Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Nejdl is a Professor at the Institute for Data Science within the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at Leibniz University Hannover. He serves as Executive Director of the L3S Research Centre and Leibniz Forschungszentrum Inclusive Citizenship. Web Science Information Retrieval Artificial Intelligence Deep Learning His recent research focuses on AI applications in medicine , multimodal data fusion , and ethical AI systems . Projects include CAIMed (AI in Causal Medicine) and DAISEC (AI & Cybersecurity). His publications span conferences like AAMAS, WWW, and SIGIR. Notable awards include membership in the National Academy of Science and Engineering (acatech) . Former students hold positions at institutions like Stanford, TU Dresden, and ETH Zürich. Current projects involve climate resilience AI , federated learning for healthcare , and quantum-inspired data science .
Julian Berger is a postdoctoral researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development in the Center for Adaptive Rationality , where he explores how to enhance decision-making through hybrid human-AI systems. He is also a fellow of the Joachim Herz Foundation and has received funding from the Foundation of German Business and the Danish Data Science Academy. Education: M.A. Psychology in Business and Economics, Universidade Catolica Portuguesa (2021) B.A. Politics, Administration and International Relations, Zeppelin Universität (2018) His research spans human-AI collaboration , collective intelligence , and interpretable machine learning . A recurring theme in his work is developing methods to combine human expertise with AI capabilities for accuracy in domains like medical diagnostics , credit scoring , and football analytics . He has authored publications in high-impact venues such as PNAS , Nature Human Behavior , and Science and Medicine in Football . Scientific awards and funding include: Fellowship for interdisciplinary economics, Joachim Herz Foundation (2024) PhD funding from the Foundation of German Business (Stiftung der deutschen Wirtschaft) Research grant from the Danish Data Science Academy His recent article trends emphasize ensembling techniques that leverage complementary human and AI errors, algorithmic fairness, and practical heuristics like Hybrid Confirmation Trees. These works demonstrate significant improvements in diagnostic accuracy and decision cost-efficiency. Beyond academia, Berger works as a consultant and ML engineer with Simply Rational , focusing on interpretable models for financial and sports analytics. His work bridges theoretical research with real-world applications, prioritizing fairness, transparency, and human accountability in AI systems.
Dr.-Ing. Thomas Wild serves as an Academic Director at the Technical University of Munich (TUM), working within the TUM School of Computation, Information and Technology at the Chair of Integrated Systems. He maintains an active research and teaching role at the institution, with his office located in Building N1 (Theresienstr. 90), Room N2136 in Munich, Germany. Dr. Wild's research focuses on advanced computing architectures, with particular emphasis on manycore system on chip (SoC) architectures, network processor (NPU) architectures, on-chip communication architectures including networks on chip (NoC), and system level design methodologies. His work bridges theoretical research with practical implementation, often exploring design space exploration techniques to optimize system performance. The evolution of his research over two decades demonstrates a consistent focus on improving communication architectures and system-level design for embedded and high-performance computing platforms. His recent publications (2023-2025) reveal a growing integration of machine learning techniques with traditional hardware design, particularly in optimizing power-performance tradeoffs in embedded systems. There's a clear trend toward hardware-software co-design approaches, with significant work on SmartNICs, Linux system optimization, and network processing acceleration. His research shows strong interdisciplinary connections between computer architecture, networking, and machine learning. EUROPRACTICE representative for TUM city campus, facilitating access to commercial EDA tools for academic purposes Active collaborator with Professor Andreas Herkersdorf and other researchers at TUM Focus on practical implementations with FPGA-based prototyping and real system modifications Dr. Wild teaches several hardware design courses including VHDL Lab, SystemC Lab, and HW/SW Codesign, contributing to the education of next-generation computer engineers. His teaching directly complements his research in system design and hardware acceleration, providing students with hands-on experience in cutting-edge technologies.
