For Shuyan Zhou, necessity really was the mother of invention.Zhou gifted her mother a Chinese version of Alexa, and while she loved it, the device was limited and unable to do much beyond executing simple commands. If her mother needed to book airline tickets, for example, she’d still call her daughter who would then walk her through the process, step by step. This got Zhou thinking about how many people — parents included — struggle with technology, even though today’s devices come packed with powerful features.… read more about Shuyan Zhou: An AI Collaboration Agent »
The Society-Centered Artificial Intelligence initiative at Duke University (SCAI) is pleased to welcome three new staff members whose expertise will help support the center’s expanding programs, operations, and engagement with the Duke community. Blake Tedder will provide operational support for SCAI, including building organizational structures and workflows, coordinating communications, managing budgeting and accounting, and assisting with fundraising activities.… read more about SCAI Expands Team with Three New Staff Members »
Pardis Emami-Naeini is concerned about AI users’ privacy — and with good reason.The assistant professor of Computer Science, Electrical and Computer Engineering and Public Policy focuses much of her research on human-computer interactions and social aspects of computing. As the director of the Duke InSPIre Lab, one of her aims is understanding how people use AI technology, as well as their perceived risk of interacting with the tool. AI systems are constantly learning, absorbing and adapting. Their… read more about Dangerous Helpers: Understanding the Privacy Trade-Offs of AI Mental Health Support »
While artificial intelligence is disrupting industries, and even replacing humans in some areas, we still live in a world where artificial and human intelligence need each other. That’s the message that was driven home at the recent Triangle AI Summit, which brought together academic and industry leaders to delve into what a future with AI will look like.“There’s no turning back. Students are using it. The world is using it,” Jun Yang, Bishop-MacDermott Family Professor of Computer Science at Duke, said. “We have to figure… read more about Charting a Future With AI »
The Office of the Provost and The Graduate School have selected three proposals to establish new Interdisciplinary Graduate Education Collaboratives (IGECs). Made possible by a generous grant from The Duke Endowment, these IGECs will launch in Fall 2026 and offer graduate students unique opportunities to tackle complex societal challenges alongside peers and faculty from across campus.Through seminars, working groups and projects, students will receive applied training and gain exposure to emerging issues at the… read more about Equipping Graduate Students to Tackle Emerging Challenges »
This article was written by the staff at the Pratt School of Engineering.Boyuan Chen, Dickinson Family Assistant Professor in the Thomas Lord Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science at Duke University, has been named to the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) 2025 Mechanical Engineering Magazine Watch List.Launched in 2024, the annual list spotlights early career professionals who have already left their marks on industry, academia and society. Nominees were… read more about Boyuan Chen Named to ASME Mechanical Engineering Magazine Watch List »
Cynthia D. Rudin, the Gilbert, Louis, and Edward Lehrman Distinguished Professor of Computer Science, received the 2025 International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence Organization (IJCAI) McCarthy Award.The award recognizes Rudin’s foundational work on trustworthy artificial intelligence (AI), which is shaping the field of interpretable machine learning and making a major impact on sweeping societal changes. The John McCarthy Award celebrates mid-career researchers who have sparked innovative research… read more about Cynthia Rudin Receives 2025 International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence McCarthy Award »
In hospital intensive care units, neurologists often use a simple scorecard to quickly evaluate a critically ill patient’s likelihood of having a brain-damaging seizure so they can prevent it.The scorecard saves lives, lowers costs and helps doctors make far more efficient use of important, expensive medical equipment. But it wasn’t always that way. Until about 2019, hospitals had no way to quickly monitor a patient’s electronic brain activity and accurately predict whether a seizure was lurking. Often, a patient… read more about A Tool That Helps Predict a Brain-Damaging Seizure »
Trinity College of Arts & Sciences has launched an initiative to spur innovative research on the co-evolution of artificial intelligence and human behavior: the Society-Centered AI Initiative at Duke.Directed by Chris Bail, professor of Sociology, Political Science and Public Policy, the Society-Centered AI Initiative at Duke is a collaborative effort aimed at fostering interdisciplinary research exploring the myriad ways in which AI will influence human behavior — and how social factors will… read more about Trinity College of Arts & Sciences Launches Society-Centered AI Initiative »