Ziv Epstein

 
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Hi! I'm Ziv, a computer scientist, designer and computational social scientist based in Berkeley, CA.

I'm a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered AI, where I work with Michael Bernstein, and Johan Ugander. I recently completed my PhD at the MIT Media Lab, where I was co-advised by David Rand and Sandy Pentland.

In my research, I seek to bring a (more-than-)human-centered approach to the design of sociotechnical systems. In particular, I focus on translating insights from design and the social sciences into the development of generative AI and social media platforms. How do we move away from an attention economy, and towards an attention ecology? In my postdoc, I am working to embed individual and societal values into social media ranking algorithms. In my dissertation, I explored ways to conceptualize and navigate attention online in order develop interventions to mitigate the spread of misinformation and to promote collective intelligence. Outside of the lab, I like exploring extreme environments and building geodesic domes.

I have published papers in venues such as the general interest journals Nature, Science and PNAS , as well as top-tier computer science proceedings such as CHI and CSCW. My work has also received widespread media attention in outlets like the New York Times, Scientific American, and Fast Company. I am also a practicing multimedia artist whose work has been featured in Ars Electronica, the MIT Museum, and Burning Man.

  ðŸš¨I am on the academic job market 2024-2025! Feel free to reach out with any leads🚨  


Short academic bio:
Ziv Epstein is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered AI. In his research, he focuses on translating insights from design and the social sciences into the development of sociotechnical systems such as generative AI and social media platforms. Ziv has published papers in venues such as the general interest journals Nature, Science and PNAS , as well as top-tier computer science proceedings such as CHI and CSCW. His work has also received widespread media attention in outlets like the New York Times, Scientific American, and NPR.

Short artist bio:
Ziv Epstein is a American multi-media artist whose artworks are concerned with critical worldbuilding and human agency in era of artificial intelligence. Ziv's work has been exhibited at Ars Electronica, New Art City, The Vienna Museum of Technology, Muzeum Sztuki, the MIT Museum, and Burning Man. His work has been featured in outlets like the New York Times, Scientific American, and NPR.

Headshot. Other photos:

In the News

Why Does AI Art Look Like That? The Atlantic. 8/16/2024.
Stanford Fellow, Cambridge Artist Talk Art and Generative AI at Harvard Ethics Center Panel. The Crimson. 10/24/2023.
Generative AI is a minefield for copyright law. The Conversation. 7/15/2023.
If art is how we express our humanity, where does AI fit in? MIT News. 6/15/2023.
AI makes it possible to falsify information and people, and endangers democratic regime. Haaretz (Israel). 7/14/2023.
If art is how we express our humanity, where does AI fit in? MIT News. 6/15/2023.
On social media platforms, more sharing means less caring about accuracy. MIT News. 3/3/2023.
Is the Panic Over AI Art Overblown? We Speak With Artists and Experts. Vice News. 2/22/2023.
How AI-generated art is changing the concept of art itself. LA Times. 9/21/2022.
An AI-powered séance is resurrecting the dead: How different art forms are reimagining the horror genre. Grid News. 10/28/2022.
A ‘Virtual Rapper’ Was Fired. Questions About Art and Tech Remain. New York Times. 9/6/2022.
Dust, costumes, weirdness — and science: Burning Man is back. Axios. 8/26/2022.
When machine learning meets surrealist art meets Reddit, you get DALL-E mini. NPR. 7/5/2022.
The faker: Deepfakes, lies, and cheerleading. WBUR. 4/22/2022.
Are You Better Than a Machine at Spotting a Deepfake? Scientific American. 4/15/2022.
A remedy for the spread of false news? MIT News. 03/17/2021.
Google and MIT prove social media can slow the spread of fake news. Fast Company. 6/4/21.
How We Talk About AI Affects Who Gets Credit For AI Art. Forbes. 10/26/2020.
People’s notions about AI are terrible, an MIT study asks whether they can be helped. ZDNet. 9/18/2020.
The Creepiest Thing Online This Week Is An AI That Creates Digital Ghosts. Digg. 10/31/2018.
AI is making Halloween so much spookier. Fast Company. 10/30/2018.
To understand digital advertising, study its algorithms. The Economist. 3/22/2018.
The Trick to Acting Heroically. New York Times. 8/30/2015.
The secret of extreme heroes: They don’t overthink. Washington Post. 8/24/2015.
The science of extreme altruism: why people risk their lives to save strangers. Vox. 10/15/2014.