Prof. KC (Casey) Santosh, a highly accomplished AI expert and TEDx Speaker, is the Chair of the Department of Computer Science at the University of South Dakota (USD). He is also the founding director of the AI Lab. He served the National Institutes of Health (NIH) as a research fellow. Before that, he worked as a postdoctoral research scientist at the LORIA research centre, Universite de Lorraine in direct collaboration with industrial partner, ITESOFT, France. He earned his PhD in Computer Science - Artificial Intelligence from the INRIA Nancy Grand Est research centre (France).
With funding exceeding $8.7 million from sources like DOD, NSF, ED, and SDBOR, he has authored 10 books and more than 250 peer-reviewed research articles, including IEEE TPAMI, IEEE TMI, and IEEE TAI. He serves as an associate editor for esteemed journals such as IEEE Transactions on AI, IEEE Transactions on Medical Imaging, Int. J of Machine Learning & Cybernetics, and Int. J of Pattern Recognition & Artificial Intelligence.
As the founder of AI programs at USD, he has taken significant strides to increase enrollment in the graduate program, resulting in over 3,000% growth in just four years. His leadership has helped build multiple inter-disciplinary AI/Data Science related academic programs, including collaborations with Biology, Physics, Biomedical Engineering, Sustainability and Business Analytics departments. Prof. Santosh is highly motivated in academic leadership, and his contributions have established USD as a pioneer in AI programs within the state of SD.
To name a few, Prof. Santosh is the proud recipient of the Visionary Leadership Award (University of Derby - UK, 2023), the Cutler Award for Teaching and Research Excellence (USD, 2021), the President's Research Excellence Award (USD, 2019), and the Ignite Award from the US Department of Health & Human Services (HHS, 2014).
Effective from Spring 2024, he joined the NIST's AI Safety Institute Consortium and, since December 2024, has been serving in the U.S. Speaker Program (U.S. Department of State), delivering talks on AI and AI education-being the only representative from South Dakota in both roles.
I work as a Professor in the Department of Computer Sciences at the Central University of Karnataka, Kadaganchi, Kalaburagi, India. I have additional responsibilities as Dean, Students Welfare (DSW), Nodal Officer of Project Samarth, and Visvesvaraya Ph.D. Scheme.
I am honored to receive the Prof. Satish Dhawan Young Engineer Award for 2020 by the Government of Karnataka, nomination as Senior Member of IEEE, and Associate Editorial Board Member: Current Medical Imaging.
My areas of research are Digital Image Processing, Medical Image Analysis, Document Image Analysis, Biometrics, Machine Vision, and Robotics. Currently there are three on-going research projects worth Rs.
She is founder and head of the Computer Vision, Imaging and Machine Intelligence (CVI2) Research Group. She also heads the SnT Computer Vision Laboratory and co-heads the SnT Zero-G Laboratory. She regularly serves the research community as a reviewer, Editor, Associate Editor, Chair, Area or Program Chair. She is the founder of the SHARP Workshop, and chair of its four editions at ECCV 2020, CVPR 2021, CVPR 2022, and ICCV 2023. She has worked as a consultant for multiple renowned laboratories (Los Alamos National Laboratory, Alcatel Lucent Bell Labs., and Mitsubishi Electric Research Labs.). Djamila is passionate about public outreach, particularly in promoting and encouraging women in STEAM. She served as the Chair of the IEEE Benelux Women in Engineering Affinity Group from 2014 to 2016, and has joined the Board of Directors of the Asteroid Foundation since April 2024. Since 2023, she has been appointed as member of the Algerian AI Board and the UK ART AI Board at the University of Bath for Accountable, Responsible and Transparent AI, further contributing to the advancement of AI initiatives.
Dr. Mo Medwani holds a Ph.D. in Artificial Intelligence and serves as a Board member of AI Center of Excellence (AICE) at Capitol Technology University. He is also a Board member of Higher Education Without Borders (HEWB), Morocco. Dr. Medwani serves as Adjunct Faculty at Marymount University (Doctorate level - Maryland) and Adjunct Faculty at Mercer University (Master's level - Atlanta). Currently, he works as Sr. Data Scientist/Data Science Lead at New Jersey Transit.
Dr. Medwani has completed 8 Post-master's in Data Science & AI from Columbia University/Purdue University. He holds an MS in Data Science & Analytics from Maryland University, an MS in Information Technology from Kennesaw University, and an MS in Business Administration (MBA) from Southern Polytechnic University. He is also the Founder of InnovatiCS.
Abdeslam Jakjoud is the Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of EPINeon Precision Life Science, where he leads innovation at the intersection of artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and biomedical engineering. Holding both an engineering degree and a PhD from ENSA Marrakech, he has contributed extensively to R&D initiatives across Africa, Europe, and Asia, driving advancements in AI, cloud computing, quantum computing, and embedded systems. His multidisciplinary expertise reflects a commitment to leveraging deep technology for meaningful scientific progress.
Dr. Jakjoud's research and innovation portfolio includes a patent in blockchain technology and ongoing work in continuous glucose monitoring systems, illustrating his dedication to solving complex global challenges through applied science. Guided by the vision of making advanced technology affordable, accessible, and transformative, he strives to enhance quality of life and promote sustainable technological growth in developing regions worldwide.
