Ron Brachman

I am the Director of the Jacobs Technion-Cornell Institute, an innovative academic joint venture between the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology and Cornell University (I am also a Professor in Cornell's Department of Computer Science) and a critical part of Cornell Tech in New York City.  The Jacobs Institute is the most experimental part of Cornell Tech, expressly chartered to push the boundaries of academia, to work closely with large industry and startups, to create innovative new programs and startup companies, and to strive for significant real-world impact, especially in New York City.  The Institute prides itself in training new kinds of leaders for the digital age - those who understand science, love creating new things, believe in the value of real-world impact, and know how to lead in the 21st Century digital economy.  The formal announcement of my appointment was made in late May of 2016.

I have held many leadership positions in Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence throughout my career, including President of AAAI and Secretary-Treasurer of IJCAI, Inc.  I have served on advisory committees at Princeton University, Columbia University, Carnegie Mellon University, the Johns Hopkins University Human Language Technology Center of Excellence, the International Computer Science Institute, and the Army Research Laboratory Technical Assessment Board of the National Academies.

I served for nine years as a member of the Board of Directors of the Computing Research Association, and also as its Treasurer.  I am one of the editors of the Synthesis Lectures on Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning.  I have advised an innovative startup called Segovia, which is building enterprise software to help fight extreme poverty, by supporting cash transfers to people in need in emerging economies and humanitarian situations.  I am currently serving on the Nokia Bell Labs Advisory Council.