A Ph.D. student at Michigan State University will pursue research in preventing unintended consequences of artificial intelligence (AI) thanks to an IBM Ph.D. Fellowship Award.
Yihua Zhang is one of 24 scholars around the world to receive the 2024 Fellowship prize. Zhang is a Ph.D. candidate in the Optimization and Trustworthy Machine Learning (OPTML) Group in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering (CSE). Zhang’s Ph.D. advisor is CSE Assistant Professor Sijia Liu.
“We must take transformative AI seriously and plan ahead,” Zhang said. “The key challenge is ensuring AI remains aligned with human values. My goal is to develop AI that is not only powerful but also trustworthy, rule-following, and ethically aligned as it evolves,” Zhang added.
“This is a very prestigious international recognition of all the great work that Yihua has been doing and continues to do under the supervision of Professor Liu,” said John Papapolymerou, interim dean of the College of Engineering and director of the Space Electronics Initiative. “We are extremely proud of his accomplishments and look forward to his future contributions in the very important area of trustworthy machine learning and AI.”
Zhang’s research focuses on developing secure, safe, and ethical large language models (LLMs) and diffusion models. His work in advancing theoretical underpinnings and real-world applications has been featured at top-tier AI conferences.
Abdol-Hossein Esfahanian, CSE professor and department chairperson, said Zhang’s well-deserved recognition is a testament to the exceptional talent and dedication of the CSE students and unwavering support and excellence of the faculty. “Their achievements not only bring pride to our department but also highlight the impact of our collective efforts in fostering academic and professional success.”
Added Zhang, “I am thrilled to see the industry placing a strong emphasis on trustworthy machine learning. It’s incredibly rewarding to know that my work is making a meaningful impact in both academia and industry. I sincerely thank my PhD advisor, Dr. Liu and the CSE Department for their support.”
The IBM Ph.D. Fellowship Award
Established by IBM in 1951, this prestigious award recognizes exceptional Ph.D. students worldwide who conduct groundbreaking research in key areas such as semiconductor technology, artificial intelligence, hybrid cloud, security, quantum computing, and responsible computing.
The award is highly competitive. The 2024 cycle received hundreds of applications from 76 universities across 11 countries. The fellowship includes a $40,000 grant to support research and academic pursuits. Recipients must be within two years of graduating.
The newest award recipients are from Australia, Canada, and universities across the U.S. including Columbia, Harvard, MIT, Penn, Purdue, and Rensselaer Polytechnic.
This story was originally published on the College of Engineering website.
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