Daphne Koller
Daphne Koller is the founder and CEO of insitro, a company combining biological data, machine learning, and drug-development research. Her earlier Stanford work studied how computers can represent relationships and reason with uncertain information. She earned degrees at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and a Stanford doctorate, then joined Stanford’s faculty in 1995 after postdoctoral work at Berkeley. With Nir Friedman, she wrote Probabilistic Graphical Models. She also co-founded Coursera with Andrew Ng in 2012, bringing university courses to an online platform. Her Calico role from 2016 to 2018 connected machine learning with biological datasets. In 2026, insitro reported additional ALS targets in its Bristol Myers Squibb collaboration. Those targets are research milestones; patient benefit requires further evidence.
- Now at
- insitro, inc. and Stanford University
- Works
- 463
- Citations
- 60,182
- h-index
- 124
Publication numbers from OpenAlex, as of 14 October 2026.
Timeline
-
1985–1995
Education and Stanford
Koller studies in Jerusalem and Stanford, works at Berkeley, and joins Stanford’s faculty in 1995.
-
2004
Probabilistic research
MacArthur recognizes her work on models of relationships and uncertainty.
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2009
A shared textbook
Koller and Nir Friedman publish Probabilistic Graphical Models.
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2012
Coursera
Koller and Andrew Ng co-found an online course platform with university partners.
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2016–2018 and after
Biology and machine learning
Her Calico work precedes leadership of insitro, where biological measurements guide research.
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2026
ALS research targets
insitro announces additional targets nominated by Bristol Myers Squibb; clinical benefit remains to establish.
Sources and credits
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