Yepang Liu is a tenured Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) in Shenzhen, China. He leads the Software Quality Lab and serves as director of the Trustworthy Software Research Center within the Research Institute of Trustworthy Autonomous Systems. His educational background includes a B.Sc. with honors from Nanjing University (2010) and a Ph.D. from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (2015), where he was supervised by Prof. Shing-Chi Cheung. Prior to joining SUSTech, he worked as a postdoc at HKUST's CASTLE Lab and Cybersecurity Lab. Liu's research primarily focuses on software testing and analysis, empirical software engineering, AI for SE, software security, and trustworthy AI. His work bridges traditional software engineering with cutting-edge AI technologies, particularly in automated testing, security analysis, and quality assurance for mobile, blockchain, and extended reality applications. Recent projects explore how large language models can enhance bug detection, improve testing automation, and address fairness issues in machine learning systems. His contributions have been recognized with three ACM SIGSOFT Distinguished Paper awards (ICSE 2021, ASE 2016, ICSE 2014) and one Distinguished Artifact award (ICSE 2019). He has also received the ACM SIGSOFT Service Award and Distinguished Reviewer Award for his extensive service to the software engineering community. Top-10 Most Active Early-Stage Software Engineering Researcher (2013-2020) Top-10 Most Popular Instructor Among 2024 Undergraduate Graduates at SUSTech Junior Faculty of the Year (2021) SUSTech Teaching Excellence Award (2021) Outstanding Mentor Award (2020, 2024) Liu actively serves on the editorial boards of Empirical Software Engineering (EMSE) and Journal of Computer Science and Technology (JCST). He has participated in over 80 conference committees including leadership roles in ICSE, FSE, ASE, and ISSTA. His research is supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China, National Key Research and Development Program, and leading Chinese IT companies. He regularly mentors PhD and MSc students and has guided multiple national competition award-winning teams. The Software Quality Lab under Liu's direction focuses on innovative approaches to software testing, security analysis, and quality assurance across various platforms including mobile, blockchain, and extended reality applications. Current projects emphasize the integration of AI techniques with traditional software engineering practices to address emerging challenges in software quality.
Jens Krause is a Professor and Head of Department at the Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB) in Berlin, leading the Research Group on Mechanisms and Functions of Group-Living. He holds a full professorship in Fish Ecology at Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Faculty of Life Sciences, Thaer-Institute, and since 2018 has been an Adjunct Professor at Technical University Berlin within the Excellence Cluster 'Science of Intelligence'. His research is centered on collective intelligence, social networks, decision-making, and behavioural ecology in fish and other animals. Full Professor in Fish Ecology, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin Adjunct Professor at Technical University Berlin (since 2018) Head of Department, IGB Berlin PhD, University of Cambridge Diploma, Free University Berlin His work integrates experimental biology, network analysis, and biomimetic robotics to understand how animals make collective decisions. His expertise spans animal behaviour, evolution, and ecological physiology, with a strong focus on group-living dynamics. Recent research explores group hunting, predator evasion, social foraging, and the impact of environmental stressors on collective behaviour. The analysis of his recent publications reveals a strong trend in understanding collective behaviour in fish, including escape waves, social foraging, group hunting in marlins and sailfish, and the use of robotic agents to study social integration. His interdisciplinary approach combines marine biology, physics, robotics, and data science to uncover the mechanisms behind collective intelligence in both animal and human systems. Editorial Board, Behavioral Ecology Editorial Board, Fish and Fisheries Executive Board, Excellence Cluster 'Science of Intelligence' Advisory Board, Bimini Biological Field Station Foundation He advises numerous PhD students and postdoctoral researchers, and leads major research projects, including 'Developing exploration behaviour' funded by the Excellence Cluster. His work has been supported by extensive collaborations across Europe and North America, and he frequently publishes in top-tier journals such as Nature , Science Advances , Proceedings of the Royal Society , and Current Biology . His lab employs cutting-edge methods including automated tracking, social network analysis, and interactive robotics to study animal groups. His research group, 'Mechanisms and Functions of Group-Living', is embedded within the Excellence Cluster 'Science of Intelligence', where they investigate collective cognition, social information use, and the role of individual differences in group performance. The team combines field studies with laboratory experiments and computational modelling to understand the evolution and function of collective behaviour across species.
Dr. Kevin G. Jamieson is a faculty member at the University of Washington , School of Computer Science , with prior affiliations at the University of California, Berkeley (Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences) and the University of Wisconsin-Madison (Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering). His work spans machine learning, reinforcement learning, bandit algorithms, and robotics. Current university: University of Washington Academic rank: Professor His research focuses on: Bandit algorithms and sequential decision-making Optimization in non-stationary environments Reinforcement learning with real-world applications Multi-agent systems and game theory Efficient data selection for multimodal learning Human-in-the-loop AI systems Recent publications highlight his expertise in pure exploration strategies, robotic manipulation, and bridging simulation-to-reality gaps in RL. He has mentored numerous collaborators, though formal student advising details are not explicitly listed here. No scientific awards are mentioned in the provided data.
