Francis Bach
Francis Bach completed a computer science doctorate at Berkeley with Michael Jordan. He worked in the WILLOW team from 2007 to 2010 and led SIERRA from 2011. His research focuses on statistical machine learning, including optimisation, sparse methods, and kernel learning. He was elected to the French Academy of Sciences in 2020, and Learning Theory from First Principles was published in December 2024. His career combines mathematical research with teaching and written accounts of learning algorithms.
- Now at
- École Normale Supérieure
- Works
- 745
- Citations
- 38,141
- h-index
- 85
Publication numbers from OpenAlex, as of 14 October 2026.
Timeline
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Earlier career and 2007–2010
Training and WILLOW research
Bach earned a computer science doctorate at Berkeley with Michael Jordan and later worked at École des Mines. He worked in the WILLOW team from 2007–2010.
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2011
Leading statistical learning research
He has led the SIERRA project-team since 2011. SIERRA is part of ENS’s computer science department and a joint team with CNRS and Inria. His research topics include optimisation, sparsity, kernel methods, neural networks, and graphical models.
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2020
Recognition of the research career
He was elected to the French Academy of Sciences in 2020. He continues research and teaching in statistical learning.
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2024
Learning theory in a book
Bach published Learning Theory from First Principles at MIT Press in December 2024.
Sources and credits
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