Indian-American director of the National Science Foundation, Sethuraman Panchanathan, will be the commencement speaker at Northeastern University's 2024 graduate students commencement on May 5, at Fenway Park in Boston.
Panchanathan, a computer scientist and engineer, was appointed director of the National Science Foundation in June 2020. NSF, with a budget of approximately $9.5 billion, is an independent federal agency charged with advancing scientific discovery, technological innovation, and of STEM education in the United States.
“Many of the greatest challenges of our time pose questions that only science can answer,” Joseph E. Aoun, Northeastern's president, said in a university statement.
“The relentless quest to solve global problems is fueled by the brilliant minds of scientists and the unwavering support of federal agencies like NSF. Director Panchanathan's leadership has been a force in recognizing the pioneering challenges and opportunities of cutting-edge science, particularly artificial intelligence. We welcome him back to Northeastern.”
Panchanathan spoke earlier at the grand opening of Northeastern's 357,000-square-foot EXP research complex on the Boston campus in the fall.
“I had a fantastic opportunity to visit Northeastern University for the grand opening of the EXP Research Complex last October,” said Panchanathan. “I saw firsthand how dedicated Northeastern University is to providing world-class educational opportunities and educating future generations of leaders and innovators.”
“I am truly delighted to be returning to Northeastern University in May to celebrate this year's graduates. Their North Eastern education has given them everything they need to succeed in a future rich in opportunity,” he said.
In an article in the scientific journal PNAS Nexus last month, Panchanathan called for the responsible and fair development of artificial intelligence.
He said the NSF annually spends about $800 million on artificial intelligence research in the public interest. In January, NSF, other federal agencies and private sector partners launched the National Artificial Intelligence Research Resource pilot program, a first step toward a shared national research infrastructure.
“The responsible democratization of AI research will foster an environment where innovation happens anywhere and opportunities are available everywhere,” he said in the editorial.
Panchanathan told Northeastern Global News in October that there may be challenges when it comes to artificial intelligence, but the promise of innovation cannot be slowed by the potential.
“Challenges should motivate us, inspire us, to see what kind of guardrails, what kind of new technologies, what kind of innovations can be developed to address them,” Panchanathan said.
“We don't run away from challenges. We don't shy away from challenges. We understand them, we shape them. This is the time I would say to speed up rather than slow down.”
Prior to his confirmation as NSF director, Panchanathan served as executive vice president of the Arizona State University Knowledge Enterprise and as chief research and innovation officer.
He was also the founder and director of the Center for Cognitive Ubiquitous Computing at ASU. Panchanathan was previously a professor at Arizona State for many years.
