Lab and leads the NSF-funded NYC Individual Differences Corpus project, alongside the Our Dialects initiative, an online atlas of British English dialects. Education: PhD in Linguistics, University of Pennsylvania (2012) BA in Linguistics and French, University of California, Berkeley (2006) Research Interests: Morphological and syntactic variation Regional dialects of English and French Linguistic pedagogy and public engagement Recent Projects: Recent work includes publications on participle leveling in English, sociolinguistic replication studies, and grammatical variation analysis. She has also collaborated on dialect mapping tools and consulted for media projects on language change and accents. Awards: No awards explicitly listed in provided texts. Labs/Teams: NYU Sociolinguistics Lab (Co-Director) Our Dialects Project (Academic Lead)
Prof. Dr. Roland Büchi is a Professor at the School of Engineering, Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW), specializing in control systems engineering and applied AI. His affiliation includes leadership roles in research projects such as the ongoing 'Digital Bridge to Computer Science' initiative. With a career spanning decades, he maintains active research output and industrial collaborations. Research Interests: Büchi focuses on control systems optimization , particularly PID controller tuning using AI methods, system identification, and applications in robotics and drone technology. His work bridges theoretical control theory with practical implementations in mechatronics. Recent efforts explore machine learning for hysteresis modeling and swarm optimization for control systems. Publication Trends: His 15 most recent works (2018-2024) emphasize AI-driven control optimization , drone technology advancements, and engineering education. Dominant themes include PID parameter tuning for time-delayed systems, drone telemetry, and adaptive learning algorithms. A notable shift toward AI/ML applications in control engineering emerged post-2020. Labs and Teams: Büchi collaborates with researchers like Lukas Gruber and has historical ties to ETH Zurich’s robotics projects. His work involves experimental validation at ZHAW’s engineering facilities, with patents in turbocharger magnetic bearing systems.
Fanny Yang is an Assistant Professor in the Computer Science Department at ETH Zurich . She previously held postdoctoral positions at Stanford University and a Junior Fellowship at the Institute for Theoretical Studies at ETH Zurich, advised by Nicolai Meinshausen . Her PhD was completed at the EECS Department of UC Berkeley , supervised by Martin Wainwright . Research Interests : Theoretical foundations of machine learning and statistics , particularly focusing on overparameterized models and high-dimensional data . Developing trustworthy ML models with emphasis on distributional robustness , domain generalization , and interpretability . Applications in medical diagnostics and treatment effect analysis , aiming to address reliability issues in real-world domains. Recent Work Trends : 2025 Articles : Theoretical analysis of semi-supervised multi-objective learning , test-time scaling with verifiers, and foundation models for efficient randomized experiments . 2024 Articles : Studies on robust mixture learning , privacy-preserving data synthesis via optimal transport , confounding quantification in causal inference , and semi-private learning frameworks. 2023 Articles : Investigations into active vs. passive learning in high dimensions, inductive bias in noisy interpolation , and semi-supervised novelty detection using model ensembles .
Amir Zamir is a tenure-track Assistant Professor of Computer Science at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL) in the School of Computer & Communication Sciences. Previously, he worked at UC Berkeley, Stanford, and UCF with prominent researchers including Silvio Savarese, Jitendra Malik, Mubarak Shah, Rahul Sukthankar, and Leonidas Guibas. He currently leads the Visual Intelligence & Learning Lab at EPFL and serves as chief scientist of Duranta, having previously been the CVML chief scientist of Aurora Solar (a Forbes AI 50 company valued at $4B in 2022) from 2015 to 2022. Dr. Zamir's research spans computer vision, machine learning, and artificial intelligence, with a focus on developing general multi-modal/multi-task vision systems that operate as active agents in the real world. His work emphasizes slow science principles, seeking fundamental understanding over quick publications. Key research areas include embodied vision, multimodal foundation models, computational imaging, and vision-language integration. His notable projects include 4M, Taskonomy, Gibson Environment, Omnidata, and MultiMAE, which have significantly influenced the field of computer vision and embodied AI. Zamir has made substantial contributions to the computer vision community through numerous high-impact publications and leadership roles. His work demonstrates a consistent focus on creating vision systems that go beyond narrow and passive methods toward more general, active, and embodied approaches. The trajectory of his research shows increasing sophistication in handling multiple modalities and tasks within unified frameworks, culminating in recent work on multimodal foundation models that can handle diverse vision tasks. Dr. Zamir has received numerous prestigious awards including the Young Researcher Award 2022 from ECCV, the PAMI Mark Everingham Prize 2022, SIGGRAPH 2022 Best Paper Award for CLIPasso, CVPR 2018 Best Paper Award for Taskonomy, and CVPR 2016 Best Student Paper Award. He is also an ELLIS Faculty Scholar and received the NVIDIA Pioneering Research Award in 2018 for the Gibson Environment. As an advisor, Dr. Zamir has mentored numerous PhD students including Roman Bachmann, Andrei Atanov, Rishubh Singh, Jason Toskov, Kunal Pratap Singh, Zhitong Gao, Mingqiao Ye, and Muhammad Uzair Khattak. His former PhD students include Oguzhan Kar (now at Apple), Alexander Sasha Sax (co-advised with Jitendra Malik, now at Meta FAIR), and Teresa Yeo (now at MIT-Singapore Alliance). Dr. Zamir teaches several advanced courses including CS-503 Visual Intelligence, CS-500 AI Product Management, COM-304 Intelligent Systems, and ENG-615 Topics in Autonomous Robotics. Dr. Zamir leads the Visual Intelligence & Learning Lab at EPFL, which focuses on developing fundamental methods for visual intelligence that can operate effectively in real-world environments. The lab takes an interdisciplinary approach combining computer vision, machine learning, robotics, and cognitive science to create systems that can perceive, understand, and interact with the world. Current research directions include multimodal foundation models, computational imaging, embodied vision, and personalization of generative models.
