PeopleofSuperintelligence

Researcher

Russ Altman

Also known as Russ B. Altman, Russ Biagio Altman

Russ Altman is a Stanford professor who applies computing and informatics to problems in medicine, and in October 2025 he gave congressional testimony on AI in patient care and drug discovery. He earned an A.B. from Harvard College in 1983, then a PhD in medical information sciences at Stanford in 1989 and an MD in 1990. In 2000 he helped start the PharmGKB project, and he served as president of the International Society for Computational Biology from 2000 to 2002. ATOM3D, a paper he co-authored, received a NeurIPS 2021 Datasets and Benchmarks Award. As of October 2026 he is the Kenneth Fong Professor at Stanford, and he also hosts The Future of Everything podcast.

Timeline

  1. 1983–1990

    A Stanford PhD and MD

    He earns an A.B. from Harvard College in 1983. He then completes a PhD in medical information sciences at Stanford in 1989 and an MD at Stanford Medical School in 1990.

  2. 1996–1997

    NSF and presidential early-career awards

    He receives a National Science Foundation CAREER Award in 1996. In 1997 he also receives the U.S. Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers.

  3. 2000

    Starting the PharmGKB project

    In 2000 he helps start the PharmGKB project. His lab studies how human genetic variation impacts drug response.

  4. 2000–2002

    President of the ISCB

    He serves as president of the ISCB from 2000 to 2002. He is also a founding board member and a Fellow of the society.

  5. 2018

    An ISCB Outstanding Contributions Award

    In 2018 the ISCB gives him its Outstanding Contributions Award. The award recognizes members for service toward the betterment of ISCB.

  6. 2021

    A NeurIPS Datasets and Benchmarks Award

    A paper he co-authors, ATOM3D: Tasks on Molecules in Three Dimensions, receives a NeurIPS 2021 Datasets and Benchmarks Award.

  7. October 2025

    Congressional testimony on AI

    In October 2025, he gives congressional testimony on AI applications for patient care and drug discovery.

  8. As of October 2026

    Kenneth Fong Professor at Stanford

    He is the Kenneth Fong Professor of Bioengineering, Genetics, Medicine, and Biomedical Data Science at Stanford, with a courtesy appointment in Computer Science. His research applies computing and informatics to problems relevant to medicine. He also hosts The Future of Everything podcast.

Sources and credits

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  1. Russ Altman - Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org. Checked 15 October 2026.
  2. February 14, 2018: ISCB Congratulates the 2018 ISCB Award Winners! iscb.org. Checked 15 October 2026.
  3. NeurIPS 2021 Awards neurips.cc. Checked 15 October 2026.
  4. ATOM3D: Tasks on Molecules in Three Dimensions datasets-benchmarks-proceedings.neurips.cc. Checked 15 October 2026.
  5. Russ Altman’s Testimony Before the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions | Stanford HAI hai.stanford.edu. Checked 15 October 2026.
  6. Russ B. Altman's Profile | Stanford Profiles profiles.stanford.edu. Checked 15 October 2026.
  7. The Future of Everything Podcast | Stanford University School of Engineering engineering.stanford.edu. Checked 15 October 2026.