Wei Ai

Assistant Professor

BIO

Dr. Wei Ai is an assistant professor at the University of Maryland. His research passion lies in data science for social good (DSSG), developing end-to-end pipelines that integrate descriptive, predictive, and interventional analyses to address real-world challenges. With an interdisciplinary background spanning computer science, economics, and information science, Dr. Ai combines machine learning, causal inference, and experimental design to create impactful solutions across various domains.

His recent work includes improving K-12 STEM education through AI-powered teaching practice analysis, understanding the role of non-verbal cues in virtual workspaces, and studying team dynamics in sharing economies. His work has contributed to the development of team recommendation systems that have been deployed on major platforms. Dr. Ai’s research combining machine learning with causal inference has been published in prestigious venues including PNAS, Management Science, ACL, and the Web Conference.

Current Interest:

• Machine Learning and Causal Inference
• Data Science for Education
• Virtual Teams and Social Identity
• Large Language Models for Social Applications

Education

Ph.D., Information, University of Michigan