September 21, 2026
Kudos to Jennifer Nwogu, a graduate student working with Erin Walker, who was recognized at this year’s Hub for AI and Data Science Leadership (HAIL) Graduate Awardee Program, which honors individuals whose research, teaching and leadership aim to redefine artificial intelligence (AI) and data science. Eight Pitt doctoral students participated in the inaugural awards program, each recognized as “showing curiosity and critical thinking about responsibility in AI and data science practices,” said Nora Mattern, program facilitator and HAIL’s associate director of responsible AI and data science practices.
Nwogu’s research interests focus on how people interact with conversational AI, using human-computer interaction methods to design better chat and voice interfaces. She is currently collaborating with Dr. Erin Walker and Dr. Rosta Farzan in the FACET Lab and the Sustainable Social Computing Lab, which investigates how to design AI assistants that better support the information practices of African American older adults. She has also worked with the Personalized Adaptive Web Systems Lab, under the guidance of Dr. Peter Brusilovsky, to create a platform that enables students who are interested in technology to compare their skills, efforts, progress, achievements, and professional milestones with their peers.