Sendhil Mullainathan

Sendhil Mullainathan is the Peter de Florez Professor at MIT, splitting his time between the Economics and the Electrical Engineering and Computer Science departments. His current research is at the intersection of algorithms and people, with a central focus on launching The Bike Shop @ MIT, a new research center which works towards more human-centered AI through scalable bicycles for the mind, and innovative new gears for machine learning algorithms.

He enjoys writing, having co-authored Scarcity: Why Having Too Little Means So Much as well as having written regularly for the New York Times.

He is active in the application of research insights. He helped co-found a non-profit to apply behavioral science (ideas42); co-founded a center to promote the use of randomized control trials in development (the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab), and co-founded Dandelion Health.

He is a recipient of the MacArthur “genius” Award, is a winner of the Infosys Prize, has been designated a “Young Global Leader” by the World Economic Forum, labeled a “Top 100 Thinker” by Foreign Policy Magazine, and named to the “Smart List: 50 people who will change the world” by Wired Magazine (UK).

AI2050 Project

Artificial intelligence is incredibly skilled at spotting complex patterns hidden from human experts, like detecting early disease markers in medical scans or predicting chemical reactions. However, these valuable insights currently remain locked inside an opaque “black box”. Mullainathan’s project aims to turn these raw predictions into true scientific breakthroughs. They are building a universal toolkit that translates what the AI “sees” into clear, human-understandable scientific theories. By bridging the gap between computer algorithms and human logic, we can radically accelerate discoveries across medicine, chemistry, and education, transforming how we understand our world.