Dr. Weiyan Shi, Assistant Professor in the Khoury College of Computer Sciences and the College of Engineering, has been named an AI2050 Early Career Fellow in recognition of her foundational research in AI. This honor from Schmidt Sciences comes with a grant of $500,000 to support Professor Shi’s continued research into advancing the safety and effectiveness of Large Language Models (LLMs) and persuasion to challenge AI safety. Professor Shi previously served as a research intern at Meta AI where she developed the negotiation dialogue agent for the AI Cicero which received media coverage from multiple outlets.
You my read more about Professor Shi’s recognition on the College of Engineering’s website.

Dr. Benjamin Woolston, Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering in the College of Engineering, has received the Early Career Award from the Society for Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology. Professor Woolston’s research explores metabolic engineering, synthetic bioenergy, as well as biochemistry and microbiology. Woolston currently serves on the editorial boards of multiple journals related to biology and engineering. He was recently the recipient of the 2025 Young Investigator Award from the Office of Naval Research (ONR) for his work on methanol fermentation in the pursuit of a sustainable alternative to ethanol in fuel.

Dr. Chris Unger, Teaching Professor in the College of Professional Studies, has been included in the inaugural National AI in Education Fellowship Cohort from the Center on Reinventing Public Education (CPRE) to address the challenges and risks of AI in education. Professor Unger has decades of experience conducting research and evaluation in schools across the nation. His work focuses on the design and development of learner-centered schools, education entrepreneurship, system change, and teaching. Professor Unger currently works to prepare doctoral students to become positive agents of change in education.