Dr. Wolfram Barfuss is the Argelander Professor of Integrated Systems Modeling for Sustainability Transitions at the University of Bonn, affiliated with the Center for Development Research (ZEF). He is a member of multiple interdisciplinary research areas including TRA Sustainable Futures, TRA Modeling, and TRA Individual and Societies, as well as the Cluster of Excellence PhenoRob and the Center for Earth System Observation and Computational Analysis (CESOC). He also collaborates with the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research and the Earth Resilience Science Unit. His research focuses on understanding whether humanity is 'smart enough for the good life' by developing formal models of collective learning and decision-making in complex social-ecological systems. He integrates methods from complex systems, multi-agent reinforcement learning, and dynamical systems theory to explore sustainability transitions, cooperation, and Earth system resilience. The recent publications demonstrate a strong focus on modeling collective intelligence, cooperation in stochastic games, decision-making under uncertainty, and integrated World-Earth system modeling. His work spans disciplines including computer science, environmental science, game theory, and cognitive science, with frequent contributions to high-impact journals like PNAS , Nature Communications , and Environmental Research Letters . Argelander Professor for Integrated Systems Modeling for Sustainability Transitions Member, TRA Sustainable Futures Member, TRA Modeling Member, TRA Individual and Societies Cluster of Excellence PhenoRob Center for Earth System Observation and Computational Analysis (CESOC) Earth Resilience Science Unit (Potsdam) Earth Resilience and Sustainability Initiative (Princeton-Stockholm-Potsdam) Dr. Barfuss teaches graduate courses at the University of Bonn and Humboldt University Berlin, including Complex System Modeling of Human-Environment Interactions, Economics on Sustainability, Systems Modeling, and Introduction to Agent-Based Modeling. He leads the BarfussLab, where his team develops computational tools such as pyCRLD for modeling collective reinforcement learning dynamics. While specific student advisees are not listed, his lab and publications suggest active supervision and collaboration with early-career researchers. He has not received any explicitly mentioned scientific awards in the provided text. His research is supported through institutional affiliations and collaborative projects rather than individually listed grants.
Yang Liu is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the Baskin School of Engineering, University of California, Santa Cruz. Previously, they were affiliated with Harvard University and earned their PhD in 2015 from the Department of EECS at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Their research lies at the intersection of machine learning, fairness, and trustworthy AI, with a strong focus on large language models, federated learning, and causal reasoning. Their research interests include: Machine Learning and Fairness Federated and Privacy-Preserving Learning Large Language Model Safety and Unlearning Causal Inference and Counterfactual Reasoning Anomaly Detection and Robust Forecasting Human-AI Interaction and Ethical AI Recent publications (2024–2025) demonstrate a strong trend in developing methods for machine unlearning, fairness in LLMs, and robustness under label noise and distribution shifts. Their work frequently appears in top-tier venues such as NeurIPS, ICLR, ICML, AAAI, and KDD, often in collaboration with researchers like Zhaowei Zhu, Mingyan Liu, Jiaheng Wei, and Kun Zhang. Themes include algorithmic fairness, model accountability, and human-aligned AI systems. Scientific contributions include: Frameworks for LLM unlearning and model editing Methods for fair classification and recourse Robust time series forecasting under anomalies Test-time adaptation in multimodal models Causal approaches to debiasing and policy learning While no formal advising list is provided, the depth and volume of collaborative work suggest active mentorship of graduate students and postdocs. Their research program is highly active, with numerous ongoing projects in trustworthy and socially responsible AI.
Dr. Lucie Kruse is a researcher at the Department of Informatics, University of Hamburg, specializing in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) and Virtual Reality (VR). Her work focuses on immersive user interfaces for cognitive and physical training, particularly for older adults and those with dementia. She has been an active member of the University of Hamburg's HCI group since 2018 and served on the Ethics Commission since 2023. Her research interests include: Virtual Reality Exergames Serious Games Assistive Technologies Accessibility in VR Mental Health Applications Her publications from 2021-2025 demonstrate expertise in designing VR systems for healthcare, analyzing age-related interaction patterns, and developing inclusive interfaces. She has received multiple awards including the 2024 Honorable Mention for Best Poster at ACM SUI and the 2023 Honorable Mention at ACM CHI. Scientific Awards: Honorable Mention for Best Poster Award at ACM SUI (2024) Runner-Up Prize at Metaverse for the Good (2024) Honorable Mention at ACM CHI'23 Interactive Demo (2023) Honorable Mention at ACM VRST (2021) She has supervised multiple theses on topics like AI agents for mental health, accessibility of chatbots for seniors, and VR exergame design. Her work spans collaborations with institutions like HITLab NZ and Western Sydney University's MARCS Institute.
