David Harel
Also known as דוד הראל
David Harel is a computer scientist at the Weizmann Institute of Science, and his methods for specifying software now meet AI through scenario-assisted deep reinforcement learning. He invented the Statecharts language in 1987 for specifying and programming reactive systems. In the late 1990s, he co-invented Live Sequence Charts, launching a scenario-based approach to programming. Prizes include the Israel Prize in 2004, the ACM Software System Award in 2007 and the Emet Prize in 2010, and the Royal Society elected him a Fellow in 2020. He is president of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, a post he took up in September 2021, and he was elected to the National Academy of Artificial Intelligence in 2026.
- Now at
- Weizmann Institute of Science and Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities
- Works
- 622
- Citations
- 30,348
- h-index
- 75
Publication numbers from OpenAlex, as of 15 October 2026.
Timeline
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1950–1978
A PhD from MIT
Born in England in 1950, he moves to Israel at the age of seven. Bar-Ilan University grants him a BSc in 1974, Tel Aviv University an MSc in 1976 and MIT a PhD in 1978.
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1980–1995
Joining the Weizmann Institute
Before joining the Weizmann Institute in 1980, he works at the IBM Research Center. From 1989 to 1995, he heads the Department of Applied Mathematics and Computer Science.
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1983–1987
The Statecharts language
Consulting for the Lavi project of Israel Aircraft Industries begins in 1983. In 1987 he invents the Statecharts language for specifying and programming reactive systems, which has been adopted as part of the UML standard.
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1990s
Live Sequence Charts
Live Sequence Charts, which he co-invents with W. Damm in the late 1990s, launch a scenario-based approach to programming reactive systems.
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2004–2010
Israel, ACM and Emet prizes
He receives the Israel Prize in 2004, the ACM Software System Award in 2007 and the Emet Prize in 2010.
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2020
Fellow of the Royal Society
The Royal Society makes him a Fellow in 2020.
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2021–2026
President of the Israel Academy
He is president of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, a post that begins in September 2021. In 2022 he co-authors the paper Scenario-assisted Deep Reinforcement Learning.In 2026 he is elected to the National Academy of Artificial Intelligence.
Sources and credits
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