PeopleofSuperintelligence

Researcher

Haym Hirsh

Haym Hirsh is a computer scientist whose research spans machine learning, data mining, information retrieval and artificial intelligence involving people and computing. He earned degrees at UCLA and Stanford University, completing a 1989 doctorate on concept learning under Bruce Buchanan before spending 24 years at Rutgers University on the computer science faculty. At Rutgers, he co-edited the 1994 International Conference on Machine Learning proceedings, coauthored the August 2000 article “Learning to Personalize,” and chaired the Computer Science Department from 2003 to 2006 and from 2012 to 2013. He directed the National Science Foundation's Division of Information and Intelligent Systems from 2006 to 2010, served at MIT's Center for Collective Intelligence from 2010 to 2011, became dean of Cornell's Faculty of Computing and Information Science in 2013, coauthored a 2015 human-computation roadmap, and was elected an AAAS Fellow in 2022. After contributing to Cornell's March 2025 recommendations for the White House AI Action Plan, he is Professor of Computer Science and Director of the MEng Program at Cornell and Faculty Co-Director for Artificial Intelligence at the Joan Klein Jacobs Center for Precision Nutrition and Health as of October 2026.

Born
1963

Years link to their sources.

Timeline

  1. 1983–1989

    UCLA and Stanford degrees

    He earns a BS in mathematics and computer science from UCLA in 1983, followed by an MS in 1985 and a PhD in 1989 from the Computer Science Department at Stanford University. His 1989 dissertation, “Incremental Version Space Merging: A General Framework for Concept Learning,” is advised by Bruce Buchanan.

  2. 1994–2000

    Machine learning and personalization at Rutgers

    On the computer science faculty at Rutgers University, he and William W. Cohen edit Machine Learning: Proceedings of the Eleventh International Conference in 1994. In August 2000, he coauthors the Communications of the ACM article “Learning to Personalize” with Chumki Basu and Brian D. Davison.

  3. 2003–2006

    Chairing computer science at Rutgers

    From 2003 to 2006, and again from 2012 to 2013, he serves as Chair of the Rutgers University Computer Science Department.

  4. 2006–2011

    NSF division director and MIT

    From 2006 to 2010, he serves as director of the Division of Information and Intelligent Systems at the National Science Foundation. From 2010 to 2011, he serves at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Center for Collective Intelligence in the Sloan School of Management.

  5. 2013

    Dean of computing at Cornell

    After spending 24 years at Rutgers University on the computer science faculty, he moves to Cornell University in 2013 to serve as dean of the Faculty of Computing and Information Science, effective July 2013. His research focuses on machine learning, data mining, information retrieval and artificial intelligence involving both people and computing.

  6. 2015

    A human computation roadmap

    In 2015, he coauthors the Computing Community Consortium technical report A U.S. Research Roadmap for Human Computation with Pietro Michelucci, Lea Shanley and Janis Dickinson. The report examines how the Web makes it possible to harness human cognition en masse.

  7. 2022

    An AAAS fellowship

    In 2022, he is elected a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

  8. As of October 2026

    Cornell professor and AI center co-director

    In March 2025, he contributes to a proposal from Cornell Ann S. Bowers College of Computing and Information Science and Cornell Tech offering recommendations for the White House AI Action Plan. As of October 2026, he is Professor of Computer Science and Director of the MEng Program at Cornell, and Faculty Co-Director for Artificial Intelligence at the Cornell Joan Klein Jacobs Center for Precision Nutrition and Health.

Career

  1. Since 2013Cornell UniversityDean
  2. 2010–2011Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  3. 2006–2010National Science FoundationDirector
  4. 1994–2000Rutgers UniversityComputer Science faculty member

Education

  1. 1989Stanford UniversityPhD
  2. 1985Stanford UniversityMS
  3. 1983University of California, Los AngelesBS in mathematics and computer science

From the biography.

  1. 11% of AI doctorate holders from 2010 to 2016 founded or led a company or lab by 10 years after graduationIncludes Cornell University. We estimate how often AI doctorate holders founded or led a company or lab by 10 years after graduation, how waiting times compare between founders and top jobs, and which universities trained the most.
  2. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology trained or employed 44 of the 187 AI major-prize winners, more than any other universityIncludes Cornell University. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology trained or employed 44 of the 187 AI major-prize winners, more than any other university. We compare doctorate and 5+ year employment links, career timing and current workplaces for 187 major-prize and 1,111 best-paper winners.
  3. 84% of people shaping AI with recorded undergraduate and doctoral schools changed institutions for their doctorateIncludes Cornell University. 84% of people shaping AI with recorded undergraduate and doctoral schools changed institutions for their doctorate. Across 2,116 people with both an undergraduate degree and a doctorate recorded, we trace which undergraduate schools feed which doctoral programs, how often students stay at the same school, and how paths differ by birth-country region.
  4. The median h-index is 48 at universities and 14 at frontier AI labsIncludes Cornell University. The median h-index is 48 at universities and 14 at frontier AI labs. We compare publishing careers, recent citations, dual appointments and job moves across 2,420 university researchers and 308 frontier-lab researchers.

Colleagues

People named in this biography, and people with dated positions at the same organization in the same years.

Sources and credits

Photo: We have no published photo of Haym Hirsh yet. Send us a free-licensed photo.

  1. Home Page for Haym Hirsh cs.cornell.edu. Checked 22 October 2026.
  2. Academic Genealogy cs.cornell.edu. Checked 22 October 2026.
  3. Haym Hirsh | Department of Computer Science | Cornell Bowers bowers.cornell.edu. Checked 22 October 2026.
  4. Machine Learning: Proceedings of the Eleventh International Conference - Google Buku books.google.com. Checked 22 October 2026.
  5. Learning to Personalize cse.lehigh.edu. Checked 22 October 2026.
  6. Haym Hirsh named dean of Computing and Information Science | Cornell Chronicle news.cornell.edu. Checked 22 October 2026.
  7. [1505.07096] A U.S. Research Roadmap for Human Computation arxiv.org. Checked 22 October 2026.
  8. Securing America’s AI Future: Cornell faculty offer recommendations for White House’s AI Action Plan ai.cornell.edu. Checked 22 October 2026.
  9. Leadership — Cornell Joan Klein Jacobs Center for Precision Nutrition and Health | Cornell Human Ecology cpnh.cornell.edu. Checked 22 October 2026.