Marina Petrova is a Professor at RWTH Aachen University, holding positions in both the Teaching and Research Area of Mobile Communications and Computing and the Chair and Institute for Networked Systems. She is also a member of the Steering Committee for the Mobility & Transport Engineering (MTE) profile area at the university. Her office is located at Kackertstraße 9, 52072 Aachen, Germany. Professor Petrova's research focuses on cutting-edge wireless communication technologies, with particular emphasis on next-generation mobile networks. Her work spans multiple dimensions of wireless systems including: 5G and 6G network architectures and protocols Cell-Free Massive MIMO systems Millimeter-wave communications Resource allocation and scheduling in wireless networks Wi-Fi sensing and coexistence analysis Integration of distributed learning services in wireless networks Beamforming and beam management techniques Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency Communications (URLLC) Her recent publications demonstrate a strong trend toward the integration of artificial intelligence and machine learning techniques in wireless network design and optimization. She has been particularly active in exploring the convergence of communication and sensing functionalities (ISAC - Integrated Sensing and Communication), which is considered a key enabler for future 6G networks. Professor Petrova's research also addresses practical implementation challenges in next-generation wireless systems, with several publications focusing on ns-3 implementations and experimental validations. Professor Petrova has received recognition for her contributions to the field through numerous publications in top-tier venues, though specific awards are not mentioned in the available information. Her work shows strong industry relevance with applications in smart industries, autonomous systems, and future communication networks.
Prof. Dr.-Ing. Stefan Kopp is a faculty member at Bielefeld University's Faculty of Engineering and serves as Research Group Leader of the Cognitive Systems and Social Interaction Group . He also holds administrative roles as Vice Dean and Deputy CITEC Coordinator . His work focuses on Artificial Intelligence , Cognitive Systems , and Socio-Technical World research areas. Research Group Leader: Cognitive Systems and Social Interaction Group Vice Dean: Faculty of Engineering Deputy Coordinator: Center for Cognitive Interaction Technology (CITEC) Project Manager: TRR 318 "Constructing Explainability" subprojects His research explores human-agent interaction , multimodal conversational agents , and social AI through projects like 39-Inf-11 Human-Machine Interaction and 39-M-Inf-VKI Virtual Humans and Conversational Agents . Publications address topics including adaptive explanation generation , gesture synthesis , and social cognition in dynamic environments. Current research topics span cooperative AI , explainable decision-making , and sensorimotor grounding in artificial systems.
Mahsa Ghasemi is an Assistant Professor in the Elmore Family School of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Purdue University, leading the AKADEMI Group. Her research focuses on theoretical advancements in trustworthy sequential decision-making for autonomous systems, emphasizing human-aware collaboration and adaptation to dynamic environments. She is affiliated with the Institute for Control, Optimization and Networks (ICON). Education: PhD in Electrical and Computer Engineering from The University of Texas at Austin (2021), MSE in Mechanical Engineering (2017), and BSc in Mechanical Engineering from Sharif University of Technology (2014). Research Interests: Reinforcement learning, control theory, active perception, multi-agent systems, robotics, and online learning. Applications span disaster response, healthcare, and autonomous systems design. Key methodological directions include compositional learning, human-AI collaboration, and adaptive decision-making under uncertainty. Teaching: Courses include Reinforcement Learning Theory (ECE 59500), Introduction to Reinforcement Learning (ECE 49595), and Python for Data Science (ECE 20875). Awards: Finalist for Student Best Paper Award at the 2018 American Control Conference (ACC). Students: Current advisees include Maheed H. Ahmed, Jayanth Bhargav, and Somtochukwu Oguchienti. Past members include Lai Wei and Juan Sebastian Mateo Ruiz Bulla. Service: Editorial roles at ICRA, ICCPS, and IFAC workshops. Reviewer for top conferences (NeurIPS, ICML) and journals (Automatica, IEEE TAC). Labs/Teams: Leads the AKADEMI Group, focusing on algorithmic and theoretical research in autonomous decision-making systems.
