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Thesis on Human-Centered AI Earns Honors from International Computing Organization

dgivens8 — Tue, 22 Apr 2025 14:30:41 +0000

Thesis on Human-Centered AI Earns Honors from International Computing Organization dgivens8 Tue, 04/22/2025 - 10:30

A Georgia Tech alum’s dissertation introduced ways to make artificial intelligence (AI) more accessible, interpretable, and accountable. Although it’s been a year since his doctoral defense, Zijie (Jay) Wang’s (Ph.D. ML-CSE 2024) work continues to resonate with researchers.

Wang is a recipient of the 2025 Outstanding Dissertation Award from the Association for Computing Machinery Special Interest Group on Computer-Human Interaction (ACM SIGCHI). The award recognizes Wang for his lifelong work on democratizing human-centered AI.

“Throughout my Ph.D. and industry internships, I observed a gap in existing research: there is a strong need for practical tools for applying human-centered approaches when designing AI systems,” said Wang, now a safety researcher at OpenAI.

“My work not only helps people understand AI and guide its behavior but also provides user-friendly tools that fit into existing workflows.”

Wang’s dissertation presented techniques in visual explanation and interactive guidance to align AI models with user knowledge and values. The work culminated from years of research, fellowship support, and internships.

Wang’s most influential projects formed the core of his dissertation. These included:

CNN Explainer: an open-source tool developed for deep-learning beginners. Since its release in July 2020, more than 436,000 global visitors have used the tool.
DiffusionDB: a first-of-its-kind large-scale dataset that lays a foundation to help people better understand generative AI. This work could lead to new research in detecting deepfakes and designing human-AI interaction tools to help people more easily use these models.
GAM Changer: an interface that empowers users in healthcare, finance, or other domains to edit ML models to include knowledge and values specific to their domain, which improves reliability.
GAM Coach: an interactive ML tool that could help people who have been rejected for a loan by automatically letting an applicant know what is needed for them to receive loan approval.
Farsight: a tool that alerts developers when they write prompts in large language models that could be harmful and misused.

“I feel extremely honored and lucky to receive this award, and I am deeply grateful to many who have supported me along the way, including Polo, mentors, collaborators, and friends,” said Wang, who was advised by School of Computational Science and Engineering (CSE) Professor Polo Chau.

“This recognition also inspired me to continue striving to design and develop easy-to-use tools that help everyone to easily interact with AI systems.”

Like Wang, Chau advised Georgia Tech alumnus Fred Hohman (Ph.D. CSE 2020). Hohman won the ACM SIGCHI Outstanding Dissertation Award in 2022.

Chau’s group synthesizes machine learning (ML) and visualization techniques into scalable, interactive, and trustworthy tools. These tools increase understanding and interaction with large-scale data and ML models.

Chau is the associate director of corporate relations for the Machine Learning Center at Georgia Tech. Wang called the School of CSE his home unit while a student in the ML program under Chau.

Wang is one of five recipients of this year’s award to be presented at the 2025 Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI 2025). The conference occurs April 25-May 1 in Yokohama, Japan.

SIGCHI is the world’s largest association of human-computer interaction professionals and practitioners. The group sponsors or co-sponsors 26 conferences, including CHI.

Wang’s outstanding dissertation award is the latest recognition of a career decorated with achievement.

Months after graduating from Georgia Tech, Forbes named Wang to its 30 Under 30 in Science for 2025 for his dissertation. Wang was one of 15 Yellow Jackets included in nine different 30 Under 30 lists and the only Georgia Tech-affiliated individual on the 30 Under 30 in Science list.

While a Georgia Tech student, Wang earned recognition from big names in business and technology. He received the Apple Scholars in AI/ML Ph.D. Fellowship in 2023 and was in the 2022 cohort of the J.P. Morgan AI Ph.D. Fellowships Program.

Along with the CHI award, Wang’s dissertation earned him awards this year at banquets across campus. The Georgia Tech chapter of Sigma Xi presented Wang with the Best Ph.D. Thesis Award. He also received the College of Computing’s Outstanding Dissertation Award.

