Reality-Centric Data Science
This community places the inherent and unavoidable complexity of the real world at the heart of designing, training, testing, and deploying models for data analysis. Reality-centric Data Science aims to operate effectively, reliably, and accountably in the real world.
We propose a reality-centric research agenda consisting of three pillars to unify different areas of current research and build the necessary novel data science (DS) tools and models to deliver the world-changing potential of Artificial Intelligence (AI) while addressing the following questions:
- Inputs – How can we model the world? How can we operate with real-world data? What data should we acquire? Because “data is food for AI,” our actions will support the transition from model-driven AI (collect whatever data you can and develop a model that handles noisy data; keep the data fixed and iteratively improve the code/model) to data-driven AI (where data consistency is paramount; use various tools to enhance data quality to enable multiple models to perform well; keep the code fixed and iteratively improve the data).
- Outputs – How can we adapt to changing circumstances post-deployment? How can we respond to dynamic measures of success and performance? How can we respect human constraints?
- Ecosystem – How and when should we interact with humans or other systems? How can we support interoperability with other components or systems?
Contact the EUTOPIA Central team: Karen Triquet (karen.triquet@vub.be)
- Lead: Laura Dioșan (UBB). E-mail: laura.diosan@ubbcluj.ro
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Short bio coming soon!
- Partner: Octavian-Mihai Machidon (UL). E-mail: octavian.machidon@fri.uni-lj.si
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Throughout his career, Dr. Machidon has made significant scholarly contributions, with over 60 peer-reviewed publications in reputable international journals and conference proceedings. He has also demonstrated leadership in several national and international research projects. Notably, the last international project he led, H2020 Smart4All AgriAdapt FTTE, was awarded a national prize in Slovenia, winning the Best Idea category at the Agrobiznis Hi-Tech competition in 2023. Prior to his academic career, Dr. Machidon gained valuable industry experience as an engineer in the semiconductor sector, where he implemented digital designs at eASIC Corporation (currently Intel eASIC).
Dr. Machidon holds a Ph.D. in Reconfigurable Computing, an M.Sc. degree in Embedded Systems, and a B.Sc. degree in Applied Electronics, all from Transilvania University of Brasov, Romania. - Partner: Mohamed Ndaoud (CY). Email: mohamed.ndaoud@essec.edu
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Prof. Mohamed Ndaoud is an Assistant Professor of Statistics at ESSEC Business School, and a member of the Statistics Department of CREST. Prior to that he was an Assistant Professor in the department of Mathematics at USC since August 2019. His research interests are in high dimensional statistics. In particular, he has contributed to the areas of variable selection, robustness, estimation and community detection in the high dimensional setting. Recently he has been focusing more on trustworthy machine learning trying to find ways to make AI algorithms more reliable and fair.
- Partner: Harris Kyriakou (CY). Email: kyriakou@essec.edu
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Prof. Kyriakou is the Holder of the Media & Digital Chair and an Associate Professor at ESSEC Business School. Prof. Kyriakou focuses on how artificial and collective intelligence can enhance product development processes. The overarching goal of his research is to provide insights into how organizations can create value beyond their typical boundaries and endeavours. His work, research, consulting, and engagement with executives have focused on the intersection between artificial and collective intelligence, digital strategy and transformation, as well as data-informed decision making. He has taught, conducted research, and consulted executives in multinational companies, including Airbnb, Danone, Facebook, Kickstarter, Twitch, Vueling, and Yelp among others.
Prof. Kyriakou is the recipient of the Early Career Award by the Association for Information Systems, has been named among the Best 40-Under-40 MBA Professors by Poets & Quants, and has served as an advisor on digitalization issues for the European Commission. The content that he has developed for executive education and degree programs has received numerous awards including "Overall Award Winner”, "Outstanding Compact Case" by the Case Centre, as well as being recognized as bestselling globally.
Part of his work has been published in the leading business and information systems journals and conferences, including Academy of Management Review, MIS Quarterly, and the International Conference on Information Systems. His research has received best paper awards from the Academy of Management (AoM), the Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS), and a best dissertation award. He has also received an outstanding associate editor award from the Academy of Management (AoM). His work has been supported by numerous organizations including the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Spanish government. Kyriakou holds a Ph.D. from Stevens Institute of Technology, an M.S. from Carnegie Mellon University and a B.Sc. from the University of Piraeus. Prior to joining ESSEC, Prof. Kyriakou was a professor at IESE Business School.