Giorgio Ferrari is a Full Professor for Mathematical Finance at the Institute for Mathematical Economics (IMW), Faculty of Economics, Bielefeld University. His research bridges stochastic control theory with applications in economics, finance, actuarial science, and epidemiology. Education: B.Sc. and M.Sc. in Physics and Mathematical Physics from the University of Rome La Sapienza, Ph.D. in Mathematics for Economic-Financial Applications (2012). Academic Appointments: Post-Doctoral Researcher (2012–2015), Substitute Full Professor (2015), Junior Professor (W1) (2016–2017), Associate Professor (2017–2023), and Full Professor (2023–present) at Bielefeld University. Research Interests focus on Singular Stochastic Control , Optimal Stopping , and Stochastic Games , with applications to economic policy, financial markets, and epidemic modeling. His work extends to Mean-Field Games for large-scale strategic interactions and Free-Boundary Problems for investment decision-making under uncertainty. Scientific Contributions include groundbreaking publications in Stochastic Processes and their Applications , Mathematical Finance , and SIAM Journal on Control and Optimization . His research projects, such as the DFG SFB 1283 subproject C4 and the Research Training Group 2865 , address uncertainty in dynamic economies through game-theoretic and stochastic frameworks. Notable Awards: AMASES Best Young Researcher Paper (2014), YITP Research Prize (2017), and multiple research fellowships from the University of Padova. Leadership: Director of the Bielefeld Graduate School in Theoretical Sciences (2023–present) and Principal Investigator in major DFG-funded initiatives.
Charley Wu is an Independent Research Group Leader and W3 Professor of Computational Cognitive Science, currently transitioning from the University of Tübingen to Technische Universität Darmstadt. He leads the Human and Machine Cognition Lab (HMC Lab), jointly funded by the Excellence Cluster 'Machine Learning for Science' and the Tübingen AI Center, soon to be based at TU Darmstadt under a LOEWE Start Professorship and an ERC Starting Grant. University of Tübingen (former affiliation) Technische Universität Darmstadt (current/transitioning to) Human and Machine Cognition Lab (HMC Lab) Excellence Cluster 'Machine Learning for Science' Tübingen AI Center Charley Wu's research lies at the intersection of cognitive science and artificial intelligence, focusing on how humans learn and make decisions under uncertainty. Using computational models, statistical learning, and virtual reality experiments, he investigates the cognitive shortcuts and strategies people use to generalize and explore efficiently in complex environments. His work also explores social learning and collective intelligence through biologically inspired multi-agent systems. His recent publications, including a key paper in Nature Human Behaviour on generalization guiding exploration, reflect a strong trend toward integrating machine learning techniques with human behavioral data. The research emphasizes efficient inference, compressed representations, and compositional structures in cognition, bridging gaps between human and artificial intelligence. Notable scientific awards include: ERC Starting Grant: C⁴: Compositional Compression in Cognition and Culture LOEWE Start Professorship Dr. Wu is actively mentoring and expanding his research group, currently recruiting three fully-funded PhD students and one postdoctoral researcher. His lab is supported by competitive grants and institutional funding, indicating strong research momentum and future directions in computational models of cognition, AI-human alignment, and collective learning. He collaborates with leading researchers such as Fiery Cushman and Sam Gershman from his postdoctoral work at Harvard University. The Human and Machine Cognition Lab (HMC Lab) is a dynamic research environment focused on understanding the computational principles of human learning. As it transitions to TU Darmstadt, the lab will continue to explore fundamental questions in cognition using cutting-edge methodologies, including online experiments, multi-agent simulations, and AI-driven modeling.
Prof. Liqiu Meng serves as Chair of Cartography and Visual Analytics at the Technical University of Munich (TUM). He specializes in advanced geospatial research, digital cartography, and human-technology collaboration frameworks. Current Faculty at TUM Chair of Cartography and Visual Analytics Research Focus: His work bridges cartographic theory with cutting-edge technology, covering topics like 3D urban modeling, AI ethics visualization, geovisual analytics, and spatiotemporal data interpretation. Urban Morphology Analysis AI Ethics Cartography Geovisual Analytics 3D City Data Integration Location-Based Service Design Publications: Recent works (2025-2024) demonstrate expertise in explainable AI for urban analysis, multi-agent systems for geospatial interaction, and advanced spatial modeling techniques. Contact: liqiu.meng@tum.de | contact.lfk@ed.tum.de