“Georgia Tech attracts many great minds, and I’m glad that some, like Jay, chose to join our group,” Chau said. “It has been a joy to work alongside them and witness the many wonderful things they have accomplished, and with many more to come in their careers.”

Summary sentence

Zijie (Jay) Wang (Ph.D. ML-CSE 2024) is a recipient of the 2025 Outstanding Dissertation Award from the Association for Computing Machinery Special Interest Group on Computer-Human Interaction (ACM SIGCHI).

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Thu, 04/17/2025 - 12:00

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Bryant Wine, Communications Officer
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Memorial Day Weekend Events Around Atlanta

admin — Wed, 24 May 2023 20:56:31 +0000

Memorial Day Weekend Events Around Atlanta admin Wed, 05/24/2023 - 16:56

Memorial Day honors members of the armed forces who lost their lives in service to the United States. The weekend leading into the federal holiday also represents the unofficial start of summer and is packed with events around Atlanta.

Atlanta Jazz Festival: Saturday, May 27 – Monday, May 29

One of the largest free jazz festivals in the country, the celebration of music and culture returns to Piedmont Park for its 46th iteration. Fifteen artists will perform during the three-day event, which runs daily from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Along with musical acts, the festival features local artists and entrepreneurs in a vendor market, and food trucks will be set up around the park.

For a full schedule, click here.

Brew at the Zoo: Saturday, May 27, 6 – 9:30 p.m.

Zoo Atlanta’s Brew at the Zoo event offers after-hours access to the facility with beer and wine samples from 20 different breweries, live music from three different bands throughout the exhibits, discussions with zookeepers, and yard games. General admission and VIP tickets are available, with proceeds benefiting the zoo’s conservation efforts.

For more information, click here.

Stone Mountain Memorial Day Weekend: Friday, May 26 – Monday, May 29

Beginning Friday, Stone Mountain will host its annual Memorial Day weekend event. Every evening will feature a musical salute to the troops with an extended fireworks finale following the attraction’s new Music Across America Light Show. The show features immersive lighting, flames, lasers, and 250 color-changing drones synchronized to music.

Along with a flag-folding ceremony, the Air National Guard Band of the South will perform Saturday through Monday.

For more information, click here.

Alpharetta Arts Streetfest: Saturday, May 27 – Sunday, May 28, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.

With over 100 vendors, activities, and street performers, the Alpharetta Arts Streetfest – located at the Grove at Wills Park – is free and open to the public from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday with a parking lot full of food trucks and vendors at the Alpharetta Community Center.

For more information, click here.

Memorial Day Classic 5K: Monday, May 29, 8 a.m.

The fourth annual Atlanta Memorial Day Classic 5K begins in Atlanta’s Old Fourth Ward, and the route will be lined with photos of fallen heroes. Participants receive a finisher’s medal.

For registration information, click here.

Memorial Day Family Canoe Day: Monday, May 29, 9 a.m.

Enjoy the outdoors and start your summer with a relaxing paddle on the Chattahoochee Nature Center’s Beaver Pond. This event is a beginner-friendly canoeing experience with CNC guides going over basic techniques and leading races and games. All equipment, including a canoe, paddles, and personal flotation devices, is provided.

For more information, click here.

The Georgia Renaissance Festival: Saturday, May 27 – Monday, May 29, 10:30 a.m. – 6 p.m.

Typically open Saturday and Sunday, the festival located in Fairburn will remain open on Memorial Day, with veterans, active duty military personnel, and first responders getting in free on Monday. In its 38th year, the festival offers daily entertainment with jousting tournaments, live music, and more, along with traditional fair food and beverages. A vendor market is also open daily.

For more information, click here.

Summary sentence

Campus will close Monday for Memorial Day. Ahead of the federal holiday, there’s no shortage of family-friendly activities around Atlanta.

Summary

Campus will close Monday for Memorial Day. Ahead of the federal holiday, there’s no shortage of family-friendly activities around Atlanta.

Dateline

Wed, 05/24/2023 - 12:00

Steven.gagliano@gatech.edu

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Thesis on Human-Centered AI Earns Honors from International Computing Organization

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