Professor Emeritus and  Professor in the Graduate School Michael I. Jordan has been named a Frontiers of Knowledge Laureate. The 17th edition of the award recognizes and rewards excellence in research and cultural creation, especially contributions that have achieved broad impact due to their originality and significance. Jordan is recognized in the Information and Communication Technologies category, specifically for his work around the mathematical foundations of artificial intelligence.

“A tremendous congratulations goes out to Professor Jordan,” said Statistics Chair Haiyan Huang. “Mike is a luminary scholar who has helped shape the studies around Artificial Intelligence, and he is also a trusted and respected member of our community.” 

Jordan is also the Pehong Chen Distinguished Professor in Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences. He is also a Senior Researcher at the National Institute for Research in Digital Science and Technology (INRIA) in Paris (France), where he heads the Markets and Machine Learning chair at the INRIA Foundation. Jordan’s research focuses on the relationships between computation, statistics, and economics. He also works on applications in molecular biology, natural language processing, signal processing, and mechanism design. 

The Frontiers of Knowledge is awarded via the BBVA Foundation, which is supported by the Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, a Spanish multinational financial services company based in Bilbao, Spain. The Foundation analyzes emerging issues in five strategic areas: Environment, Biomedicine and Health, Economy and Society, Basic Sciences and Technology, and Culture. The BBVA Foundation designs, develops, and funds research projects; facilitates advanced specialist training through grants, courses, seminars, and workshops; organizes awards for researchers and professionals whose work has contributed significantly to the advancement of knowledge; and communicates and disseminates such new knowledge through publications, lectures, and debates.

The BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Awards consist of 400,000 euros, a diploma, and a commemorative artwork by artist Blanca Muñoz. Anil Jain was also named an Information and Communication Technologies Laureate for his contributions to biometric technologies. Fellow UC Berkeley Professor Jennifer Dounda was a 9th edition BBVA Laureate for her groundbreaking CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing techniques. As of 2023, 22 BBVA Foundation laureates have also won the Nobel Prize.

-Alex Coughlin

Photo courtesy of the BBVA Foundation