Rediet Abebe

Country: Ethiopia
Junior Fellow Harvard Society of Fellows Co-Founder Black in AI Rediet Abebe is a Junior Fellow at the Harvard Society of Fellows. She holds a Ph.D. in computer science from Cornell University, where she was advised by Jon Kleinberg, as well as an M.S. in applied mathematics from Harvard University, an M.A. in mathematics from the University of Cambridge, and a B.A. in mathematics from Harvard College. Her research is broadly in the fields of artificial intelligence and algorithms, with a focus on discrete algorithms, optimization, network and computational science, and their applications to equity and social good concerns. As part of this research agenda, she co-founded and co-organizes Mechanism Design for Social Good (MD4SG), a multi-institutional, interdisciplinary research initiative working to improve access to opportunity for historically underserved and disadvantaged communities. This initiative has participants from over 100 institutions in 20 countries and has been supported by organizations including Schmidt Futures, the MacArthur Foundation, and the Institute for New Economic Thinking. Abebes work has informed policy and practice at various organizations including the National Institute of Health and the Ethiopian Ministry of Education. Throughout 2019, she served on the NIH Advisory Committee to the Director Working Group on AI, whose recommendations were unanimously approved by the General Directors advisory committee. Abebe was recently named one of 35 Innovators Under 35 by the MIT Technology Review. She has also been honored by ELLE as a woman transforming technology and the 2019 Bloomberg 50 list as a one to watch. She has recently presented her research in venues including the National Academy of Sciences, the United Nations, and the Museum of Modern Art. In 2017, Abebe co-founded Black in AI, a non-profit organization tackling representation and inclusion issues in the field. Her research is deeply influenced by her upbringing in her hometown of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.