Vanessa Parli: Leading Programs to Enable Interdisciplinary Research

By Nikki Goth Itoi

What happens when a management consultant with a background in engineering and data science decides to shift her career focus to social good? She finds herself leading research grant programs and a host of related initiatives to study, guide, and develop human-centered AI technologies. As Director of Research Programs for the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence (HAI), Vanessa Parli oversees multiple funding opportunities, fellowship programs, state of AI reports, and research and education events designed to engage scholars on topics that span many aspects of technology and society.

“Before starting at HAI, I had an ‘efficiency above all else’ mindset,” Parli says. “As an engineer, I began my career using data to make decisions and optimize processes. Now, one of the most interesting aspects of my work is learning from leaders outside of engineering – seeing how complementary and beneficial those viewpoints are – as the technology advances and has more of an impact on our everyday lives. There are many aspects of humanity that perhaps should not, and cannot, be optimized.”

Parli articulates a clear vision for the future – one in which AI is collaborative, augmentative, and enhances quality of life. Each aspect of the research team’s work connects to this vision. For example, the institute’s Postdoctoral Fellowship Program supports scholars conducting AI research with leading Stanford faculty and provides a space for them to collaborate across disciplines, which is often difficult for those early in their careers. HAI also sponsors Student Affinity Groups to support undergraduate students who have ideas on advancing AI to improve the human condition.

Interdisciplinary work is core to the mission of HAI and the way that Parli approaches her role. “Each discipline has its own language and incentive structure. When different teams come together, there can be tension at first until each learns to understand the other’s point of view,” she explains. “But it’s exciting when you see breakthroughs across a diverse group that’s working together.”

HAI’s grant programs have achieved measurable success toward the goal of funding new, ambitious work that would not otherwise be supported through other channels. For example, a team led by Professor Michael Bernstein, in collaboration with social scientists, lawyers, and computer scientists, has published a study looking at how societal values are embedded into social media algorithms. In addition to publishing studies in top scientific journals, HAI-funded projects have released open-source datasets, received patents for their technology, and received millions in follow-on funding from external sources, including the NIH.

Looking ahead, Parli feels passionate about involving as many voices as possible in discussions of human-centered AI. “It’s critical that we are interdisciplinary from a scholar perspective, but community members from various backgrounds should be empowered to contribute to the conversation, too. We must ask ourselves, ‘What do we as a society want from the technology?’”

This article is part of the People of HAI series. As we celebrate our five-year anniversary, we’re telling the story of Stanford HAI through the lens of the people behind our work, spotlighting their personal successes, what inspires them, and what they look forward to for the institute.