Yuki M. Asano is a full Professor at the University of Technology Nuremberg , leading the Fundamental AI (FunAI) Lab . Previously, he led the QUVA Lab at the University of Amsterdam and earned his PhD at the Visual Geometry Group (VGG) of the University of Oxford under Andrea Vedaldi and Christian Rupprecht. University of Technology Nuremberg (2024–present) University of Amsterdam (prior to 2024) University of Oxford (PhD, 2020) His research spans Artificial Intelligence , Machine Learning , and Computer Vision , with a focus on Causal Representation Learning , Self-Supervised Learning , and Efficient Model Adaptation . He pioneered techniques like BISCUIT (causal variable identification) and VeRA (parameter-efficient fine-tuning). His work extends to Medical Imaging and Environmental Monitoring through applications in fetal ultrasound analysis and marine debris detection. Recent publications (2023–2025) highlight advancements in Self-Supervised Learning , Vision-Language Models , and 3D Understanding . Notable papers include TWIST & SCOUT (multimodal LLM grounding), SIGMA (masked video modeling), and GeneralAD (anomaly detection). His ICCV 2023 work on Self-Ordering Point Clouds and MoSiC (optimal-transport motion trajectories) underscores his interdisciplinary approach. He received the JUPITER compute grant (2025) and an Outstanding Paper Award at ICLR 2024 . His collaborations span institutions like MIT-IBM Watson AI Lab, Qualcomm AI Research, and University of Amsterdam.
Kristen Grauman is a Full Professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Texas at Austin, where she leads the UT Computer Vision Group. Her research focuses on computer vision and machine learning, with applications in visual recognition, video analysis, and multi-modal perception. She received her B.A. from Boston College and her Ph.D. from MIT. Her research interests span visual recognition, image and video search, video analysis, first-person vision, embodied and multi-modal perception, and interactive machine learning. She has made significant contributions to the field, particularly in developing algorithms for understanding visual content and human activities from video, including foundational work on the Pyramid Match Kernel and relative attributes. Her recent publications reveal a strong emphasis on egocentric (first-person) vision, audio-visual learning, and view-invariant representations. There is a clear trajectory toward multi-modal integration (vision, audio, language) and real-world applications in instructional videos, human activity understanding, and embodied AI systems. She has received numerous awards including: AAAI Fellow (2019) J. K. Aggarwal Prize, International Association for Pattern Recognition (2018) Helmholtz Prize (2017) UT Austin Academy of Distinguished Teachers (2017) Best Paper Award, Asian Conference on Computer Vision (2016) Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (2014) Computers and Thought Award, International Joint Conferences on Artificial Intelligence (2013) Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence Young Researcher Award (2013) Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellow (2012) Marr Prize (2011) Prof. Grauman serves as Associate Editor-in-Chief for the IEEE Transactions on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence. She has secured substantial research funding including the Presidential Early Career Award, NSF grants, and industry partnerships. Her advising has produced numerous influential publications and students who are now leaders in computer vision. She leads the UT Computer Vision Group, which collaborates closely with the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department. The group is pioneering large-scale egocentric video research through projects like Ego4D and Ego-Exo4D, focusing on real-world applications in human activity understanding, audio-visual perception, and interactive systems.
