Shahrzad Gholami

Shahrzad Gholami is a Senior Applied Research Scientist at Microsoft's AI for Good Research Lab.4 She holds a Ph.D. in Computer Science from the University of Southern California, which she completed in 2019.3 Dr. Gholami's work focuses on leveraging machine learning and artificial intelligence to address global societal and environmental challenges.4

Key aspects of Dr. Gholami's career and research include:

1. Expertise in AI for social good, with applications in environmental sustainability, humanitarian efforts, and healthcare.4

2. Development of PAWS (Protection Assistant for Wildlife Security), an AI system designed to predict poacher behavior and aid in wildlife conservation.32

3. Research in various domains, including:

   • Wildfire risk prediction using historical climate data1
   • Food security analysis and forecasting1
   • Building damage assessment for disaster response using satellite imagery and deep learning1
   • Self-supervised learning for improved detection of macular telangiectasia type 2 in optical coherence tomography1

4. Prior to joining Microsoft, she was part of the Teamcore Research Group at USC, working under the supervision of Prof. Milind Tambe.2

5. Her work has been featured in media outlets such as Forbes and BBC.4

Dr. Gholami's research continues to focus on developing innovative AI solutions to address pressing societal and environmental issues, combining her technical expertise with a strong commitment to social impact.24